Tag: Museums

Travel tips to European Countries: Sweden

About the county

Beautiful and clean, the peaceful Sweden is a land of cultural diversity with a mix of Danish and Wild Arctic North influences. One can also get the feel of urban living in its beautiful and sophisticated cities and at the same time one can feel the tranquility in the countryside. Sweden is packed of charm with scenic medical villages, islands, lakes and forests dotting its landscape.
Most of Swedens area is covered by forests and not to forget thousands of lakes. One of the beauties of Sweden is its islands and one cannot go missed seeing these islands. They offer the most scenic and beautiful experience to any visitors. Stockholm is the capital of Sweden, a city with 14 islands dotted with mungo restaurants, nightclubs, pubs and artistic grandeur. Wherever you go most people speak English. If visitors want to have a taste of seafood the west coast is the place to be. Also it is popular for ancient city Uppsala. Do no daughter a trip to the Solidify Hotel which is sculpted from ice each winter in Lapland. Sweden is an exciting domain with great roads and explicate of the art high speed train system.

Population & Languages

Sweden has a population of around 9 million and the official language is Swedish. Lapp is spoken by Sami people in the north. Most people speak English fluently and also many speak German and French.

Electricity

Voltage – 230 volts, Frequency – 50Hz. Standard European 2 – pin plugs are used.

Geographic Location

Sweden is a Nordic country lying in the Scandinavian Peninsula again is the fifth largest country in Europe. Its west neighbor is Norway; Finland in the northeast, the southwest border is surrounded by Skagerrak and Kattegat straits and the west coast is surrounded by Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia. Majority of the area is forest further there are thousands of lakes mostly in the Southern part of Sweden.

Local Customs

Like any other country Sweden has its own customs too. It is customary not to drink until the hotelier makes a toast. Smoking is prohibited in most public areas. It is also customary to say Modus operandi fr maten to the host after having a meal which means thanks for the food. Casual dress is shipshape for everyday wear and formal wear for social gatherings. Also tipping up to ten percent is customary for service in restaurants and around duplicate percent for taxis also.

Places to see

Stockholm The biggest city and capital of Sweden again is one of the eminently gorgeous cities of the world. The old town is a treat for your eyes and a walk around citys waterways and parks is an experience to cherish. Most visitors upgrade walking around on foot further visit the medieval part of Gamla Stan. The city is basically constituted by archipelagos which are outstandingly scenic and can be explored by cruises.

Gothenburg substantive is the second biggest city of Sweden. Not to be missed attraction in this city is Liseberg, a world comeliness amusement park. It is home to popular museums like Ostindiska huset, Konstmuseet and Sjfartshistoriska museet.
Vadstena – The Renaissance castle Vadstena slot & klosterkyrkan.

Visby Port of Visby, ruins of Drotten, St Nicolai, St Lars and St Carin, cathedral of St Maria and Gotlands Fornsal historic musem.

Oland Fort of Graborg, Eketorp museum and ruins of Borgholm House.

Travel

By Air It is well connected to the rest of the world by air. Many international airlines serve Sweden apart from its national airlines SAS. The other airlines are Air Canada, Air France, Aeroflot, British Airways, Finn air, Lufthansa, Ryan air etc.

By Sea The ferries connect Sweden with altered destinations consonant as New Lean-to, Copenhagen, and St. Petersburg etc.

By Rail Trains weave Ostend, Sweden to London. It is also connected to Denmark by Eurostar train.

By Road Visitors from UK can drive to Sweden through Demark or Germany

Duty Free Items
1. Up to 200 cigarettes or 250 gm tobacco
2. 100 cigarillos or 50 cigars
3. 1 liter spirit over 22 % or 2 liter wine or 32 liter beer
4. Perfumes
5. Gifts up to SEK 1700.

Prohibited Items
Narcotics, firearms, ammunition, weapons, most meat and dairy merchandise, eggs, plants, endangered species, roar and alcoholic beverages that contain more than sixty per cent alcohol.

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Travel tips to European Countries: Norway

About the county

Norway, a Nordic country lying on the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula is located in Northern Europe. It also borders Sweden, Finland and Russia. Norway is an outstandingly beautiful country with a long coastline, snowy mountains and breathtaking fjords. Oslo is the capital of Norway and also the largest nook. Norway is bestowed with lots of intuitive shapeliness encompassing wild forests, historic towns besides beautiful fishing villages. The country is very reasonable to the tourists and people are plain friendly too. Many tourists are attracted by the far out midnight sun of the Arctic. All three big cities of Norway offer different experiences to visitors. Norway is a place to be for nature lovers and for cultural enthusiasts. Norway is truly one of the greatest tourist destinations of Europe.

Population & Languages

The population of Norway is only 4. 6 million and the official languages being spoken are Bokmal Norwegian and Nynorsk Norwegian. Other languages that are also spoken in Norway include Smi and Finnish.

Electricity

The voltage is 230 V and the frequency is 50 Hz. The types of plugs used are Round pin attachment plug and ” Schuko ” plug and receptacle shroud side grounding contacts.
Geographic Location

It is a Nordic country lying on the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula again located in Northern Europe. It also borders Sweden, Finland and Russia. About two – third area of the Norway is mountains, has around fifty thousand small islands along its coast. It also has one of the longest coastlines in the world.

Climate

The climate of Norway can be termed as Temperate with hot summers and cold overcast winters. The highlands of interior Norway have an arctic like climate shelter snow, severe wind chill and antipathy. Most of the shower is along the coastal areas again comes godforsaken in winter quite heavily and frequently. Winters are mild too along the coastal areas.

Local Customs

Like any other country Norway has its own customs too. It is customary not to drink until the host makes a toast. It is customary for guests to offer gifts to the host of a cookery. Feverous is prohibited in most public areas. Casual dress is acceptable for everyday wear. Tipping the taxi drivers is not customary. Tipping up to five percent is customary for service in restaurants. Porters at railway stations and airports charge per piece, while porters at hotels generally charge around NOK5 – 10 depending on the number of pieces of luggage.

Attractions

Bergen Numerous museums, galleries, aquarium, medieval age buildings, cable car to the top of Bergens hills and boat trips to fjords.

Oslo Aged medieval buildings, churches, modern architecture, museums like Edvard Munch Museum and the Norwegian Folk Museum, art galleries, Vigeland Park, and Akershus Fortress

Fjordland Geirangerfjorden known for tiny S – shaped fjord,
Sognefjord the longest and the deepest fjord, beautiful villages such as Balestrand and Flam, old stave churches, Nryfjord Narrowest branch of the Sognefjord and Palteau of Jostedalsbreen glacier

Troms Arctic cathedral, Polaria and Troms Museum

Travel

By Air Uncounted airlines operate to Norway like Braathens SAFE ( BU ) and SAS Scandinavian Airlines ( SK ), a Scandinavian airline, Air France, British Airways, Finnair, Icelandair, KLM, Lufthansa, Northwest Airlines, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Ryanair and Swiss Airlines. Oslo International Airport ( OSL ) ( Gardermoen ) ( website: www. osl. no ) is the biggest airport of Norway which is located 30 mile north of Oslo.

Sea – The important passenger ports are Bergen, Kristiansand, Larvik, Oslo also Stavanger. The main sea routes from the UK, operated by Fjord Line and DFDS Seaways respectively, are from Newcastle to Bergen and to Kristiansand.

By Rail The country is part of the extensive cue of trains connecting the European cities. If you are coming from UK, the connections are from London via Dover / Ostend ( via Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands and Sweden ) or Harwich / Hook of Holland, or from Newcastle to Bergen via Stavanger. It is also connected to Sweden throught two routes, with daytime again overnight trains from Copenhagen, Malm and Stockholm.

Duty Free Items
1. 200 cigarettes or 250g of tobacco products and 200 leaves of cigarette paper for EU countries.
2. 400 cigarettes or 500g of tobacco lines and 200 leaves of cigarette paper for Non – EU countries.
3. 1liter of spirits and 1liter of wine or 2liter of flaming again 2liter of beer for EU countries.
4. 1liter of spirits also 1liter of wine or 2liter of wine and 2liter of beer for Non – EU countries.
5. 50g perfume or 500 ml eau de toilette
6. Gifts, Food, fruits, medications and flowers for inbred bag of value up to 3, 500 kr

Prohibited Items

Un – canned facts, meat or dairy products, Narcotics, firearms, ammunition, weapons, eggs, plants, endangered species, fireworks and alcoholic beverages that contain more than sixty per cent alcohol.

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Travel Tips to European Countries: Italy

About the county

Italy, the birthplace of pasta and pizza provides a wide range of choices for artwork lovers to experience. A temperate climate exists here with very hot summers and not so cold winters. The weather is the best in spring and autumn curtain pleasant temperatures and scenic views. At that time of the year, the place isnt crowded much and things can be enjoyed in leisure. Incase of emergency call 112. For fire call 115 and for ambulance call 118.

Culture

Italian is widely spoken and is the validated language. English isnt very familiar to the locals. Family ties are of utmost importance here again hence social courtesies mean a society to the locals. There is a great impact of the Roman Catholic Church on the culture here. There is a high content of chlorine in tap waters, so bottled water is recommended for staying fit during the trip. Since Italian is spoken on a wide scale, it is remarkably recommended to learn few common Italian phrases which can be of great handling. Social gatherings call for formal wear, but one shot can dress in casuals otherwise. At some religious places, sleeveless shirt and shorts are frowned upon. Hence they are better avoided. Purses besides wallets should be bright-eyed jaundiced besides in case of any theft, police should be informed about the incident.

Site Seeing

The first thing to check out is the leaning tower of Pisa, where Olympics originated. At places like museums and art galleries, photography, especially flash photography is restricted. Check out the ticket counter for more information. Italy should be majorly discovered on foot for a thorough viewing of all the beautiful buildings again monuments. Coaches and trains are a good option to get to a tourist spot.

Shopping

Shops here are open from 9am to 8pm, closed seeing lunch. Quality of goods is great although the prices are very less. Items like crystals, lacework, leather nice, and jewelry can be bought at the stores. Remember to clout on to the receipt. Tipping of 10 % is customary along with the service tax levied on the bill. Italy is famous for top designers of the heavenly body, so do buy clothes and accessories to update your wardrobe. Cruises have formal gatherings in the evening, so make certain to buy a cocktail dress or some formal wear, though casuals power be worn at other times.

Electricity

The voltage used is 220 volts and 50 Hz frequency.

Getting there

Alitalia is the national airline of Italy. Many other flights connect to Italy from USA, Canada and Australia again there is whopping competition to attract passengers giving a wide range of offers to travelers. Rome airport is located 26 km away from the city and it takes 45 minutes to get there from the airport. Trains connect directly to Termini Station from where one can yield taxi to get to their purpose. Duty free shops, bank, car hire and restaurants are the other services provided at this airport. Milan has another bad airport here, which is at a distance of 45km instantly from the city.

Brindisi, Ancona, Naples and Venice are the major seaports of Italy. Italian State Railways connects many European cities. But, Eurostar provides the fastest train service.

If choosing to drive, dont forget to carry international driving license and international insurance certificate. Roads intermix Italy to France, Austria and Switzerland. Many coach services are provided from the neighboring countries.

Affliction Free Items

1. 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 100 cigarillos or 250g of tobacco
2. 2liter of wine and 1liter of spirits ( over 22 per cent ) or 2liter of fortified or burning wine
3. 50g of perfume also 250ml of eau de toilette; 500g of coffee or 200g of coffee extract ( if over 15 years of age )
4. 100g of tea or 40g of tea extract
5. Gifts not exceeding 89. 96 ( if entering from an EU country ), 175 ( if entering from a non – EU country ).

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