Since Dan joined me on my trip we switched from a Second Class Youth Eurrail pass to the First Class Adult Saver Double pass. So counter to my previous experience, I am now seeing some very nice Italian trains.

I had to laugh because the sort of people riding in the first class cars are very different from the people I've been spending my time with over the last month.

For example, on the way to Florence Dan and I sat behind this group of older tourists riding with their guide. They were all playing cards, talking about their fancy itineraries, and asking inane questions that showed the lack of research done prior to arriving in Europe. Apparently the group's bags were being sent to the hotel ahead of time on a private bus, and they were just on the train to "for the experience."

In my opinion, half the experience of train-travel is worrying about which stop you need to get off at, watching your bags, and planning your journey. Simply sitting on a train in 1st class has nothing to do with the actual experience of riding a train.

When Dan and I got off in Florence one of the guys asked me if I was going mountain climbing with my backpack on. I think it seemed amazing to him that someone would go to Europe with a backpack rather than a fancy suitcase, but I would much rather be walking in our shoes than his.