The holiday dates are settled, the flight tickets are in place, the Warsaw apartmentyou have booked is waiting for you… then you just need some information on the train system in Poland and you are ready to get around the country and see as many sites as possible. Travelers to Poland should know that the rail travel is among the best and fastest ways to get around the country. Since there are not many domestic airlines and the road network not being that good, the traveler should better stay on the safe side and away from the traffic and the parking difficulties in the cities. What is more, the railway travelling is very convenient and very comfortable. The first thing to start with is that the railway station is usually close to the center of the city and is always very well connected to the local transportation system. Actually, most parts of the country can be reached by train.

Train station

Now, the tickets are sold at all the main stations. However, train tickets could be also purchased from the conductors on the train, but they will be a little bit more expensive. Travelers who have not purchased tickets from the station should definitely find a conductor, since otherwise there will be a fine. The larger stations work with credit cards, but the smaller ones and the conductors work only with cash money. The next step is to assure that you have taken the right train. Usually, the train stations have posters that show the train times. The white posters are for arrival times and the yellow posters are for departure times. They have columns with the times and the stations the train is going to, as well as a platform number. The first class cars will have yellow stripe and the number 1, while the regular passengers cars will have the number 2. Then you have to find your car number and your seat number and the rest is just to enjoy the ride.

trams

Trams2

The trains in Poland have sleeping cars, which are quite comfortable to use when you are travelling at night and you can not sleep in your Krakow apartment. There are also cars for food service, which is in the form of a bar wagon. The food service includes snacks and several hot dishes as well. In general travelling by train in Poland is safe and the crimes are exception and not a rule. Of course, common sense should be applied and the travelers should always be alert. There are a few tips to be considered when travelling by train in Poland. The travelers should keep their luggage in sight and not leave it unattended. They should try to sit where there are other people as well and not to wait until they find an empty compartment and be alone. And also, when travelling in a sleeping car, they should keep the door locked while asleep. Another good thing is always to have one arm free of luggage and to keep your money in a safe place.

By train you can easily go to Prague where you can stay in apartment in Prague.

The city of Amsterdam is a favorite tourist destination with many landmarks, cultural sites and parks, as well as peaceful atmosphere, not to mention the canals, the bridges and the merchant houses. Since it is always full of tourists, it is advisable to organize your travel in advance and book an Amsterdam apartment according to your needs and liking. The capital of The Netherlands has more than 40 museums, more than 7000 historical buildings and long narrow streets set near the canals, ideal for boat trips. Most probably you will do the Van Gough Museum, the House of Anne Frank and the canal tour, but there is more to it that the usual attractions.

This photo of Van Gogh Museum
This photo of Van Gogh Museum

The hidden attractions in Amsterdam are many, but they are usually not given in the standard guide books. Typically they are spread from one traveler to the other, discussed with friends and on blogs. They are all great to be visited. These are not typical attractions, they are places where one feels nice and gets most of the atmosphere of Amsterdam. Among these hidden attractions in Amsterdam city is a small café, placed in the heart of Vondelpark, close to the Dutch Film Museum. Cozy and charming, this café has great location and is ideal for breakfast, lunch or an afternoon coffee. The food served here is very tasty and so are the drinks.

This photo of Vondelpark

Another place to entertain yourself is to book for a walking tour along the Red Light District. These tours last for two hour approximately. They cover the prostitution information centre, the Zeedijk area which is great for entertainment and drinks, the old red light district, and then back to the center. Then, another thing to do is to visit the church Our Lord in the Attic, which is set in a canal house with a distinguished façade in the center of the Red Light District. This church comes from the 17^th century and for a period of two centuries it was used secretly by the Catholics, when the Catholicism in Amsterdam was illegal. Nowadays, the church Our Lord in the Attic serves as a museum and is a venue for religion exhibitions too.

There are also a few great dining places, which remain hidden from the crowds and are just wonderful way to make most of the city of Amsterdam. These include the strange, but unique experience of dining in the dark. This is possible at Ctaste and during the dinner you could use all your senses except the eyes. An interesting fact is that the food here is served by blind people and this is a way to show the rest of us how they feel in the dark.

Another great experience would be to visit the De Kas Restaurant in Amsterdam. This is an expiring place with modern interior and friendly atmosphere, where all the vegetables come from their own garden. This is a great asset nowadays, when people are used to buying food from large supermarkets. The products are bio and the meals served are superb.

A post by J.Johnson who also writes about apartments in London and Berlin apartments.

Paris, the City of Lights, is also a fashion Mecca and this is especially true during the Paris fashion week, organised each autumn. During Paris fashion week event life in Paris gets really crazy, but also beautiful, buzzing with models, parties, and famous guests. The venues for the fashion shows are important as well and sometimes they can even affect how a certain collection will be received. When it comes to fashion venues in Paris everything is important – the music, the set and also the lighting. By choosing the venue of the fashion show, the designer also marks the intention that the collection portrays. Not all designers however are so bold as to present their collections in night clubs or in parking lots. Usually, most of the designers prefer to play it safe and present their collections at the Carrousel du Louvre. This place is the center of Paris Fashion Week and can be attended by tourists as well, who are sure to be charmed or possibly scared by the impressive number of photographers, celebrities, security guards and, of course, models.

The Eiffel Tower

Jardin des Tuileries

A good number of the top designers opted for more glamorous settings, such as Yves Saint Laurent and Chanel who have chosen the Grand Palais, Gareth Pugh and Agnès B. at the Palais de Tokyo, and Nina Ricci, Isabel Marant, Karl Lagerfeld, Giambattista Valli, Hermès and Lanvin at the Espace Eiffel. At the same time Christian Dior, Sophia Kokosalaki, Christian Lacroix, Celine, Valentino and Chloé chose the Jardin des Tuileries.

Palais de Tokyo

During the Paris Fashion week the city is gleaming and has wonderful window displays, clean streets, etc. At that time however, there are many fashion shows followed by private parties and sometimes some of the popular sites in the city are closed to tourists. The places that are most affected by the Paris Fashion Week include the Crazy Horse Club, which you are better of visiting only if you have an invitation or enough money for a ticket. The ticket prices start from 50 Euro and go up. Another place near your apartment in Paris that might be crowded during that week is the Museum of Man, which this year hosted many runways of designers who are the favourites of Beyonce Knowles and Victoria Beckham. The other site which you may want to skip is Jardin des Tuileries. This is a very popular place not only for shows but also informal meetings, photos, etc. The other place is Le Carrousel du Louvre, of course, which is at the centre of the tourists crowds, situated close to the Louvre and at walking distance from the Tuileries Gardens. The final venue is Palais de Tokyo and this is not only for the fashion shows but also for the new capsule restaurant, which is located on the top level of the building.

The city of Madrid is famous for its busy and lively nightlife and this is one of the things that bring so many people to the Spanish capital. Madrid offers countless possibilities when it comes to nightlife. It even has Madrid nightlife guided tours where one can go out clubbing as part of a group. In general, we can divide the entertainment places in Madrid into eight or nine categories, depending on what is the main purpose of the establishment. This will make your choice easier and simple.

Madrid

The first group that we will consider covers the cafeterias, which are very popular in Madrid and there is no street without a cafeteria. Locals laugh that according to a recent survey there are more cafeterias in Madrid than there are in the whole of Norway. In the cafeterias near your apartment in Madrid one may enjoy not only coffee, tea and orange juice, but also sandwiches, croissants and toast, tapas and larger dishes for those who are hungrier. The cafeterias in Madrid are brightly lit and are popular because of certain snacks during the day and are especially lively in the mornings.

VIP cafeterias

The bars in Madrid are similar to the cafeterias, though some of the bars do not serve food but this is not a rule. It is the just like in Barcelona where you can stay in Barcelona apartments. The bars are good for drinking beer and a glass or two of wine, nicely accompanying some tapas. The next category of Madrid night life establishments are the pubs, which are open until 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning. They serve beer, wine and various cocktails as well as the so called ‘copa’ drink, which is a mixed drink served with ice in a long glass. The typical copa drinks are gin and tonic, whiskey and coke, vodka and orange, rum and lemon, etc. The pubs are darker and offer a more intimate atmosphere and they often have live music and a nice and comfortable seating area.

Terazzas