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My 180 lb baby boy is taking his first trip to Europe next week. He's going to Kaiserslautern for a presentation thingy and will be there for a week so he will be out and about. As far as I can tell thats a short jaunt distance wise to Frankfurt.

Any tips on the area-sights, booze, where to avoid? Any advice would be appreciated.

K-Town former stomping ground.....The Kid going alone or class trip? Downtown K-Town has the shopping district and Barbarossa old castle there. Easy to get to from bases (buses) Frankfurt is under two hours drive depending on traffic but there are castles along the autobahn that you can see

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Bars to

Going by himself. I don't think anyone from the university will be there besides him. However there should be a good mix of international students.

Castles eh? How is the area crime wise? Anything to watch out for?

Polizie has the area pretty much under watch.

 Jihadin wrote:
Polizie has the area pretty much under watch.

Excellent.

 Frazzled wrote:

 Jihadin wrote:
Polizie has the area pretty much under watch.

Excellent.

Obey the Polizie....they give one warning if not obeyed they swing once and hit you 99 times with that spring loaded baton of submission

I will tell him. he's used to Texas sheriffs though so thats not far off.

Keep a a mind open to recent events.

Terror attacks have happened, its not paranoia but don,t forget there is a risk. Just be sensible.

Europe has some good rail and bus links, so if he wants to get about you can, you can even get trains from London, to Paris, and even berlin.

Long as you take precautions you would do normally in a city or urban area fine in Europe. Just don,t be a idiot and your ok.
Germanny has great beer!

I've rarely been to that area of Germany, but many Germans can speak English to a certain degree, especially younger ones. Don't be afraid of asking for directions or help - as long as you don't go walking red-light or shady nightclub areas at 3am, I think your son should be fine.

PS: When I was still in engineering university, we had 12 students from the US over in Lübeck, in the north of Germany. They were still underage for drinking in the US, but legal here - they literally got drunk the second they got out of their train. Some ended up too drunk to tell where they even live, but none of them got into serious trouble. Some had to be walked home by campus security... But the message is, really, apart from the poorest and shadiest areas, don't worry too much. It's not South Sudan.

IMO, having been to K-town plenty of times, I much prefer the city I lived at of Wiesbaden. Granted, it's only about 20 minutes quicker trip to Wiesbaden than to Frankfurt, but I generally liked it better.

If he's able to, he could check out things the other direction (IIRC), and go to Saarbrucken or that local area.

Also, if trains are going to be his go-to transport, I'd bet that a city like Stuttgart is quite close in terms of time.... And I'd recommend it just for the Mercedes-Benz and Porsche museums.

As mention...

Pack a Canadian flag so people will treat you with respect? That's what most Americans do in Europe, I hear. :p

But in all seriousness, common sense and treat the courteously and with respect, and he should be fine.

"Kann Ich ein beer haben, bitte?". Can I have a beer please?

As said, most younger people will speak reasonable English, and the older ones should at least be able to point to an English speaker.

"Sprechen sie English?" Can you speak English.


We certainly view Canadians as better than Americans, just like the world prefers Scots over the English. I've heard of Americans getting treated better with a canadian pin badge on their bag. He won't have any issues anyway.

Thanks guys

 Frazzled wrote:
My 180 lb baby boy is taking his first trip to Europe next week. He's going to Kaiserslautern for a presentation thingy and will be there for a week so he will be out and about. As far as I can tell thats a short jaunt distance wise to Frankfurt.

Any tips on the area-sights, booze, where to avoid? Any advice would be appreciated.

If you really want to fit in, make sure he carries and uses the largest possible denomination of the currency regardless of how little whatever he is buying actually is.

Also foreign sorts can understand English if you merely repeat what you want over and over slower and louder each time.

Works every time.

 reds8n wrote:

 Frazzled wrote:
My 180 lb baby boy is taking his first trip to Europe next week. He's going to Kaiserslautern for a presentation thingy and will be there for a week so he will be out and about. As far as I can tell thats a short jaunt distance wise to Frankfurt.

Any tips on the area-sights, booze, where to avoid? Any advice would be appreciated.

If you really want to fit in, make sure he carries and uses the largest possible denomination of the currency regardless of how little whatever he is buying actually is.

Also foreign sorts can understand English if you merely repeat what you want over and over slower and louder each time.

Works every time.

I literally laughed out loud. My 2 Soldiers sitting here next to me on duty are looking at me like I'm crazy.

Don't mention the war. I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it.

If you really want to fit in, make sure he carries and uses the largest possible denomination of the currency regardless of how little whatever he is buying actually is.

Also foreign sorts can understand English if you merely repeat what you want over and over slower and louder each time.

Works every time.

So same as one should act in Mexico then. Thanks for the tip.

Don't mention the war. I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it.

I'm sure he wouldn't. I'd probably wear a T-shirt with the pic of the Soviet flag over the Reichstag with "Grandpa's 1945 vacay photo" under it.

And don't make fun of the sausages either.

One gathers -- anecdotally mind -- that's pretty much the wurst thing you can do.

...


I believe their cemeteries are worth a visit too. They bury people at an incredible depth.

That's the first exalt I've given in months.

It's definitely worth giving currywurst a try, too.

Definitely have him try currywurst. It is the only good thing to come out of German cuisine

Herzlos wrote:Don't mention the war. I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it.

That doesn't matter, this stereotype is based on a comedy skit. Most people (like in any other country) would neither be offended nor get defensive about it. It's one of these myths like England and Germany having some sort of football rivalry.

Iron_Captain wrote:Definitely have him try currywurst. It is the only good thing to come out of German cuisine

Also Döner, originally turkish but adapted for Germany.