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Originally Posted by Jesse69
Has anyone been to Continental Europe lately? Like where you have to pay everything in Euros... like in France? I look at XE.com for exchange rates and .70 Euro per dollar is VERY WEAK! I last visited France when we were getting .95 Euro / $1 and stuff was EXPENSIVE! I keep telling my mom and aunt to forget these religious trips to France because stuff is too expensive!
Like how much would a French McDonald's meal cost? How about other stuff? Like milk but you can't find a gallon of milk in France? Or Orange juice? My impression when going to a Paris grocery - expensive...
I'm not talking about Britain but I guess living in England is very expensive?
I so love living in America, and wish I was living in Houston in a nice condo... I just LOVE the shopping, food, and affordability of Houston except for it's costly electricity and insurance...
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For an economy that relies so much on tourism to supplement their GDP, you would think that the European Central Bank would support a weaker currency relative to the American dollar so that they can keep tourism high. Honestly, I think they have no idea what they are doing. The problem with the EU is that the bureaucrats that are running it are not economists, they are politicians. Any economist around the world would agree that maintaining the same interest rates over 15-27 European nations is not only foolish but detrimental. Therefore the EU was sold as a "free trade" and "borderless" uni-state to the people when in fact it is a union constructed much like the Soviet one. The only thing that is missing are the KGB.... oh wait, cough* Europols.
My suggestion, wait until either the Euro forms an equilibrium with the dollar or its collapse before traveling. It is definitely overpriced for what you get. My last vacation was before the Euro in 1999 and my dollar went very far. I spent $2000 for 3 weeks. Now it is more like $4500 without some meals.
Ah, the expense of living in welfare states. Europe taxes food at 10% but it is VAT (value added tax), not sales tax. What does this mean to you the consumer?
Because VAT charges this tax at every stage of the production cycle of a particular good or service, this means business' shell out the tax before it is even consumed by the consumer. If the consumer decides not to purchase the item or doesn't buy the item before it spoils (in the case of food), store owners have to charge more for all of their merchandise to cover for the lost goods. This is another one of Europe's regressive taxes that secures government income at the expense of killing small business and consumer spending. The higher the sales/VAT tax, the more it hurts the poor... not the rich. Wait, I thought socialism was all about taxing the rich?
When you couple this VAT tax with the fact that the revenue is required to pay for healthcare you can see how expensive it can be for consumers. The net effect is that Europeans consume less than their American counterparts not only because the products that they are buying are more expensive but also because they have less disposable income at the end of every month because of their higher income taxes.
Next, we come to currency. The Euro is valued much higher than the dollar because the Euro is only roughly 25% of the worlds circulating currency compared to the American dollar at 66%. More currency, less value per unit... simple Econ 101. Couple this with dollar having substantially more debt than the Euro and you have an even stronger Euro. As the Euro ages it will incur more debt and create a more predictable equilibrium to the dollar, that is if it does not collapse first.
For those that are in denial about state of the Euro... remember that the Euro is only backed by the good faith and support of its people. The US dollar on the other hand is backed partially in gold and mostly by its control of the world's oil and the fact that we get a free spread every time the rest of the world needs to purchase that oil with its own currency (oil is priced in dollars
).
Now, why would you buy McDonald's in Europe? Are you non-trans-fat intolerant?
If you are going to travel, experience the culture of the land which includes eating the native food.
If you want to find the affordable food in Europe, it is not fancy restaurants designed specifically for tourists; nor is it supermarkets which are designed for businessmen/businesswomen. It is the small local village farmers/holes in the wall that offer charm, quality, and low price. There are a lot of these in Italy and Spain.
Here is a tip... if you find any construction workers in Europe around lunchtime, ask them where they are going to eat and they will know the best and cheapest places.
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Has anyone been to Continental Europe lately?
Wonder what they put in the cafe au lait 
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