I've become a big fan of F1 lately and have been catching up on the latest news. Season starts in March and would love to see one of these races in person. There are 19 races and the only one in the US is at Indianapolis. I don't have any huge desires to go there. Why noe visit one of the other 18 races in other countries?
So, I start browsing at all of the other places (Malaysia, Australia, Monaco) and then Germany sort of stuck out in my mind. At that point one of my friends starts to chat with me and we end up talking about F1 and international travel. He makes it clear to me that's it's sad that I have a passport and still never used it yet. So, he decides he is probably going to take some time off in July (race in Germany is at Hockenheim July 28-30) and may come with me.
We start checking flights and stuff, but everything is mostly in the $1100-1300 range (RDU to Frankfurt). Not sure what to expect in terms of pricing and we only performed a few simple searches. I'm at least excited that with the help of someone else that I've at least planted a seed to finally travel abroad and for a special event too. We'll see what happens. Going to check with other friends and see who else might be interested.
International travel is still scary to me. There are too many unknowns that put me out of my comfort zone along with language barriers (something inside of me likes to be able to talk to people at all times--crazy). However, I learned from a relative who's family lived in Germany for many years assured me that nearly everyone speaks English. You can try to speak German, but they prefer to speak in English so that they can practice it and usually easier for them.
I need to stay on top of this and make sure I can make this happen.
So, I start browsing at all of the other places (Malaysia, Australia, Monaco) and then Germany sort of stuck out in my mind. At that point one of my friends starts to chat with me and we end up talking about F1 and international travel. He makes it clear to me that's it's sad that I have a passport and still never used it yet. So, he decides he is probably going to take some time off in July (race in Germany is at Hockenheim July 28-30) and may come with me.
We start checking flights and stuff, but everything is mostly in the $1100-1300 range (RDU to Frankfurt). Not sure what to expect in terms of pricing and we only performed a few simple searches. I'm at least excited that with the help of someone else that I've at least planted a seed to finally travel abroad and for a special event too. We'll see what happens. Going to check with other friends and see who else might be interested.
International travel is still scary to me. There are too many unknowns that put me out of my comfort zone along with language barriers (something inside of me likes to be able to talk to people at all times--crazy). However, I learned from a relative who's family lived in Germany for many years assured me that nearly everyone speaks English. You can try to speak German, but they prefer to speak in English so that they can practice it and usually easier for them.
I need to stay on top of this and make sure I can make this happen.
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giddy
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snowboardjoe- Joe
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Excellent that you finally want to put that passport to use. It's amazing at how much more your perspectives change once you actually see something of the world beyond North America. I really do hope that you're able to make the trip.
You gotta get past the whole communication thing though. I know easier said than done. Pretty much any place you go in urban Europe you'll find English. Any time you to to some sort of globally recognized event (be it soccer, F1 racing, gymnastics, whatever) you'll be able to find some bit of English to get by. The nice thing about going to Germany is that it's in the same language family as English so you can usually look at most words and figure out what they mean. Enough for you to get by for a week anyway.
The language barrier is much much lower than you think. A few hours with a tourist phrase book and between that and them mostly wanting to practice their English on a Real Live Native Speaker Of American(tm) and it shouldn't be a problem.
Go. Enjoy. Experience. Live, live, live; banquet, suckers, starving.