Things are always changing in Europe — and that’s why I spend 100 days of every year over here, keeping the Rick Steves guidebooks up-to-date. About a third of the way through my 2018 trip, I’ve already collected several snapshots that illustrate Europe’s constant evolution. —Rick
Modern art is becoming more fun. In the normally predictable and unchanging fortress city of Carcassonne, I noticed odd yellow slashes on the walls and turrets. When I reached the proper vantage point, the bull’s-eye came together.
Europe’s cultural patrimony is always being spiffed up, and it is costly. It’s not unusual to see an ancient site half-cleaned. And when you see the contrast between old and newly cleaned, you better appreciate the value of peeling away all that soot.
Routinely at restaurants in France, when the people eating at the next table learned we were Americans, we got into conversations about Trump. Europeans are confused about our politics and curious about our headline-hogging president. Talking politics is a new twist to the European travel experience.
Things are so modern and comfortable in the new, affluent Europe. And that means you rarely see the old squat toilets.
On a related note, I learned that in the spirit of caring governance, you can always find a free and clean public toilet at France’s city halls.
More and more Europeans are embracing ways to fight climate change. (But one of my pet peeves remains hotels that change towels I’ve hung up to dry — even when they have thoughtfully offered to help save the environment by only replacing towels that are tossed on the floor.)
Parking in European cities is quite expensive, although it is getting easier with big underground garages. But there are free and efficient park-and-ride lots outside of many city centers. If you make a point to use these, you’ll save both time and money — and help European cities cut down on traffic congestion in their clogged city centers.
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