A Flushing Dilemma

I have been perplexed at times, while traveling in Europe, about a task I consider here at home to be pretty straightforward - flushing the toilet.  I remember when I was a child, entering a public restroom in Europe was often a mystery.  What sort of medieval plumbing contraption was I required to push, pull, turn, yank or crank to finish the job I came to do?

Take, for example, the lavatory below, frequently encountered in many European countries:

If you haven't chanced upon a pull chain device such as this before, certainly you might search all around the commode looking for a button or lever to flush.  If you are a young child, you undoubtedly wouldn't think to look up to do the job.  And if and when you finally do, there's the likelihood - as in this photo, that you possibly cannot even reach it.

Europeans have gone green, way more than we have here in the U.S., and although we are starting to see dual flush toilets here, the different varieties of mechanisms will cause you pause each and every time.

And, of course, you know I have to bring up everyone's favorite foreign commode:  the squat toilet, also known as the Natural Position toilet (yeah, right, natural for men maybe).  Are these still found in civilized countries?  Yes!  The photos below were taken by my friend recently in Italy.  I've encountered them as well in Greece, Hungary, and even France.

If you have a young daughter, do not let her attempt to use a squat toilet without your help.  I never managed these latrines as a child without tinkling all over my pants and shoes.  And let's just say the germs your child might come into contact with if you're not there to avert a slip or a fall would probably warrant a tetanus booster.

Sometimes in a foreign restroom you will read a sign, occasionally in legible English, asking you not to place toilet paper in the trash receptacle.  You may wonder why the need to elucidate such an obviously nonsensical idea.  That is because there are some countries with poor or no plumbing where you WILL be asked to deposit your toilet paper in the trash receptacle because flushing it will clog the toilet.

Men, like always in these matters, have little difficulty finding a place to go in Europe.  Public urinals are an accessory to many historical buildings in Europe, such as this ancient looking urinol adjacent to the Castle of São Jorge in Lisbon (below) and another near the historic center of Gouda, in the Netherlands (also below).

Public urinal in Lisbon.

Urinal in Gouda, the Netherlands.

And always remember to have a bit of spare change on you when entering a WC in Europe because you never know when you might be caught by surprise by a Klofrau wanting to wipe down the seat for you!

What is a UNESCO World Heritage Site?

If you read travel articles even occasionally, you've surely come across the term "UNESCO World Heritage Site."  I've read it so often over the years I finally decided to investigate what the criteria are to be declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The palace and gardens of Schönbrunn
in Vienna, Austria, are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

The acronym stands for United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, a group founded in 1945 originally to reconstruct Europe's systems of education after the war.  Nine years later, in response to Egypt's Aswan Dam project and its potential flooding of ancient Egyptian treasures, UNESCO launched a worldwide safeguarding campaign.  The program now includes the protection and conservation of places of outstanding cultural as well as natural significance.  As of 2011, 936 sites are listed, with the most (47) in Italy.

The historic center of Rome
is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

There are ten criteria for cultural and natural heritage.  Nominated sites must be of "outstanding universal value" and meet at least one of the ten criteria, such as "represents a masterpiece of human creative genius," "bears a unique or exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared," or "contains superlative natural phenomena."  (Source:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Heritage_Site.)

The Acropolis in Athens, Greece,
is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

What I find particularly cool is that UNESCO World Heritage Sites are legally protected under the Law of War per the Geneva Convention.  Attacks and other acts of hostility are prohibited.  With the political and economic rioting we see so often nowadays in some historic locations (Athens comes to mind) I worry sometimes about the world's precious monuments.  I remember watching on TV the destruction by dynamite of the Buddhas of Bamiyan by the Taliban in Afghanistan.  How tragic that that was permitted to occur!  Although UNESCO vigilantly opposed the proposed destruction of the statues, they were not a listed site and therefore not under protection of the law.

I like to consider designated sites as worthy of a visit when I travel, as they are always unique and interesting.  When we are in Spain and Portugal this summer we will explore the Alhambra in Granada, the city of Córdoba, the Monastery and Site of the Escurial in Madrid, the town of Cáceres in Spain, the Cathedral and Alcázar in Seville, the Tower of Belém in Lisbon, and the town of Sintra in Portugal - all listed by UNESCO.  I'm grateful that this organization exists to preserve the world's cultural and natural treasures for my children and all future generations.

Mont-Saint-Michel and its Bay, in France, are preserved by UNESCO.

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Holiday Shopping Ideas for Traveling Kids

Want to get your kids fired up for a European adventure?  Teach them a little geography or history of the European continent?  There are some fantastic children's books with just that idea in mind, and they would make terrific holiday gifts.

Check out the travel books recommended for kids by Travel for Kids at their website.  A couple of my favorite reads are:

Legendary Journeys:  Trains, by Philip Steele and Sebastian Quigley

Flags of the World, by Sylvie Bednar

Around the World in 80 Tales, by Saviour Pirotta and Richard Johnson.

David Robert Hogg at My Little Nomads also makes some great book recommendations on his website.  I like:

Happy shopping!

Photo Friday: Medieval City Walls

Medieval walled cities are so much fun for kids.  Walking around the inside of the wall kids will often discover secret doors (usually kid-sized!), narrow passageways, staircases to the top, turrets and look-out points.  These photos were taken in Sommerhausen, Germany, a lesser known but fantastic little walled city that I highly recommend for families.  Rothenburg is more famous and is a great destination as well. Other terrific walled cities in Europe are:  Girona, Toledo, and Avila in Spain; Carcassonne, France; York, England; Lucca and Perugia, Italy; Rhodes, Greece; Brugge, Belgium; Obidos, Portugal; and Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Join other bloggers at Photo Friday hosted by DeliciousBaby.com every week.

Ferry to the Island of Corfu

If you have an itch to visit the Greek islands while you're nearby in southern Italy, there's no need to fly to Athens.  The island of Corfu, one of the larger Greek islands, is just a ferry ride from Italy and may fit into your family’s travel itinerary a little easier (and less expensively) than those off the coast of the capital.  And just because I had a horrible experience doing this 25 years ago doesn't mean things haven't changed, especially if you're not a 24 year old backpacker looking for the cheapest transportation possible, like I was.

Head over to Brindisi, on the Adriatic coast of Italy, where you will find the most frequent (and the shortest) ferry crossings to Corfu by a number of different ferry operators.  If you're traveling in the peak summer months, the trick is to make a reservation a couple days in advance so that you actually have a seat.  Yes, here's where things can go wrong.  The ferry services will sell you "deck seating" when the boats get crowded, and you will presume that means a chair on the deck.  But those few lounge chairs on the deck are swiftly taken, and you will be stuck "deck sitting" instead of with "deck seating."  I slept on the floor of the outdoor deck of the ship for the entire 9 hour night trip.  I don't advise this.  Booking in advance can assure you a cabin - shared or deluxe - or an aircraft style seat or several other classes of ticket.

At least I had a nice view from my "seat" on the bow of the ship.

You'll want to board the boat from Brindisi to Igoumenitsa, on the Greek mainland, since it stops in Corfu.  Corfu is a very lush, green island with excellent beaches, a mild Mediterranean climate, and over two million olive trees.  So many of the more popular Greek islands, like Santorini, Mykonos, and Ios, are party islands and great for singles looking for fun, but the atmosphere in Corfu is very laid back and much more suitable for families.  The island is rich in culture, significant musical tradition, and local culinary specialties (lots of squid)!

 Two views of Agios Gordios beach on the west coast of Corfu.

Architecture in some parts of Corfu looks very different from other Greek towns due to the influence of many centuries of Venetian rule.  Interesting sites to see are the Palaio Frourio, an old Venetian fortress on an islet; Achillion Palace and its picturesque gardens; the Vlaheraina Monastery; the famous beaches of Paleokastritsa and the Canal D'Amour in Sidari; and even Aqualand Corfu, a water park for you and your kids!

Just one more tip on the ferries:  they are run by Greeks.  Just because you book a ticket on a website, doesn't mean that itinerary (or even that company) will still exist when you go.  There may be a schedule change, or a cancellation, of which you will of course not be informed.   Price reductions are supposed to be given to InterRail and Eurail Pass holders, but in my experience this is up to the whim of the particular ticket agent you are speaking to.  During the high season, be deliberately insouciant when you approach the ferry operator about a return ticket to Italy, because if he senses any urgency or desperation in your voice to travel that day, or any other predetermined day, your desired boat may suddenly be full and he will offer you "one of the few remaining tickets" available on the only alternative - and much more expensive - ferry.  Nothing against the Greeks, of course.  They just have a different way of doing business.

It'll Cost Ya

Photo Friday: Temple of the Gods

When you're standing in front of the Parthenon at the Acropolis in Athens, you can't help but marvel at what man was capable of in 447 BC.

Check out other travel photos at DeliciousBaby.com.

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Movie Monday: The Moon-Spinners

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To Europe With Kids presents Movie Monday as a weekly feature to recommend films that might expose children and their families to any small bit of European history, folklore, scenery, or animated imagery as entertainment, perhaps new knowledge, or just a couple of hours of electronic babysitting.

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This one's a little overly dramatic - might I even say schmaltzy - but it's a typical 1960s genre Hayley Mills Disney movie.  In The Moon-Spinners, Mills plays a young English girl visiting Greece, which is why I'm recommending it to you and your family.  The movie was shot entirely on location on the Mediterranean island of Crete.  While Mills' character, Nikky, gets involved in a mysterious crime and the ensuing adventures, you can enjoy the scenery in the film.  Crete is the largest of the Greek islands, with sandy beaches, rocky coastline, and characteristic white-washed buildings.  Watch the trailer to see if you think this film is right for your family movie night!

Nikky's view from The Moon-Spinner Hotel.

Other Movie Monday posts:

Sound of Music

The Waltz King

Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates

When in Rome

Percy Jackson & the Olympians:  The Lightning Thief

Madeline

Winning London

Hogan's Heroes

Anastasia

The Moon Spinners

Heidi

Animated Heidi

Around the World in 80 Days

National Lampoon's European Vacation

Young Sherlock Holmes

Crazy Carnivals

It's Carnival time in Europe!  I've said it before, but they really know how to celebrate over there, what with St. Nicholas Day, the Epiphany, Boxing Day, and Carnival all part of their rich and diverse annual cycle of holidays.  Also known as Carnivale, Carnaval, or Fasching, traditionally Carnival is the time to indulge before Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, a time for fasting and abstinence.

In some countries the official start of the festival season is 11/11 at 11:11 a.m. every year.  (This coming November, 2011, ought to be really big!)  In other regions the parties don't really get serious until closer to Ash Wednesday, like Mardi Gras in New Orleans.

Carnival is said to have originated in medieval Italy, and Venice in particular has a long history of parades, fireworks, and masquerading.  Beautifully embellished masks have, in fact, become a popular souvenir from Venice.  (Ugly, scary masks and costumes, too):

Costumes and masks are for sale all year long in Venice!

From Italy, Carnival then spread to other Catholic regions such as Spain, Portugal, France, and Germany.  Today, Carnival season is a huge tourist attraction in many countries.  If you're lucky enough to find yourself in Europe this time of year, click here for a link to an extensive list of Carnival events all over the Continent.

A particular few I read about really caught my eye:

Nice - Carnival in Nice, France, can be traced back to 1294 and nowadays attracts more than a million visitors annually during the two weeks before Lent.

Ivrea - this city in the Piedmont region of Italy recreates a war scene from the Middle Ages every Carnival season called the Battle of the Oranges, where citizens pelt one another on foot, horseback, and carriages with oranges and other citrus fruits.  This one gets my vote for the best Carnival entertainment for the whole family.

Nadur - Nadur is a small town on the island of Gozo, a Maltese island in the Mediterranean.  You may not want to attend their Carnival celebrations with children, since their party theme seems to be a bit more off-color.  The most common street costumes includes cross-dressers and scarcely clad political figures and clergy folk.

Tyrnavos - And I would say you definitely don't want to take your children of any age to Tyrnavos, in the Thessaly region of Greece, where Lent incites the locals to hold their annual Phallus Festival.  This gaudy spectacle includes music, dancing, food and drink, and, you guessed it, parades of enormous wooden and paper-maché phalluses (and yes, I learned today that an alternate acceptable plural is phalli).  What the female partiers there do after several shots of tsipouro (Greek grappa) and ouzo is probably not something you want to have to explain to your kids!

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My Greek Philosophy

Everyone knows what there is to see in Athens, Greece:  the Parthenon, the Acropolis, the Temples of Olympian Zeus and Hephaesus, ancient Roman and Byzantine monuments, and endless classical ruins.  These historical treasures are too grand to be missed by travelers of any age.  Period.  But there’s a “but.”  But for children under the age of probably 10, the significance of these structures will not be impressive for very long.  Especially during the summer, when Athens is crowded, stifling hot and dry, and often smoggy.  I guess that’s why God gave Greece beautiful beaches and an abundance of romantic little islands.

It was a blessed relief for us when visiting blistering Athens in the summertime to stay in a hotel not within the metropolitan area of the city, but in the nearby suburb of Glyfada.  Glyfada has cafes, restaurants, boutiques, shops, a modern marina and a prime waterfront location.  (Sometimes it’s refered to as the “Athens Riviera.”)  Best of all, when you’re traveling with children, are its wide, relaxing, sandy beaches with clear, shallow waters.  A variety of water sports are offered, and we had a lot of fun taking our first windsurfing lessons - although most of the time we looked like this:

Yeah, that's me in the water.

To get back and forth from your hotel in Glyfada to downtown Athens, a taxi is the quickest transportation.  It’ll take about 20 minutes.  (ALWAYS negotiate a flat rate in advance with the taxi driver!)

There is another mode of transportation, however, that might thrill your children to ride once or twice.  The Athens Coast Tram is a cool, hi-tech looking streetcar that connects the center of Athens with Glyfada in the east and Piraeus in the west.  You’ll never wait longer than 8 minutes for the tram, and . . . (may I put this in caps?) IT HAS AIR CONDITIONING!  And thank goodness, because the trip takes an hour.  You can catch the Athens Coast Tram at Syntagma Square, which is right smack in the Athens city center.  Here’s something else important to know when you’re traveling with kids:  at the bottom of Syntagma Square is a McDonalds.  Important for french fries?  No, important for the free bathroom.  (Sidenote:  Athens has recently placed a few sanisettes, like the ones in Paris, around town.)

Athens has also recently caught on to the brilliance of pedestrian zones.  The city has created some lovely carless strolling zones in sections of the city center, which is where you’ll do most of your sightseeing and shopping.  This will save an infinite number of tourists from the near death-defying experience of stepping off a curb to cross the street in Athens, where the traffic is insanely disorganized and dangerous.  It's a chaotic city, but fortunately the peaceful serenity of the sea is not far away.

Athens in the summer heat.

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Movie Monday: Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief

Percy Jackson and the Olympians:  The Lightning Thief, the movie, came out recently in 2010 and is rated PG.  The story is about a young man who discovers he is the descendant of Poseidon, god of the sea, and is cast into an adventure to reach the gates of the Underworld and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods.  As his quest unfolds, Percy Jackson, the main character, encounters many of the Greek gods such as Zeus, Hades, Athena, as well as monsters and ancient Olympians.

The unfortunate thing about the movie is that not a single scene is filmed in Greece.  That slightly defeats the purpose of my Movie Monday films introducing beautiful European scenery to your youngsters.  But the movie is not actually what I'm promoting here.  My son and daughter enjoyed the movie because they thoroughly enjoyed the book series.  They both read all five of the books while in elementary school.  The five titles by Rick Riordan are:  The Battle of the Labyrinth, The Titan’s Curse, The Sea of Monsters, The Lightning Thief, and The Last Olympians.  Greek mythology, with its tales of heroes and villains, is fascinating to school-aged kids.  And if there's a trip to Greece in your family's future, it's essential that you expose them to the characters and legends of Greek mythology so that they understand the significance of the ancient relics they'll see there.  The Temple of Athena in Athens, Mount Olympus, the innumerable sculptures and reliefs of the gods, and the history of Greece will excite your child when he or she can relate it to a story.  Introduce ancient Greece to your family with Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series. 

Exotic Lands

Beautiful Budapest, Hungary

Greece, Turkey, Portugal, Croatia, Slovenia, Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic are what I like to call the more exotic European countries.  They are all fabulous destinations, each with their own character, history, customs, and scenery.  They probably offer the most unspoiled culture and the best travel bargains among European countries.  But for one reason or another – be it because they were once behind the Iron Curtain, or because they have a shaky economy or government, or because they’re less developed, less industrialized, or have a weaker infrastructure – these countries were never my first choice to travel to with young children.  In fact, I even marginally include Italy on this list, since once, in a hotel on southern Lake Garda, the water shut off while I had shampoo in my hair and didn’t come back on for 24 hours.  The management suggested I jump in the lake to rinse it out.  I’ve also seen some sleazy dealings going on among the Brindisi port ferry operators.  (Looked like extemporaneous ticket price escalation due to the crowds, to me.  But that was nothing compared to the palms we had to grease on the other side, in Corfu, to accomplish embarking on the ferry back to Brindisi.)

Brindisi to Corfu ferry

Anyway, these are not the sorts of things that make traveling with young children any easier.  Better to rely on Swiss precision and German engineering, or the remarkable capability of everyone in The Netherlands and Belgium to speak perfect English.  The Scandinavian countries too, are über-civilized and safe.  Besides, I remember that once I became a teenager I was no longer much interested in rustic mountain chalets or reading World War II memorial inscriptions . . . I wanted the white sand beaches of Santorini!  Snorkeling off the Canary Islands!  The open markets in Istanbul!  Fortunately for me my parents were happy to compromise and we managed a few of those dream destinations.  So my plan is to save these exotic lands until my son and daughter get a little older, too.  But have I mentioned that my daughter is already a teenager?  And already pining to see glorious Rome and ancient Athens.  That's my girl.

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Club Méditerranée

So you are more of a luxury traveler.  An all-inclusive resort type of family.  Or maybe not ordinarily, but the idea of a comfortable home-base in a foreign country, with food and recreation covered, seems a more appealing way to introduce your family to Europe. 

If you’ve been to a Club Med all-inclusive resort before, then you know it is a French corporation (and if you’ve eaten at a Club Med you know their French chefs are marvelous!)  So I imagine a Club Med resort in France would be quite authentic, wouldn’t you?  (Disclaimer here:  I have not personally stayed at Club Med in Europe, only in the Caribbean and in Mexico.)  But the reason I recommend Club Med is not only because I love their resorts, but also because they offer such a variety of family options.  They actually have unique children’s programs for different age groups, inspired by each facility’s natural surroundings, such as snow or beach.  Their children’s clubs begin with Baby Club Med, for 4 months to under 2 years old; Petit Club Med for 2 – 3 year olds; Mini Club Med for 4 to 10 year olds; and the Juniors’ Club Med for teenagers.  These programs provide childcare, learning experiences, and entertainment for your youngsters and can be included in your vacation package or purchased á la carte.

The European Club Med resorts are in France, Italy, Switzerland, Portugal, Greece and Turkey.  Skiing (with ski schools for kids!) and other snow sports are offered in the Alpine resorts of France, Italy and Switzerland, while the Mediterranean and Atlantic coast resorts in France, Greece, Italy, Portugal and Turkey provide water sports, seaside pleasures, and beautiful beaches.  Family vacation packages are available on the website for:  Opio en Provence and La Palmyre Atlantique in France; Kamarina in Sicily; and Palmiye in Turkey.  The various children’s clubs are found at certain locations only, so be sure to confirm with your selected resort for these options.

I checked out several of the European Club Med resorts on TripAdvisor and found many, many positive reviews, so I feel comfortable recommending them to you and your family.  And certainly, in my experience, Club Med seems to acquire the most prime and desirable locations on any island or mountain, as well as some fabulous chefs.  There’s plenty of delicious food at each meal and enough variety to please even your picky little eaters!

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