France! Jtai cass?!

Rombo

Rombo

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So, my chica being french and all that, we're going to France next June to visit family and more importantly, so i can stand on the beach in Normandy and experience D-Day front row...
We will be moving alot , 25 days in total, from north of france to Cannes, around Paris, etc etc.

Train system is boss in europe but any of you got first hand experience on a train pass or something thats really worth it and will save us money?

Regarding Paris, i can be a museum geek. Any pass that opens up say the louvre / notre-dame / versaille, etc etc?

Hopefully ill still have time to do some bouldering in Bleau...
 
BoldW

BoldW

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Speak the language, and they're going to be very nice.


Otherwise, no advice for you.
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Adam12

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How many train trips are you planning on? There really isn't a train pass that is worth it unless you plan on taking a train once every 2 or 3 days over the course of a month or longer.

Louvre: Free on the first Sunday of the month. Busy, but worth it if you're trying to save money. Honestly, full price for the Louvre is like 15euro or something, and it's worth every penny and more.
Versailles: I don't think there's any sort of combined pass. Walking the grounds (which will take you several hours) is free and worth the time.
Notre Dame: It's free.

Do not miss in Paris:
Musee D'Orsay. If you're into Van Gogh and other impressionists, this is the best museum on Earth. I liked it better than the Louvre, and I love the Louvre.
Catacombs: Fucking awesome.

If you're in the area:
Saint Malo: Old city of the Corsairs, in Brittany.
Mont Saint Michel: 30 minutes away from St Malo. Google it.
 
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Neph_sl

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I was just in France in June for our honeymoon.

Get theMuseum Pass. It's a combined pass for a bunch of things in Paris and the surroundings: Louvre, Musee D'Orsay, Sainte Chapelle, the towers of Notre Dame (climbing to the top), etc. It also covers the Chateau in Versailles and the Grand Trianon. Walking around the grounds of Versailles is free (rent a bike for an hr, the grounds are huge).

All the guidebooks and everyone I talked to told us to be careful for pickpocketers, but we never had a problem, probably because we were hyper paranoid about being pickpocketed. Just make sure you zip up your bags as you're moving through crowded areas.
 
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Adam12

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Keep your wallet in your front pocket and look like an angry American. You're probably already 2x the size of everyone else there (and hopefully not just in fat) so you shouldn't have a problem. They go after the easy targets in crowds, so just make yourself a hard target and you'll be fine. Also: don't give beggars anything, especially the Rroma.
 
Rombo

Rombo

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Angry canadian works? And ya no worries on my size. My gf also told me how big we are compared to the french dudes. And not fat-big. We're just made more massive.
 
BoldW

BoldW

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Rombo_sl said:
Angry canadian works? And ya no worries on my size. My gf also told me how big we are compared to the french dudes. And not fat-big. We're just made more massive.
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All that HFCS we eat....wait, that's another thread :p

Enjoy your trip!! Your chica from northern France, I take it?
 
Rombo

Rombo

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Yea north east, from Metz. You have to pronounce it like silent T and S for the Z. Sounds like messsss. Love to piss her off saying MeTTTZZZ tho.
 
Bondurant

Bondurant

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If you plan on wandering Paris streets, you would avoid the "I'm a US citizen visiting your town" general behaviour, foreign tourists in Paris are a prey to pickpockets / scammers / muggers / etc, especially americans and chinese tourists. In France, pickpocketting foreign tourists is a national sport. Don't show your cash, keep the talking to a minimum, avoid backpacks or laptop cases and keep your belongings where you can feel them all along. It's not Tijuana, you're not gonna get raped and beheaded in some dark alley, though some Paris areas are to be avoided during summer :

- Chatelet after 1 am
- Bastille anytime during night
- Champs-Elysees during police shifts (11pm, 2am and 5am mostly)
- in Pigalle don't get "invited" in some night bar by some sexy street crier, they'll charge you over 300 EUR for a bottle of alcohol and call the suited gorillas to shake you down if you don't want to pay.

If you're having business with French Police : state you're a US citizen ASAP, most of them don't talk current English so let your girlfriend talk, they're french therefore being irritated as soon as they think they hear English. As for frisking, searching or identity checks, French law allows cops to mostly do whatever they feel like and resisting is a felony. But as soon as you state you're a US citizen in vacation, you'll mostly be out of trouble. They have strong regulations concerning tourists. Again, France isn't Tijuana, but Paris is a very special place for tourists, a lot of petty criminals are wandering Paris during summer, some of them can pull up to $3000 a day with pickpocketting only.
 
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Adam12

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Bondurant_sl said:
If you plan on wandering Paris streets, you would avoid the "I'm a US citizen visiting your town" general behaviour, foreign tourists in Paris are a prey to pickpockets / scammers / muggers / etc, especially americans and chinese tourists. In France, pickpocketting foreign tourists is a national sport. Don't show your cash, keep the talking to a minimum, avoid backpacks or laptop cases and keep your belongings where you can feel them all along. It's not Tijuana, you're not gonna get raped and beheaded in some dark alley, though some Paris areas are to be avoided during summer :

- Chatelet after 1 am
- Bastille anytime during night
- Champs-Elysees during police shifts (11pm, 2am and 5am mostly)
- in Pigalle don't get "invited" in some night bar by some sexy street crier, they'll charge you over 300 EUR for a bottle of alcohol and call the suited gorillas to shake you down if you don't want to pay.

If you're having business with French Police : state you're a US citizen ASAP, most of them don't talk current English so let your girlfriend talk, they're french therefore being irritated as soon as they think they hear English. As for frisking, searching or identity checks, French law allows cops to mostly do whatever they feel like and resisting is a felony. But as soon as you state you're a US citizen in vacation, you'll mostly be out of trouble. They have strong regulations concerning tourists. Again, France isn't Tijuana, but Paris is a very special place for tourists, a lot of petty criminals are wandering Paris during summer, some of them can pull up to $3000 a day with pickpocketting only.
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tl;dr: be alert, don't be a pussy. If any black people speak to you, casually/subtly put a hand on your wallet and say "fous ta cagoule, poutain."
 
Alkorin

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Adam12_sl said:
If any black people speak to you, casually/subtly put a hand on your wallet and say "fous ta cagoule, poutain."
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If possible, get their reaction on camera when you do this, and post it here.
 
Chris

Chris

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Normandy has a bunch of 950 year old medieval history as well as the WW2 stuff. Bayeaux Tapestry, Tomb of William the Conqueor, big Catherdrals...
 
Jackie Treehorn

Jackie Treehorn

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I've been in Paris a couple days now...this place assrapes you for money at every turn. I unknowingly bought a cappuccino this morning that was 7 euros. For a small goddamn cup of coffee, at a restaurant. Will tell you more when I get back home, also going to Strasbourg and maybe Nice.
 
Bondurant

Bondurant

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Adam12_sl said:
Start by getting a time machine and learning from about age 3. These dudes are fucking masters, and probably magic.
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Not at all, most of them operate upon opportunity, which means you don't have yo be skilled, you just need some team to lure people off. Why bother surgically steal people's chest wallet when their suitcase is available to anyone. You don't need magic or skill, you need opportunity. Magic skilled pickpockets are unknown to police forces, because they blend, wherever you're Bob Arno or not. You get caught if you're being bad at it.
 
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Adam12

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You're either a magic pickpocket guy trying to throw everyone off the scent or you just don't know!
 
Gurgeh

Gurgeh

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Bondurant_sl said:
In France, pickpocketting foreign tourists is a national sport. Don't show your cash, keep the talking to a minimum, avoid backpacks or laptop cases and keep your belongings where you can feel them all along.
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Not really a "national sport" since it's a business run by foreign mafia, almost all pickpockets are from romania, do not speak french and are less than 16yo, I feel that they are being kicked out of the subway and other mass transportations but you have to be careful in the touristic areas. They target almost exclusively asian women, but if you're being dumb they'll seize the opportunity.

If you are even just slightly cautious, nothing can happen. Well, nothing except eating frozen prepared dishes worth 0.5? and paying over 15? for it and then paying 30? for a bottle of wine that is sold 4? in a supermarket. If you don't care about food eat at mcdonald or a pizza or a kebbab. If you care about food, do some research or you'll get scammed as MOST restaurant in Paris do not have a cook but simply a guy microwaving stuff.
 
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Eorkern

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Microwaved stuff in restaurant is a huge growing problem in France as restaurant is a huge industry.
 
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