Exploring Abroad: Which European City Did We Like Best?

Cynthia:  Now that our European Magical Mystery Tour is over, let’s discuss what we liked and didn’t like about each place we visited while it’s fresh on our minds.

Edd:  We may not agree on this, but at the end let’s also rank them worst to best from a “retiring abroad” point of view. Our first stop was Lisbon, Portugal.

C:  There’s not much to dislike about Lisbon. It’s beautiful. The weather was great. Prices are low. Public transportation was outstanding.

E:  That last point is key when thinking about living there. The bus and metro systems are so well integrated, it’s easy and inexpensive to get anywhere in town. Trams and trolleys service the historic and hilly sections, and the train station for destinations outside the city is easily accessible.

C:  Right. We were staying in an older area downtown. When we got together with friends who used to live in Cuenca, we were surprised their neighborhood was so modern and upscale. Even the grocery store close by was better than many in the States. Yet they’re only a 10-15 minute metro ride to the center of Lisbon.

E:  Ironically, my only negative about Lisbon is about the food. Yes, the supermarkets and mercados are brimming with fresh fruits and vegetables, but when eating out they rarely seem to make it to your plate.

C:  That turned out to be true in many of the places we went, didn’t it? Oh well, the good news is when you actually live somewhere instead of visiting like we were doing, you would buy that lovely produce and probably eat at home most of the time. Let’s move on to Madrid and I’ll say up front, I loved it.

E:  Big. Beautiful. Busy. That was Madrid to me. It has all the attributes of Lisbon except the climate is more seasonal. During July and August the highs often rise to triple digits.

C:  Madrid’s metro system was excellent, and I also appreciated that the city is much flatter than Lisbon. Since we walk a lot on these trips, steep hills and steps take a toll on our stamina.

E:  We enjoyed the food more in Madrid too. In fact, I thought some meals we had there were maybe the best of the entire trip. The duck breast with wine reduction was incredible. Our pizza with citrus-infused prawns, artichoke puree, porcini mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes was the best we’ve had anywhere in the world!

C:  You and the food. Moving on, Bordeaux was a last minute substitution when we found Barcelona accommodations were going to be outside of our Social Security budget. We arrived knowing little about it beyond the wines produced there. It didn’t take long to discover we’d come to a special place.

E:  We definitely consumed our share of Bordeaux’s most famous export. Especially at a bar run by the local Wine Council that serves top quality wines for as little as €2 a glass!

C:  Like the other two cities we’ve discussed, Bordeaux is, considering it’s in France, surprisingly affordable. And there’s excellent public transportation that supports our pedestrian lifestyle. Even a ferry that takes you up, down, and across the Garonne River which runs next to this port city.

E:  It’s also a paradise for shoppers, claiming the longest shopping street in Europe, Rue Sainte-Catherine. I liked the fact that Bordeaux has an international airport as well as excellent connections to the train system that goes throughout Europe. It only took two hours to ride the bullet train all the way to Paris.

C:  Until recently Paris was one of the most expensive cities in the world, but has now dropped out of the top 30. It was absolutely the most visually stunning place we visited, but the only way we could live there comfortably within our budget would be to find housing in the suburbs like where we stayed.

E:  The downside of that strategy is you’d have to be OK commuting back and forth, also as we did, to enjoy all Paris has to offer. I think that might get old after a while. An alternate idea would be living in Versailles, which is only a 45-minute train ride. The beauty of that small city really caught us off guard.

C:  I agree. Since we were there to see the Palace and Gardens, we didn’t allow extra time to explore it. We ended our day with a fabulous dinner in town, and I think we’d enjoy returning to find out more. Our last stop, London, is squarely in the “nice place to visit, can’t afford to live there” category. No need to even include it in this discussion.

E:  So worst to first, what’s your ranking of the four cities on our adventure?

C:  I rank them in reverse order of our visits—Paris, Bordeaux, Madrid, and Lisbon.

E:  Guess what? I totally agree. I really enjoyed Paris but think we’d have to live too far away to find a suitable place within our budget. Although Versailles is a wild card that seemed really appealing.

C:  There was nothing “wrong” with Bordeaux. It just didn’t feel right for us, did it? You commented that the whole city is tan. All the buildings, the streets, even the Garonne River. Bordeaux is beautiful and definitely deserves a visit, but there’s a sameness to it that I think we would tire of.

E:  We find that big city life is generally too busy and noisy, so it’s interesting we both chose Madrid as #2. My pick was totally about the Salamanca district we both liked so much.

C:  Same for me, except that neighborhood is home to some of the most expensive streets in the entire country. And then there’s Lisbon, which ticked all our boxes for an ideal retirement location.

E:  The people there were just the best. So friendly and welcoming. I’m open to exploring other places in Portugal like Porto, which also gets rave reviews.

C:  Well, that’s a wrap on our European travel adventures. Hope our subscribers enjoyed coming along. If they’ve been to any of these bucket list destinations, maybe we brought back some fond memories.

E:  If not, they got to see a different part of the world that could perhaps be in their future travel plans. What’s next for Edd and Cynthia? We’ll let you know soon!

Have you been to any of the places we visited? Join our conversation, and share some of your memories. We would love to hear your comments!