Where is the best place to live in Europe?

dag, I'm sure Bratislava is the ultimate happening place to
be, but we're aiming for a warmer climate here.

We have a toss between Barcelona and the Toscany.
What's your take on it?

osso, don't worry, Francis will provide the accommodations.

hmmmmm, I'd go with Toscany. Barcelona is too big for me. And I hear the wine is better there, too.

Okay, let's look for a nice villa in the Toscany, in walking
distance to a great winery. If we all chip in, we can buy
us a great piece of real estate.

I haven't been to Barcelona but would love to visit that and other cities and villages and beaches in Spain. I think an a2k meeting in Spain sometime would be great. I'd have to visit the Alhambra and Generalife and Sevilla and Madrid and and and...

Tuscany (Toscana) is part of my heart. (don't get her started, she'll keep posting...)

We can rent a nice villa for a week.
This one has 5 bedrooms and plenty of accommodations.

http://www.tuscanynow.com/Rentals/Cards/PCVecchiaFattoria.htm

That would be fine!! Wonder exactly where Bettole is..

looks to be near Siena..
http://www.inyourlife.com/toscana/siena/agriturismo_132/cartina_eng.html

Yeah, 1 hour to Florence. For one week it cost around $ 8000.00, and if we all chip in it should be doable for every
budget, right?

Quite true!

You're talking to someone who usually spends less than $60. a night for a place to stay in Italy, once she saves up enough moolah to fly there. $8000 divided by 7 = 1142, or thereabouts. 19 people...

Tuscany and Barcelona are waaaay different.

Barcelona thrives by night. Fun city. Very good climate (except for extremely hot summer). Great architecture, too.
Tuscany is much more quiet and leads to deep thoughts. Affable, beautiful scenery, great wine (better than Catalonia's for sure).

London? Great if you are either British or rich. The pound is soooo overvalued. (The Brits will pay one day for their cheap overseas vacations).

Now, if you ask me, Paris is IT. The freaking capital of Europe. Not cheap at all, but not that terribly expensive either.
Note: Paris, not the Banlieu (mon dieu!).

well, for 9 people, about 125 each. And me, I'd want my own room. So, I'd find a nearby more spare facility and just visit...

Ok, ok, Paris....

TOLD YA!

pfffft!

Has anyone been to Leon? (I seem to remember reading about good food...)

Yeah, in Paris we all could stay with Francis

I'd still prefer the Tuscany though. Osso, this particular
villa has 5 bedrooms, so we easily could divide it into
girls and boys room to get more people into the 5 bedrooms.
Some could sleep on the floor....

The beauty is that we would all spend time together,
cooking together, talking, walking, drinking, whatever.

I don't know when you were last in Italy, but I paid last
year 140 Euro for one night in an ordinary hotel. You hardly
can find anything for under 100 Euro. Italy has become
expensive.

Yeh, I knew I was exaggerating in that I was last there in '99. (listening to Calamity laugh...)
but, but, but, I've often gotten livable places by going to tourist info when I show up in a city. Got a great deal, for example, at the Loggiato dei Serviti in Firenze when I arrived there early for the hotel I had booked. That is probably sky high now.

Still, I shared a room in Rome for $30. in the first part of that trip...

(er, excuse me, Fbaezer, chuckle...)

http://www.loggiatodeiservitihotel.it/

Ah, but I cheated. I stay in some chickenshit places, but then I splurge once in a while. Still, I think I paid 88. for my pricelessly wonderful minute room.

DId you look at the prices now osso? Ever since the
Euro rolled into Europe, it has become very expensive everywhere....