I (18F) had my 18th birthday a few months ago. My parents aren't vehemently anti-drinking but they're very pro-21+ and have never been the type of parents to let their underaged kids have a small sip of something alcoholic. I've drank before, usually in friends' basements or at parties but I've never been dangerous about it. I graduated from HS in June and am taking a gap year to work and save up some money before starting college next fall. My parents graduation gift to me was a trip to Europe, because I've always wanted to go and I've been learning French, Italian, and German for several years. We did a tour of those three countries and Great Britain. The legal drinking age in France is 18, I checked. Even Americans can purchase and consume alcohol at 18 though the law in America is 21.
On our first night we went to dinner at a nice little place in the 17th arrondissement. Everyone ordered their drinks, I ordered a glass of water and a glass of Bordeaux. My parents had brought my grandparents and my aunt and uncle with their younger kids. Everyone was acting like it was the biggest deal.
I would like to note, I paid my own way to Europe. I had some graduation money saved up and I've had a part-time job with very little by way of bills and expenses so I had a nice little nest egg saved up. I paid for my ticket and my Euro-Star tickets, all souvenirs. My parents paid for hotel rooms and meals. To compromise with my parents I offered to pay for my one glass of wine on a separate tab. My mother in particular was absolutely pissed off at me for the wine, she kept insisting that "she was going to have to drag my drunk ass around Europe and I'd ruin the trip for everyone."
My aunt and uncle are mildly Fundie christian and teetotal so they were convinced I'm going to corrupt their children. They ended up ruining my first night in Paris because they wouldn't stop harassing me. I literally had one glass. I never go over one glass when I'm in public. Their dramatics over the wine ended up making me leave them. I went back to our hotel, grabbed my backpack of clothing and sundry items and found a hostel. I ended up bee-bopping around Europe by myself for several weeks.
My family does not speak any foreign languages. They brought a language guide and their phones to translate everything. I have a pretty decent grasp on a few languages so I was fine. I plan on studying language and customs at school next fall. From what I understand my family ended up returning
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Wine is almost as popular as beer in my part of Austria, since we have a lot of wine growers around here. But I presume it might be a bit less popular in certain other regions.
Hello all, just looking for a tip on how to get out to wine country from Portland, is using Uber to get out there and then travel between a couple wineries and then back home a viable option? I know there are wine tours and private car rentals but we are looking to do cheaper transportation if possible, I already have a couple wineries set up so don't really need a tour. One lady at the winery made it sound like Uber would be difficult, and I'm reading conflicting things online.
Thanks!
In honor of the grocery theme of questions lately, here's one regarding vino. How easily available is New World (USA, Chile, Argentina, South Africa, Australia & New Zealand) wine in your countries? Is it considered less prestigious than European wines?
