Just got back from a ED trip. Great experience.

After travelling around Europe for 10 days I thought I would share some of my own observations with you all:

1. Americans are really fat. Europeans are not. Mostly because they walk a hell of a lot, but also because they eat reasonable portions of food. Americans are so obsessed with WHAT they are eating (Sugarbusters, all-grapefruit diet, etc.) that they have forgotten that the most important thing is HOW MUCH you eat.

2. The fact that Europeans are skinner helps add significantly to the "smokin' hot" factor that is undeniable in European women.

3. Any health benefits gained by being skinny are more than cancelled by the fact that nearly everyone there SMOKES like a chimney. End even those that don't smoke directly, probably smoke 1/2 pack per day second hand. They are way behind Americans in this respect.

4. French words have an average of 3-4 silent letters/word. And yet the French waiter in Nice pronounced the word "Half" as if it rhymes with "Golf". Go figure.

5. Europe in the off season is cheap (Hotels half price, etc). But it's cheap because many things are closed (e.g. Salt mines in Hallstaat, Wine/olive oil making tour in Nice) or being renovated (e.g. Ancient Arena in Verona, Duomo in Milan). I recommend paying the extra money for peak season. Rain, fog, and cold weather are also a problem for sightseeing during off-season.

6. Driving on the Autobahn at unlimited speed in a brand new precision machine is an unbelievable and unique experience that few Americans will ever know. (I got my new 550i up to 140 MPH without any effort and still did not break the 4000 RPM barrier.)

7. German food sucks (in general). So does English food (but at least they have embraced Indian food in recognizing the shortcomings of their own cuisine). Italians and French know how to cook.

8. Attempting to speak the local language (no matter how feable the attempt) will always get you a warm reception. Any attempt to show that you are not the average self-centered American who thinks that the whole world should speak English even in their own country seems to be appreciated.

Well, that's it. These are my own personal, generalizations, not meant to offend anyone. (though I'm certain, someone will fire back some hatred)