Europe never appealed to me enough for me to want to go there.  However, my mom used to brag about how she travelled the world when she was young, and how Europe had been her next destination, after visiting the US.  Unfortunately, her plans would be derailed as she visited the US, met my dad, had me and my brother, and raised us.  Fast forward 30 years, and I made it one of my goals to pick up where she left off.  In addition, back in elementary school, my aunt, who was visiting from Switzerland had invited me to visit someday.  That someday would be this year.

I planned to visit Europe this year, and pounced when I spotted cheap airline tickets to Zurich at the beginning of this year.  I made sure my brother was available to go, as were my parents, bought the tickets, and started planning.  Two years ago, my brother and I visited Japan.  We bought the JR Rail pass, and that worked out for us.  I planned to do something similar this time by buying the Eurail pass.  As it turned out, this would work out mostly, except for 2 legs of our trip.  After buying the Eurail pass, I proceeded to figure out the itinerary.  I learned from our Japan trip that it was crucial to first check where the rail pass was available, and to plan the cities that we visit so that they can be reached by rail within an acceptable amount of time - around 2-4 hours.  Having plotted out the cities that we would visit, I then used Airbnb, which was not available during our Japan trip, to book places we would stay at.  My priorities were places that could be reached by transit, as we would not be renting a car, and I learned from our Japan trip to make sure the walking distance was not too far, regardless of how appealing the price was.  Finally, with our transportation and lodging settled, I proceeded to look up places we would eat at.  This was the one step that I had neglected to do on our Japan trip, which I feel would've helped a lot in our experience.  

On 9/3, we left for the airport early in the morning.  I mowed the lawn and took a shower right before we left because the lawn was already due for mowing, and I would probably get in trouble if I left it for two more weeks.  I ran over a dead rat as I pushed my lawnmower around.  That was nasty.  Anyways, we were able to get to the airport and check in our bags, and be at the gate waiting for our 10AM flight by 8AM.  There, we chilled and ate some snacks as we waited. I also tried to get my parents' iPhones unlocked, so that we could use them in Europe.  The airplane came, we boarded, made a connecting flight at Atlanta, and landed in Zurich.  It was pretty comfortable, though my parents complained that the seats I picked were next to the engine so it was too loud.  It didn't bother me, because I had noise-cancelling headphones, but I'll remember that for next time, if there is a next time...

Zurich

We arrive on 9/4.  My uncle, Guido, was waiting to pick us up.  He showed us Zurich, and drove us down to Zug, where his family lived.  There, we ate some snacks, I got to meet my cousins, Benjamin and Alexander, and their wives, and we went to eat lunch together.  After that, we walked around a little in Zug.  It was a nice afternoon.  Afterwards, uncle Guido drove us to our lodgings in Adliswil for the night, where I met our host, Carlos, who was a very nice person.  I was pleasantly surprised that other travellers were lodging there for the night, because the little town was a little ways outside of Zurich.

Munich

On 9/5, we walked down to the train station, found the train to Munich, hopped on, and went to Munich.  Munich was a very distinctive and classic German city.  There was a sort of local regional pride that reminded me of Texas.  People were nice and the food was great.  Our accommodations were also very interesting.  We lived on the third floor/roof of a suburban home, but our room came with its own kitchen, dining area, and restroom.  I was surprised at how spacious it was, given that it was a roof.  The city was beautiful and full of history. We spent two days there to get our bearings and recover from the jet lag.

Prague

On 9/7, we left for Prague.  We arrived in the afternoon, and took a bus to the shady part of town, where we were going to stay for the night.  Our host's uncle, Rado, assured us that artists and creative types lived there, so it was very safe.  We took his word for it.  We did our laundry there, and explored the city in the morning.

Berlin

On 9/8, we left for Berlin.  Berlin has very little old nice things; instead, it is more modern and hip.  It is a cheap party city, but since we weren't partying on our trip, we didn't really do much.  We mainly just rested and walked around a little bit.  Also because it started raining, we left Berlin early to go to Cologne.

Cologne/Koln

On 9/9, we arrived in Cologne.  Cologne is quite the interesting city.  We were greeted by a humongous, towering cathedral as soon as we left the train station.  It was quite the ominous sight to behold.  We also walked around a little, and I bought some cologne there - the original that made the word "cologne" synonymous with perfume.  Turns out, the original cologne was unisex.

Amsterdam

On 9/10, we arrived in Amsterdam.  Amsterdam is a very nice place.  I was surprised by how many tourists were there.  For the most part, people left us alone, which was nice.  So, we wandered around the city, and there were many nice things we saw.  Our hostess was also very kind and friendly, and talked with my dad for hours.

Brussels

On 9/11, we arrived in Brussels.  Because we lived in the suburbs, and it was raining, we only made a very short trip to the Grand Place, where we were quite impressed.  We also bought some Neuhaus chocolates, recommended by our hostess, who was also very helpful in recommending us for places to go or eat.  Our lodgings that night was the basement of the home our hostess lived in, but it was also surprisingly spacious, inclusive of a kitchen and restroom.

Paris

On 9/12, we embarked on our trip to Paris.  This was the only leg in the trip where things did not go according to plan.  I had planned on taking regional trains from Brussels to Paris, stopping by towns along the way to walk around.  Unfortunately, when we got to Lilli Flandres, we found out that the train we were supposed to take next did not run.  We had to go to another nearby station, and purchase TGV tickets (which the Eurail pass did not cover) to get to Paris.  The added expense was a sour note on this trip, but we arrived safely in Paris, where we stayed for two nights.  Paris had a lot of things to see, and we only managed to scratch the surface.  People there were also nice, and we didn't really meet any rude people who refused to help us due to us not speaking French.

Lyon

On 9/14, we left for Lyon, also riding on the TGV.  I had purchased tickets beforehand, because this 2-hour leg of the journey would take 6 hours instead, if we went by regional trains.  Lyon was a wonderful city.  Our host, whom we met while he was still cleaning the apartment, was a very nice gentleman who kept his apartment impeccably clean.  It was very comfortable staying there, and I look forward to returning.  The food was also exquisite.

Geneva

On 9/15, we left for Geneva.  Geneva is an expensive city, so I could only find reasonably-priced lodgings in a nearby French town called Annamasse.  While there were public transit, the buses ran very infrequently.  However, this did give us an opportunity to experience the rural French countryside.  We had lunch in Geneva, and it was good, as usual.  I ordered warm milk for my dad.  He said it was creamy.  Annamasse was the only place where we met some rude old French men who refused to help us, at the tourist and train offices, no less.  But, in the grand scheme of things, everything ended up working out.

Zurich

On 9/16, we headed back for Zurich.  We would spend the night in a nice, clean apartment close to the train station, so we could catch our morning flight the following day.  Supposedly, the area we lived in was a party at night, but since we were on the fourth floor, we weren't bothered.

And so, on 9/17, we bid Europe good bye, and came back home.  We left at 6AM, and got back home at 8PM.  It was one long day as we chased the sun.

There have been a number of lessons and tips I learned throughout this trip that are small details, but crucial:

• Always have spare coins for using the restrooms, because lots of public restrooms in Europe are not free.  Restrooms on trains are free, though.
• Bring disposable slippers.  They are $1.50 at Daiso.
• Dryers in Europe are a hit and miss.  Especially in France, dryers do not get clothes dry because the French believe that if you use heat, you cook the clothes.  If you do laundry, allocate enough time to hang dry.
• Do not be nice to strangers, especially in tourist areas.  Ignore people who come up to you asking for you to sign their petition.  There are lots of pickpocketers, scammers, and beggars in the tourist areas, but surprisingly, when you get out of those areas, scammers and beggars mysteriously disappear.  Pickpocketers still abound in any crowded area though.
• Don't travel alone.  Safety in numbers is a saying that is very true.
• Beware of massage parlors.  At a minimum, they should have a permanent sign in the front.  Avoid following stands that point to the location of obscure massage parlors.
• Pack lightly.  The more luggage you have, the more you make yourself a target for pickpocketers.  Backpacks are best when travelling, because there are lots of stairs in train stations, and escalators and elevators are not always readily available.
• Avoid using bags with large openings.
• Never leave your cellphone on a table.