There is just nothing like that feeling of getting off a train, or plane in a foreign city. Especially when it is in a foreign country and English is not the first,or second language. What a challenge. My first foreign city was Rome. All the information I read before leaving the US suggested to me there would be no difficulty with not speaking Italian, that many people in Rome spoke English. All I can say is WRONG! But, maybe that was just my experience. I guess once I got over the initial shock, I was okay. To some extent it is like logging onto a MAC when all you have ever used is Windows.
This is a link to Robin's Travels
This is a link to Robin's Scenic Route