<mediawiki xmlns="http://www.mediawiki.org/xml/export-0.3/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.mediawiki.org/xml/export-0.3/ http://www.mediawiki.org/xml/export-0.3.xsd" version="0.3" xml:lang="ru">
  <siteinfo>
    <sitename>Hitchwiki</sitename>
    <base>http://localhost/ru/%D0%97%D0%B0%D0%B3%D0%BB%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BD%D0%B0%D1%8F_%D1%81%D1%82%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B8%D1%86%D0%B0</base>
    <generator>MediaWiki 1.15.0</generator>
    <case>first-letter</case>
    <namespaces>
      <namespace key="-2">Медиа</namespace>
      <namespace key="-1">Служебная</namespace>
      <namespace key="0" />
      <namespace key="1">Обсуждение</namespace>
      <namespace key="2">Участник</namespace>
      <namespace key="3">Обсуждение участника</namespace>
      <namespace key="4">Hitchwiki</namespace>
      <namespace key="5">Обсуждение Hitchwiki</namespace>
      <namespace key="6">Файл</namespace>
      <namespace key="7">Обсуждение файла</namespace>
      <namespace key="8">MediaWiki</namespace>
      <namespace key="9">Обсуждение MediaWiki</namespace>
      <namespace key="10">Шаблон</namespace>
      <namespace key="11">Обсуждение шаблона</namespace>
      <namespace key="12">Справка</namespace>
      <namespace key="13">Обсуждение справки</namespace>
      <namespace key="14">Категория</namespace>
      <namespace key="15">Обсуждение категории</namespace>
    </namespaces>
  </siteinfo>
  <page>
    <title>Main Page</title>
    <id>1</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37771</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:44:55Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{| cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; style=&quot;width:100%; margin: 0 0 7px 0; background-color:#fafafa; border:1px solid #dadada;&quot;
|-
| align=&quot;left&quot; width=&quot;100%&quot; style=&quot;padding:7px 15px 15px 15px;font-size:120%;vertical-align:top;&quot; |
&lt;h1 style=&quot;clear:both; display:block; border:0; font-size:28px; line-height:28px;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;display:block; float:left;&quot;&gt;Hitchwiki&lt;/span&gt; &lt;strong style=&quot;font-size:15px; font-weight:bold; float:left; display:block; padding:0 0 4px 15px;&quot;&gt;is a collaborative project to build a [[Hitchwiki:About|free]] guide for hitchhikers&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h1&gt;
&lt;div style=&quot;clear:both; border-bottom:1px solid #ccc;&quot;&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
So far we have '''[[Special:Statistics|{{NUMBEROFARTICLES}}]]''' articles in English, written and edited by '''[[Special:Listusers|{{NUMBEROFUSERS}}]]''' [[hitchhiker]]s around the [[Earth|globe]]. Feel free to [[Help:Contents|share your knowledge]] with us.
|-
|}

{| cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; style=&quot;width:100%; border:0; padding:0; margin:0;&quot;
|-
| align=&quot;left&quot; valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;25%&quot; style=&quot;vertical-align:top; min-width: 200px;&quot; |
&lt;div style=&quot;float:left; background-color:#fcf5f3; border:1px solid #dadada; width:99%;&quot; class=&quot;round-box&quot;&gt;
    &lt;div style=&quot;padding:10px 15px 15px 15px;&quot;&gt;
== [[File:Nuvola_apps_bookcase.png|30px]] Basics ==
New to hitchhiking or do you need some random information?
* '''[[:Category:General info|General info]]'''
* '''[[Top Tips]]'''
* '''[[First time hitchhiking|First time]]'''
* '''[[Hitchhiker's safety|Safety]]'''
* '''[[Signs]]'''
* '''[[Where to hitchhike]]'''
* '''[[Picking up hitchhikers]]'''
    &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;

&lt;div style=&quot;clear:both; height: 10px;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;

&lt;div style=&quot;float:left; background-color:#fffff4; border:1px solid #dadada; width:99%;&quot; class=&quot;round-box&quot;&gt;
    &lt;div style=&quot;padding:10px 15px 15px 15px;&quot;&gt;
== [[File:Nuvola_apps_browser.png|30px]] Places ==
Use the [[Special:Search|search engine]] or browse starting from here:
* '''[[Europe]]'''
* '''[[North America]]'''
* '''[[South America]]'''
* '''[[Central America]]''' &amp; '''[[Caribbean]]'''
* '''[[Oceania|Australia &amp; Oceania]]'''
* '''[[Middle East]]'''
* '''[[Asia]]'''
* '''[[Africa]]'''
    &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;

&lt;div style=&quot;clear:both; height: 10px;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;

&lt;div style=&quot;float:left; background-color:#e9ffe6; border:1px solid #dadada; width:99%;&quot; class=&quot;round-box&quot;&gt;
    &lt;div style=&quot;padding:10px 15px 15px 15px;&quot;&gt;
== [[File:Nuvola_apps_Khangman.png|30px]] Also on Hitchwiki ==
* '''[http://blogs.hitchwiki.org/ Blogs]'''
* '''[http://www.hitchwiki.org/planet/ Planet]'''
* '''[http://maps.hitchwiki.org/ Maps]'''
* '''[http://www.hitchwiki.org/forum/?q=forum Forum]'''
    &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;

| width=&quot;1%&quot; |

| align=&quot;left&quot; valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;74%&quot; style=&quot;vertical-align:top;&quot; |

&lt;div style=&quot;float:right; background-color:#eff8fb; border:1px solid #dadada; width:99%;&quot; class=&quot;round-box&quot;&gt;
    &lt;div style=&quot;padding:10px 15px 15px 15px;&quot;&gt;
== [[File:Nuvola_apps_knewsticker.png|30px]] [[News]] ==
{{news}}

'''[[News|Old news...]]'''
    &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;

&lt;div style=&quot;clear:both; height: 10px;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;

&lt;div style=&quot;float:right; background-color:#f0effb; border:1px solid #dadada; width:99%;&quot; class=&quot;round-box&quot;&gt;
    &lt;div style=&quot;padding:10px 15px 15px 15px;&quot;&gt;
== [[File:Nuvola_apps_date.png|30px]] [[Events]] ==
{{events}}
    &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;

&lt;div style=&quot;clear:both; height: 10px;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;

&lt;div style=&quot;float:right; background-color:#fafafa; border:1px solid #dadada; width:99%;&quot; class=&quot;round-box&quot;&gt;
    &lt;div style=&quot;padding:10px 15px 15px 15px;&quot;&gt;
== [[File:Nuvola_apps_Camera.png|30px]] [[Template:PotM|Pictures of the Moment]] ==
{{PotM}}
    &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
|-
|}

__NOTOC__ __NOEDITSECTION__

[[bg:Начална страница]]
[[de:Hauptseite]]
[[es:Página Principal]]
[[fi:Etusivu]]
[[fr:Accueil]]
[[pl:Strona główna]]
[[pt:Página principal]]
[[ru:Заглавная страница]]
[[zh:首页]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Monobook.css</title>
    <id>5</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36796</id>
      <timestamp>2009-08-26T11:16:35Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">/* CSS placed here will affect users of the Monobook skin 


&lt;pre&gt;&lt;nowiki&gt;
*/

.round-box
{
  -moz-border-radius: 0.4em;
}

body
{ 
  /* background:#f9f9f9 url(http://hitchwiki.org/en/images/en/b/bb/Hitchwiki-background-test3.png) repeat-x scroll 0 0; */
  background:#F9F9F9 url(http://hitchwiki.org/design/hwpatt2.jpg) repeat scroll 0 0
}

.page-Main_Page h1,
.portlet h5 
{  
  display:none; 
}

.page-Main_Page table
{
  -moz-border-radius: 0.5em; 
}

.portlet ul
{
  list-style-type: disc;
  list-style-image: none;
}


/* make a few corners round, only supported by moz/firefox/other gecko browsers for now */ 

#p-cactions ul li, 
#p-cactions ul li a 
{ 
  -moz-border-radius-topleft: 0.4em; 
  -moz-border-radius-topright: 0.4em;
  border-width: 3px;
  border-color: #f9ef80;
}

#p-cactions li.selected
{
  border-color: #b21516;
}

#content 
{ 
  -moz-border-radius-topleft: 0.6em; 
  -moz-border-radius-bottomleft: 0.6em;
  border-color:#f9ef80 -moz-use-text-color #f9ef80 #f9ef80;
  border-style:solid none solid solid;
  border-width:3px medium 3px 3px;
}

div.pBody 
{
  -moz-border-radius: 9px;
  border-width: 2px;
  margin: 2px 0 0 6px;
}

a {
  color:#606399;
}

a:visited {
  color:#6B5E7F;
}

a.new, #p-personal a.new {
  color:#741;
}

#bodyContent a.external
{
  color:#5f7f3f;
}


#toc {
  background:#E6D7B5;
  float:right;
  margin:10px;
  margin-right:0;
}

.editsection {
  font-size: 70%;
  float: right;
}


#p-logo {
    z-index: 3;
    position: absolute; /*needed to use z-index */
    top: 26px;
    left: 0;
    height: 155px;
    width: 12em;
    overflow: visible;
}


#p-cactions {
    position: absolute;
    top: 3.3em;
    left: 11.5em;
    margin: 0;
    white-space: nowrap;
    width: 76%;
    line-height: 1.1em;
    overflow: visible;
    background: none;
    border-collapse: collapse;     padding-left: 1em;
    list-style: none;
    font-size: 95%;
}

/* Infobox template style */

.infobox {
   border: 1px solid #aaa;
   background-color: #f9f9f9;
   color: black;
   margin-bottom: 0.5em;
   margin-left: 1em;
   padding: 0.2em;
   float: right;
   clear: right;
}
.infobox td,
.infobox th {
   vertical-align: top;
}
.infobox caption {
   font-size: larger;
   margin-left: inherit;
}
.infobox.bordered {
   border-collapse: collapse;
}
.infobox.bordered td,
.infobox.bordered th {
   border: 1px solid #aaa;
}
.infobox.bordered .borderless td,
.infobox.bordered .borderless th {
   border: 0;
}

.infobox.sisterproject {
   width: 20em;
   font-size: 90%;
}

/* Messagebox templates */
.messagebox {
    border: 1px solid #aaa;
    background-color: #f9f9f9;
    width: 80%;
    margin: 0 auto 1em auto;
    padding: .2em;
}
.messagebox.merge {
    border: 1px solid #c0b8cc;
    background-color: #f0e5ff;
    text-align: center;
}
.messagebox.cleanup {
    border: 1px solid #9f9fff;
    background-color: #efefff;
    text-align: center;
}
.messagebox.standard-talk {
    border: 1px solid #c0c090;
    background-color: #f8eaba;
    margin: 4px auto;
}

dd {
 border-top:solid 0px #CCC;
 border-left:solid 2px #CCC;
 padding-top: 1px;
 padding-left: 4px;
 margin-left: 15px;
}

#footer
{
  border-width: 3px 0;
  border-style: solid;
  border-color: #F9EF80;
  padding: 1em 0 1.6em;
}

#p-personal li a
{
  color: black;
  font-weight: bold;
  font-size: 10px;
}

#footer a { color: #bb0000; }
#footer #credits a { color: black; }

.portlet a:visited,
.portlet a { 
  color: #bb0000; 
  border-bottom: 1px dotted #ccc;
}

.portlet ul li {
  list-style: none;
  margin-left: -6px;
}

#footer ul li#copyright, 
#footer ul li#disclaimer, 
#footer ul li#privacy, 
#footer ul li#about 
{
  border-top:1px dotted #CCCCCC;
  display:block;
  float:right;
}

/*
&lt;/nowiki&gt;&lt;/pre&gt; */</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Monobook.js</title>
    <id>6</id>
    <revision>
      <id>11583</id>
      <timestamp>2007-06-09T21:10:43Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Zac Stewart</username>
        <id>5</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>Unsuccessful :(</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">/* tooltips and access keys */
var ta = new Object();
ta['pt-userpage'] = new Array('.','My user page');
ta['pt-anonuserpage'] = new Array('.','The user page for the ip you\'re editing as');
ta['pt-mytalk'] = new Array('n','My talk page');
ta['pt-anontalk'] = new Array('n','Discussion about edits from this ip address');
ta['pt-preferences'] = new Array('','My preferences');
ta['pt-watchlist'] = new Array('l','The list of pages you\'re monitoring for changes.');
ta['pt-mycontris'] = new Array('y','List of my contributions');
ta['pt-login'] = new Array('o','You are encouraged to log in, it is not mandatory however.');
ta['pt-anonlogin'] = new Array('o','You are encouraged to log in, it is not mandatory however.');
ta['pt-logout'] = new Array('o','Log out');
ta['ca-talk'] = new Array('t','Discussion about the content page');
ta['ca-edit'] = new Array('e','You can edit this page. Please use the preview button before saving.');
ta['ca-addsection'] = new Array('+','Add a comment to this discussion.');
ta['ca-viewsource'] = new Array('e','This page is protected. You can view its source.');
ta['ca-history'] = new Array('h','Past versions of this page.');
ta['ca-protect'] = new Array('=','Protect this page');
ta['ca-delete'] = new Array('d','Delete this page');
ta['ca-undelete'] = new Array('d','Restore the edits done to this page before it was deleted');
ta['ca-move'] = new Array('m','Move this page');
ta['ca-watch'] = new Array('w','Add this page to your watchlist');
ta['ca-unwatch'] = new Array('w','Remove this page from your watchlist');
ta['search'] = new Array('f','Search this wiki');
ta['p-logo'] = new Array('','Main Page');
ta['n-mainpage'] = new Array('z','Visit the Main Page');
ta['n-portal'] = new Array('','About the project, what you can do, where to find things');
ta['n-currentevents'] = new Array('','Find background information on current events');
ta['n-recentchanges'] = new Array('r','The list of recent changes in the wiki.');
ta['n-randompage'] = new Array('x','Load a random page');
ta['n-help'] = new Array('','The place to find out.');
ta['n-sitesupport'] = new Array('','Support us');
ta['t-whatlinkshere'] = new Array('j','List of all wiki pages that link here');
ta['t-recentchangeslinked'] = new Array('k','Recent changes in pages linked from this page');
ta['feed-rss'] = new Array('','RSS feed for this page');
ta['feed-atom'] = new Array('','Atom feed for this page');
ta['t-contributions'] = new Array('','View the list of contributions of this user');
ta['t-emailuser'] = new Array('','Send a mail to this user');
ta['t-upload'] = new Array('u','Upload images or media files');
ta['t-specialpages'] = new Array('q','List of all special pages');
ta['ca-nstab-main'] = new Array('c','View the content page');
ta['ca-nstab-user'] = new Array('c','View the user page');
ta['ca-nstab-media'] = new Array('c','View the media page');
ta['ca-nstab-special'] = new Array('','This is a special page, you can\'t edit the page itself.');
ta['ca-nstab-project'] = new Array('a','View the project page');
ta['ca-nstab-image'] = new Array('c','View the image page');
ta['ca-nstab-mediawiki'] = new Array('c','View the system message');
ta['ca-nstab-template'] = new Array('c','View the template');
ta['ca-nstab-help'] = new Array('c','View the help page');
ta['ca-nstab-category'] = new Array('c','View the category page');</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Disambiguationspage</title>
    <id>224</id>
    <revision>
      <id>13878</id>
      <timestamp>2007-09-16T19:36:49Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>MrTweek</username>
        <id>3</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>I guess that's the way it's supposed to be</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{disambig}}</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Disclaimerpage</title>
    <id>226</id>
    <revision>
      <id>11835</id>
      <timestamp>2007-06-21T12:59:30Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>Project:Legal_Notice</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Project:Legal_Notice</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Disclaimers</title>
    <id>227</id>
    <revision>
      <id>11834</id>
      <timestamp>2007-06-21T12:58:55Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>Legal Notice</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Legal Notice</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Newarticletext</title>
    <id>857</id>
    <revision>
      <id>15255</id>
      <timestamp>2007-10-31T18:41:39Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>fixed broken link</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">You've followed a link to a page that doesn't exist yet.
To create the page, start typing in the box below
(see the [[{{ns:help}}:Contents|help page]] for more info).
If you are here by mistake, just click your browser's '''back''' button.

'''If you want to create an article about a city, you can use [http://en.hitchwiki.org/index.php?action=edit&amp;title={{FULLPAGENAMEE}}&amp;preload=Template:City This template].'''</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Otherlanguages</title>
    <id>957</id>
    <revision>
      <id>9149</id>
      <timestamp>2006-11-24T02:43:37Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>Also check</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Also check</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Recentchangestext</title>
    <id>1064</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35761</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-13T13:00:28Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>MrTweek</username>
        <id>3</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>+bg +pl</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Track the most recent changes to the wiki on this page.

Currently we are working on {{NUMBEROFARTICLES}} articles.

[[es:Special:Recentchanges]]
[[fr:Special:Recentchanges]]
[[de:Special:Recentchanges]]
[[ru:Special:Recentchanges]]
[[bg:Специални:Последни_промени]]
[[fi:Toiminnot:Tuoreet_muutokset]]
[[pt:Especial:Recentchanges]]
[[pl:Specjalna:Ostatnie_zmiany]]
[[zh:Special:RecentChanges]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Sidebar</title>
    <id>1175</id>
    <revision>
      <id>31270</id>
      <timestamp>2009-02-24T20:51:15Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">** mainpage|Home
** Hitchnews|News
** portal-url|Community Portal
** Chat|Chat
** Help:Contents|Help
** randompage-url|randompage
** recentchanges-url|recentchanges

*info
** Category:General info|General info
** Top Tips|Top Tips	
** Where|Where	
** Safety|Safety	
** Signs|Signs	
** First time|First time	
** Picking up hitchhikers|Picking up hitchhikers</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>MediaWiki:Sitestatstext</title>
    <id>1180</id>
    <revision>
      <id>32518</id>
      <timestamp>2009-05-01T10:14:48Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''You can find much more detailed statistics at [http://hitchwiki.org/stats/reports/EN/Sitemap.htm Hitchwiki Statistics]'''

There are '''$1''' total pages in the database.
This includes &quot;talk&quot; pages, pages about {{SITENAME}}, minimal &quot;stub&quot;
pages, redirects, and others that probably don't qualify as content pages.
Excluding those, there are '''$2''' pages that are probably legitimate
content pages.

'''$8''' files have been uploaded.

There have been a total of '''$3''' page views, and '''$4''' page edits
since the wiki was setup.
That comes to '''$5''' average edits per page, and '''$6''' views per edit.

The [http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Help:Job_queue job queue] length is '''$7'''.</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Middle East</title>
    <id>1500</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35178</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:06:03Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">The '''Middle East''' is a region in [[Western Asia]], [[Northern Africa]] and [[Eastern Africa]]. However, it has no clear boundaries, and so it might include countries from [[Southern Asia]] and [[Central Asia]], too.

The following countries are usually considered to be located in the Middle East:
&lt;map lat='30.06909396443887' lng='33.837890625' zoom='3' view='0' float='right' /&gt;

* [[File:Flag Afghanistan.png|20px]] [[Afghanistan]]
* [[File:Flag of Algeria.png|20px]] [[Algeria]]
* [[File:Flag of Bahrain.png|20px]] [[Bahrain]]
* [[File:Flag of Djibouti.png|20px]] [[Djibouti]]
* [[File:Flag of Egypt.png|20px]] [[Egypt]]
* [[File:Flag of Eritrea.png|20px]] [[Eritrea]]
* [[File:Flag of Iran.png|20px]] [[Iran]]
* [[File:Flag Iraq.png|20px]] [[Iraq]]
* [[File:Flag of Israel.png|20px]] [[Israel]]
* [[File:Flag of Jordan.png|20px]] [[Jordan]]
* [[File:Flag of Kuwait.png|20px]] [[Kuwait]]
* [[File:Flag of Lebanon.png|20px]] [[Lebanon]]
* [[File:Flag of Libya.png|20px]] [[Libya]]
* [[File:Flag Morocco.png|20px]] [[Morocco]]
* [[File:Flag of Palestine.png|20px]] [[Palestinian Territory|Occupied Palestinian Territory]]
* [[File:Flag of Oman.png|20px]] [[Oman]]
* [[File:Flag of Qatar.png|20px]] [[Qatar]]
* [[File:Flag of Saudi Arabia.png|20px]] [[Saudi Arabia]]
* [[File:Flag of Somalia.png|20px]] [[Somalia]]
* [[File:Flag of Sudan.png|20px]] [[Sudan]]
* [[File:Flag of Syria.png|20px]] [[Syria|Syrian Arab Republic]]
* [[File:Flag of Tunisia.png|20px]] [[Tunisia]]
* [[File:Flag Turkey.png|20px]] [[Turkey]]
* [[File:Flag of the United Arab Emirates.png|20px]] [[United Arab Emirates]]
* [[File:Flag of Yemen.png|20px]] [[Yemen]]

[[Cyprus]], [[Pakistan]], [[Western Sahara]] and some other countries are sometimes included within the Middle East region, too. See the map below for more details.

== Female ==
[[User:Alex|alex]]: As the question and discussion comes up regularly, I would like to devote a couple of thoughts to the topic “Hitchhiking as female”, even though I can only give limited information regarding this as I am male and the experiences are only second hand and interpretative. I can say that the people that I, and when I was with a female companion, met during my [http://abgefahren.hitchbase.com/DE/blogs/alex/20090213/just-hitching-rides-a-journey-eid-christmas journey] (and the four months I stayed in Yemen before that) brought a lot of respect into the encounter we had in Yemen. This is also what was reported from many other female moving solo in bigger cities. Further, I felt that the social pressure towards adequate behaviour in public is very high in the Middle East, meaning that people usually will not behave inappropriately when other people are around and watch or when the attention is brought on a person (thus in awkward situations taking people out of the anonymity helps!). Arguable, males in Arabic societies do have less contact with females (and the other way around) and many prejudices exist (on both sides), about Western women and Arabic societies and men which does not make the issue easier. Nevertheless, the guys I met and talked to are males like in other places and their needs and jokes are not much different. Generally, there are risks in all societies, and I think one cannot argue whether they are higher in the one or in the other (unknown) society. From my experiences and perspective there is no discussion whether females that hitchhike in the West, and came to a understanding and handling of the risks, should or should not hitchhike in the East.

[[File:MiddleEast map.png|left|thumb|800px|Middle East territories]]

== Links ==
* [http://youarealltourists.blogspot.com/2008/04/hitchhiking-guide-to-turkey-for-girls.html Hitchhiking Guide to Turkey for girls]
* [http://abgefahren.hitchbase.com/DE/blogs/alex/20090213/just-hitching-rides-a-journey-eid-christmas Just hitching rides: A journey from Eid to Christmas] (Hitchhiking from Yemen to Germany), abgefahren Blogs
[[wikipedia:Middle East]]
{{IsIn|World}}

[[Category:Asia]]
[[Category:Africa]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Asia</title>
    <id>1501</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37732</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:15:17Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">In '''Asia''' hitchhiking is different country by country. Choose a country for more specific information.
[[File:Amylin-thai-pickup.jpg|thumb|250px|[[User:Amylin|Amylin]] hitching in [[Thailand]]]]

== Tips for each country ==
The [http://unstats.un.org/unsd/methods/m49/m49regin.htm United Nations Statistics Division] defines Asia as following:

=== [[Central Asia]] ===
* [[File:Flag of Kazakhstan.png|20px]] [[Kazakhstan]]
* [[File:Flag of Kyrgyzstan.png|20px]] [[Kyrgyzstan]]
* [[File:Flag of Tajikistan.png|20px]] [[Tajikistan]]
* [[File:Flag of Turkmenistan.png|20px]] [[Turkmenistan]]
* [[File:Flag of Uzbekistan.png|20px]] [[Uzbekistan]]

=== [[Eastern Asia]] ===
* [[File:Flag China.png|20px]] [[China]]
* [[File:Flag of North Korea.png|20px]] [[North Korea|Democratic People's Republic of Korea]]
* [[File:Flag of Japan.png|20px]] [[Japan]]
* [[File:Flag of Mongolia.png|20px]] [[Mongolia]]
* [[File:Flag South Korea.png|20px]] [[South Korea|Republic of Korea]]
* [[File:Flag Republic of China Taiwan.png|20px]] [[Taiwan]]

==== Autonomic Islands or Regions ====
* [[File:Flag of Hong Kong China.png|20px]] [[Hong Kong]] Special Adm. Region of China
* [[File:Flag of Macau China.png|20px]] [[Macao]] Special Adm. Region of China

=== [[Southern Asia]] ===
[[File:Mikeeg555 hitching in Turkey.jpg|thumb|400px|[[User:Mikeeg555|Mikeeg555]] hitching in [[Turkey]]]]
* [[File:Flag Afghanistan.png|20px]] [[Afghanistan]]
* [[File:Flag of Bangladesh.png|20px]] [[Bangladesh]]
* [[File:Flag of Bhutan.png|20px]] [[Bhutan]]
* [[File:Flag of India.png|20px]] [[India]]
* [[File:Flag of Iran.png|20px]] [[Iran|Islamic Republic of Iran]]
* [[File:Flag of Maldives.png|20px]] [[Maldives]]
* [[File:Flag Nepal.png|20px]] [[Nepal]]
* [[File:Flag of Pakistan.png|20px]] [[Pakistan]]
* [[File:Flag of Sri Lanka.png|20px]] [[Sri Lanka]]

==== Autonomic Islands or Regions ====
* [[File:Flag British Indian Ocean Territory UK.png|20px]] [[British Indian Ocean Territory]]

=== [[South-Eastern Asia]] ===
* [[File:Flag of Brunei.png|20px]] [[Brunei|Brunei Darussalam]]
* [[File:Flag of Cambodia.png|20px]] [[Cambodia]]
* [[File:Flag of Indonesia.png|20px]] [[Indonesia]]
* [[File:Flag of Laos.png|20px]] [[Laos|Lao People's Democratic Republic]]
* [[File:Flag of Malaysia.png|20px]] [[Malaysia]]
* [[File:Flag of Myanmar burma.png|20px]] [[Myanmar]]
* [[File:Flag of the Philippines.png|20px]] [[Philippines]]
* [[File:Flag of Singapore.png|20px]] [[Singapore]]
* [[File:Flag of Thailand.png|20px]] [[Thailand]]
* [[File:Flag of East Timor.png|20px]] [[Timor-Leste]]
* [[File:Flag of Vietnam.png|20px]] [[Vietnam|Viet Nam]]
[[File:DSC01806.JPG|right|thumb|400px|[[User:platschi|Platschi]] hitchhiking in [[Turkey]]]]

=== [[Western Asia]] ===
* [[File:Flag of Armenia.png|20px]] [[Armenia]]
* [[File:Flag of Azerbaijan.png|20px]] [[Azerbaijan]]
* [[File:Flag of Bahrain.png|20px]] [[Bahrain]]
* [[File:Flag of Cyprus.png|20px]] [[Cyprus]]
* [[File:Flag of Georgia.png|20px]] [[Georgia (Country)|Georgia]]
* [[File:Flag Iraq.png|20px]] [[Iraq]]
* [[File:Flag of Israel.png|20px]] [[Israel]]
* [[File:Flag of Jordan.png|20px]] [[Jordan]]
* [[File:Flag of Kuwait.png|20px]] [[Kuwait]]
* [[File:Flag of Lebanon.png|20px]] [[Lebanon]]
* [[File:Flag of Oman.png|20px]] [[Oman]]
* [[File:Flag of Qatar.png|20px]] [[Qatar]]
* [[File:Flag of Saudi Arabia.png|20px]] [[Saudi Arabia]]
* [[File:Flag of Syria.png|20px]] [[Syria|Syrian Arab Republic]]
* [[File:Flag Turkey.png|20px]] [[Turkey]]
* [[File:Flag of the United Arab Emirates.png|20px]] [[United Arab Emirates]]
* [[File:Flag of Yemen.png|20px]] [[Yemen]]

==== Autonomic Islands or Regions ====
* [[File:Flag of Palestine.png|20px]] [[Palestinian Territory|Occupied Palestinian Territory]]


{{IsIn|Earth}}
[[trash:Asia]]
__NOTOC__

[[Category:Asia| ]]

[[de:Asien]]
[[fi:Aasia]]
[[fr:Asie]]
[[zh:亚洲]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Central America</title>
    <id>1502</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35860</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-17T00:00:10Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Adding: [[zh:中美洲]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">&lt;map lat='12.254127737657367' lng='-85.2978515625' zoom='5' view='0' float='right'/&gt;
'''Central America''' is a central geographic region of the [[Americas]], which you can hitchhike all the way through.

=== Countries ===
* [[File:Flag of Belize.png|20px]] [[Belize]]
* [[File:Flag of Costa Rica.png|20px]] [[Costa Rica]]
* [[File:Flag of El Salvador.png|20px]] [[El Salvador]]
* [[File:Flag of Guatemala.png|20px]] [[Guatemala]]
* [[File:Flag of Honduras.png|20px]] [[Honduras]]
* [[File:Flag of Nicaragua.png|20px]] [[Nicaragua]]
* [[File:Flag of Panama.png|20px]] [[Panama]]

=== Usage ===
'''Central America''' may mean different things to different people in the world according to the context:

* In English, Central America is considered a region of the [[North America]]n continent. Geopolitically, it usually comprises seven countries – Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. [[Mexico]], in whole or in part, is occasionally included. Some geographers include the {{wiki|Political_divisions_of_Mexico|five states}} of [[Campeche]], [[Chiapas]], [[Tabasco]], [[Quintana Roo]], and [[Yucatán]], together representing 12.1% of the country's total area.
* In {{wiki|Latin America|Latin America}}, {{wiki|Iberian Peninsula|Iberia}}, and some other parts of [[Europe]], the Americas are considered to be a single continent, and '''Central America''' is considered a region of this continent.  In {{wiki|Ibero-America|Ibero-America}}, the region is defined as seven nations – Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama – and may occasionally include Mexico's southernmost region. Geopolitically, Mexico is not considered part of the region. 
* The {{wiki|United Nations geoscheme|UN geoscheme}} defines the region as all states of North America south of the [[United States]]; conversely, the [[European Union]] excludes Belize and Mexico from its definition of the region.

{{wikipedia}}
{{IsIn|Americas}}
[[trash:Central America]]

[[Category:Americas]]
[[Category:World]]

[[de:Mittelamerika]]
[[zh:中美洲]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>South America</title>
    <id>1503</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37794</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T23:02:06Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Hitchhiking in '''South America''' varies a lot. 

In some countries, such as [[Ecuador]], it is really easy to get rides, especially when you look like a foreigner, though there are also some more dangers involved. [[Uruguay]], [[Argentina]] and [[Chile]] are considered the safest countries to hitchhike. In [[Brazil]] it's a bit less secure, but the buses are much more expensive than in other countries. Hitchhiking in [[Colombia]] is considered very dangerous by foreigners, but if you try it you'll figure out that main roads are absolutely safe and it's extremely hard to get a ride since people are very cautious. 
&lt;map lat='-25.641526373065755' lng='-60.64453125' zoom='3' view='0' float='right' height='500'/&gt;

:'''For more specific information, have a look to the nation articles listed below:'''

== Countries ==
* [[File:Flag of Argentina.png|20px]] [[Argentina]]
* [[File:Flag of Bolivia.png|20px]] [[Bolivia]]
* [[File:Flag of Brazil.png|20px]] [[Brazil]]
* [[File:Flag of Chile.png|20px]] [[Chile]]
* [[File:Flag of Colombia.png|20px]] [[Colombia]]
* [[File:Flag of Ecuador.png|20px]] [[Ecuador]]
* [[File:Flag of Guyana.png|20px]] [[Guyana]]
* [[File:Flag of Paraguay.png|20px]] [[Paraguay]]
* [[File:Flag of Peru.png|20px]] [[Peru]]
* [[File:Flag of Suriname.png|20px]] [[Suriname]]
* [[File:Flag of Uruguay.png|20px]] [[Uruguay]]
* [[File:Flag of Venezuela.png|20px]] [[Venezuela]]

=== Autonomic Islands or Regions ===
* [[File:Flag of the Falkland Islands UK.png|20px]] [[Falkland Islands|Falkland Islands (Malvinas)]]
* [[File:Flag French Guyana.jpg|20px]] [[French Guiana]]

== More info ==
* [http://www.roadjunky.com/cheaptravel/hitchsouthamericas.shtml Hitchhiking in South America] at ''roadjunky.com''
* [http://www.br.map24.com/ map24] is in Portuguese having information about the whole of South America.
[[trash:South America]]
__NOTOC__
{{IsIn|Americas}}

[[Category:Americas]]
[[Category:World]]

[[de:Südamerika]]
[[es:America del Sur]]
[[fi:Etelä-Amerikka]]
[[fr:Amérique du Sud]]
[[pt:América do Sul]]
[[zh:南美]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>General hitchhiking info</title>
    <id>1504</id>
    <revision>
      <id>28167</id>
      <timestamp>2008-11-26T23:40:11Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Kardan</username>
        <id>1635</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>Redirecting to [[Category:General info]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#REDIRECT [[:Category:General info]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Top 10 Tips</title>
    <id>1505</id>
    <revision>
      <id>32863</id>
      <timestamp>2009-05-09T17:43:53Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Redirect fixer</username>
        <id>1653</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>[[Top Tips]] has been moved, it is now a redirect to [[Top tips]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[Top tips]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Top tips</title>
    <id>1506</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37726</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:07:37Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Modifying: [[fr:B. A. - BA]]; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">There are some essential things you should remember when you are going hitchhiking. [[Hitchwiki]] suggests you keep these in mind when starting your career as an enthusiastic thumber:

[[File:Warsaw-poznan.JPG|thumb|250px|left|You'll be seeing a lot of this.]]

== Take the most used route ==
The shortest is not the best in all the cases. If there is no traffic, there are no rides to share. Think where the trucks are going: industrial areas, ports/airports etc.

The fastest and easiest routes are usually ones between two major cities, passing a lot of countryside on the way. If you're planning to go through an area with dense population (eg. [[Ruhr Area]], [[Randstad]], [[London|Southeast England]]) and out the other side, then remember that many vehicles will be local traffic, so it's often a good idea to find a route that avoids these areas. When going to the the South of [[France]] from the [[Netherlands]], for example, it might be best to avoid [[Paris]] and go through smaller [[Luxembourg]], passing through less densely populated areas, instead.

Avoid trying to get lifts along routes that don't make sense to the drivers; pick a logical A to B route between two major towns or cities that many drivers are likely to be making.

== [[Maps|Carry a good map]] ==
You want to know were you are going. It also helps if [[petrol station]]s are marked, and you don't need city maps. Try and find a map that you don't have to open out to one large sheet of paper every time you want to use it; you will be using it often. Book-style maps are best.

'''Map Tips: Positive'''

* The ''Shell Euroatlas'' is good for [[Europe]], however, it's difficult to find.
* The ''Falk Länderkarte'' series (in German, but can be understood by everyone) is brilliant for individual European countries, with a useful, clever and compact fold-out page system. It is easy to find but only inside of [[Germany]] and neighbouring countries.
* The maps by ''Marco Polo'' are excellent for Europe. The 1:800,000 ratio version is the best (the name of this map changes in different countries). It is printed in [[Germany]] but is available across the continent.
* In Scandinavia (especially Finland) - the ''Esso'' country maps are great, and free from any Esso petrol station in [[Finland]] 
* For the [[United Kingdom]] and [[Ireland]] AA maps are good but can get a bit too large.
* In Germany, you can get a booklet for free at the rasthof restaurants which provide a map of all the country's rasthof and the information about every one of them.
* France: &quot;Grands Itinéraires&quot; by Michelin. 1:1,000,000, but featuring all the ''autoroutes'', service areas and [[Péage]]s plus lots of other roads. You should be able to buy it in most service areas for about 5.50 € (July 2009)

It's recommended you have a map that is at least 1:1,000,000 ratio. 1:750,000 is usually good enough.

Remember that petrol stations often have maps for sale, including very local ones. If you need to find out the geography of the local area, simply walk into the shop, pick up a local map, study it, get the information you need, then put it back and walk out. Many service stations also have large maps on walls or notice boards.

'''Map Tips: Negative'''

* ''Michelin'' Individual Country maps are not the best to use, they do not list the Services Area and lots of useful information are absent, the scale ratio is often not good enough.

== [[Where to hitchhike|Be in a good, safe spot]] ==
[[File:Amylin_hitching_northern_ca.jpg|thumb|250px|left|This could be a good spot. You're easily visible, the drivers slow down at the junction, and there is an obvious place for them to stop.]]
It is basically possible to hitchhike from everyplace, just keep a single rule of thumb in mind: The faster the cars the more space for the cars to stop is needed.

Be in a place where the cars can see you from a distance and stop safely. You don't want to be run over. This is maybe the biggest [[Hitchhiker's safety|danger]] in hitchhiking. 

This is the case that the drivers consider as well. Few drivers stop unless it is safe for them. Some do, but you shouldn't count on them, as they are the minority. Therefore consider the safety of the driver as well, you don't want to involve them in an accident if they can't pull over safely. Make sure to not stand on the way, the driver will usually make their decision to stop or not when they see you from a distance and will get ready to pull over just next to you or right behind you. If you stand too much on the way (of the normal pulling aside triangle) you will make it complicated for them and they might change their mind. So one good option is to 'make sure' that your body language point out the area they would pull over in total comfort.

== Stay positive, smile and laugh ==
It is easy to become bored or frustrated when waiting for a ride, but remember that a good attitude will help you get rides. Keep your spirits up by singing, humming, laughing and simply smiling. A grumpy hitchhiker may get rides out of sympathy, but a happy hitchhiker will get better rides and go further distances in less time. If you're in a group, try dancing or clapping your hands at the same time, it makes the drivers smile and lifts come much more often!

== Avoid tight deadlines ==
It's easier to stay positive when you have nowhere to be. Getting stranded on the autobahn isn't so terrible as long as you're not trying to meet some friends in Berlin by nightfall; not only are you suddenly worried about how to catch a ride, you don't want to miss out on what's happening at your destination. Hitchhiking is a mental sport, and planning in enough time will allow you to enjoy the road and keep your head in the right place.

== [[How to face traffic|Make eye contact with drivers]] ==
Hitchhiking means making a connection with a person driving by, convincing him or her to stop. To best do this, make sure drivers can see the 'whites of your eyes'. Remove sunglasses and keep your hat higher on your head. Smile while you look at the oncoming cars. If you are looking a different direction or your head is down it is easy for drivers to pass by without relating to you. If you cannot see the person in the car, just look at the windshield where a face should be. Focus on each car until it passes. If traffic is light, let your gaze follow each car expectantly. If there is too much traffic, pay attention to each nearby car for a moment. The more you do this, the less time you will wait for rides.

'Mark Snyder and his co-workers (1974) found that hitchhikers doubled the number of ride offers by looking drivers straight in the eye. A personal approach, as my panhandler knew, makes one feel less anonymous, more responsible.' (Source: Social Psychology, Myers. p.503 Social Relations)

Respectable eyes for male drivers and puppy eyes for female drivers seem to work quite well.

== Making conversation with drivers ==
Drivers pick up hitchhikers for lots of different reasons: some because they are genuinely helpful, many because they once hitched themselves, some because they think you might be fun/interesting to talk with. On the chance that they want to interact with you, it is great if you can meet them there in a friendly engaged place. Some hints on how to start conversations are listed under [[etiquette|hitching etiquitte]]. Also talking with drivers is the one of the best ways to get longer rides or better drop off places.

== Work with the weather ==
If it's hot, choose a hitchhiking spot where you can get some shade, in case you have to wait for some hours.

If it's wet, drivers may feel sorry for you, and choose to help you out. No-one likes a soggy hitchhiker in their car, so keep an umbrella handy. Better: stay dry at a [[petrol station]].

Thunderstorms are a blessing. If, during a dry day, you notice that a thunderstorm is coming, don't worry. When the storm hits you, keep you and your possessions under an umbrella and keep signalling. Drivers will feel '''very''' sorry for you, and many will stop for you. While waiting on the roadside, [[User:tmoon|Tom]] was hit by three thunderstorms in 2006, all of which got him a ride in less than ten minutes. The best example was in [[Cologne]] - after waiting for two hours without a ride offer, a storm came and there were three offers in five minutes (took the third one, it was a short ride and at the next petrol station another ride came within two minutes).

== [[Appearance|Types of clothing]] ==
[[File:Img0080ow5.jpg|thumb|280px|left|Many hitchhiking spots are dusty. White shoes not advised.]]
Although this may seem to be a small matter, types and colour of clothing are very important. Try to wear light, even bright and colorful clothes, and have your non-thumbing hand visible since light coloured clothes inspire more [[trust]] than darker clothes. Also, if the weather permits it, try to keep your forearms visible. If people can see your hands and arms, they'll be less likely to see you as a threat, or as someone trying to conceal something. A fun and colorful clothes/hat is a great way to inspire people to pick you up, but be careful not to appear weird!

If you can, don’t wear your old clothes or clothes that might frighten a driver (such as a T-shirt with a skull). Conservative people only take well shaved guys with proper clothes. Liberal-minded people always take you, but even conservative (or old) people can be very helpful on your trip.

Avoid wearing black. Even having a smart black shirt could keep you stuck in one place for a long time. Some have found that caps might have a negative impact. (Though Simon from [[Sweden]], with shaved head and beard found it much easier wearing a cap always, because people seem to be afraid of people with shaved heads.) Black or blue woolly hats are awful too. If the weather permits, wear light coloured shorts and a bright colourful t-shirt or a smart short sleeved shirt. Although you may have no choice on whether you have luggage, some hold that hitching without luggage is quicker as the driver knows you're not concealing anything. But some drivers think that carrying a backpack makes you more of a traveler and will only pick up people with backpacks (e.g. [[User:Guaka|Guaka]] and [[amylin]] experienced this in [[New Zealand]]).

== [[Signs]] ==

[[File:Please.jpg|thumb|left|200px|A sign saying &quot;Por favor&quot; (&quot;please&quot; in spanish)]]
A thumb or hand gesture will work fine for hitchhiking (depending on the region). But in some cases, the use of a sign displaying your destination or general direction will increase your odds.

A sign just saying '''&quot;PLEASE&quot;.''' can work sometimes. (It worked for Max, www.couchsurfing.com user:mxnnx.) 

[[File:DSC00176.JPG|thumb|left|200px|True or Not, people will laugh and pick you up!]]

Making people laugh with funny signs is a great way to lift your mood, have fun with passing cars and get rides. 

When you're hitchhiking on a road that goes to plenty of destinations: The driver will be more likely to stop if he knows that you're going the same way he does.

When the traffic is too heavy: The driver will be less likely to say &quot;Somebody else is going to stop&quot; if he sees that you want to go exactly his way.

If you're going from [[Barcelona]] to [[Amsterdam]], consider writing &quot;[[Paris]]&quot;, or just [[Perpignan]], on your sign, when you start in Barcelona. Few people will be going to Amsterdam or even Paris, directly. There's a dilemma, though, because if the destination you write is too close, you won't make good time, and if it's too far, nobody will be heading all the way there and so won't feel confident in stopping for you. A good solution to this is to simply use your direction of travel, e.g. &quot;East&quot; or maybe &quot;France&quot;.

It often helps if you write the sign in the same language as the drivers you're trying to attract. If you can show some affinity to the drivers' country, it usually increases your chances of a lift. If you want to make a sign in a language that you don't know (whether you need it now or in the future), try asking drivers or [[petrol station]] staff for help.

To make the sign, it's better to use cardboard or similar with a thick black marker, if possible − other pens/pencils will do as well, but require more work. Write neatly in big, block letters the name of a city or the name of a road, or both. You're in charge.
[[File:Img_l_1306483.jpg|thumb|180px|right|[[User:MayaCova|MayaCova]] using was using a white board with considerable success.]]
If you have a chance to plan a long hitchhiking trip in advance, some find using an erasable white board as a sign to be very useful for making big, clear and reusable signs.
Remember the sign has to be read from a distance. At 100km/hr, a vehicle is covering approx 30 meters/second. The average reaction time when driving is 1.5 to 2.5 seconds, so 45 to 75 meters has gone before they start to stop. If you want them to stop, then you not only have to place yourself in the right location so they can see that you are a traveller and not just cagging a lift (this is what the sign does), you also have to have a sign that is readable. The more space between each letter the better to be read from a distance. (This is called Kernel, eg see road signs specifications.)

If space doesn´t permit a long city name shorten it to something everyone will understand. For example [[Amsterdam]] could be '''A'dam''' and [[Hamburg]] could be '''HH'''. Have a look at the country's license plates, the short forms featured there will probably be known in the population.

Signs don't just have to list a place - Much success can be had (in the proper setting) with more off-the-wall signs like &quot;We're Awesome!&quot;, &quot;Free Cookies!&quot;, &quot;Runaway Bride&quot; or even &quot;Not Far&quot;, &quot;that way ==&gt;&quot;, etc.

Artwork on a sign can also be helpful, particularly if there are simple images that are commonly related to your context. For instance, when hitching out of Austin, [[Texas]] (home of the Longhorns, which are absurdly popular there), adding a Longhorns logo to the sign was a big improvement.

While living in a small village near a larger town my housemates and I found that using a sign decreased waiting times from 20-40 minutes average to about 10-20 minutes even though there were no other villages on the way. When I put this to my drivers some of them said that the sign made me look like a proper hitch-hiker.

If you have the chance, adding &quot;Please&quot; onto your signs could be a great idea. As well as being polite, writing &quot;Please&quot; in a certain language can indicate that you are a good speaker of that language, and this can be used to attract certain groups of driver who were ignoring you before. However, your main message is the destination/road number/compass direction. &quot;Please&quot; is an extra word for the driver to read, and trying to read that word can become a big distraction from the main message. Also, as you're clearly in a desperate position it's already accepted that you are being grateful for any assistance; once a driver stops, you can say &quot;Please&quot; as much as you like. Experiment with &quot;Please&quot; for yourself, and see what happens.
{|style=&quot;margin: 0 auto;&quot;
|style=&quot;text-align: center; vertical-align: top;&quot;|
[[File:Carl_Nai_Maroc.jpg|thumb|327px|In the [[UK]], road names work well.]]
|style=&quot;text-align: center; vertical-align: top;&quot;|
[[File:Signs.JPG|thumb|300px|Keep the signs bold and simple!]]
|}

== [[Safety|Safe hitchhiking]] ==
Wear bright colored clothes or a reflective warning vest while walking along the road.

Say no, if you don't feel safe! Trust your instinct, when it says no. This doesn't happen often, though. Minimizing risk is not being a coward, it's being smart. If you don't feel comfortable with someone, just don't ask him/her, there will be enough other cars. Most people who pick up hitchhikers are friendly and don't mind a no.
Tip:
If you want more security, send an SMS of the number plate of the car to a friend (or at least pretend you do so).
A nice way of getting out of a car without offending a driver if you're uncomfortable, is to pretend that you're going to be sick. Tell the driver not to wait, and run away from the road. If you should need to get more radical, a pepper spray or a pocket knife may help and improve your self conscience.

Girls check out the safety guide tailored to your needs at http://girls.hitchbase.com

== In the car ==
Once you've actually managed to get in the car and start heading towards your destination, it's all a matter of being courteous. Remember, your driver didn't have to pick you up at all. Settle in, get comfortable, but of course, not too comfortable. Keep your shoes off the dashboard, don't pass any form of gas (from either end), etc. In other words, don't do anything to offend your driver! 


[[File:Inthecar.jpg|thumb|300px]]
Your driver may have picked you up for many possible reasons. One of the main reasons is companionship on a long journey. That means you have to talk to the driver. Have a few things to talk about in mind before you get in (What's your name? Where are you headed? Oh yeah? What's there?). If the driver doesn't seem too interested in talking you can relax or read a book.

If not, keep it simple to begin with. A solid rule that should be followed by any hitcher is to try to shy away from talking about politics with a driver who has differing view points than yourself. People have a tendency to get worked up when it comes to politics or religion, so if they mention something that your political or religious views disagree with, try to use a reply like &quot;I'm not going to get into that&quot;, &quot;I never thought about that&quot;, or pretending to be in vague agreement. Many hitchers have been thrown out of cars following a fiery political debate.

Some drivers will go a few extra kilometers off their route to help you, if you ask very nicely; be prepared to graciously accept a no, however.

Make sure you know where the driver intends to drop you off, and if you know the city or have discussed the city with the driver, try to choose the best drop-off point yourself; drivers can sometimes be &quot;trying to help&quot;, and despite their best intentions leave you in what turn out to be very bad places. If the drop-off point is not helpful to you, then say so, and the driver may take you to a different location instead, particularly one on their way.

Don't get lost while you're in a car! Some drivers have a terrible sense of direction and may need your help; so keep track of your journey using road signs and your maps. Also, knowing exactly where you are when you leave the vehicle will save a lot of time; if necessary, ask the driver exactly where you are.

== If you're lost... ==
...then it's maybe a good idea to stop travelling until you know where you are. Ask whoever you can for help. Look on road signs for city names and road numbers, and try to match them with your [[map]].

If getting lost isn't a problem because you have no fixed destination, then stop worrying and enjoy the ride ;).

== If you've gone the wrong way... ==
...then work out whether it's best to turn around, to carry on in the new direction (either trying another route, or changing your destination), or to stop hitchhiking. If you're on a motorway, then it might be tough to turn around.

If you decide to turn around, then watch out: it can be hard to find a lift that gets you back to your route, ''and'' travels in the right direction. You could easily get back to your route, and have to turn round a second time.

== [[Finding accommodation]] ==
[[File:Roads.JPG|thumb|250px|left|[[At night]], it'll get tougher. Apart from much less traffic, people may trust you less (especially if you're male) and you may be in more danger (especially if you're female). Also, you're not as visible as you were before. But if someone does decide to help, they will probably help you as much as they can...]]
On longer hitchhiking trips you may need to camp along the way, if you did not receive a ride to your intended destination. Sometimes you can find a hostel or local host for the night, but just in case: bring a sleeping bag and tarp or tent with you. Make sure to bring clothes that will suit you for night weather.

It is also a good idea to check out [http://couchsurfing.com CouchSurfing.com] (more active), [http://bewelcome.org BeWelcome.org] and [http://www.hospitalityclub.org Hospitality Club] (good for finding phone numbers in smaller places) for free accommodation. If there's a YMCA center in town, see if they have a room for the night. There are many hitchhikers and it is easy to find a couple of places to stay while on the road or even at your destination. A fresh shave and shower will also greatly increase the chances of getting picked up.

If you can't find anywhere to sleep there are still other ways out of the situation. If you are lucky enough to be at a 24 hour petrol station just keep drinking coffee and keep hitching through the night. (Joe: My advice would be not to. After about 11p.m., it's probably best just to accept that you've been lucky and are stuck at a petrol station where you can stay warm. If you take another lift, you might end up in the middle of nowhere at three in the morning.) At night don't bother trying to get lifts with a sign, just ask people at the petrol station when they go to pay. Keep in mind that it gets really quiet between 2:00 and 5:00 even at a busy autobahn service area. The other alternative is to find a truck (or a car) going a really really long way and crash out on the way. Make sure you trust the driver or do it with 2 hitchers taking turns to sleep. The downside to this is that you might wake up a long way from where you wanted to be but at least you didn't have to sleep in the gutter.

== Getting to the nearest city ==
It's tough to hitchhike out of city centres. But sometimes (if you're tired, hungry, thirsty, ill etc.) you'll need to go off your route and take a pause in the nearest city. Hey, if you're flexible with your travel arrangements, you may decide to stay there for a bit longer...

If hitchhiking to the city is too hard for whatever reason, and the city is too far to walk, then take public transport. Head for nearby areas of houses: they often have bus stops.

Most petrol stations on motorways have a special access road for staff and delivery/emergency vehicles. Many petrol stations also have local maps you can look at to find bus stops near you, if you exit via the special access road.

== Use buses and trains ==
It's not worth trying to hitchhike at all costs. Sometimes it's just more convenient to take a bus to get to a highway or to your final destinations. This is the case especially when leaving or arriving at big cities or at night. Sometimes you can get away without paying on public transport, although in some countries or cities you have to be more careful than usual: check a &quot;Public Transport&quot; (or &quot;Blackriding&quot;) section (if there is any) of a country/city you travel to. If you do blackride anyway, sit or stand preferably by the door; sometimes quick reaction (last second jumping off) to suspiciously looking folks who might appear to be ticket controllers can save your butt. It is usually better to sit in the front of the bus so you can quickly scan all the people waiting for the bus while the bus approaches the station and stops. Also, it helps to direct sight in only one way to look for ticket controllers you missed before already in the bus.

== [[Highway]] hitchhike ==
If you need to travel over long destinations, taking the highway may help a lot, and in some place is almost unavoidable. Most highway entrances are bad spots, and many are dangerous. A good way to &quot;hitchhike&quot; on highway is to practice &quot;station hopping&quot;: you only stops in petrol stations. Petrol stations (or rest areas, often the same) are the best spot ever, because you can go directly talk to people (show them you are nice and smile) and the car is totally stopped. Enjoy. This works particularly well in Germany and France. In Italy, hitching from pay stations seems to work a little better.

Do realise that in most countries, hitchhiking directly on the highway is forbidden! In rare occasions however, you might be forced to. Keep in mind that it is very unsafe for drivers to stop on the highway, and that your own [[safety]] is also in danger. The [[police]] might force you to leave the area, but in some cases they just don't care.

== Avoid [[mistakes]] ==
Last but not least, try to avoid common [[mistakes]] and you will save a couple of hours and loads of frustration. 

= Related links and references =
* [http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/kjokisal/liftaus/ Hitchhiking Guide to Europe]
* [http://www.digihitch.com/sections-viewarticle-27.html Sparkie's Guide to Hitchhiking at digihitch.com]
* [http://www.hitchbase.com Worldwide Database of Places for Hitchhikers]

{{Excellent}}

[[Category:Practical info]]

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  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Finding accommodation</title>
    <id>1507</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34896</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T17:18:51Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Finding accomodation''' is usually easy if you don't mind spending a lot of money. But most [[hitchhikers]] don't have a lot of money, so then there are several other options:

== Tent ==
:''For more information on this, check out the [[camping]] article.''

You can bring your tent and sleeping bag and you'll basically be free to sleep anywhere. Beware that in most countries it's not legal to put up your tent anywhere. It is generally legal in [[Scandinavia]], [[Finland]], [[Scotland]] and [[Ireland]], though. Legal or not, [[camping]] wild needs not to disturb other people. Putting up your tent in a discrete place at or after dusk, breaking up before people will notice and not letting garbage or fire places behind there are general recommendations to stay overnight in situations where camping wild is not officially allowed. 

Alternatively, go to a house with a garden and ask if you can camp there.

Quite often there are attractive spots for camping wild near motorway petrol stations. If the noise is disturbing you can take ear plugs along. Even in highly urbanised countries like the Netherlands camping wild is still possible; for example if you hitchhike out of [[Amsterdam]] in the evening you can go just to service area Haarrijn, situated along the A2 motorway between [[Amsterdam]] and [[Utrecht]]. The area is vast and putting up a tent at dusk at the other end of the area will not draw attention, while the spot is scenic (and very &quot;Dutch&quot; with fields, cows and water around).

DigiHitch has an [http://www.digihitch.com/article42.html article] on sleeping near the highway (not necessarily with a tent).

== Your driver ==
It can happen that your driver offers you a place at his or her house to put up your tent. It can also happen that you get a place offered inside.

That is why it is so important to create good relation with your driver - more open, honest and respectful you are, more likely it will happen.

For example [[User:Mirto|Mirto]] is getting sometimes even few invitations during one trip. If you refuse and prefer to continue your way, it might be a good idea to note phone number of your kind driver, in case you will get stuck 10 km further.

== Hospitality exchange networks ==
Hospitality exchange networks require a bit more planning, but are '''very''' valuable tools for traveling. Sometimes there are [http://couchsurfing.com/meetings.html meetings] and [http://secure.hospitalityclub.org/hc/forum.php?SelectedCategory=42 gatherings] of tens, or even hundreds of hospitality exchange members. If you go there you'll surely get a place to sleep!

* [http://couchsurfing.com CouchSurfing] (CS), 580000+ members, managed in an oligarchic way, slightly North American-centric but growing rapidly.
* [http://hospitalityclub.org Hospitality Club] (HC), 330000+ members, managed in a dictatorial way, slightly Euro-centric because it was started there.
* [http://www.bewelcome.org/ BeWelcome] an open alternative to HC and CS, 4700+ members
* [http://globalfreeloaders.com Global Freeloaders] doesn't have a fancy website, but it's easy to send out a lot of messages at once, and members contact you directly over email, which makes it a lot faster to use, probably convenient for finding last-minute places. Though the lack of handy profiles and the direct communication over email definitely make this site definitely ''less secure'' (''don't'' use it in Lima).

* [http://hospitalityguide.net HospitalityGuide] Hosp.Ex Ne&gt;&gt;t - Hospitality Exchange Networks Overview
* [http://www.rahhala.net/en/ Rahhala.net] (Rahhala), 1000+ members, managed in a dictatorial way, Arab travlers and travelers for peace...


''See also [[Current hitchhiking events]] for times and places where you can find free or very cheap accommodation and friendly people.''

== Hostels ==
Depending on where you are, hostels can be very cheap. The best way to find the cheapest hostel in town and to see wether they have any free beds, is probably [http://www.hostelworld.com/ hostelworld]. You can actually book your beds very short time in advance (1 hour works fine) with no extra fee.

It is sometimes possible to work for few hours in exchange of a bed.

[[Category:Practical info]]

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  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Where to hitchhike</title>
    <id>1508</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37810</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T23:11:58Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">A good '''hitchhiking spot''' makes hitchhiking safer and easier. Finding a good spot might be tricky, and sometimes knowing the area is an advantage. If you know your route, you might check the best places on this wiki or from the [[internet]], before heading to the road.

There are some generic hitchhiking places, like petrol stations, bus stops etc. This page attempts to provide an understanding about where you should hitchhike.

: ''See also the article on [[how to pick up hitchhikers]].''

== Bus stop ==
Bus stops are in some cases the only place to hitchhike legally. This is the case when a driver drops you off in a cross-section of a highway. 

=== Pros ===
* It is a safe place to stand.
* It is a safe place for the drivers to stop.

=== Cons ===
* The drivers might think you are waiting for a bus. You can avoid this by using a big sign.
* In poorer countries those who stop might want money for the ride.

== [[Petrol station]]s ==
[[File:Hitchmonk.jpg|thumb|right|400px|A monk from the Holy Hitch-hiking Order near Arles, [[France]].]]
Petrol stations are good places to ask for a ride, especially while hitchhiking along a highway.

=== Pros ===
* Almost always a safe place.
* Often marked on maps, and sometimes mentioned on sign posts well in advance, so more forward planning is possible.
* People who stop there are likely to go very far.
** Higher chance of meeting truck drivers, known for traveling the farthest distances.
* You can and should ask for a ride from drivers.
** Be friendly, and always say thanks and so on, even if the driver is going the right direction but doesn't want to take you. If you get annoyed because someone says no, the next person you ask will notice your annoyance and will be less eager to take you.
* Thumbing is easy, as the cars drive slowly.
* Possibly warm.
* Sometimes a convenient (but often expensive) source of [[food]], drinks, [[maps]] and toilets.

=== Cons ===
* You miss the cars passing the station.
* Often difficult to access from city centers at the beginning of your journey, so can be bad starting points.

== On ramps ==
[[File:Spot-sharing.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Workshop during the [[888]]-event on where to hitchhike from in [[Paris]]]] 
On ramps to freeways and interstates are prime realty as long as the driver has room to pull over. A good spot to stand usually is beside the ''no pedestrians'' sign.

In many places in the United States, on ramps are the '''only''' legal option for places to thumb. This includes the entire state of Tennessee. In all countries in Europe you can legally hitch on a slip-road leading onto the motorway, '''as long as you stand in front of the motorway sign.'''

== Toll Booths / [[Péage]]s==
In some countries the motorways or a part of them are toll roads, so the places where drivers stop to pay might be very good spots to get a ride, since all the traffic going your direction can see you. Other type of toll booths is only stopping the traffic joining/leaving the motorway on one particular exit, there the traffic will be much more weak. 
=== Pros ===
*All the through traffic on the motorway slows down and stops.
*In most cases there is a good visibility and room to pull over.

=== Cons ===
*On roads with heavy traffic they are very huge and only the cars from the first lanes can see you (for example on the highways leaving [[Paris]])
*It might be forbidden for pedestrians (and consequently for hitchers). The way it is enforced (or not enforced) vary greatly though, depending on the country you're in, and even within the same country depending on the network you're on and your particular luck that day. Sometimes the motorway staff can call the police if they see you, other times police passes by and doesn't care.

== Truck Stops ==
Flying J, Pilot, TA and other truck stops can be good hitching spots.
Truck stops, like petrol stops are frequented by more than just trucks. This is a good place to get picked up by young folks who are traveling across the country on summer vacation, or by the older crowd who are on a long trip by themselves.
=== Pros ===
*Truckers often go long distances
*Truck stops often have cheap food, a lounging area, showers, internet, and restrooms
*Truckers often give you cash or food when they can't offer a ride 

=== Cons ===
*Generally it is against truck stop policy (though not always enforced) to allow soliciting, including for rides 
*It is against the policy for trucking companies in certain countries to have riders because of [[insurance]] reasons

== Outside of town ==
Before or after a town is a good place to hitch. Usually where the speed limit changes or main area of businesses and housing ends.

== Anywhere cars can pull over safely ==
* huge parking spaces
Nine times out of ten you can get a ride anywhere there is a parking lot;(i.e. park and ride).

== [[Traffic lights]] ==
..

== On the road ==

The countryside, especially where traffic speed is lower than about 60 km/h, can be a good place for hitching. Traffic on minor roads on the countryside can offer great rides to get to the nearest bigger city, or onto the main infrastructure. 

Often on bigger roads the slow, local traffic coming from smaller sideroads may provide excellent rides, and it is quite often quite easy to flag those drivers down, as a very personal and direct approach is often possible. 

Even national roads (non-motorway) often provide good space along the main flow of traffic, as there are often emergency lanes or so called [[Mehrzweckstreifen]]. 

Finally, hitchhiking on emergency lanes of motorways can be an option in case of traffic jams. In such situation using a [[signs|cardboard sign]] is usually highly effective. It is necessary though to take maximum safety precautions (we suppose you are smart enough to take these precautions), and you should know that hitchhiking on motorways is basically forbidden in most Western countries.

== Asking locals about good hitchhiking spots ==
Asking local people about the best spots to hitchhike from in the area is a great way to save time. They may even give you a lift themselves. Ask them about the generic hitchhiking places mentioned above, and ask them where they have seen any hitchhikers before. Although what they say is not always useful or even truthful, asking several locals and comparing their advice will give you a good impression of the layout of the area.

== Leaving the vehicle ==
When leaving the vehicle, if you are planning to look for another ride immediately after, then make sure you are on or near a hitchhiking spot when you say goodbye to the driver. Try to choose the spot yourself by looking out of the vehicle window - despite their efforts to help, drivers are often very ignorant about what makes a useful hitchhiking spot and their advice can range from brilliant to terrible. Often it's not worth taking the risk.

It is easy to lose hours by making mistakes such as standing on the wrong road, or the wrong side of the road. Make sure you know which road you want to be on, and keep checking the road signs so that you know where you are on your map and where you will leave the vehicle. This is especially important when traveling across cities.

[[Category:Practical info]]

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  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchhiker's safety</title>
    <id>1509</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37760</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:35:34Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''[[Hitchhiking]] is usually very safe'''. The most encountered feelings of unsafety are probably concerning the driver's driving style. 

== Road Safety ==

[[File:Agne-from-vilnius-to-radviliskis.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Bright clothes make it easier to be seen from a distance, which is especially necessary when hitchhiking directly on a motorway, as here in [[Lithuania]].]]

You should make sure you are standing along a safe portion of road, as far back from the traveled portion of the road as possible (on the unimproved portion of the road shoulder). Make sure that you are visible to drivers from a good distance (100 meters or more is ideal) to allow them time to 1) decide if they want to pick you up and 2) safely pull to the side of the road. Wear visible clothes, also while walking on the road!

Sometimes, especially but not exclusively [[at night]], drivers will [[pick up a hitchhiker]] because they are tired and sleepy, but must get to their destination on time. Make sure you never fall asleep in someone's car if you are suspecting this might be the case. Even if you can't find a conversation topic, stay alert. If you have a driving license you might indicate your driver of this fact. In some cases he or she will be happy to let you drive.

The hitchhiker should see himself as an agent of road safety. Only one study has ever been made on the subject of hitchhiking's impact on road safety, and it appears that it has no negative impact, if not positive. It implies that the hitchhiker should stay safe, be seen especially at night, remind the driver of the speed limitations, and be willing to cooperate with all professionals of the road.

== Awareness ==
Awareness on the part of a hitchhiker will keep him or her from accepting dangerous rides- for example, a driver traveling under the influence of [[alcohol]] or narcotics. Examine the driver and vehicle. If there are signs of intoxication (slurred or erratic speech, no eye contact, open alcohol containers) do NOT get in the vehicle. Refuse the ride.

Talk to the driver before getting in his car! This way you make sure the ride offered is one that you would like to take, and that it will end at a safe spot to stop. Ask the driver before getting in his/her car: Where are you going? Can you drop me off at a service area or other safe place near your destination? A rhetoric question like &quot;Are you going north&quot; and the drivers reaction can give you some information about him or her. '''Trust your instincts!''' If you do not feel comfortable accepting the ride, thank the driver and say no. Walk away.

== [[Women hitchhiking]] ==
[[File:Parnu-riga.jpg|thumb|left|200px|[[amylin]] hitching to [[Riga]] in the snow]]
For women, hitchhiking seems to be more risky. But it is not really. Many men are reporting the same degree of violation as women. If most reported cases of murder or rape of hitchhikers involve women hitchhiking alone, it is because men are less likely to report rapes (as a product of homophobia in the world), and murders are not getting the label of &quot;hitch-hiking-murders&quot; as often with male victims. &lt;!--- I think we should link to [[Pippa]] here :( ~~~~ --&gt;

Hitchhiking as a woman can be easier though. Often, women stop for other women or girls. Even families (or other usual-not-hitch-hiker-friendly car owners) stop to &quot;save&quot; women from a situation in which they think she could be in &quot;danger&quot;. As a product of sexism in the society many people think that women are more safe to take up as hitch hikers. And, possibly as a result of sexism in the society, women tend to be more safe to take up as hitch hikers.

'''You can find a specific guide about women hitchhiking at [http://girls.hitchbase.com girls.hitchbase.com]!'''

== Top tips for safety ==

* Wear well visible [[clothes]], stand at a safe spot, be careful while walking on the road. 
* If you doubt about the ride offered, turn it down.
* You can also check if the doors open from the inside by pretending not to have closed the door properly.
* Some say to note the registration number or vehicle model and colour (SMS this to a friend).
* Hitchhike with someone you know. On hitchhike forums (such as at [http://www.hospitalityclub.org/hc/forum.php?SelectedCategory=25 Hospitality Club], [http://www.jayride.co.nz Jayride] or [http://www.digihitch.com DigiHitch]) you can find other hitchhikers.
* Hitchhiking at night is more dangerous than at daytime.
* It's probably safest to not go with more than one guy in the car.
* It's better to sit in the front of the vehicle.
* It is a good idea to get yourself some [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepper_spray pepper spray], just in case. But it can be illegal to carry in some parts of the world so be aware.
* Keep your backpack close to you (i.e. on your lap), so you grab it if you need to get out quickly.
* Wear your most valuable stuff on your body: passport, wallet, money, mobile phone. This way you will keep these items in case you should abandon your bag.
* If there are other houses or people in sight, you can wave to them or pretend to say goodbye to a friend. The driver will think that somebody has seen you getting into their car.
* If getting in a truck or car driving long-distance, maybe to where you want to go, including sleeping in the truck with the driver. Never tell yes to go all way from the beginning. Say you are going to visit a friend in a city on the way and then when you get a feeling of safety with the driver tell him that you will visit your friend some other time and go all the way now. 
* Aim to leave the vehicle at a safe spot.
* Always trust your instincts.
* Think positive and you will attract positive. Do nothing of this and you might be safer.
* Try to be good conversation for the driver for tips see [[etiquette]]
* Text the license plate number and state of the vehicle you are about to enter to a friend. If anything happens, they will know the last vehicle you got into.

== Choose your drivers ==
It is preferable to choose your drivers. You can ask for rides at [[petrol station]]s or truck stops. Briefly profile people by their appearance and talk to folks that seem safe/interesting. But always remember that appearances do not guarantee safety.

One of the safest ones to get a lift from is the truck drivers. You sit far away from the driver. You are always able to open the door if needed (just don't jump while the truck is moving if you like your life moving again). Big trucks in [[Western Europe]] anyway also have a sensor on their trucks that let their boss know exactly where they are. Going off the road or stopping for some minutes and the boss will be all over the case, calling on the phone...

This is not always the case however. In [[Australia]], Truckies drive long distances on one lane highways and are often overworked. This can lead to dangerous driving conditions and bad experiences.

== Leaving the vehicle early ==
When you are on the road, if the situation gets bad for whatever reason and you don't want to be in the vehicle, then find a way to leave. Get the driver to leave you at the next good hitchhiking spot (choose it yourself, don't rely on the driver to choose it for you), or in another safe area such as a city where you can contact people you know, use hospitality exchange organisations, or take public transport.

If you feel uncomfortable, remember that you don't have to stay in the vehicle, and you don't owe it to the driver to travel the full distance you agreed upon. Good get-out tactics include faking travel sickness, or stating that you've changed your mind and want to do something else. Stay calm and be polite but direct, and most drivers will respect your wishes.

=== Emergency exit ===

First of all, don't panic. Still, a situation might occur that you want to get out of the car and the driver does not want to stop. ... '''Need more info'''...
* Hand brake?
* Cause a (small) accident
* Call emergency number (112 in Western Europe)

** From personal experience: Causing a small accident may do more damage than good, since the driver will most likely just speed off, anyway, rather than trying to wait around and get caught by the police. Plus, that gives you a much greater chance of being injured. Remember that no matter where you get taken, you will still have the opportunity to hitchhike out of, and thus get rescued by someone else. Plus, vehicles do require fuel, and eventually run out of it. So, you can at some point find yourself in a (very useful!) petrol station, from where you can: have contact with other people, make phone calls, lock yourself in the bathroom to avoid confrontations, and hitchhike a new ride. Your best bet is to stay calm and confident, no matter the situation.

== See also ==
&lt;div style=&quot;column-count:2;-moz-column-count:2;-webkit-column-count:2&quot;&gt;
* [[Health]]
* [[Where to hitchhike]]
* [[Picking up hitchhikers]], for drivers
* [[Safety pdf]] - a project to create a one-page guide to safe hitchhiking
* [http://girls.hitchbase.com Hitchhiking as a female] - Guide
&lt;/div&gt;

=== Even more info ===
* [http://www.couchsurfing.com/group_read.html?gid=12&amp;post=938480 Bad hitchhiking - Sharing stories?] in CouchSurfing group about hitchhiking.

[[Category:Safety]]

[[de:Sicherheit]]
[[fi:Turvallisuus]]
[[fr:Sécurité]]
[[pl:Bezpieczeństwo]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Участник:GuakaTest</title>
    <id>1510</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1525</id>
      <timestamp>2005-12-28T17:12:10Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>not active contributor</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Account created by [[User:Guaka|Guaka]] when he couldn't log in on that one.

Actually not in category:active contributors to this site :)
I made this account because I had some problem logging in as Guaka. It can be deleted actually. [[User:Guaka|Guaka]] 17:12, 28 Dec 2005 (UTC)</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchhikers' Guide to Hitchhiking</title>
    <id>1511</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1527</id>
      <timestamp>2006-05-04T23:34:59Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>#redirect [[project:About]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[project:About]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchhiker</title>
    <id>1512</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1529</id>
      <timestamp>2005-12-19T21:09:00Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>#redirect [[Hitchhiking]] .. think the existing stuff is not so interesting...</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[Hitchhiking]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Шаблон:Stub</title>
    <id>1513</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35792</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-14T19:23:48Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Paluch</username>
        <id>1363</id>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">&lt;div align='center'&gt;
{|style=&quot;width:80%; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; padding:10px; margin:0; margin-bottom:10px; background-color:#E9EDF6; border:1px solid #aaa; -moz-border-radius:0.5em;&quot;
|[[Image:Applications-office.png|45px]]
|''This article is a stub. This means that the information available to us is obviously not enough. In these places few information is available or the description is severely outdated. If you went there, including hitchhiking, for travel or as part of an organized tour − be sure to [http://en.hitchwiki.org/?title={{PAGENAMEE}}&amp;action=edit extend this article]!''
|}
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;includeonly&gt;
[[Category:Stubs]]
&lt;/includeonly&gt;
&lt;noinclude&gt;
[[Category:Templates]]
&lt;/noinclude&gt;</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchhiking techniques</title>
    <id>1514</id>
    <revision>
      <id>27948</id>
      <timestamp>2008-11-20T19:29:35Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Paxus</username>
        <id>1639</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>add etiquette link</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Hitchhiking techniques'''
* [[How to face traffic]]
* [[Hitchhiking Gestures]]
* [[Finding accommodation]]
* [[Speed Hitchhiking]]
* [[Traffic Jam Hitchhiking]]
* Hitchhiking with [[Signs]]
* Driver [[etiquette]]

[[Category:Practical info]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>How to face traffic</title>
    <id>1515</id>
    <revision>
      <id>27687</id>
      <timestamp>2008-11-12T18:58:32Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Fverhart</username>
        <id>79</id>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Facing traffic''' the right way is important for good hitchhiking. Be sure to face the possible ride. Smile widely, but not ridiculously so. Remove any sunglasses or other things that may cover your eyes. This is ''really'' important. The driver must see your eyes. Seeing your eyes might be the difference between being offered a ride or not. Don't get frustrated when many cars pass you, as will invariably happen most of the time. If someone flips you off, don't flip them off back, just ignore them and keep your attention on the oncoming cars.

If the driver does stop, move quickly, but not too fast. If they stopped far ahead, run to the car, but otherwise stay calm. Keep smiling. You don't want to make the driver feel like their time is being wasted, but you also want to give yourself time to judge the car and the driver, and to decide if you want to take the ride. It's your call... use your instincts. This is something that you will quickly develop with a little bit of experience!

Looking at traffic is not always needed. Sometimes drivers do not seem to stop easily, and it does not always seem to matter if you look at them. That is simply a matter of good karma and will. Especially on countryside roads walking in the direction that you want to go and raising the thumb while a driver approaches, while you still keep walking, not looking at the car, this may work. It can also work on quiet roads at night. 

* Some people like to ask the driver where they are going first. If you get a bad feeling about the lift, it is easy to say 'no' by simply saying that you want to go in another direction.
* Otherwise, specify where you are going. Maybe tell the driver where you're from, or your purpose. Sometimes it helps to explain how you got where you are. 

Remember to be friendly and be [[safe]]. Trust your instincts.

[[Category:Practical info]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Things to carry</title>
    <id>1516</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37505</id>
      <timestamp>2009-09-26T09:23:00Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>81.76.6.81</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* After that */  just a spelling mistake</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Most hitchhikers '''carry''' a backpack with them wherever they go. The backpack should be sturdy, yet comfortable. 
First of all, you need '''as little as possible'''! The longer you travel, the less you want in your bag!

Large rucksacks are great, but maybe taking a smaller bag will encourage you not to take useless items...

If, after a trip, you decide an item really is useless, then don't be afraid to get rid of it.

== Most important ==
In order of importance:
# A [[map]] of the area you plan to travel in, preferably showing petrol stations and tollway stations.
#: Like anything though, this is debatable. Some hitchers may like to just go by the sun and general knowledge of the region.
# A small umbrella is also very useful.

If you like to hitchhike with [[signs]]:
# A big black '''marker'''.
#: ''Sharpies'' work best, particularly the ''Magnum'' size. ''Eddings'' are also good, just make sure you have one with a broad end. That's easier to write with. Possibly some other colors; a catchy sign is an effective sign. ''Marks-A-Lot'', in one hitcher's experience, have barely enough ink to last more than a few signs and aren't worth the space they take up.
# An A4 transparent plastic map and some spare A4 papers, or a piece of cardboard
#: You'll often be able to find cardboard and paper on your way - just ask (or dumpster-dive) at shops or [[petrol station]]s.
#: An A4 writing pad turned out to be very handy. You can make a lot of signs with it and it's quite stable. It's also good to have some paper clips with you, in case it's windy and the sheets are flapping.
For people who like it [[safe]]:
# A mobile phone for sending SMS to a friend, to inform them about the numberplate of the car you jumped in. Remember the battery recharge adaptor! Sometimes a service station will have a spare wall socket you can use to charge your phone. Remember to bring the right adaptor for the country you are in.

== Quickly accessible during rides ==
It's also good to make things you might need on the road ''easily accessible'':
* all possible maps you might need
* clothes in case of [[rain]] or sudden chill (like when going a tunnel when you're in the back of a van).
* a plastic bottle of water
Try and pack similar items close to each other (eg. toothbrush next to the toothpaste).

== After that ==
Then, if you expect to be on the road for more longer time:
* A large towel (doubles as a blanket, shawl or pillow). Specially-made camping towels are light, small, and dry very fast.
* Hygienic products such as:
** toothbrush - even better in your pocket!
** A small bottle of liquid peppermint soap--the kind which can be used as toothpaste or mouthwash as well. Try to stay reasonably clean. Dr. Bronner's Pure Castille Soap is recommended, though the containers it comes in are not very sturdy (wrap it in a bag at the least). Make sure it can't spill inside the rest of your bag!
** Baby-wipes work well too for cleaning skin, they're light and easy to store. Maybe a service station restaurant (such as a KFC) will have little packets of them, to give you for free...
** Toilet paper or tissues. Don't forget to bury it at least a foot down!
** A stick of deodorant and/or spray bottle of cologne. Alternatively essential oils, as of lavender, patchouli, grapefruit, etc.
* A [[sleeping bag]]. It can be useful to have a good, waterproof Compression Sack as well.
* An extra set of clothing, at the minimum, 2 extra pairs of socks and underwear, and an extra T-shirt.
* A nice warm jacket or hooded sweatshirt. It's possible to do wonderful things with the right layers; good camping long johns and thermals are worth their small weight in cold weather, and are comfortable to wear to bed.
* Something to drink, food, fruit, nuts. You don't want your [[food]] and drinks to be all over your stuff, so make sure that this is carefully packed. Canned food can be too heavy - often dried bulk food etc. is better. Try not to take things that have a strong smell. Remember to drink lots of water, and that most other drinks (like coffee, soda, orange juice, etc.) will actually dehydrate you.
* Reading material, for waits and quiet rides. (such as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_the_Road On the Road] by Jack Kerouac, or [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evasion_%28book%29 Evasion] by Anonymous).
* A pack of cards.
* A small medikit - cheap, and may suddenly be '''very''' useful.
* A small sewing kit is crucial for longer trips (especially if you have only one pair of pants - hitchhiking with a hole in your crotch is quite difficult) Recommended: at least one pair pants and one shorts. Conventional thread is really dreadfully weak, many travelers prefer to use dental floss because of its vastly superior durability. Some flosses are better than others, with the standard being Johnson &amp; Johnson Reach brand. Good floss can also conveniently be burned/melted down onto a knot.
* A torch (US: flashlight). Wind-up ones are good because they're lighter, and you don't have to waste batteries on them. The RAC one (available in the [[UK]]) is excellent.
* A journal and/or camera is always a good choice to keep track of where you've been and who you've met, and to later add useful information to this wiki!
* Some basic tools to make jewelry with, or other such, will keep you in pocket change and give you something to do on lazy afternoons in the park, and will provide you with an answer if the police ask what you're doing in town. Also good for starting conversations.
* A [[harmonica]], penny whistle, kalimba or the like is also nice.
* A small amount of change (in the local currency), for buying public transport tickets, and any other items you suddenly need.
* CDs or cassettes, to offer drivers for entertainment during quieter rides, and even to give as &quot;Thank You&quot; gifts.
* If it makes you feel safer: a film-canister full of pepper--kept in your most accessible pocket. You probably won't need to use it, but you should have it handy to be able to pop the lid and toss it in the face of an attacker.
* An aluminized mylar &quot;space blanket&quot; is an exceptional survival tool, and weighs only an ounce or two.
* A multi-tool. My preference is the ''Leatherman Wave''. A companion used the ''Leatherman Blast'' and would not recommend it - the pins that hold the tool-lock releases are made to cross too long a gap, and can snap. The ''Swiss Army Knife'' is of course a classic as well.
* A tarp. There are a few varieties, my preference is actually a coated nylon rain poncho that doubles as a tarp. Good to separate you from the ground, or to rig up a shelter with, or to cover your pack when stashing it somewhere if it might rain. The new &quot;siltarps&quot; made with siliconized Cordura are extremely waterproof, ridiculously lightweight, and very surprisingly durable.
* Rain gear. As mentioned above, a poncho works well and doubles as a tarp, but even just a contractor trash bag tucked away is a good idea. If considering a rain jacket, remember that you'll want to keep your pack dry as well as not end up with your pants/skirt soaked.
* Small gifts for any [http://www.hospitalityclub.org/ HospitalityClub], [http://www.bewelcome.org/ BeWelcome] or [http://www.couchsurfing.com/ CouchSurfing] hosts who help you on your way.
* Sun screen. Standing in the sun without protection for hours waiting for rides can result in a nasty burn.

=== Camping ===
If you decide on [[camping]] you may want some more stuff:
* A [[tent]], a [[tarp]] or a [[bivouac sack]] (or at least a couple of large, sturdy leaf bags, one opened at the bottom and duct-taped to the other to make a 6' long waterproof bag to sleep in - be sure not to suffocate yourself!). 
* A pad to sleep on (1&quot; foam rubber x 2' wide by 5' long, for example), or a Thermarest or other self-inflating sleeping pad. Frankly, with either cardboard or dry leaves being very readily available at almost any place you might camp, carrying a pad with you is not really needed except in a few contexts.
* A metal cup big enough to hold a can of [[Sterno]] (packing space is at a premium) and a can of Sterno. Alternatively, instead of Sterno, you can use a [[Squat Candle]] or [[DIY Alcohol Stove]].
* Matches or lighter - preferably both, maybe even two lighters to be sure. BICs are the most reliable.
* A boy-scout type fork, spoon, knife set (heavy) or your pocket knife and a spoon.
* A length of coat-hanger type wire and a length of sturdy cord or string
* A canteen or plastic water bottle (glass WILL break!).
* Your clothes, stuffed into your backpack, make a good pillow and make it much less likely someone will steal your backpack while you are sleeping on it, particularly if you keep an arm through the straps while asleep.
* Most bridges have a flat, dry space underneath which is excellent.
* After being harassed a few nights back by a mountain lion, I keep a 3&quot; pocket knife on me when I sleep.

== Packing tips ==
* If you expect a lot of [[rain]] it's wise to pack stuff in a few zip lock bags. Especially recommended for electronic gear and some [[clothes]] that you want to keep dry.

== External links ==
* [http://www.travelindependent.info/whattopack.htm What to pack], quote: &quot;Your bag is your life. The smaller it is the less it sticks outs and the less vulnerable you feel. The closer you can stick to it and less cumbersome it is the happier you will be.&quot;

[[Category:Equipment]]

[[de:Ausrüstung]]
[[fi:Pakkaaminen]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Phrasebook</title>
    <id>1517</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35306</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:27:23Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">There are various hitchhiking '''phrasebooks''' to be found online.
Since this is a wiki we can try to make the best one. A flexible one, where you can assemble your own phrasebook, with the languages you need for your trip.

== How to add tranlations ==
If you are a speaker of one of those many languages around the globe, and if you want to add the translation of these to this phrasebooks, just go to one of the phrasebook sites, choose your language and click on the “edit” button next to the name of the language. A textbox appears where you can find the phrases in English. Just write the translation behind the sentences, so that later you'll find the English translation next to the interpretation in your language.

== Phrasebooks ==
* [[Western Europe phrasebook]]
* [[Northern Europe phrasebook]]
* [[Eastern Europe phrasebook]]
* [[Southern Europe phrasebook]]
* [[Africa phrasebook]]
* [[Asia phrasebook]]
* [[South America phrasebook]]
* [[North America phrasebook|Central and North America phrasebook]]


* [http://wikitravel.org/en/Phrasebook Phrasebooks in wikitravel]

== External Links ==
* [http://www.digihitch.com/road-culture/hitchhiking-phrases Global Vagabond Language Guide] - Important phrases for hitchhikers in over 20 languages, including a printable edition of the ''Hitch-hiking Phrasebook'' for many European languages.
[[wikipedia:Phrase book]]

[[Category:Phrasebook| ]]

[[de:Sammlung von Redewendungen]]
[[fi:Fraasisanakirja]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Spain</title>
    <id>1518</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37796</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T23:02:28Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{IsIn|Europe}}[[File:Granada.jpg|thumb|right|300px|[[Robino]] hitchhiking in [[Granada]]]]
'''Spain''' is a member state of the European Union as well as the Schengen Agreement. 
Spain consists of the 17 ''Comunidades Autónomas''. These are not only administrative destricts; Many of the regions have their own culture, language and some even don’t consider themselves as a part of Spain. For example the dominating language in [[Catalonia]] is Catalan and getting around with ''castellano'' (spanish) is not always possible. 
English is taught at school, but due some droll shyness, lot’s of Spaniards refuse to speak it. For this reason, most travellers learn at least ''un poquito'' (a little bit) of the Spanish language during their stay. The phrase ''Vas a... ?'' (are you going to... ?) is an excellent starting point. 

== Hitchhiking, ''Autostop'' ==
In Spain, hitching isn’t a very common concept and mostly done by foreigners. Though, the thumb will be understood. Nevertheless, you will find a lot of foreigners in cars from countries where the hitchhiking culture is more developed. You usually have to wait for some time - but those who pick you up at least tend to be really nice. Sometimes you will have to be patient possibly waiting for over an hour! Once, [[User:Latindane]] had to wait 4 hours to get a 300 kilometers ride with lunch included towards [[Madrid]].

When entering the country from [[France]] you should try to get a lift as close to your destination as possible. On the mediteranean side, a good place for this is La Jonquera, one of the biggest truck stops in Europe. You’ll find plenty of international truck drivers all over the country, because Spain is a centre of the fruit industry, exporting their oranges and tomatoes. On the Atlantic side, there is another huge truck stop near Irun.

If you arrive by the ferry from [[Africa]] you should try to get a ride on the ferry or at the port. There are lot’s of people from [[Morocco]], who went to visit their families and now return. You’ll see number plates from many other European states.

== Road network ==
The north of Spain has a well developed system of ''autopistas'' and hitching is pretty similar to France or [[Germany]]. These motorways have three lanes in both directions, ''peajes'' (tollgates) and huge rest stops directly at the road. However, waiting at the peajes, isn't allowed and you’ll be sent away by the police. So when hitching between France - [[Murcia]] or [[Barcelona]] – [[Zaragoza]] – Madrid for example it is a good idea to stick to the rest stops and ask the drivers there. Bring water and food, since these ''áreas de servicio'' are really(!) expensive. 

However in the more southern regions, the motorways are smaller and the petrol stations usually a bit off the road. But don’t worry and be patient.

== Carpooling ==
Carpooling (''compartir coche'') is an alternative. The website [http://www.viajamosjuntos.com/ ¿viajamosjuntos.com?] gives the opportunity to the driver to post their journey in search of passenger to share the cost of the ride.

== Squatting ==

Spain has a very active sqatting scene. It’s quite easy to find a place to crash by asking around for a ''casa ocupada''.

== Cities ==
[[File:PICT1976.JPG|thumb|250px|right]]
* [[Alicante]]
* [[Badajoz]]
* [[Barcelona]], the capital of [[Catalunya]]
* [[Bilbao]]
* [[Burgos]]
* [[Ceuta]]
* [[Donostia-San Sebastián]]
* [[Granada]]
* [[Madrid]], the capital
* [[Malaga]]
* [[Santiago del Compostela]]
* [[Sevilla]]
* [[Valencia]]
* [[Vigo]]
* [[Zaragoza]]

==   ==
{{stub}}
{{hitchbase_country|177}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}

[[wikipedia:Spain]]

[[trash:Spain]]

[[Category:Spain| ]]

[[de:Spanien]]
[[es:España]]
[[fr:Espagne]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Helsinki</title>
    <id>1519</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36454</id>
      <timestamp>2009-08-10T08:36:32Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>MrTweek</username>
        <id>3</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>/* South, ferry towards Tallinn, Estonia */ cleaning</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Helsinki''' is the capital of [[Finland]]. Most of the foreign hitchhikers enter the country here, either by boat from [[Tallinn]] of by plane to the international airport - which is not actually in Helsinki, but in [[Vantaa]].

Helsinki is a nice place and worth staying for a couple of nights. Its a rather small city with about a million inhabitants on the metropolitan area and quite relaxed atmosphere.

&lt;map lat='60.2' lng='24.935' zoom='11' view='3' height='350' float='right' country='Finland'/&gt;

== Hitching Out ==
=== North to [[Hämeenlinna]], [[Tampere]] ===
Take a local train to Kannelmäki and then bus 43 or 46T (from the same side of the street as the train station). With bus 46T ask to get off at Kalannintie, and with bus 43 ask to get off at the Tampere roundabout. You will easily see the motorway exit because it is signposted Tampere.

Traffic is light here and much of it is local, so don't use a sign. Try to get onto the motorway and then ask to be dropped off at a petrol station a couple of kilometres north where you can easily continue on with a sign.

You can also go to the northern end of &quot;'''Mannerheimintie'''&quot;, where &quot;Hämeenlinnanväylä&quot; starts. At least the '''buses 43, 452, 63''' (leaving from the train station, from the &quot;Elielinaukio&quot;) take you there, hop off at the bus stop &quot;Ruskeasuon varikko&quot;, where you can start hitching! You can reach this spot by tram too: take the '''tram number 10''' to the direction Pikku-Huopalahti (goes in front of Lasipalatsi and follows Mannerheimintie). Hop off at Ruskeasuo and walk along Mannerheimintie for 5 minutes until you reach the end of it (the beginning of Hämeenlinnanväylä) and the bus stop mentioned above. Use a sign because there's a lot of traffic inside the city and you might get a direct ride to your destination.

=== Northeast to [[Lahti]], [[Jyväskylä]] (also okay for [[Porvoo]], [[Kotka]], [[Kouvola]] and [[Saint Petersburg]]) ===
There's a bus stop called &quot;Valtimontie&quot; and you can reach it with several bus lines: 68X, 70, 70T, 73, 73N, 75, 77, 730-732, 734, 740-742, 738.
The motorway splits into two slightly before ringroad number III. Road number 4 goes towards north/northeast (Lahti, Jyväskylä), while road number 7 goes towards east (Kotka, Kouvola, Saint Petersburg, and so on). This place works okay with a sign, but is impossible without it. Stand just behind the traffic lights and there will be plenty of space for the cars to stop. You should also make sure the driver is really going to your way, because there's no place to leave you out between the bus stop and the junction where the motorways split...
In case you can't find a satisfying ride within a reasonable time (can happen, specially on Sunday morning), hitch from here to the junction with ring road III (make a sign for one of the suburbs behind, e.g. Järvenpää). Get off once you passed the junction, and hitch on the road connecting the ring road and the motorway. Half of the traffic is driving very fast, the other half rather slow – however, here are much more long - distance - going - cars to find than in Valtimontie. Note that this is officially a motorway, so hitching is actually forbidden! However, Joeri found this spot much better than Valtimontie.

=== East to [[Porvoo]], [[Kotka]], [[Russia]]n border, [[Saint Petersburg]] ===
The fastest way to get east is to walk to the junction of Ring Road III and the motorway from the metro station Mellunmäki. This is about a 40 minute journey on foot. [[File:Helsinkieast-map.png|thumb|right|250px|How to reach the eastbound junction on foot]] Once at the junction, it is easy to get a ride as short as the suburbs or as far as Saint Petersburg. With so many options, it is wise to turn down any ride not going all the way to your destination. [[File:Helsinkieast-signs.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Signs marking the Helsinki eastbound junction]]

There is another option to at least Porvoo, though it is superseded by the route mentioned above and waiting times can be extremely long. Take the metro to the Mellunmäki station, then take buses 56K, 86 or 87 to the Kuussillantie stop. The bus driver may not know the name of the stop, but if you mention that it is the Esso station before the bridge, he can then alert you when it is time to get off. On the corner a few metres toward the bridge from the McDonald's and the Esso, you'll see cars entering the junction of Ring 3 and motorway 7. Stand right before the no pedestrian sign.

If you go further than to Porvoo, there is a rest stop halfway between Helsinki and Porvoo, so ask to drop you there. All there is is toilets and a café, so it's most efficient in the morning time. From there, find a ride at least to Kotka.

=== West to [[Turku]] ===
Take bus 18 from the west side of the Central Railway Station to the Niemenmäki stop. Going a little further from the bus stop and cross to the other side of the street. You'll find the entry ramp onto the motorway. I recommend standing right in front of the large side with a graphic symbolizing the motorway, as then you'll be seen by cars coming from both directions, and there's sufficient room for a car to stop. Use a sign, not everyone taking this route is going all the way to Turku.

Some of the drivers say though that it's pretty hard to stop there and have adviced to hitch hike with a sign on a bus stop on '''Huopalahdentie''' right before the ramp.

=== west (direction [[Hanko]]) ===
Take the motorway 51 that starts in the southwestern part of the central city area.
You may take the metro to station ''Ruoholahti''. When you leave the station it's to the north (to the right hand side as compared to the direction of travel). You have to go through one block of buildings past ''Kauppakeskus'' (shopping centre) to the next big street. You should find yourself right there near a big junction where the motorway goes off onto a bridge. There are good possibilities to stand – either a bus stop right before the traffic lights or a large [[hard shoulder]] around the corner on the beginning of the motorway.

=== South, ferry towards [[Tallinn]], [[Estonia]] ===
It's unclear if you can find rides with people going by car. If there is an extra passenger in a truck, an extra ticket has to be paid.

But you can try to become a member of the Viking Club (only in Finnish and Swedish) and get a free &quot;picnic cruise&quot;.

== External links ==
* [http://hitchbase.com/ergebnisse.php?abfrage%5Bstartort%5D=103&amp;abfrage%5Bzielort%5D=-1&amp;abfrage%5Bstartland%5D=66&amp;abfrage%5Bzielland%5D=-1&amp;LANG=ger Helsinki at hitchbase.com]
* [http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/kjokisal/liftaus/main.html#helsinki Hitchhiking guide to Helsinki]

&lt;!--
Here's some info over Helsinki: To find good hitching spots here as well as elsewhere in Finland, go to see hitchbase.com. Languages are German, English and Russian. You are also most welcome to add new info on those pages.

:Please add direct links, not just general information about a website. Also, I prefer to add information when I know it will be under a free license :) [[User:Guaka|Guaka]] 19:45, 21 Dec 2005 (UTC)
--&gt;
__NOTOC__

[[trash:Helsinki]]

[[Category:Finland]]
[[Category:E75]]
[[Category:E12]]
[[Category:E18]]

[[de:Helsinki]]
[[fi:Helsinki]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Finland</title>
    <id>1520</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36728</id>
      <timestamp>2009-08-23T18:11:16Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>88.148.198.85</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* From/to Sweden */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = of Finland
|language = Finnish, Swedish; recognised regional languages: Sami
|capital = [[Helsinki]]
|pop = 5,301,701
|currency = Euro (€)
|hitch = {{good}}
|map = &lt;map lat='64.8' lng='25.9' zoom='4' view='0' width='300' height='350' country='Finland'/&gt;
}}
'''Finland''' is a part of the Northern [[Europe]], one of the Nordic countries. It is a member state of the [[European Union]] as well as the [[Schengen Agreement]]. Its neighbouring countries are [[Sweden]], [[Norway]] and [[Russia]], but possibly the most probable transit country on your way hitchhiking there is [[Estonia]]. Most people use this way which is called &quot;[[Via Baltica]]&quot; - it is a road [[E67]] between [[Helsinki]], Finland and [[Prague]], [[Czech Republic]] through Baltic States and [[Poland]].

Hitchhiking seems pretty easy in the Northern part of Finland. It could be a good idea to avoid motorways and opt for smaller local roads once you get closer to Helsinki - sure, there will be less traffic, however, you will get more space for the cars to stop, and avoid a chance of getting stuck on some unlit motorway ramp in the middle of nowhere (consider the early darkness when hitchhiking in autumn/winter!)

Since Finland mostly lacks a motorway network, most of the hitchhiking happens in the &quot;classical manner&quot;, standing thumb up on roadside. While doing this, be aware that the Finnish drivers are a lot more careful in traffic than drivers elsewhere in Europe. They will only stop if the place is super-safe. This means a bus stop or similar. Even if there is a bus-stop-sized widening in the road, it does not help if it is unpaved.. Travellers not taking this into account has caused Finland to be known among foreigners as a difficult country to hitchhike, although it isn't actually worse than other western countries if you get around the culture of requiring crazy amounts of safety.
__TOC__
[[File:Erga-camping-in-finland.jpg|thumb|250px|right|[[Camping]] is legal almost anywhere in Finland, just stay slightly out of sight and you can even camp next to [[motorways]].]]

=== Cities ===
* [[Espoo]]
* [[Hämeenlinna]]
* [[Helsinki]]
* [[Joensuu]]
* [[Jyväskylä]]
* [[Kuopio]]
* [[Lahti]]
* [[Oulu]]
* [[Pori]]
* [[Seinäjoki]]
* [[Tampere]]
* [[Turku]]

=== Other areas ===
* [[Lapland]]

== Crossing the borders ==
Apart from the Russian border, Finnish borders exist only on the map, not in reality. Since the dawn of time there has been very a liberal co-operation between the Finnish, Swedish and Norwegian. However, despite the fact that Finland signed the [[Schengen Agreement]] there is a random identity and luggage check when you take a ferry from [[Ahvenanmaa]] to [[Stockholm]] (Sweden).

[[File:Washing car window in the North of Finland.JPG|thumb|240px|Hitchhiker [[User:guaka|guaka]] washing away mosquito corpses]]
=== From/to Sweden ===
Ferries to Stockholm go from [[Helsinki]] and [[Turku]]. The latter is considerably cheaper. Both ferries also stop in [[Maarianhamina]] ([[Ahvenanmaa]]), or [[Mariehamn]] ([[Åland]]), as its Swedish-speaking population calls it. The two companies which run ferries between Finland and Sweden are [http://www.vikingline.fi ''Viking Line''] and [http://www.silja.com ''Silja Line'']. Both of the companies are focused on bringing the customers a cruise-experience, and are bound to be tacky. ''Viking Line'' sells cheaper tickets without a cabin, too, which would be rather useless on the daytime trips between [[Turku]] and [[Stockholm]] anyway. As of August 2009, a morning ferry from Stockholm to Turku costs 15 euros, and Stockholm-Helsinki - 55 euros (both without a cabin, although prices vary according to season. 

''Silja Line'' is the posher of the two, and thus more expensive. It's still tacky, though.

The ''Viking Line'' cruise ships have free tourist maps of Turku at their information desks on board. Be aware, though, that if you take a daytime cruise (which is about half the price), you will arrive in Turku at night. During the autumn, winter and early spring that means no daylight which is no help for hitchhiking. In winter nights, extremely cold temperatures might occur as well.

When on-board, during warmer time of the year you might go up outside to enjoy the scenery of the archipelagos of Stockholm or Turku. 

Be aware as well of a constant attempt to lure people to buy as much tax-free alcohol and some other things on the ferries. It really isn't much more cheaper, though, than buying them on land. So, do bring a book. Usually there are free Playstation or XBox games at the kids-section to spend the time, plus very often other backpackers wander around (you might as well have a chat with them). You can also try to spot small islands severely damaged by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Cormorant Great cormorants] a few hours off Stockholm.

There are Swedish [http://www.birka.se ''Birka Cruises''] boats cruising the sea, too.

More info about boats in the region: [http://www.makupalat.fi/Categories.aspx?classID=aef30d12-31ab-407f-89d6-526dd5d637f5 here] (Sweden, Estonia, Germany + lake tourism)

=== From/to Norway ===

Its possible to hitch from lapland. Aim for Kilpisjärvi down the E8. You do not go into Sweden. If going South down the E8 its possible to go on to Oulu. There is much less traffic up there so longer rides are more common. Just after Oulu there is a service station that is quite busy. There is no customs stopping, unless there is a new car that has not travelled that way before. Then you may get lifts at the border. There is a lot of tourism there and wilderness huts for free staying are possible to find. 

=== From/to Estonia ===
[[File:Erga-and-a-friendly-finnish-man.jpg|thumb|240px|right|Hitchhiker Erga and a friendly Finnish driver]]
There is no land connection between Finland and [[Estonia]]. There are several daily boats from Helsinki to [[Tallinn]]. It takes usually 1-3 hours, costs about 20 euros (the cheapest one, without a cabin).

Links:

* [http://www.tallinksilja.com/fi/trips/routeTrips/ ''Tallink &amp; Silja Line''], ferries to Estonia (only in Finnish/Swedish)
* [http://www.vikingline.fi/index.asp?lang=en ''Viking Line''] 
* [http://www.eckeroline.fi/en/default.aspx ''Eckerö Line'']
* [http://www.lindaliini.ee/ ''Linda Line'']

=== From/to [[Russia]] ===
'''Note that as of 2006:'''
* No walking is permitted on any of existing Finnish-Russian border checkpoints.
* ''Vaalimaa–Torfianovka'' border checkpoint is permitted to cross by cycling.
* Russian visa can not be issued at the border checkpoint.

The most important border checkpoints to Russia ([[St. Petersburg]]'s district) are ''Vaalimaa–Torfianovka'' on the road [[E18]]/7 Helsinki-St.Petersburg, and ''Nuijamaa–Brusnichnoe'' near [[Lappeenranta]].
 
==== Vaalimaa–Torfianovka ====
It is always open. Traffic is high there, and you might find there both long-distance trucks (however, see info below about trucks ) as well as lots of locals, from both sides of the border, with Russians coming to buy goods they don't have in Russia, and Finns going to the other side to buy alcohol, cigarettes and fuel. On a Finnish side, you can find most of them at the first [[petrol station]], just before the customs zone. You can also ask drivers on the parking, and those queuing to the terminal. A ride to [[Torfianovka]] is enough – there's lots of transport going to [[Vyborg]] and [[St. Petersburg]] from there. 

As of 2006, it was a complete waste of time to hitch a truck over the border to Russia – freight terminal is separate for trucks and the queue there is extremely slow: sometimes you wait for hours, sometimes for days. Same terminal from Russia to Finland, though, seems to be faster. 

To get back from [[Russia]] to Finland, simply ask drivers at the parking lot by one of the supermarkets around there on the Russian side.

==== Other checkpoints ====
There is a checkpoint on the road '''13''' going south from [[Lappeenranta]] and bypassing the village of Niirala on the north. There is less traffic here but the route is more scenic, going along the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saimaa_canal Saimaa canal] (Russian: ''Сайменский канал''; Finnish: ''Saimaan kanava'').

Next border checkpoint to the north from there is ''Niirala-Värtsilä'', on the road 70 south of [[Joensuu]]. The trafic is low, a road goes to [[Sortavala]] and then further to [[St. Petersburg]] via the south shore of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Ladoga lake Ladoga] (with a portion of an unpaved road), or via the north shore to [[Petrozavodsk]].

There are a few more border checkpoints: from [[Imatra]] to [[Svetogorsk]], from [[Kuhmo]] to [[Kostamuksha]], from [[Salla]] towards [[Kandalaksha]], and from [[Inari]] towards [[Murmansk]]. These days most of these checkpoints work 24/7. Good way to hitch a ride from Russia to Finland is to hang around some stores near borders and look for Finnish license plates. A smart trick you can do to lift up your chances to get a ride is by offering a driver you speak to to bring an extra load of cigarettes and alcohol - most of the Finnish drivers won't resist that!

== Language ==
The language most people in Finland speak is Finnish which isn't a Scandinavian language. The country is officially bilingual as there is a large Swedish-speaking minority on the west coast of Finland. Anyhow, most of the people speak good English, too, so most of the foreign hitchhikers won't have big language problems in Finland.

Some older people, however, might have no English language knowledge at all, so you might as well learn some basic Finnish phrases. Note, that with a knowledge of Swedish, however, you can come pretty far (it is useful all over Scandinavia).

Useful Finnish expressions for hitchhikers:

* Hello = '''Terve'''
* Hi = '''Moi''' ''or'' '''Hei'''
* Hitchhiking = '''Liftaaminen'''
* To hitchhike = '''Liftata''' 
* A ride = '''Kyyti'''
* Thank you = '''Kiitos'''
* Where are you driving to? = '''Minne ajat?'''

== Safety ==
Hitchhiking is quite safe in Finland. As always, common sense is your friend.

== Legal matters for hitchhikers ==
Hitchhiking is legal in Finland. Anyhow, there are some places where it is illegal for the cars to stop, and some places where it is illegal for pedestrians to stand. Both of these make hitchhiking illegal de facto in these places.

[[File:Finland european roads.png|thumb|250px|Finnish motorways (blue) with their European numbers and national roads (red and yellow)]]

== Motorways ==
[[File:Finnish_motorway_sign_561.png|left|60px]]
It is illegal to hitchhike on the motorways (called “moottoritie”) and some motorways (“moottoriliikennetie”) in Finland. You can recognize these from the green signs.

The cars can not stop in crossing areas, and some cars not obeying this rule and taking hitchhikers on board are known to be fined.

Hitching on the motorways and two lane expressways is prohibited. On any other motorway you can legally hitch. You can also hitchhike at the motorway on-ramps, and at the motorway [[petrol station]]s' areas. Basically, same rules as in countries in Western Europe and in most states of the [[USA]].

== Culture ==
Hitchhiking used to be popular in the 70's and 80's, and many drivers will tell the hitchhiker(s) they've hitched themselves back in their days. Nowadays this practice is rather rare among Finns, but there are always some, especially in summer time, when local hitchers get inspired by European backpackers heading to [[Lapland]].

== Links ==
* [[:fi:Etusivu|Finnish Hitchwiki]]
* [http://www.liftari.org/ Finnish hitchhiker's club] − the site is mostly in Finnish but there is an English section in the [http://www.liftari.org/forum forum].
* IRC Channel [[Liftari @ IRCnet]]
* [http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/kjokisal/liftaus/ Hitchhiker's guide to Europe] − a hitchhiking site by a Finn
* [http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/ssmoland/peukalo/ Liftausvinkkejä] − hitchhiking tips in Finnish
* [http://books.google.com/books?id=ZY_XZW9AtYgC&amp;printsec=frontcover&amp;dq=finland Lonely Planet − Finland eBook (2003) ''preview'']
[[trash:Finland]]
[[wikipedia:Finland]]

{{IsIn|Scandinavia}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}

[[Category:Finland| ]]
[[Category:Northern Europe]]

[[de:Finnland]]
[[fi:Suomi]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>France</title>
    <id>1521</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37756</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:30:16Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = France
|map = &lt;map lat='47' lng='1.5' zoom='5' view='0' height='320' country='France'/&gt;
|language = French
|capital = [[Paris]]
|pop = 64,102,140
|currency = Euro (€)
|hitch = {{good}}
}}
'''France''' is a member state of the [[European Union]] as well as the [[Schengen Agreement]]. It is usually a great country for hitchhiking. There are many friendly car and truck drivers. Drivers have to pay toll on motorways (except in [[Bretagne|Brittany]]), and you can get a ride quite easily at some ''barrières de péage'' (toll stations). When hitchhiking on local roads, you might face some difficulties sometimes, though. One of the commonly known barriers for traveling in France is a language - you might wanna learn some basic phrases before you off on the road in France.

There are no hitchhiking prohibitions in France, apart from the restricted access roads (''Allemagne'' (all-ay-man'ye) in French). Moreower some expierience shows that french people will more often stop in a place where it is not normally allowed than in other countries.

It may also be helpful to write '''S.V.P.''' on your sign with a destination name - it is short for ''s'il vous plaît'' (sih-voo-play) which means ''please'' in French.

On Sundays, only trucks with frozen goods are allowed to drive. 

The ''&quot;Michelin 726 National&quot;'' map of France is a good choice for a hitchhiker in this country. It shows all the major ''barrières de péage'' and [[service station]]s. You can get a free map in péage offices.

== ''Autoroutes'', ''péages'' and ''barrières de péage'' ==

'''Péage''' ([http://french.about.com/library/media/wavs/peage.wav]) is a French word for ''[[toll]]''. It is also commonly used as referring to [[toll station]]s.

In France, most of the motorways are toll roads which are the fastest way to hitch across the country. There are two types of toll stations on péages. First, there are big ones where all traffic has to stop to pay a fee (or to get a ticket) - these are ''barrières de péage'' and usually they are excellent spots to get a long-distance ride. They are often located near big cities on the autoroute. Another type is a side barrier situated on all exits in the toll part of the motorway. On latter ones traffic is much smaller, therefore one can expect a longer waiting time, although sometimes congested toll stations (the first type) can be a difficult place to hitch from, too.

To reach the ''barrière de péage'', you may need to walk along the motorway; with a help of a proper map check if the distance needed to be walked is not too long. It is actually illegal to walk on a side lane of the motorway (same is valid for some parts of national roads (''voie express'') in France); if police sees you, you will be driven somewhere safe and may be fined for ~90€. Péage toll stations are considered a part of the motorway, and legally you do not have the right to solicit rides there. You may be asked to wait in the parking area which is after each ''barrière de péage''. In practice, this is rarely enforced (maybe 5% of the time), most toll station employees simply want to make sure you're not endangering yourself or others. Having a sign with your destination (or the next city) is recommended and will distinguish you as a serious hitchhiker, and not a vagrant. 

The fastest way to travel on a péage is from one ''barrière de péage'' to another. Hitchhiking options are:

* You can thumb immediately after the ''barrière de péage''
* If you prefer a direct approach you can dash across the lanes one at a time until you're at a busy lane, stand next to the toll machine and talk to the drivers when they stop to pay (usually it is not allowed to hitch from the toll machines but it is generally tolerated).
* You can wait before the ''barrière de péage'', just where the drivers choose their lane - there is often enough of space for cars to pull over to stop for you. 

Some ''barrière de péage'' are really good, some are not. If you've been waiting for a while using a destination sign, drop it and try thumbing.

While on a toll road, you can always try hitchhiking from one [[petrol station]] to another, either asking drivers while they refill, or thumbing at the exit of the service area. The staff usually doesn't mind hitchhikers.

== [[Number plates]] ==
French number plates end with a number of the ''département'' the car is registered in. For example, [[Paris]]ian cars end with numbers 75, 78, 91, 92, 93, 94 and 95. See Wikipedia articles on
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_vehicle_registration_plates French vehicle registration plates] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_arrondissements_of_France Arrondissements of France]. New number plates are to appear in the nearest future. Those will not carry any information about the region unless car owner decides to put a ''département'' reference on it. The old plates will be still in use for a while.

&lt;gallery&gt;
Image:Mrtweek mzenzes hitching in france.png|[[User:Mzenzes|Martin]] and [[User:MrTweek|Philipp]] hitching in France.
Image:Derek_hitching_at_péage.jpg|Derek hitching at a péage near [[Valence]].
Image:Cynthia_hitching.jpg|Cynthia hitchhiking out of [[Paris]].
Image:Tokyohitch.jpg|[[Lille]]-[[Tokyo]] direct ride, 5-min deal.
Image:Perpignan bridgeoveronramp.jpg|On ramp bridge near [[Perpignan]].
Image:Spot-sharing.jpg|Sharing knowledge on spots to hitch out of Paris during the [[888]] event.
Image:peage.jpg|A typical ''barrière de péage'' in France.
&lt;/gallery&gt;

== External links ==
* [http://mappy.fr/ Mappy] is a good online map service for France in case you want to know where certain public transport goes to.
* [http://www.asf.fr/shared/pdf/CarteReseau.pdf Le Réseau ASF], a PDF file that shows all ''barrières de péage'' on major routes in France.

{{Cities France}}
{{Regions France}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}

{{IsIn|Western Europe}}
__NOTOC__
[[trash:France]]
[[wikipedia:France]]
[[digi:France]]

[[Category:France| ]]
[[Category:Western Europe]]

[[de:Frankreich]]
[[es:Francia]]
[[fr:France]]
[[pl:Francja]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Netherlands</title>
    <id>1522</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37778</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:49:23Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|map = &lt;map lat='52.2' lng='5.2' zoom='6' view='0' country='Netherlands'/&gt;
|language = Dutch
|capital = [[Amsterdam]]
|pop = 16,570,613
|currency = Euro (€)
|hitch = {{good}}
}}
The '''Netherlands''' are a member state of the [[European Union]] as well as the [[Schengen Agreement]].
Hitchhiking in the Netherlands is quite easy, and legal in most places, though not on motorways. The basic idea is that when you're allowed to walk somewhere, you can stand there for hitching too. 
Standing on a motorway entrance just in front of the motorway sign is allowed as well as standing on a petrol station along the motorway. 

[[File:Hitchhiking across the creek.jpg|thumb|250px|There are many creeks in the Netherlands and they can make it hard to get to petrol stations on the motorway]]
&lt;!--Roads where it is not permitted to walk are indicated by:
* a round white sign with red edge depicting a pedestrian.
* a rectangular blue sign depicting a motorway. Cars are also not allowed to stop here.
* a square blue sign depicting a car. Cars are also not allowed to stop here.

// this information seems to be quite ineffective in terms of multimedia use. I even can hardly imagine how these sign look like. Alternative: Make a picture and put in in here ;) Any other ideas? // --&gt;
Since 1991 Dutch students have a card providing them with free public transport (either in weekends or during the week), so hitchhiking is not as popular as it used to be. In some university towns, there are still official [[liftershalte]]s, '''official hitchhiking spots'''.

Other good places are petrol stations along the motorways and the entrances to the motorway from larger cities (when there is a stopping space such as an emergency lane). On such a place the average waiting time is 5–45 minutes (same as Germany). A major difference with [[Germany]] is that many lifts are not longer than 50 km. At petrol stations you can try to talk to people, which will probably work out fine if you don't dress up like a hippie. Try to speak in Dutch or English. French and German often work too, but not as effectively.

=== Useful tips ===
* Use of Internet PC's in every city library, for a small price. 
* When hitching in the Netherlands for a longer period (or when you're living there), it's advisable to buy yourself a ''15-strippenkaart'' for EUR 6,80, or a ''45-strippenkaart'' for EUR 20,40 in advance in a shop. This is a lot cheaper than buying a 2-, 3- or 8-strippenkaart on the bus or tram. (In the Netherlands any tram/bus route is divided into zones/stripes - for example, if you go from the centre of [[The Hague]] to the beach in [[Scheveningen]], it costs you 3 stripes, [[Delft]] to [[The Hague]] is about 8 stripes. So even if you are hitching all around the Netherlands, you can get yourself a strippenkaart for getting into/out of city centres - it will be valid all over the country.)

&lt;!-- //i'm hitching over from NL to DE every week, and nearly nobody is afraid that i have drugs with me...//
To get to [[Germany]] can be a bit difficult, because some people are afraid they could get in trouble if you have marijuana (legal in small portions in the Netherlands) or other drugs with you. However, if you're not on a motorway you can walk over the border and get another ride behind it.--&gt;

== License plates ==
In the Netherlands, license plates do not contain any marking about where the car comes from, but it does indicate the age of the car (although not in a straightforward way). Often though, the name and the city of the garage where the car was bought is indicated just under the license plate on the backside of the car. On busy petrol stations this may be useful information to look out for, as it may indicate where people are driving to. A normal license plate has three blocks of black letters or numbers on a yellow background. Every block consists of two letters or two numbers (so in total six letters and numbers). Since 2007 a new series of license plates is in use for the newest verhicles existing of a combination of three letters in the middle. Taxis' license plates have a blue background. The license plate of old timers is very dark blue with white letters. The number of cars with such license plate or yet another kind is very limited.

== Foods ==
[[File:HitchDelft.jpg|thumb|left|250px|[[User:Mdsmendes|Mdsmendes]] hitching in the Netherlands]]
The Netherlands are one of the rare countries where you can find a cheap pot of 'Peanut Butter' (''pindakaas''), which is a nutritious item that you can easily carry in your backpack. Also, you can find tube of 'mayonnaise' and 'ketchup' sauce (''Zaanse saus'') for about 30 cents, which last long without needing to be refrigerated and are great supplements to sandwiches or ''friet'' (as it avoids having to pay the 50 cents sauce at the ''snackbar'' (or sometimes ''frituur'' or ''frietkot'', especially in Belgium) when ordering a snack).

== Links ==
* [http://www.franknature.nl/hitchhike/hitchhike.htm Hitchhiking in the Netherlands], by [[User:Fverhart|Frank Verhart]].
* [http://www.liftershalte.info Liftershalte], hitchhiking spots in the Netherlands on a map.
* [http://www.liftpunt.tk Liftpunt], discussion forum about hitchhiking in Dutch.

{{hitchbase_country|138}}
{{Highways NL}}
{{Cities Netherlands}}
{{Provinces NL}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}

__NOTOC__
{{IsIn|Western Europe}}

[[trash:Netherlands]]

[[Category:Western Europe]]
[[Category:Netherlands|*]]

[[de:Niederlande]]
[[es:Países Bajos]]
[[fr:Pays Bas]]
[[pl:Holandia]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Europe</title>
    <id>1523</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37753</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:29:05Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">[[File:Flag of Europe EU.png|250px|thumb|Flag of [[European Union]]]]
Hitchhiking in '''Europe''' is fun. There are many small countries to enjoy hitching through, motorways in the Western parts can be exceptionally good, and overall hitchhiking is relatively safe.
Some countries such as [[Germany]] are quite easy to hitch around, for example, for the large distances in a single lift, or with the possibility to go really fast (especially where driving speed is not limited). [[England]] is usually good because of the relatively short waiting time. Most other countries are at the average or rather easy hitchability level, e.g. the [[Netherlands]], [[Belgium]] and East European countries. Some other countries are considered bad for the long waiting times (like [[Spain]] and [[Italy]]) but even there you might get a ride if you are patient enough. Some people chose to skip a country, though, after standing in one place for over two hours - it is reasonable enough to do so if visually good hitch-hiking spot appears not working in some places.

'''Note:''' In [[France]], [[Germany]], [[Austria]], [[Slovenia]], [[Poland]], [[Czech Republic]], [[Hungary]] and [[Italy]] trucks are not allowed to use motorways on Sundays and on public holidays. 
''&lt;small&gt;(Any other countries?)'' &lt;/small&gt; 
However, these restrictions do not apply to those granted an exception, such as trucks transporting perishable goods and fuel supplies.

Hitching is rather safe in Europe. However, a single female hitch-hiker takes a higher risk because of obvious reasons. However, obvious it is not and it sounds discouraging here.

For crossing the borders have a look at the [[Schengen Agreement]]. With a Schengen visa you can travel within a bunch of European countries.

When hitching longer distances it's generally good to stick to gas stations on the motorway. People there go long distances and it's not uncommon to find rides of 500 km and longer.

== Maps ==
It is more convenient to take a map on your trip but if you don't do so it is no big deal - some people actually prefer to get a feeling of lost nomads and to trust their own senses. For most of Europe (excl. the Eastern parts) the ''Marco Polo Euro Atlas'' is a great hitch-hikers's choice: it contains a detailed information about gas stations situated on motorways, and excludes less useful for hitch-hiking trips stuff like the index pages or city maps.
For online usage: 
* [http://www.liftershalte.info/?country=EU Liftershalte.info] - based on google maps
* [http://viamichelin.com viamichelin.com]
* [http://www.map24.com Map24.com] - very good Java-Maps and routing
* [http://www.openstreetmap.org OpenStreetMap.org] - free alternative

== Tips for each country ==
[[File:Granada.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[Robino]] hitchhiking in [[Granada]], [[Spain]]]]
The [http://unstats.un.org/unsd/methods/m49/m49regin.htm United Nations Statistics Division] defines Europe as following:

=== [[Northern Europe]] ===
* [[File:Flag of Denmark.png|30px]] [[Denmark]]
* [[File:Flag of Estonia.png|30px]] [[Estonia]]
* [[File:Flag of Finland.png|30px]] [[Finland]]
* [[File:Flag Iceland.png|30px]] [[Iceland]]
* [[File:Flag Ireland.png|30px]] [[Ireland]]
* [[File:Flag of Latvia.png|30px]] [[Latvia]]
* [[File:Flag of Lithuania.png|30px]] [[Lithuania]]
* [[File:Flag of Norway.png|30px]] [[Norway]]
* [[File:Flag of Sweden.png|30px]] [[Sweden]]
* [[File:Flag uk.png|30px]] [[United Kingdom|United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland]]

==== Autonomic Islands or Regions ====
* [[File:Flag_of_Aaland_Finland.png|30px]] [[Åland Islands]]
* [[Channel Islands]]
** [[File:Flag of Guernsey UK.png|30px]] [[Guernsey]]
*** [[File:Flag of Alderney UK.png|30px]] [[Channel Islands|Alderney]]
*** [[File:Flag of Herm UK.png|30px]] [[Channel Islands|Herm]]
*** [[File:Flag of Sark UK.png|30px]] [[Channel Islands|Sark]]
** [[File:Flag of Jersey UK.png|30px]] [[Jersey]]
* [[File:Flag of the Faroe Islands.png|30px]] [[Faeroe Islands]]
* [[File:Flag Isle of Man UK.png|30px]] [[Isle of Man]]
* [[Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands]]

=== [[Western Europe]] ===
* [[File:Flag_Austria.png|30px]] [[Austria]]
* [[File:Flag_Belgium.png|30px]] [[Belgium]]
* [[File:Flag_France.png|30px]] [[France]]
* [[File:Flag_Germany.png|30px]] [[Germany]]
* [[File:Flag_Liechtenstein.png|30px]] [[Liechtenstein]]
* [[File:Flag Luxembourg.png|30px]] [[Luxembourg]]
* [[File:Flag_of_Monaco.png|30px]] [[Monaco]]
* [[File:Flag_Netherlands.png|30px]] [[Netherlands]]
* [[File:Flag_of_Switzerland.png|30px]] [[Switzerland]]

=== [[Eastern Europe]] ===
[[File:Trud_bulgaria.jpg|250px|thumb|Somewhere in [[Bulgaria]].]]
* [[File:Flag of Belarus.png|30px]] [[Belarus]]
* [[File:Flag Bulgaria.png|30px]] [[Bulgaria]]
* [[File:Flag Czech Republic.png|30px]] [[Czech Republic]]
* [[File:Flag of Hungary.png|30px]] [[Hungary]]
* [[File:Flag of Moldova.png|30px]] [[Moldova|Republic of Moldova]]
* [[File:Flag Poland.png|30px]] [[Poland]]
* [[File:Flag Romania.png|30px]] [[Romania]]
* [[File:Flag of Russia.png|30px]] [[Russia|Russian Federation]]
* [[File:Flag of Slovakia.png|30px]] [[Slovakia]] 
* [[File:Flag Ukraine.png|30px]] [[Ukraine]]

=== [[Southern Europe]] ===
* [[File:Flag of Albania.png|30px]] [[Albania]]
* [[File:Flag of Andorra.png|30px]] [[Andorra]]
* [[File:Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.png|30px]] [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]]
* [[File:Flag Croatia.png|30px]] [[Croatia]]
* [[File:Flag of Greece.png|30px]] [[Greece]]
* [[File:Flag of Italy.png|30px]] [[Italy]]
* [[File:Flag Kosovo.png|30px]] [[Kosovo]]
* [[File:Flag of Macedonia.png|30px]] [[Macedonia]]
* [[File:Flag of Malta.png|30px]] [[Malta]]
* [[File:Flag of Montenegro.png|30px]] [[Montenegro]]
* [[File:Flag of Portugal.png|30px]] [[Portugal]]
* [[File:Flag of San Marino.png|30px]] [[San Marino]]
* [[File:Flag of Serbia.png|30px]] [[Serbia]]
* [[File:Flag of Slovenia.png|30px]] [[Slovenia]]
* [[File:Flag Spain.png|30px]] [[Spain]]
* [[File:Flag Turkey.png|30px]] [[Turkey]]

==== Autonomic Regions ====
* [[File:Flag of Gibraltar UK.png|30px]] [[Gibraltar]]
* [[File:Flag Vatican City.png|30px]] [[Vatican|Holy See]]

== External Links ==
* [http://www.digihitch.com/world/Europe digihitch World: Hitchhiking Europe]
* [http://www.wikitravel.org/en/Hitchhiking_in_Europe Wikitravel: Hitchhiking in Europe]
* [http://unstats.un.org/unsd/methods/m49/m49regin.htm#europe: United Nations Statistic Division]


{{IsIn|Earth}}
__NOTOC__
[[trash:Europe]]

[[Category:Europe| ]]

[[de:Europa]]
[[es:Europa]]
[[fi:Eurooppa]]
[[fr:Europe]]
[[pl:Europa]]
[[pt:Europa]]
[[zh:欧洲]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchhiker's Guide to Hitchhiking</title>
    <id>1524</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1553</id>
      <timestamp>2005-12-29T08:35:15Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>#redirect [[project:About]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[project:About]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Senegal</title>
    <id>1525</id>
    <revision>
      <id>38062</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-17T23:31:09Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">[[Senegal]] is a country in [[Western Africa]].

===Cities===
* [[Dakar]]
* [[St Louis (Senegal)]]
* [[Tambacounda]]

===Border Crossing===
;Towards [[Mali]]
;Towards [[Guinea-Bissau]]

===Personal Experiences===
Some anonymous hitchhiker had luck in '''Senegal''' getting rides with both foreigners and locals on the main routes between [[St Louis (Senegal)|St Louis]], [[Dakar]] and [[Tambacounda]].

{{stub}}
{{IsIn|Western Africa}}

[[Category:Africa]]

[[de:Senegal]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Morocco</title>
    <id>1526</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35759</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-13T12:13:46Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Quarim</username>
        <id>1290</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = Morocco
|language = Arabic, French
|capital = [[Rabat]]
|pop = 33,757,175
|currency = Moroccan dirham (MAD)
|hitch = {{good}}
|map = &lt;map lat='32' lng='-5' zoom='5' view='3'/&gt;
|avp = Morocco
}}
Hitching in '''Morocco''' is good despite the scarcity of vehicles on some routes. Bring a ''big'' bottle of water, a hat, and maybe a book to read. Many people will not want payment, but it can be hard to avoid the interest of grand taxis (who will definitely want payment). Some Moroccans stick out the index finger instead of the thumb. This gesture indicates the person is willing to pay for the ride.

Compared to the hassle of the cities, hitching in Morocco is a very pleasant experience and a good opportunity to meet some genuine friendly people who ''don't'' want to sell you a carpet. The people for the most part are incredibly generous, intelligent and curious and hitchhikers are able to experience the country’s cultural richness and diversity in a way unavailable to tourists who travel by more conventional means. 

== Cities ==
* [[Agadir]]
* [[Casablanca]]
* [[Chefchaouen]]
* [[El Jadida]]
* [[Essaouira]]
* [[Fes]]
* [[Meknes]]
* [[Rabat]]
* [[Tangier]]
* [[Tetouan]]

== Language ==

The official language is Arabic though the dialects spoken in Morocco and [[Algeria]] are signifcantly different than Modern Standard Arabic and dialects found in the Middle East and other parts of Africa. French is a common language of business and among educated people and in major cities will be almost universally understood.  Many people in the north speak Spanish. The major Berber languages are fascinating but the effort required to learn them is probably too great for a casual tourist. 

While spoken by some educated people and those who work in tourism, English is of little use. Be very careful if approached by someone speaking English, they are often looking to make a profit-legitimate or not.

At a minimum you should have basic competence in French. A few words of Arabic will surprise most Moroccans, gain their respect and differentiate you from common tourists.

== Police ==

Police in Morocco are a great asset to a hitchhiker. Police roadblocks are common especially when the King is nearby. Approch them respectfully and make conversation and they will probably help you get a ride. 

In small towns where it is sometimes difficult to find people who speak French, police officers (who always speak French) are invaluable aides for finding hotels, hammams roads out of town etc. 


== Sleeping ==

Cheap hotels are available in the medinas of most cities for 20-40 Dirham. Expect an uncomfortable mattress, cold communal shower and don’t be surprised if you wake up with bug bites. Hotels are required to see your passport and most will want to hold it until they make a photocopy. There is little danger of a hotel worker stealing your passport but it is a good idea to keep several photocopies with you for peace-of-mind.

=== Under the Stars ===

Outside most cities and towns are places one can sleep discretely without a tent. Just make sure you get up before dawn. Also be aware that out-of-the-way spots that look like good places to sleep are often used as public toilets. Public parks, where they exist, tend to be “cruising areas” where men meet to have sex.

In some places, especially near trucking routes, are semi-permanent tents made of plastic sheeting wrapped around a timber frames. These are usually empty though you may want to ask first. 

=== Getting invited into people's homes ===

If you are humble and quiet and kind this will come quite easily. Sometimes the hospitality is exhausting and you may want to take a cheap hotel for some privacy and space to breathe.

== Safety ==

Because of the importance of tourism to the economy, anyone found physically harming a foreigner is punished severely. Attacks and terrorism against foreigners is extremely rare but due caution is advised. Far more common are a wide range of scams and hustles.



=== Cigarette Scam ===

Travelers including hitchhikers going to Mauritania are likely to encounter a cigarette scam in southern cities such as Tiznit and especially Guilmeme. Typically the traveler is engaged by a local who inquires about his or her plans for traveling further and after some discussion is told that to avoid delays and harassment at the Mauritanian frontier he should bring a gift of cigarettes. He may also be told that cigarettes are very expensive in Mauritania and/or Western Sahara and with a pack of cigarettes he can buy everything from a fish to a room in a hotel. 

The local will then offer to ‘help’ the traveler buy several cartons of cigarettes for a “very good price” of anywhere from 12 to 20 Moroccan Dirham (MAD) per pack (120-200 MAD per carton). The cigarettes he proposes are brands only available on the black market.  

These are smuggled from the Canary Islands and come in several brands-the most common being American Legend. The price varies from 6 to 10 MAD per pack depending on the city and the dealer. These are lower quality cigarettes and smoking more than a few tend to give the smoker a sore throat. 

The scam artist is paying probably no more than 50 MAD per carton (200 cigarettes) and pocketing the rest. The reality is that cigarettes are easily available in Mauritania (in fact usually less than half the price of in Morocco; ranging from 100-400 Ugyia per pack of 20)

Locals driving cars usually bring a gift of some sort to help ease the passage into Mauritania but hitchhikers should not expect problems.

=== Drugs ===

Hashish and kif are widely smoked in Morocco. Buying on the street is not advised. Sometimes dealers work with police who will then bust the buyer. More likely you will get low grade product or even henna for an inflated price. At best you will pay a ‘tourist tax’ of at least 500%. 


== Religion and Politics ==

=== Religion ===
Always be careful about discussing religion and politics while hitchhiking. This is especially true in Morocco. Nearly everyone in Morocco is a Muslim and the religion permeates every part of the culture. Moroccans love to discuss God and a hitchhiker will certainly be asked about his religious beliefs. Muslims recognize Christians and Jews as “people of the book” and are respected—especially if they are knowledgeable about the Bible and can intelligently discuss religion. Claiming to be an atheist, agnostic, Buddhist, Taoist, Hindu or member of some other nonmonotheistic religion is not advised. There is little danger of being beheaded as an infidel but being a believer may mean the difference between being merely tolerated and being welcomed into peoples’ homes. And of course, keep any negative opinions about Islam, Muhammad  etc. to yourself. 

=== Western Sahara ===
		
[[Western Sahara]] is recognized by most countries as occupied territory.  The Kingdom of Morocco and most Moroccans consider it part of Morocco. It is technically illegal in Morocco to assert anything else. From 1976 until 1991 the Polisario waged a civil war for independence. In 1991 the United Nations brokered a cease-fire and an agreement was reached to hold a referendum for independence. The referendum has yet to take place and 60 percent of the Moroccan army is still stationed in the territory. The history and current situation is very complex but a hitchhiker there should be very careful about what he says and to whom. Under no circumstances should you claim or admit to being a journalist or writer. Doing so is asking for trouble, possible arrest and will endanger any Saharawis you are seen with. 

=== The King ===

Morocco is a Monarchy and King Muhammad V is universally respected if not always liked. You will see his picture in nearly every café, office, shop and more than a few homes. Many consider his father Hassan II a tyrant and his reign is often known by Moroccans as the Black Years. Still, avoid saying anything that could be construed as criticism of any member of the royal family, dead or alive.

=== [[Border crossing]] ===

The border to [[Algeria]] is closed.

A personal experience with border crossings:
: “''I was homosexually harassed by an older border policeman while coming from Morocco to [[Ceuta]]. I don´t forgive such, so I approached Moroccan consulates in both Malaga and London. In Malaga they obviously protect such criminals and London wasn´t very helpful either. I did send letters to the ministries of tourism and interior affairs, as well as to the border chief but nobody was interested. So, if you really have to come to this country, make sure you don´t cross the borders alone!''”

== Hitchhiking Events ==
From the [http://www.lcd.org.uk/events/hitch/ LCD]:
: ''The 2007 Hitch has just wrapped up with a record-breaking 760 Hitchers completing the 1,600 mile journey to Morocco, and 26 the 800 mile journey to Prague. The Hitch is LCD’s largest fundraising event and hitching the 1600 or 800 miles is a true feat of achievement. All the Hitchers have now safely returned to the UK, but the money is still rolling in.''

== See Also ==
* [http://askamylin.blogspot.com/2009/02/morocco.html Amylin's excellent advice on getting along in Morocco]
* [[Western Sahara]]
{{hitchbase_country|133}}
__NOTOC__
{{IsIn|Maghreb}}

[[Category:Northern Africa]]

[[de:Marokko]]
[[es:Marruecos]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Mali</title>
    <id>1527</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35852</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-16T23:56:02Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Adding: [[zh:马里]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = of Mali
|language = French
|capital = [[Bamako]]
|pop = 11,995,000
|currency = CFA Franc
|hitch = ?
|map = &lt;map lat='17' lng='-4' zoom='5' view='0' /&gt;
|paved = 4,450 km
}}'''Mali''' is a country in West [[Africa]]. It is one of the poorest countries in the world.

Inside the capital [[Bamako]] hitchhiking is fairly accepted – if you look like you have enough money (i.e. white skin) – and it's a reasonable alternative if you can't find a taxi [[at night]].

Apparently it's also possible to get rides with NGO 4WDs at the police check stations.

Mali's borders to [[Cote d'Ivoire]] in the south and [[Algeria]] in the north are probably a bad idea.

=== Cities ===
* [[Bamako]]
* [[Kayes]]
* [[Sikasso]]
* [[Timbuktu]]
{{IsIn|Africa}}

[[Category:Mali| ]]
[[Category:Africa]]

[[de:Mali]]
[[zh:马里]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Africa</title>
    <id>1528</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36815</id>
      <timestamp>2009-08-26T23:10:57Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Adding: [[es:África]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">[[File:Train_ndb-choûm_(27).JPG|thumb|right|300px|The longest train in the world, in [[Mauritania]]]]
Hitching for rides is common practice in '''Africa''', though you may be expected to pay the driver.

Road safety in Africa leaves a lot to be desired, and seatbelts are not always fitted. Being stranded in remote areas could be a problem. Speaking English and French is an advantage as well as Portuguese in some countries. However, learning the basic of African languages will make your trip much more pleasant. Some languages are understood in very large parts, such as Fulfulde and Bambara in [[West Africa]] or Swahili and Arabic in [[Eastern Africa]].

== [[Health]] ==
Malaria is common in most parts of Africa. Inform yourself and take precautions. Some forms of malaria are particularly deadly. The fact that local populations don't take any malaria prophelactics should definitely not stop you from taking any: locals are much more resistant to malaria.

The [http://unstats.un.org/unsd/methods/m49/m49regin.htm United Nations Statistics Division] defines Africa as following:

== [[Northern Africa]] ==
* [[File:Flag of Algeria.png|20px]] [[Algeria]]
* [[File:Flag of Egypt.png|20px]] [[Egypt]]
* [[File:Flag of Libya.png|20px]] [[Lybia|Libyan Arab Jamahiriya]]
* [[File:Flag Morocco.png|20px]] [[Morocco]]
* [[File:Flag of Sudan.png|20px]] [[Sudan]]
* [[File:Flag of Tunisia.png|20px]] [[Tunisia]]
* [[File:Flag Western Sahara.png|20px]] [[Western Sahara]]

== [[Eastern Africa]] ==
&lt;map lat='5.7908968128719565' lng='16.34765625' zoom='3' view='0' float='right' width='400' height='500'/&gt;
* [[File:Flag of Burundi.png|20px]] [[Burundi]]
* [[File:Flag of Comoros.png|20px]] [[Comoros]]
* [[File:Flag of Djibouti.png|20px]] [[Djibouti]]
* [[File:Flag of Eritrea.png|20px]] [[Eritrea]]
* [[File:Flag of Ethiopia.png|20px]] [[Ethiopia]]
* [[File:Flag of Kenya.png|20px]] [[Kenya]]
* [[File:Flag of Madagascar.png|20px]] [[Madagascar]]
* [[File:Flag of Malawi.png|20px]] [[Malawi]]
* [[File:Flag of Mauritius.png|20px]] [[Mauritius]]
* [[File:Flag of Mozambique.png|20px]] [[Mozambique]]
* [[File:Flag of Rwanda.png|20px]] [[Rwanda]]
* [[File:Flag of Seychelles.png|20px]] [[Seychelles]]
* [[File:Flag of Somalia.png|20px]] [[Somalia]]
* [[File:Flag of Uganda.png|20px]] [[Uganda]]
* [[File:Flag of Tanzania.png|20px]] [[Tanzania|United Republic of Tanzania]]
* [[File:Flag of Zambia.png|20px]] [[Zambia]]
* [[File:Flag of Zimbabwe.png|20px]] [[Zimbabwe]]

== [[Middle Africa]] ==
* [[File:Flag of Angola.png|20px]] [[Angola]]
* [[File:Flag of Cameroon.png|20px]] [[Cameroon]]
* [[File:Flag of Central African Republic.png|20px]] [[Central African Republic]]
* [[File:Flag of Chad.png|20px]] [[Chad]]
* [[File:Flag of Republic of Congo.png|20px]] [[Republic of the Congo]]
* [[File:Flag of Democratic Republic of the Congo.png|20px]] [[Democratic Republic of the Congo]]
* [[File:Flag of Equatorial Guinea.png|20px]] [[Equatorial Guinea]]
* [[File:Flag of Gabon.png|20px]] [[Gabon]]
* [[File:Flag of Sao Tome and Principe.png|20px]] [[Sao Tome and Principe]]

== [[Southern Africa]] ==
* [[File:Flag of Botswana.png|20px]] [[Botswana]]
* [[File:Flag of Lesotho.png|20px]] [[Lesotho]]
* [[File:Flag of Namibia.png|20px]] [[Namibia]]
* [[File:Flag of South Africa.png|20px]] [[South Africa]]
* [[File:Flag of Swaziland.png|20px]] [[Swaziland]]

== [[Western Africa]] ==
* [[File:Flag of Benin.png|20px]] [[Benin]]
* [[File:Flag of Burkina Faso.png|20px]] [[Burkina Faso]]
* [[File:Flag of Cape Verde.png|20px]] [[Cape Verde]]
* [[File:Flag of Cote d'Ivoire.png|20px]] [[Cote d'Ivoire]]
* [[File:Flag of Gambia.png|20px]] [[Gambia]]
* [[File:Flag of Ghana.png|20px]] [[Ghana]]
* [[File:Flag of Guinea.png|20px]] [[Guinea]]
* [[File:Flag of Guinea-Bissau.png|20px]] [[Guinea-Bissau]]
* [[File:Flag of Liberia.png|20px]] [[Liberia]]
* [[File:Flag of Mali.png|20px]] [[Mali]]
* [[File:Flag of Mauritania.png|20px]][[Mauritania]]
* [[File:Flag of Niger.png|20px]] [[Niger]]
* [[File:Flag of Nigeria.png|20px]] [[Nigeria]]
* [[File:Flag of Senegal.png|20px]] [[Senegal]]
* [[File:Flag of Sierra Leone.png|20px]] [[Sierra Leone]]
* [[File:Flag of Togo.png|20px]] [[Togo]]

=== Autonomic Islands or Regions ===
* [[File:Flag of the Canary Islands Spain.png|20px]] [[Canary Islands]]
* [[File:Flag of Ceuta Spain.png|20px]] [[Ceuta]]
* [[File:Flag Madeira Portugal.png|20px]] [[Madeira Islands]]
* [[File:Flag of Mayotte France.png|20px]] [[Mayotte]]
* [[File:Flag of Melilla Spain.png|20px]] [[Melilla]]
* [[File:Flag of Somalia.png|20px]] [[Puntland]]
* [[File:Flag of Reunion.png|20px]] [[Réunion]]
* [[File:Flag of Saint Helena.png|20px]] [[Saint Helena]]
* [[File:Flag of Somaliland.png|20px]] [[Somaliland]]

== Links ==
* [[digi:world/Africa|''Africa'' at digihitch]]
* [[cswiki:Africa|''Africa'' in CouchSurfing Wiki]]
[[trash:Africa]]
{{IsIn|Earth}}
__NOTOC__

[[Category:Africa| ]]

[[de:Afrika]]
[[es:África]]
[[zh:非洲]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Guinea</title>
    <id>1529</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34953</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T17:28:21Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">This article refers to '''Guinea-Conakry'''.
See also [[Guinea-Bissau]] and [[Equatorial Guinea]].

[[Category:Africa]]

[[de:Guinea]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Western Sahara</title>
    <id>1530</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35854</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-16T23:57:02Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Adding: [[zh:西撒哈拉]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = Western Sahara
|map= &lt;map lat='23.755181766112635' lng='-15.029296875' zoom='7' view='0' float='right' /&gt;
|language = N/A (recognized regional languages are Arabic and Spanish)
|capital = N/A (largest city is [[Laâyoune (El Aaiún)]])
|pop = 382,617
|currency = Moroccan dirham (MAD)
|hitch = from {{average}} to {{very good}} }}
In '''Western Sahara''' rides are plentiful and usually free on the main paved roads connecting [[Laâyoune (El Aaiún)|Laayoune]], [[Dakhla]] and [[Smara]]. The UN does not give rides without official permission apparently which is a shame as it seems they're the only people who can give you any insight into a political situation there. Local Moroccans will tell you all sorts.

Truck drivers might ask you to &quot;sleep&quot; in a discrete position to avoid endless police passport checks.

To get to [[Mauritania]] one can ask drivers at camping ''Moussaffir'' (north of Dakhla).

In fact, lorry drivers might be reluctant to give a lift to hitchhiker since they might have to bribe at each police post then. It is more convenient to hitch to the post that comes after [[Al-Uyuun]] and then ask the police to pass on the information about a &quot;traveling hitchhiker&quot; by phone to the next police post on the road. 

== Border crossing ==
Be aware of mines in the border region to [[Mauritania]]. Don't leave the road there.
{{IsIn|Northern Africa}}

[[Category:Northern Africa]]

[[de:Westsahara]]
[[zh:西撒哈拉]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Mauritania</title>
    <id>1531</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35858</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-16T23:59:02Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Adding: [[zh:毛里塔尼亚]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">&lt;map lat='20' lng='-12' zoom='5' view='0' float='right'/&gt;
[[File:Train_ndb-choûm_(27).JPG|thumb|right|300px|The longest train in the world]]
'''Mauritania''' doesn't seem to be a good place for hitchhiking, at least in the conventional sense. The majority of vehicles are shared taxis and most private vehicles which stop will charge the same rates.
You may have luck with other overlanders or the Euro-African car traders who bring vehicles from EU to [[Senegal]] and [[Mali]]. Some hitchhikers got many lifts by them there.
&lt;!--= jurahasiok at wp.pl--&gt;

: ''I've found it very easy to hitch over short distances, maybe up to 10 km further than that payment is expected. However I did hitch with a general from the Mauritanian army from [[Atar]] to [[Nouakchott]], he even insisted on paying a hotel for us halfway.''

=== Cities ===
* [[Nouadhibou]]
* [[Atar]]
* [[Nouakchott]]
* [[Choum]]
* [[Zouerate]]
* [[Ayoun el-Atrous]]
* [[Nema]]
* [[Rosso]]

=== Border crossing ===
Be aware of mines in the border region to [[Western Sahara|western sahara]]. Don't leave the road there.
{{IsIn|Africa}}
{{hitchbase_country|126}}

[[Category:Mauritania]]
[[Category:Africa]]

[[de:Mauretanien]]
[[zh:毛里塔尼亚]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Обсуждение:Main Page</title>
    <id>1532</id>
    <revision>
      <id>38098</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-18T12:53:34Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Clint.hotvedt</username>
        <id>1885</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>/* Language of  place name */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">:: Archive of '''Talk:Main Page''': [[Talk:Main Page/05-07|2005-2007]]
:: ''Our [[Community Portal]] is a more appropriate place for questions, comments and discussions that are not directly related to the Main Page.''
----
== To new members ==
Please make your first contribution your own 'user' profile! This will stop showing your name in red and it will give your contributions more validity. 

Also, if you are not a native speaker of a language, it might be worthwhile to access hitchwiki.org using Firefox and download the dictionary from [https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/browse/type:3 Mozilla] for the language in which you are writing your contribution, so that you can spell-check what you're typing. If you're editing the English language wiki, I'd suggest to use US spelling, but feel free to voice your objections. [[User:Prino|Prino]] 20:36, 25 December 2008 (UTC)

== New Advise Article ==
It could be useful to take the article advice written on the [[Canada]] page about '''Winter Hitch-hiking''' hazard and maybe some other countries are having some too. They could be grouped together on this same page for all Winter Hazardous country or regions: [[Russia]], [[Scandinavia]], [[Iceland]], [[Canada]], [[Alaska]] ... [[User:Maplefanta|Maplefanta]] 01:54, 19 January 2008 (CET)
::With some regions of Canada having marked way beneath the -50 Celsius on the thermometer last month, if someone knows where to set such page, the already existing info is on the [[Canada]] page, it is most likely needed. [[User:Maplefanta|Maplefanta]] 03:16, 4 March 2008 (CET)


== Bug?? ==
When linking from other sites or typing on the address bar, I often get sent to a ''double'' of the page with a capital letter, which looks like the following: http://hitchwiki.org/en/Http://hitchwiki.org/index.php
Anyone has an idea why? It seems to always do that if we link hitchwiki city page on the CS wiki travel page. It is done on every page from cswiki [[User:Maplefanta|Maplefanta]] 05:10, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

:It's because of the intricacies of &lt;tt&gt;.htaccess&lt;/tt&gt;.  The CS wiki is linking to e.g. http://www.hitchwiki.org/Paris.
:So I checked [http://davidwalsh.name/no-www-using-htaccess-file some stuff] and hopefully it's all working fine now.  Let me know if you encounter any weird redirect errors. [[User:Guaka|guaka]] 18:40, 30 May 2009 (UTC)


==Logo update==
:''moved to [[project:Logo update]]''

== Mainpage ==
I just took the old news out of the mainpage news template. Now there is quite some free space. However, I think it is good to keep the mainpage simple and not too overloaded (and also keep in future just the last 10 site news entries). Any suggestions about what could be added there or how the page could be reordered? I would suggest to move the picture of the now to the left column and also put there a field with the most important content with a symbol (e.g. general info Top Tips, Where, Safety, Signs, First time, Picking up hitchhikers, country info). Maybe one of the design and graphic program gifted people could make some icons for this... It might also be worth to think about which content is important for new people (e.g. move the site news - what is normally for the more frequent users - to the right bottom side... --[[User:Alex|Alex]] 19:28, 23 July 2008 (CEST)

:: I would also suggest to fix the ''edit'' buttons in the top box. Looks quite annoying and I guess that this box anyway doesn't need much editing, so maybe we should set it to ''admin edit only''. News, pics, events etc. then can still be edited through the templates, of course. [[User:platschi|platschi]]&lt;small&gt;&lt;sup&gt;[http://blogs.hitchwiki.org/platschi site], [[user talk:platschi|wikitalk]]&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/small&gt;

::: agree, doesn't make much sense since these boxes are not much edited in the first place and as you say, the other boxes can still be edited by anyone through the templates --[[User:Robino|Robino]] 12:45, 18 August 2008 (CEST)

: wanted to propose to rearrange the boxes, one for wiki-news, one for general news, one for events, one for stories (upcoming), and one for 3 (through rss) most recent (planet) blogs. I think the general news should be on top (left), then events, then stories. On the right (help and then wiki-news) or something similar --[[User:Robino|Robino]] 12:45, 18 August 2008 (CEST)

::Sounds good. Feel free to play around on [[User:Platschi/Spielwiese]], used that page last time for editing ideas of the main page. Let's see how we can make it much better :) [[User:platschi|platschi]]&lt;small&gt;&lt;sup&gt;[http://blogs.hitchwiki.org/platschi site], [[user talk:platschi|wikitalk]]&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/small&gt; 12:54, 18 August 2008 (CEST)

== Language of  place name ==

Can we set some standards for place names? An example, what to use for Brugge (I just bumped into it)? It's now to be found under [[Bruges]], which I think is wrong. Cities should be put under the name they are known in the country they are and if necessary there can be a redirection page for foreign-language versions of the name.
:I think we already had that discussion a long time ago, and agreed to use the English names, wherever they are common. This seemed most logical for an English-speaking wiki. In general, we try to stick to wikipedia's standards for that. I think it's not so much of an issue, because we always try to set redirects for all possible languages, so everyone will always find what one's looking for. (Although we are not really consequent, like at [[Köln]]). But Bruges seems to be the English name for Brugge. --[[User:MrTweek|MrTweek]] 21:30, 10 November 2008 (UTC)
::Missed that discussion, probably before I joined, but my eur 0.02? You do it consistently or you keep the original name, you don't mix the two! --[[User:Prino|Prino]] 22:57, 10 November 2008 (UTC)
:::Yeah, we should really clean that up. But I think it's only about 5 articles maximum --[[User:MrTweek|MrTweek]] 00:00, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
::My €0,02; I agree with MrTweek, but it seems logical to me that the native name should be listed, perhaps in the city infobox. I tried to enable that yesterday, but I didn't get it right, so I didn't go ahead with it.[[User:Clint.hotvedt|clint.hotvedt]] 12:53, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

== Economic crisis &amp; hitchhiking ==

Just wondering about the desirability to work out the economic aspect of hitchhiking. Wechner indicated finance as one the four main motivations for hitchhiking, the other one being adventure, environment and social sharing [http://bernd.wechner.info/Hitchhiking/Suite101/Article/?03]. The incentive to this question at the moment is mainly the current economic crisis that is in execution among banks, governments, public and business that in all likeliness will last for many many years to come, mostly in Northern America and Europe. Following the recent news there seems to be already some reason to be concerned (which applies mostly to people who are in debt). In other words - would economic recession / depression increase again the number of hitchhikers, which in the US and Europe basicly ''used to be'' in decline since the 1980s. Will hitchhiking in the US and EU increase and popularize due to increasing poverty in the coming ten to twenty years? Such macro economic developments are fascinating. --[[User:Fverhart|Fverhart]] 15:49, 9 December 2008 (UTC)

:Let's start an article about this!  Not yet sure about the name, but [[economy]] will do :) [[Special:Contributions/212.143.159.96|212.143.159.96]] 20:03, 9 December 2008 (UTC)

== Frontpage is evolving ==
Good! Frontpage is going trough changes at the very begining of the 2009. :-) Should &quot;Basics&quot; and &quot;Places&quot; be more bigger and first in line, when reader starts from top-left -corner? I can try to visualize my idea when i have more time. Icons are great spice to bring some colours, maybe they should be bigger? -[[User:Mikael|Mikael]] 21:19, 7 January 2009 (UTC)

: Haha, I had exactly the same idea this morning :) You are welcome to tweak the site a bit. Oh, and if you are in IRC, you might want to drop by in #hitchhiking@freenode ;) --[[User:MrTweek|MrTweek]] 22:53, 7 January 2009 (UTC)

::Actually i came out with [[User:Mikael/Main_Page_09_a|these rather big changes]]. :-) Comments? I didn't test it with IE's yet (i'm working with OSX). Design is really close to the [http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Etusivu fi.wikipedia -frontpage]. -[[User:Mikael|Mikael]] 01:07, 11 January 2009 (UTC)
:::Yeah man, I love it :) I can test it in IE tomorrow. --[[User:MrTweek|MrTweek]] 15:20, 11 January 2009 (UTC)

: About compatibility: With Firefox 3.0.3 it looks great, with IE7 the fonts look weird, also the top ''Hitchwiki'' text is somehow cut below, so only 3/4 of the text is visible. All other boxes are okay, though. Will test with Safari Browser later. --[[User:Platschi|Platschi]] 16:56, 19 January 2009 (UTC)
:: Here it works perfect in Safari. In IE7, the right border of the boxes is missing. All content is visible, so only a minor issue. --[[User:MrTweek|MrTweek]] 17:00, 19 January 2009 (UTC)

::Hi! Great to see it in action. :-) I tested it in Safari 3.21 under OSX - works great. I also tweaked a inline CSS of the H1-element (&quot;Hitchwiki&quot;-title). Can somebody test it in IE6 and 7? I think clipping problem was commong line-height -bug in IE. I'll do some additional testing at office tomorrow. -[[User:Mikael|Mikael]] 20:13, 19 January 2009 (UTC)

::: Looks goog in Google Chrome except that left boxes are sqeezed a bit which creates 2,5 cm empty space under the Pictures of the Moment. --[[User:Sigurdas|Sigurdas]] 10:05, 20 January 2009 (UTC)

::The left column is too small on the 9&quot; screen of my Acer Aspire One.  I've tried playing a bit with the width but I didn't quickly manage to fix it. [[User:Guaka|guaka]] 10:51, 21 January 2009 (UTC)
::: I have the same 'problem'. Also I would find it cool to have pictures on the screen without scrolling and also have the links to different hitchhikers available... this makes the wiki more personal. --[[User:Alex|Alex]] 11:01, 21 January 2009 (UTC)

::: I added &quot;min-width&quot; -attribute to the left column. It's not working with IE5-6, but what the heck. ;-) Another thing would be taking 4th picture out from the gallery, so right column could shrink smaller with small resolutions. I wouldn't add list of hitchhikers visible by default, but how about show/hide -stylish box? Maybe under &quot;Also on Hitchwiki&quot;. -[[User:Mikael|Mikael]] 17:23, 22 January 2009 (UTC)

:::: 'I wouldn't add list of hitchhikers visible by default' - Why not? Because there are not all contributers? Not a big thing in my opinion, not everybody wants to be linked there and it could be named accordingly. I can't think of any other reasons... but I am curious to get to know some more views on this. My point is that it gives a more personal touch to the technical wiki, it is about real people (as somebody also stated in why he works for Hitchwiki). Arguments around this more personal touch of Hitchwiki are welcomed too. --[[User:Alex|Alex]] 04:23, 23 January 2009 (UTC)

::::: I think this wiki is quite personal already with or without hichhikres-list. My top reason was to prevent main page to grow too heavy with lot's of text/link mass, though i'd also like to see some quick way to browse active hitchwiki-users. -[[User:Mikael|Mikael]] 17:17, 26 January 2009 (UTC)

::::: I [[User:Mikael/Main_Page_09_a|tested]] to float gallery to the right, but it's not working with smaller (under 1200px width) resolutions. :-/ With 24&quot; It's looking great. :-D -[[User:Mikael|Mikael]] 17:35, 26 January 2009 (UTC)

::On Win ME (yes, ppl still seem to use it) with Firefox 2.0 and 1024x768 Screen the two boxes (Places/Basics) are pretty narrow. Changing min-width doesn't help. In IE6 the site looks horrible, but who is using IE6 anyway? Maybe we should add an &quot;Best seen with firefox&quot; whatever button the the Start Page?--[[User:Platschi|Platschi]] 14:59, 24 January 2009 (UTC)

:The '''News''' and '''Events''' boxes don't adapt themselves to the screenwidth, which is extremely annoying! [[User:Prino|Prino]] 00:28, 25 January 2009 (UTC)

: I did some editing for the CSS and tested it with IE 5.5-7 under Windows XP. These worked as well: safari 3 (win/mac), firefox 3 (win/mac), opera 9.6 (win/mac). With IE6 and under png-transparengy doesn't work (''needs JS-hack or background-color added to the images''), first box doesn't have top-margin and it's contents had too big line-height. These are not minor problems. I also took 4rd PotM-image away, so page should now scale better with small screens (like tiny 9&quot; computers). -[[User:Mikael|Mikael]] 17:17, 26 January 2009 (UTC)

:Maybe it would be better to show less news entries on the startpage? So the event box would be visible on the first sight on smaller screens. Upcoming events should catch more interest than 4 month old news, or? --[[User:Globetrotter tt|Globetrotter tt]] 08:15, 7 March 2009 (UTC)

:Just reduced the news-items to three, as the previous ones were outdated anyway. Better now on smaller screens :-) ? --[[User:Platschi|Platschi]] 11:25, 7 March 2009 (UTC)

:Could anyone able give some help to clean up the design of the frontpage of the French version of Hitchwiki? I'm not very used to this kind of job, but I find it awful compared to the English one. Thanks! --[[User:Grégoire|Grégoire]] 12:33, 9 August 2009 (UTC)</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Участник:Guaka</title>
    <id>1533</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35978</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-21T23:52:29Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Adding: [[zh:User:Guaka]]; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{IsIn|:Europe}}
[[File:Kasper-hitch-nh.jpg|thumb|300px|[[User:guaka|guaka]]&lt;small&gt;&lt;sup&gt;[http://guaka.org site], [[User talk:guaka|wikitalk]]&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/small&gt; hitching in [[New England]] taken by [[amylin]], September 2007]]
[[File:Kasper playing guitar at beach.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Playing guitar at the beach in [[Nelson]], [[New Zealand]].]]
'''guaka''', or Kasper Souren, is one of the administrators of this wiki. He moved the wiki from &lt;tt&gt;hitchhikingguide.org&lt;/tt&gt; to Wikia, since over there it was being spammed all the time. And then, on November 24 2006, to hitchwiki.org, together with [[MrTweek]].

He was born in [[Nuth]], [[Netherlands]], but lived in [[Paris]], [[Mali]], hitchhiked through [[Europe]] and [[South America]] for a long time, and worked a bit in [[Lima]], [[Peru]]; then met the lovely '''[[amylin]]''' in [[Montreal]], and hitchhiked with her in [[Quebec]], the [[United States]], [[New Zealand]], [[Australia]], from [[Thailand]] to [[Hong Kong]] and in [[Europe]].  Lived in [[Trento]], [[Italy]] since July 2007, and as of January 2008 in [[Amsterdam]].  In October 2008 he hitched from [[Amsterdam]] to [[Jerusalem]] through [[Turkey]], [[Syria]] and [[Jordan]].

Guaka is or has been also active on many Wikipedias (he founded the [http://bm.wikipedia.org Bambara] and the [http://ff.wikipedia.org Fulfulde Wikipedia]) and on Wikitravel.  And he has worked on many online projects, but Hitchwiki.org is definitely his favorite, because of:
* the free license,
* the convivial atmosphere, 
* the ideal mix between ad-hoc and democratic decisions, 
* the steady stream of activity and constant growth (yearly doubling!),
* the different languages (since 2007)
* the clear objective and
* the inherent qualities of the project
See also ''[[Hitchwiki:Why_we_work_on_Hitchwiki#Guaka|why we work on Hitchwiki]]''.

His main home in cyberspace can be found at [http://guaka.org guaka.org].

== Hitchhiking experience ==
''see also [[User:Guaka/log|my log]]''

* [[Europe]]: [[Netherlands]], [[Belgium]], [[France]], [[Spain]], [[Austria]], [[Germany]], [[Denmark]], [[Sweden]], [[Norway]], [[Finland]], [[Estonia]], [[Latvia]], [[Lithuania]], [[Poland]], [[Czech Republic]], [[Slovakia]], [[Croatia]], [[England]], [[Italy]], [[Switzerland]], [[Hungary]], [[Romania]], [[Bulgaria]], [[Turkey]]
* [[South America]]: [[Uruguay]], [[Argentina]], [[Chile]], [[Ecuador]]
* [[North America]]: [[Canada]] (only in [[Quebec]]), [[United States]], [[New York State]], [[Oregon]], [[California]]
* [[Asia]]: From [[Thailand]], [[Chiang Rai]] through [[Laos]] to [[China]], towards [[Hong Kong]], from [[Istanbul] to [[Jerusalem]], through [[Syria]] and [[Jordan]]
* [[Africa]]: [[Bamako]] ([[Mali]])
* [[Oceania]]: [[New Zealand]], [[Auckland]] to [[Wellington]] and around the South Island, [[Australia]], from [[Sydney]] to [[Melbourne]]

[[File:Guaka my bithday2.jpg|thumb|300px|left|Hitching to [[Nelson]], [[New Zealand]] on my 30th birthday]]

== Random stuff ==
Esteban: &quot;U have a wiki about how not to pay busses? I tought I was stingy dude, but obviously there's always someone in the world who can cleary exceed your capabilities&quot;.


=== Stats ===
On the 29th of July 2008 Erga and I had a ride from [[Sundsvall]], Sweden to [[Alta]] in the North of [[Norway]], with a detour through [[Solleftea]]: [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=Sundsvall,+Sweden&amp;daddr=63.169235,17.259521+to:Alta,+Norge&amp;hl=nn&amp;geocode=3005655670323007979,63.146620,17.391390&amp;mra=dme&amp;mrcr=0&amp;mrsp=1&amp;sz=8&amp;via=1&amp;sll=63.283062,19.154663&amp;sspn=1.516485,5.822754&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=66.618122,21.75293&amp;spn=10.775532,46.582031&amp;z=5 google maps].

On the 14th of June 2007  [[amylin]] and I possibly had our longest ride ever, in Europe at least: [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;hl=en&amp;saddr=piacenza&amp;daddr=cologne&amp;sll=45.255555,9.662476&amp;sspn=1.840641,5.141602&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=45.009477,9.84581&amp;spn=0.231075,0.6427&amp;z=11&amp;om=1 from Piacenza to Cologne], and the St. Gotthard tunnel was actually closed, so it was probably more than 1000 km :)

The shortest wait, well, that happened a lot, when your holding a sign when you get out of a car at a gas station on the highway and friendly people notice that.

My longest wait was in [[Argentina]] where I gave up after 18 hours.

[[File:Hitchhikers with Chinese police man.jpg|thumb|300px|right|amylin and me with a friendly Chinese policeman]]

=== [[Driving for your driver|Driving for my drivers]] ===
* In 2005 or so, getting out of Paris, after being dropped at a really bad spot I started [[walking on the highway]] in the hot sun and after half an hour I was picked up by a guy moving from his stuff from [[Paris]] to somewhere south from [[Toulouse]].  He let me drive his car for 2 hours.
* In June 2008, hitching from Amsterdam to [[Avignon]], I managed to get to a busy gas station in [[Luxemburg]] at around 22:00 and found a ride straight to my destination.  The car's dashboard was not working, I wasn't convinced of the driver's driving style and after an hour or so, and asking about my driving license, he offered me the steering wheel.  I drove all the way to Avignon.
* In August 2008, hitching from [[Berlin]] to [[Trento]] an Italian at a gas station close to [[Munich]] was a bit tired.  He had dinner there and I showed him my driving license and I drove all the way to Trento through the pouring [[rain]].

&lt;travelmap countries=&quot;nl,fr,it,pe,ml,nz&quot; 
           c2=&quot;be,lu,de,pl,se,no,dk,fi,uk,ch,at,hu,cz,sk,lv,lt,ee,ro,bg,es,ec,ar,uy,cl,us,ca,il,sy,jo,tr,au,la,th,cn&quot;
           c3=&quot;eg,br,bo,py,pt,gr,ie,in&quot; 
           width=&quot;720&quot; description='red: lived there, yellow: hitched there, blue: traveled there' /&gt;

{{user cc-by-sa}}
[[fr:Utilisateur:Guaka]]
[[trash:User:Guaka]]

[[Category:Hitchhikers]]

[[de:Benutzer:Guaka]]
[[es:Usuario:Guaka]]
[[fi:User:Guaka]]
[[ru:Участник:Guaka]]
[[zh:User:Guaka]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchhiking</title>
    <id>1534</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37971</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-14T18:06:29Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>85.178.103.190</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>small corrections</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Hitchhiking''' (also called ''lifting'' or ''thumbing'' or in parts of Europe, ''auto-stopping'') is a form of transport, in which the traveller tries to get a lift (ride) from another traveller, usually a car or truck driver. This wiki contains a lot of information about hitchhiking: [[Where to hitchhike|where to start]], practical info on how to do it, pictures and much much more. If you've never hitchhiked before and you want to try it out you should check out the article hitchhiking for the [[first time]].

[[File:Img l 1306483.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Hitchhiker in the UK]]
Contrary to popular opinion there are a lot of hitchhikers, all over the world, even in the [[United States]]. There are people like [[User:Irvthom|Irv Thomas]] whose hitchhike experiences span more than half a century. Hitchhiking is a very common means of transport
in most less affluent countries (although often a form of payment is
expected). Hitchhiking is probably as old as the wheel and will
probably exist as long as people need to move from one place to
another.

There has been surprisingly little scientific research on hitchhiking,
so it's really hard to say come up with any hard statements on the
rise or demise of hitchhiking. There are is a nice community of hitchhikers in
Europe, and it seems to be growing. It's sort of going hand in hand
with the [[hospitality exchange]] movement. Some try to link this
to the much larger (and economically highly influential) movement of
free software and free information (think GNU/Linux and Wikipedia),
and there is huge potential in this sense. If we want it or
not, internet will be in people's pockets and most of our locations
are already easily tracked. Link this to the potential [[trust]]
available in online social networks (friends of friends), the rising
prices of petrol and the lower need to be in one location and
hitchhiking could be just at the start of a global come-back.

People will participate because it's ecological, others because of the
economical aspects. Numerous people pick up hitchhikers is means of getting a
bit of excitement in their life. For some hitchhiking starts as a form
of extremely cheap transport and then it turns into a lifestyle
that allows to do amazing and useful things without being trapped
in an office 5 days a week. Some people have
this idea that hitchhikers are stinky bums. Of course, at (rare)
times hitchhikers can be on the road for more than 24 hours and feel the need for a
shower, but others are traveling equipped with laptops, mobile phones, a fresh shave and shower and GPS devices.

There are several types of hitchhiking. 
* traveling by road motor vehicles: cars, trucks, buses.

* traveling by train, either the risky act of [[train hopping]] or, as is sometimes possible, with the permission of the engineer or conductor.

* traveling by ocean vessel, often called [[boathitching]]

* traveling by air: planes and helicopters, also called [[airhitching]]

Please check [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitchhiking Wikipedia's article for more encyclopaedic information about hitchhiking].
[[wikipedia:Hitchhiking]]

[[Category:General info]]

[[de:Trampen]]
[[es:Como hacer dedo]]
[[fr:Auto-stop]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>United States of America</title>
    <id>1535</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37805</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T23:09:00Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Country
|country = United States of America
|language = English (de facto)
|capital = [[Washington DC]]
|pop = 303,893,000
|currency = American Dollar ($)
|hitch = {{Average}} to {{Good}}
}}
'''''For specific information on each state please have a look at the bottom of this page.'''''
[[File:Kasper-hitch-nh.jpg|thumb|250px|[[User:guaka|guaka]]&lt;small&gt;&lt;sup&gt;[http://guaka.org/ site], [[User talk:guaka|wikitalk]]&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/small&gt; hitching in New England, taken by [[amylin]], September 2007]]

'''The United States of America''' as a country is divided up into 50 states; for the convenience of the common hitchhiker these states are discussed in detail along with their capitals at the following pages (see below). The US is bordered by [[Canada]] to the North and [[Mexico]] to the South.

Hitching, like everything else in America, varies greatly depending on what type of area and what part of the country you are passing through. In general you can get rides fairly easily if you hitchhike the right way; in fact, often you can find more than just rides, such as offers for free meals, invitations to homes and parties, etc.

In most states you can't hitch from the interstates ([[motorway]]s) themselves, but you can always stand at [[on-ramp]]s (highway entries) like in [[Europe]]. In some areas (such as certain towns or municipal areas) hitching is illegal everywhere, however, it is still allowed de facto. The police in a region may interpret laws related to hitchhiking differently, at times forcing a hitchhiker to choose an alternate route by walking or using other means of transportation. In most cases, though, hitchhiking is legal or tolerated as long as you are not on the interstate itself, where it is rightly considered a safety issue. There are also many limited-access highways (i.e. with on-ramps and [[off-ramp]]s) that are not part of the interstate system; these typically prohibit hitchhiking as well (other than at the on-ramp).

It's generally easier to hitchhike on the West Coast. In [[Oregon]], it's not even prohibited by law to hitchhike right on interstates. 

Relatively quite a few people in the United States are profoundly religious. If you're not, try to deal with it in a positive way and accept the difference. More often you will be picked up by really cool people, and often dropped off exactly at the point of your destination, as hitchhiker [[User:Guaka|Guaka]]'s experience shows, for example.

== Long vs. short distance ==
If you're going for speed over a long distance (3+ hours), then the best bet is to stay on the interstates (designated by &quot;I-##) instead of local highways. Try to stick to on-ramps that have truck stops, [[rest area|rest stops]] or any other reason for drivers to stop there (restaurants, [[gas stations]], etc.) You can also look for rides at the truck stops themselves, but be discreet about it as some a staff or customers are rather unfriendly to hitchers and will rudely ask you to leave their territory or call the police on you.

If you are only going a few hundred kilometers, you can often make better time on state or local roads. There are many more places to wait at, and there is much more potential traffic. Most of the traffic on the Interstate system won't be able to notice you while on the on-ramp. Even if you are going long distances, if you aren't concerned about making good time then getting off the interstates can be a very rewarding experience. Local highways and smaller roads will grant you a better picture of what local life is like in that area, and typically offer a greater variety of drivers.

== Police ==
Often, particularly close to major cities, the [[police]] will ask you for photo ID, but as long as you have one with you (such as a passport) there shouldn't be a problem. Most of the time they will be friendly when you come up clean, sometimes even driving you to a better spot. 

In most states, such as [[New Jersey]], [[Virginia]] and [[New York State]], on the East Coast and [[Nevada]] and [[Arizona]] in the West, there are [[law]]s against hitchhiking that are possible to be circumnavigated. Most often, the laws state that the hitchhiker may not &quot;solicit a ride&quot; in any way, i.e. showing a sign or a thumb to traffic. The police could ticket you for ''loitering'' or ''vagrancy''. If the police passes and sees a hitchhiker walking or sitting by the side of the road without soliciting in any way, they may still stop to check IDs but technically they have no reason to pull you over. As a result, the best result is to not use a sign or your thumb whenever an oncoming car looks like a police cruiser. The laws are enforced because of &quot;traffic safety&quot; reasons mostly but in reality police rarely gives tickets to hitchhikers - they just check IDs for warrants whenever possible.

== Car License Plate ==
Every state issues its own specific car plates. For example, a car from Alabama will have a specific [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/License_plates_of_the_United_States Car license] tagged as such.  In some States, the license plate will also show the county of residence. This can be added information if you spot such car that might be going the same direction as your. It might also be helpful to write down the license plate number in case of foul play.

== Food ==
''' Drink: '''
It is often possible to retrieve used cups from the trash at fast food restaurants with &quot;free refill&quot; policies and refill them.


''' Eat: '''
The advent of urban sprawl, and the The United States' culture of throwing many useful things and food in the trash has the side-effect of creating many opportunities for dumpster diving in urban areas.  Port cities are especially good.  Note, however that dumpster diving is in a similar sort of gray area as hitchhiking, with local legality depending on the particular state's laws, and the prevalent attitudes of local law enforcement officers.

Grocery stores are prime targets for food ([[:trash:Trader Joe's|Trader Joe's]] is especially likely to have an unlocked dumpster, and has lots of organics). Grocery stores cannot sell packaged foods past their expiration date, and so throw them away in dumpsters behind the store.

Another great place to dive is food distribution centers.  As they supply restaurants, their food comes in bulk and they throw out their food sometimes days before the expiration date.  Google Maps can help you turn up locations.  ''Check Trashwiki for detailed information on [[:trash:United States of America|dumpster diving in the United States]].''

{{Template:States USA}}
{{IsIn|North America}}

[[trash:United States of America]]

[[Category:United States| ]]

[[de:Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika]]
[[es:Estados Unidos]]
[[fr:États-Unis d'Amérique]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Digihitch.com</title>
    <id>1536</id>
    <revision>
      <id>15380</id>
      <timestamp>2007-11-04T04:26:04Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Fixing double redirect</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[Multimedia]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Dallas</title>
    <id>1537</id>
    <revision>
      <id>31347</id>
      <timestamp>2009-03-01T01:21:07Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Sigurdas</username>
        <id>1658</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Dallas''' [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&amp;hl=en&amp;q=dallas&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;z=12&amp;ll=32.784965,-96.79985&amp;spn=0.136813,0.432243&amp;om=1&amp;iwloc=A] (and most of [[Texas]]) isn't the best place
to be hitchhiking. Unfortunately with the wide-spread
use of Air Conditioning, hugh masses of people (mostly
Vogons) have moved down here and are decidedly unfriendly.
This coupled with the fact that Texas doesn't have a
state personal-income tax, has drawn Vogons (and their
gas guzzlin' SUV's) in fleets of thousands.

&lt;!--However, should you be in the vicinity of North Dallas,
you might want to stop in at the Art Department of
Brookhaven College. Most of the froodz there are
super hoopy and sass the ways of artists; a few are
even conversant with the h2g2 (ask for Richard). Also,
the theatre, dance, and music depts are hoopy as well.
In addition, the foreign languages division offers 
courses in over 20 languages.

To get there follow these directions (or use MapQuest.com
or similar).

Running North/South pretty much thru the middle of
the vast sprawling megopollis that is Dallas-Fort Worth,
is a major highway &quot;35&quot;.  35 splits in two just north
in the city of Denton (well known for two major universities
UNT (University of North Texas) and TWU (Texas Women's 
University). As 35 proceeds south, 35W heads slightly 
to the south-west towards Fort Worth, and 35E heads
slightly south-EAST towards Dallas. Stay on 35W and
look for the signs. You will first pass thru Lake Dallas,
then Lewisville, and finally enter North Dallas. You are
looking for BELT LINE ROAD, which you will then take
back to the EAST (you have to dodge under the overpass
and make a left turn to head west, if you turn right
you'll see the end of civilisation as we know it).

Anyway, you will then proceed up a steep hill (you
are still on Belt Line right?) this is technically
speaking Carrolton (old town) -- a very hoopy arts
oriented city. As you top the hill you will (eventually)
cross Josey Lane, and then Webbs Chappel, and then Marsh
Lane.  When you get to Marsh lane, get in the right
lane and turn right (heading south). Technically you are
now in Addison -- another super hoopy arts-oriented
town; they have a super fab &quot;Watchtower Theatre&quot; as well
as &quot;The Taste of Addison&quot; -- Belt Line is known as the
main drag for restauratns and fine dine-ing. 

Heading south on Marsh Lane, You will come to a few 
stoplights, among which is Spring Valley Road keep
going straight on Marsh. You are technically now
in Carrollton (another arts-oriented city) as you
go up a slight hill, you will want to get into the
LEFT lane, and at the light (Valley View Lane) you
will want to turn LEFT. Heading past the police
station and water tower on your left, you come
to a light which you want to turn left on. (If you 
come to a fork in the road you have gone too far).

As you enter onto campus, stay in the left lane,
and then you come to a &quot;T&quot; intersection. Turning
left (you are now on &quot;Windmill Circle&quot; which 
encircles the entire campus).  Keep going West
on the road, it slowly curves around to the right
(plus a serpintine curve) observe the 20mph speed
limit. Finally on your right will be the &quot;F&quot;
building. If you see the &quot;J&quot; building, look to
the right of it, and you will see the &quot;F&quot; building.

Next you get to play: &quot;Try to find a parking space!&quot;
(it's all part of the fun of campus life).  Enter
the F-building and make your way to F-110 (the
printmaking room), there (almost any time of
day, almost any day of the week you will find
ARTISTS).  Ask for either Jim or Richard.

The art department's phone number is: 972.860.4730
and the address of the campus is 3939 Valley View
Lane, Carrollton (Dallas) TX, 75244.
--&gt;
&lt;!---- Filed by: Drongo the Magnificent (TheArtistT2001@yahoo.com) --&gt;

{{stub}}

[[Category:Texas]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Romania</title>
    <id>1538</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37786</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:57:32Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = Romania
|language = Romanian
|capital = [[Bucureşti]]
|pop = 22,276,056
|currency = Leu (RON)
|hitch = {{very good}}
}}
[[File:ro-map.gif|thumb|right|300px|Map of Romania]]
'''Romania''' is one of the newest members of the [[European Union]], located in South-East Central Europe. It shares a border with Hungary and Serbia to the west, Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova to the northeast, and Bulgaria to the south.

In Romania payment for the ride is often expected, although foreigners often aren't asked for anything. People expect to be paid for giving a ride, but if you tell them in advance that you are unable to pay, 1 out of 2 will take you anyway. It is still cheaper than trains and buses though. The local currency is the Leu (pl. Lei). When hitchhiking, it's best to hold a sign with the name of the place you want to go. The most common method is using the 2-letter county code for the place you want to go.

Getting a ride can sometimes be difficult, as some of the cars that pass seem tiny, ancient and packed with more people than there are seats. This is probably due to the low rate of car ownership in some areas, and the fact that hitching is still a common way for locals to travel, particularly in the country. Getting a lift in a truck is fairly rare in Romania compared to the surrounding countries.

Romania has a long established hitchhiking tradition from the communist era. Back then, few people had cars, and there was a constant fuel shortage, so sharing a ride was the best way to get from A to B.

Romania has very few kilometers of real highway. You can stand directly on the national roads and thumb, though junctions are always best because cars go more slowly there. Don't drink the tapwater!!

== Language ==
Romanian is one of the few non-Slavic languages of Eastern Europe. It uses the Latin alphabet and is related to French, Italian, Spanish etc. Speakers of one of these languages will find it easier to pronounce and understand Romanian.

* [[Romanian phrasebook]]

== Regions ==
* [[Transylvania]]
* [[Wallachia]]
* [[Moldavia]]
* [[Dobrogea]]

== Cities ==
{{Cities Romania}}

== Roads ==
The roads are very outdated. There are only 3 motorways in all of Romania:
* The [[A1 (Romania)|A1]] going 127&amp;nbsp;km from [[Bucureşti]] to [[Piteşti]] – the only fully operational motorway in Romania
* The [[A2 (Romania)|A2]] or ''Sun's motorway'', going 204&amp;nbsp;km from [[Bucureşti]] to [[Constanţa]] – only 75 % completed
* The [[A3 (Romania)|A3]] or ''Transylvania motorway'', going 588&amp;nbsp;km from [[Bucureşti]] to the border with [[Hungary]] – under construction, due 2013
Most of the other roads are in poor condition, the European routes being the best. Even so, hitching a ride is quite easy, especially on the major European roads that get a lot of traffic.

== Number plates ==
[[File:Map_romania_regions_and_districts.jpg|thumb|right|float|Political map of Romania: historical regions and counties]]
The most used type of license plate uses a ''cc-99-xyz'' format, where ''cc'' is the 2-letter county code, ''99'' a random 2-digit number, and ''xyz'' 3 random letters.&lt;br /&gt;
It's quite possible to see [[Bucharest]] registered plates ('''B'''''-99-xyz'') all over the country, as all the leasing companies are based in Bucharest, and people are obliged to use Bucharest plates while their cars are in leasing.

=== County license plate codes ===
{|
| County || Code || Residence || County || Code || Residence || County || Code || Residence || County || Code || Residence
|-
| Alba || AB || [[Alba Iulia]] || Buzău || BZ || [[Buzău]] || Gorj || GJ || [[Târgu Jiu]] || Prahova || PH || [[Ploieşti]]
|-
| Arad || AR || [[Arad]] || Caraş-Severin || CS || [[Resiţa]] || Harghita || HR || [[Miercurea Ciuc]] || Satu-Mare || SM || [[Satu-Mare]]
|-
| Argeş || AG || [[Piteşti]] || [[Cluj]] || CJ || [[Cluj-Napoca]] || Hunedoara || HD || [[Deva]] || Sălaj || SJ || [[Zalău]]
|-
| Bacău || BC || [[Bacău]] || Călăraşi || CL || [[Călăraşi]] || Ialomiţa || IL || [[Slobozia]] || Sibiu || SB || [[Sibiu]]
|-
| Bihor || BH || [[Oradea]] || Constanţa || CT || [[Constanţa]] || Ilfov || IF || [[Bucureşti]] || Teleorman || TR || [[Alexandria]]
|-
| Bistriţa-Năsăud || BN || [[Bistriţa]] || Covasna || CV || [[Sfântu Gheorghe]] || Maramureş || MM || [[Baia Mare]] || Timiş || TM || [[Timişoara]]
|-
| Botoşani || BT || [[Botoşani]] || Dâmboviţa || DB || [[Târgovişte]] || Mehedinţi || MH || [[Drobeta Turnu-Severin]] || Tulcea || TL || [[Tulcea]]
|-
| Braşov || BV || [[Braşov]] || Dolj || DJ || [[Craiova]] || Mureş || MS || [[Târgu Mureş]] || Vâlcea || VL || [[Râmnicu Vâlcea]]
|-
| Brăila || BR || [[Brăila]] || Galaţi || GL || [[Galaţi]] || Neamţ || NT || [[Piatra Neamţ]] || Vaslui || VS || [[Vaslui]]
|-
| [[Bucureşti]] || B || – || Giurgiu || GR || [[Giurgiu]] || Olt || OT || [[Slatina]] || Vrancea || VN || [[Focşani]]
|}

== Border crossings ==

=== [[Ukraine]] ===

* [[Siret-Porubnoe border crossing]]

There is no border crossing between Ukraine and the Danube Delta region of Romania. Travelers going between eastern Romania and southern Ukraine must pass through Moldova. There are private boats that may ferry travelers, but they ask into the hundreds of euro for the service.

=== [[Moldova]] ===

* [[Galaţi-Giugiuleşti border crossing‎]]


{{Template:Europe/countries}}
{{hitchbase_country|160}}
{{IsIn|Eastern Europe}}
__NOTOC__

[[Category:Romania| ]]

[[de:Rumänien]]
[[es:Rumania]]
[[fr:Roumanie]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchhiking websites</title>
    <id>1539</id>
    <revision>
      <id>15260</id>
      <timestamp>2007-10-31T19:29:54Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Redirecting to [[Multimedia]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[Multimedia]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchwiki:Sandbox</title>
    <id>1540</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36810</id>
      <timestamp>2009-08-26T20:10:08Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>&lt;randomimage&gt;&lt;/randomimage&gt;</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{DISPLAYTITLE:Lugash}}

&lt;randomimage /&gt;
&lt;randomimage&gt;&lt;/randomimage&gt;



{{Infobox Country Sandbox
|country=Blubb
}}


[[User:Guaka|Guaka]]&lt;sup&gt;[[User talk:Guaka|talk]], [http://guaka.org site]&lt;/sup&gt; 15:32, 29 September 2008 (CEST)

Here you can practice [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/wiki wiki] ''syntax''.

Try addings links, like [[Germany]], [[Warsaw]], or playing with lists:
* [[Moscow]]
* [[Kiev]]
* [[New York]]
* [[Paris]]

==RandomImage==
&lt;randomimage /&gt;


[[digi:wiki/|digihitch wiki?]]

==RSS feeds==
&lt;rss&gt;http://hitchwiki.org/forum/?q=rss.xml|template=Template:sandbox/Hitchwiki Forum RSS&lt;/rss&gt;


----

{{user}}

captcha test
www.hans.de
&lt;a href='http://www.blubb.de/'&gt;asfd&lt;/a&gt;

Just testing [[User:TeamMG|TeamMG]] 11:54, 19 October 2007 (CEST)
* [[nice]]

==IPv6==
...seems to work now

&lt;table border='1'&gt;
  &lt;tr&gt;
   &lt;td valign='top'&gt;{{Phrasebook/French}}&lt;/td&gt;
   &lt;td valign='top'&gt;{{Phrasebook/German}}&lt;/td&gt;
  &lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;/table&gt;
That way, we can combine any languages to generate phrasebooks. However it's very important to keep all phrasebook synchronous.

== OpenStreetMap ==

&lt;osm lat='49' lng='8.41' zoom='12' width='400' height='300' layer='mapnik' /&gt;

{{Sandbox|param=lalala}}
: Does anyone know how to include a template when there are values added only? I would need this for a template in a template...

== Travelmap ==

&lt;travelmap countries='de,fr,es,au,jp,ru' width='500px' /&gt;


== Live from the road ==
&lt;rss&gt;http://yoshi.mega2000.de/~philipp/smsblog/rss.php|template=RSS&lt;/rss&gt;




== Mittrampzentrale ==
&lt;rss&gt;http://abgefahren.hitchbase.com/DE/taxonomy/term/69/feed|template=RSS&lt;/rss&gt;</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Future of hitchhiking</title>
    <id>1541</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35812</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-15T14:17:38Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>/* Ride share evolution */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">==Ride share evolution==

On-demand [[car-pooling]] is expected to arise as a result of the location reporting capabilities that are to be incorporated in all new mobile phones by the end of 2005 according to the requirements for [[E911]] services in the [[United States]]. Once users can expose their location to 3rd parties that coordinate ride-sharing, the main restrictions on car-pooling – same time, same place pick-ups and drop-offs – may be removed. This will facilitate sharing of vehicles not only on commutes but also for trips of all kinds.
 
Drivers will be especially encouraged to participate in these programs by:
# cost sharing with electronic credits that are processed automatically by the ridesharing systems, 
# the continued existence or expansion of High Occupancy Vehicle lanes, 
# desire to socialize. 
Abuses will be strongly discouraged by participant feedback and the identification and location reporting that is intrinsic to the system. Proof of [[insurance]] may be required by ridesharing agreements or provided as a rider benefit.

As with other form of social networking, riders and drivers will be matched according to personal criteria. While users may restrict matching criteria in order to exclude non-neighbors or according to other chosen factors, they may also broaden their matches in order to meet a more representative sample of the population. The resulting interactions could significantly increase the degree of social connectedness. 

If the participant pools are not overly fragmented by an uncoordinated commercialization – a significant risk that ought to be eliminated by creation of open standards for matching subscribers to different services – riders in good standing should be able to travel wherever mobile phone service is available with much quicker pick-ups, faster connections and almost no stops as compared with mass transit, and at substantially lower cost than operating their own vehicles. Drivers who participate regularly and exhibit good driving skills should be able to offset a substantial fraction of their expenses. The result should be a marked and permanent increase in average vehicle occupancy.

== Recent developments ==
Avego is an application that runs on iPhones and other mobile devices, and matches drivers and passengers who are going the same way. &quot;Avego Stops&quot;, the best places to pick up and drop off riders. It also wants to connect it with a social networking website. Launched in September 2008 [http://avego.com/ui/index.action Avego]

Carticipate on the iPhone is the first ride sharing application on a location aware mobile platform and is available as a free download on Apple's App Store on iTunes.
http://www.carticipate.com/


See also [[Hospitality exchange networks]].
* craigslist.com

&lt;!-- To research and develop this article further, please see the links on the &quot;discussion&quot; tab. --&gt;

[[Category:Philosophy]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Future of Hitchhiking</title>
    <id>1542</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1589</id>
      <timestamp>2005-12-19T21:19:04Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>Future of Hitchhiking moved to Future of hitchhiking</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#REDIRECT [[Future of hitchhiking]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Safety</title>
    <id>1543</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1591</id>
      <timestamp>2005-12-19T21:19:30Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>Safety moved to Hitchhiker's safety</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#REDIRECT [[Hitchhiker's safety]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Canada</title>
    <id>1544</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37746</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:22:28Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Country
|country = Canada
|language = English, French
|capital = [[Ottawa]]
|pop = 31,612,897
|currency = Canadian Dollar
|hitch = {{good}} to {{very good}}
|neighbour = ([[Greenland]]), [[Saint Pierre and Miquelon]] (''incorporated''), [[United States of America]]
}}
'''For specific information about provinces and territories, have a look at the bottom of the page.'''

'''Canada''' is the northernmost country of [[North America]] and is composed of ten provinces and three territories. English and French are the two official languages of the country, English being spoken by 2/3 of the population is the majority language in most provinces while French is the main official language in the province of Quebec but widely spoken in New Brunswick and some areas of Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Manitoba. Inuktitut is the main language in Nunavut and has official status there but English is widely spoken. So for the convenience of the common hitchhiker these provinces and territories are discussed in detail along with their capitals in the following pages.

Canada is a wide country where many visitors do not really realise its scale prior to their arrival and neither realise the various extreme temperature that can suddenly happen and hit at different season. Certain nothern rural regions in each provinces are inhabited by a scarce or even absent permanent population. It might not always be bright to adventure yourself into some wild or less inhabited part of the country without the proper equipement nor having registered yourself to some local authorities prior to do such journey. As a simple reminder, the density of population is about 3,2 habitants/km² and about 75 % of that population lives in the south by the border with the USA. It is common and normal in some part of the country to drive few hundreds km without any living soul in the area. Noneless to say, even if the country bear some similitude with its southern and only neighbour, the [[United States]], the cultural and life approach of the population is quite unique.

For a journey over the country, the [[Transcanadian Highway]] is the main road crossing the country coast to coast. The highway system is specific to every provinces and usually quite comprehensive.

=== Local Attitude ===
The vast majority of the population lives in harmony within their vast country.   The size of the country allowed people to live using their own belief, languages or religion without necessarily being bothered by anybody else, in a 'Live and let live' motto.  Therefore, hate crimes are absent and major ''difference'' clash even rarer but may exist or be apparent (commented) during some particular intern political tumult situation usually. It still remains rare.  It might be useful for a traveller to be aware of the current events to avoid getting into a political discussion which may offend more than anything else.  Sometimes, during such potential situation and with some people, it might not always be helpful to be White in some First Nation reserves, sounding French in some parts of the country or English in others. As many people might think you are from the other part of the country when approaching them and be less keen to help.  &lt;!-- this section needs a rewrite --&gt;

The rural population should be entirely keen to help if the traveller is making the first steps into breaking the 'stranger in the locality' image, as the split between urban and rural citizen is also existent. The rural community feeling is usually pretty strong and people will believe you belong there and act more altruistic. However, some rural regions have strong influence from urban resident which has the tendency to bring a more individualistic mentality.

=== Car Number Plate ===
Just like its southern neighbour, the [[United States of America|United States]], every provinces are issuing their own specific car plates. For example, a car from Manitoba will have a specific [[wikipedia:License plates of Canada|Car licenses]] tagged as such.

== Telecommunication ==
The best and cheapest way is to contact people in the area you are is to find the nearest phone booth, there are usually plenty within in a city and even the in country side, usually you will find one by every petrol station, shops or restaurant. Unlike many countries, they are usually in good condition and reliable so always make sure to have a pre-paid phone-card or a few 'quarters' available. Local calls now costs two 'quarters' (50 cents) although for some stupid historical divisions and economical reasons, in some areas some phone booths will belong to another company and what seems to be a local call will in fact be a 'long distance call' and will request an higher amount. It's often simplest to call using pre-paid calling cards.  You can make calls from public phones without using coins when you dail the card's toll-free &quot;1-800&quot; number, and, for many of these cards, there is no extra fee for making the call from a public phone.  Credit is deducted from the card at the same rate as with calls from land-lines.  Most cards will cost somewhere between 2 and 10 cents per minute for calls to anywhere in Canada. The same, or similar, rates will often apply to calls to the States and parts of Europe as well.

If the person you are trying to contact is expecting a call from you, and you don't have a pre-paid phone card, you can also try to call them 'collect'. It usually cost less than the amount requested by the booth and it is normal practice (does not apply for mobile phone!) to receive and accept collect call. To do a collect call, simply dial '0' and follow the instructions of the operator.

Mobile phone are not widely spread within the country and the networks are expensive, unreliable, primitive and only cover certain urban areas. A mobile phone user usually pay to make call and to receive call, he will also usually have no signal when he reaches the nearest mountains or hills.

Internet cafés are rare and will only be existing in main urban and touristic centre. They are usually not used by locals, so it is possible that nobody knows if there is one in the surrounding. In rural areas, Internet might not even exists or be limited to dial-up only. In most Canadian cities and towns of significant size, there are public libraries which offer free internet access to the general public - regardless of where you are from.  This is generally the best bet for travelers without their own computer or access to a friend's. If there are several people waiting to use them though, you may have to wait a while for one to be available.  You'll usually be given a time block of anywhere from 15 minutes to one hour.  Many college and university libraries also provide free internet access to the public.  Ask the circulation desk staff for a ''guest account''; but you may need a driver's license or other government-issued photo ID.  College and university guest accounts will let you use the Internet as much as you like, but only for the current day.

== [[Winter]] hitchhiking ==
'''Be careful!'''

With temperature often dropping beneath −30 Celsius, you should not stand outside more than 15 minutes, wear the appropriate gear and make sure that you are never being stuck anywhere.

The majority of the roads will be slippery, icy or narrowed by the snowbank. So it will often be impossible for cars to stop by and pull over safely and they won't do it if they can't as the risk of causing an accident might be too high and the driver would have to bear entire responsibility of it towards his [[insurance]].

On another hand, every citizen should be bound by law to provide help and safety to every citizen in needs by the hazard of temperature and nature. The reaction towards that will often differ, going from immediate support to a 'where have you left your brain... being out by this weather'. It is true that it will be perceived as quite stupid and irresponsible to have dared outside without all the effective preparation by such weather, locals way prefer to enjoy the cosiness of their home by such extreme temperature.

Although and for that reason, no shops, restaurants or gas stations would be allowed to kick you out of their property. Either no car should be allowed to ignore you if the needs is there. This would usually be the case in rural areas while people in urban areas might simply think, someone else can do it. If you feel your life threatened by the hazard of nature, you are allowed to do anything possible to get help by the surrounding. Which would include entering a house, 'stopping' a car or denouncing to the authorities any refusal for help. This does not mean ''abuse'' and, is to be use logically and tactfully. Bear in mind that if you attempt such behaviour, an investigation might be done afterwhile to verify if you didn't put yourself at risk at your own will and full knowledge of the consequences! Which situation you are, by law, not allowed to find yourself into!

== Border Crossing ==
Canada has only one neighbour, the [[United States]], and even if this border is known as the longest unprotected border in the world, entering the country as a backpacker, hiker or hitchhiker might be a hard, especially since 2001. The border control is quite tight, especially since the unproven allegation that some terrorists came from Canada. Questions might be asked about the relations between passengers in a car.

Because of these strong security measures, a hitchhiker probably will have to cross the border by foot and start again once the control is done. You might also discuss with your driver beforehand in the matter to get to know each other and to ensure that everything will be alright with the crossing and that s/he is fine with the hassle (or fine waiting for you if you are being interrogated).  The vast majority of the drivers will be frisky at helping a stranger to cross from Canada to the States in their car. The best way to be at a border control is too remain calm, be confident, do not lie and simply answer the questions as asked without being witty or vague. Just remember that you do not have to tell that you are bumming around and bring some suspicious travelling plan (yes, hiking and hitching around in a ''blown by the wind way'' is a suspicious thing! Especially for the the average citizen!). So just be reliable, show enthusiasm and that your adventure is part of a life plan holiday... not a way to escape reality.

It is custom to be asked to prove that you have the means to sustain your holiday (money) and that your holiday is part of a plan (a return ticket). Also bear in mind that most Canadian and American land crossing control are separated from each other by a no man's land short distance between the two borders in which you will only be controlled by the welcoming country. So if you get denied entrance by one, you will have further enquiry to enter back into the country you came from.

===== While Crossing the Border =====
Don't panic! Just because a border guard treats you like a scumbag doesn't mean you are one. Armed with this attitude try and maintain your dignity and self-confidence throughout the encounter and the guard will more likely respect you (even if he or she doesn't show it). Trust me, things will go more smoothly. If you're passing the border inside a car, don't advertise the fact that you are a hitchhiker. But if it becomes obvious, don't try and deny it, either. Remember, there's no shame in hitching.

=== Passports for U.S. and Canadian citizens ===
From Summer 2009 on, U.S. and Canadian citizens are required to show a passport to cross the border.

Also, if you are a U.S. citizen going into Canada or a Canadian going into the U.S., a guard can deny you entry for a number of reasons (usually because of a criminal record or you don't look like you have enough money for lunch at a fast-food restaurant).

''Every border crossing point will usually be discussed in greater details in the appropriate province page.''


{{Provinces Canada}}
{{IsIn|North America}}
__NOTOC__

[[trash:Canada]]

[[Category:Canada| ]]

[[es:Canadá]]
[[fr:Canada]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Norway</title>
    <id>1545</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36714</id>
      <timestamp>2009-08-21T22:03:17Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Country
|country = of Norway
|currency = Norwegian Krone (NOK)
|hitch = {{average}} to {{good}}
|language = Norwegian, Sami, Finnish
|capital = [[Oslo]]
|pop = 4,770,000
|map = &lt;map lat='65.33017791526852' lng='15.556640625' zoom='4' view='0' float='right' width='270' height='375' country='Norway'/&gt;
}}

'''Norway''' is a good country to hitch in, of course depending on location! It is a member state of the [[Schengen Agreement]], but is not part of the [[European Union]]. Its neighbouring countries are [[Sweden]], [[Finland]] and [[Russia]].

Even though ''haike'' is not too common in Norway, Norwegians are very likely to pick you up and can be very friendly and helpful. People have a tendency to always be in a rush on weekdays. The main thing to be aware of is the rapidly shifting weather, so be prepared for anything, as they say in '''Norway''': ''There is nothing called bad weather, only bad clothing''. Most people speak [[England|English]] well enough for reasonable communication. One thing that makes hitching easy in '''Norway''' is that almost all of the population lives near the [[E6]] road, which extends from the [[Sweden|Swedish]] border in the south to almost all the way north, so it's pretty hard to get lost, as long as you are headed the right way. Hitching is ''much'' easier in the beautiful north (at least in the summer), where many locals hitch regularly to commute. Be aware that traffic may be very light at times.

It is illegal to hitch on the expressway in '''Norway''', but not illegal from [[rest stop]]s or at [[on-ramp]]s. It is legal to camp out almost anywhere if it is a good distance from a private house, but not permanently. 

Norwegians will often offer to take you so many Norwegian miles. One Norwegian mile is 10km. Recently there have been some Roma / Romanian people faking broken down cars and then robbing people who stop to help, police confirm this as so, so try not waiting near cars. Also asking people directly at service stations is more likely to get a result than just thumbing as result of this.

=== Cities ===
[[File:2002 hitch hiking in Norway.jpg|thumb|280px|right|[[User:Sigurdas|Sigurdas]] hitch-hiking somewhere in the middle of Norway. January 2002.]]
* [[Skien]]
* [[Horten]]
* [[Narvik]]
* [[Oslo]]
* [[Tromsø]]
* [[Trondheim]]

=== Regions of Norway ===
* [[Lofoten]]
* [[Nordkapp]]

== Language ==
* north - nord
* south - sør
* West - vest
* East - øst

Vowels: Vowels are pronounced very differently in Norwegian as opposed to English
* A pronounsed &quot;ah&quot; as in bar
* E pronounsed &quot;eh&quot; as in heck
* I pronounsed &quot;e&quot; as in here or &quot;i&quot; as in hill
* O pronounsed &quot;w&quot; as in willy and in other times, &quot;o&quot; as in hockey
* U pronounsed &quot;oo&quot; as in poop
* Y pronounsed &quot;y&quot; as in young
* Æ pronounsed &quot;a&quot; as in hack
* Ø pronounsed &quot;uh&quot; as in hull
* Å pronounsed &quot;o&quot; as in hockey

Additionally, the consonant J and the combination GJ is pronounced the same way you would pronounce Y (young). For instance, &quot;jobb&quot; (work) would be pronounced &quot;yobb&quot;.

== User Experiences ==


: ''[[User:markus|markus]] is a dude and hitched from Stavangar to Mandal (1 day), Mandal to Oslo (1 day) Oslo to Trondheim (1 day) Trondheim to Mor e Rana (1 day) and Mor e Rana to Karlsøya (1 day) sequentially. Long rides and easy hitching, some big waits outside Oslo. English speaking was seen as a good thing and several drivers told me they dropped silent, drunk or drugged people quickly. He also hitched back from [[Karlsøya]] to [[Tampere]] in 1 day and night non-stop, but thinks it should take 2 days for any normal hitcher.

: ''[[User:ReZz|ReZz]] is a dude, and he has  found that [[Trondheim]] one of the worst places to hitch from.  Still, he has done it, even in the winter, all the way to [[Oslo]] in the South and [[Hammerfest]]/[[North Cape]] in the extreme North.  Sadly, I must say that one steadfast rule of hitchhiking has to be amended.  Although I am a polyglot and love language, I must say that if you are not white, speak English to people. Norwegians are extremely wary of foreigners and any non-white who speaks English is assumed to be a refugee. Still, a lot of white women tell me that truckers are very friendly and that the hitching is great if you go out to the shipping areas around Dyre Halsels Gate and north of Stradveien. This has not worked for me. They love foreign tourists, though, as long as you keep telling them that you love Norway.''

: ''[[User:abstorz|abstorz]] is a dude, and hitched from Trondheim to Oslo and back in March/April. Both trips took one day. From Oslo he was able to hitch a ride onto the motorway behind the tunnel in the area of Etterstad, from Trondheim he took the bus to Heimdal and walked another couple of miles to a bus stop. Once on the motorway everything went fine. He took the route over Oppdal/Dombås. Check [[Liftershalte]] for exact locations, or find better ones!
{{hitchbase_country|147}}
__NOTOC__
{{IsIn|Scandinavia}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}

[[Category:Norway| ]]
[[Category:Northern Europe]]
[[Category:East Route from North Cape to Cape of Good Hope]]

[[de:Norwegen]]
[[es:Noruega]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>California</title>
    <id>1546</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37745</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:22:08Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{IsIn|United States of America}}
[[File:Amylin hitching northern ca.jpg|thumb|300px|right|[[amylin]] hitching in Northern California]]
'''California''' is a state in the [[United States of America]]. Hitchhiking here is easier than in a lot of other states of the US. You usually won't be harassed by cops. The Central Valley is a concentrated version of the dixie-area &quot;Bible-Belt&quot;, so getting around from Bakersfield to, say, Sacramento (and anywhere in between) is a real pain. The major urban centers are notoriously difficult to hitch out of too. It's usually better to take public transportation as reasonably far as possible, and then hitch from there. The Sierra Nevada (especially highway [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_395 395]) and the Coast are a breeze for hitchhiking.

{| class=&quot;toccolours&quot; align=&quot;center&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0 2em; clear: both;&quot;
!style=&quot;background:#ccccff&quot; width=&quot;94%&quot;| Cities and major landmarks of '''California'''
|-
|align=&quot;center&quot; style=&quot;font-size: 90%;&quot; colspan=&quot;2&quot;|
'''North Coast'''  [[Arcata]] | [[Eureka (California)|Eureka]] | [[Mendocino]]
'''Central California'''  ''Valley'' | [[Redding]] | [[Chico]] | [[Sacramento]] | [[Stockton]] | [[Modesto]] |  [[Merced]] | [[Fresno]] | [[Visalia]] | [[Bakersfield]] | ''Coast'' | [[Bay Area]] | [[San Francisco]] | [[Oakland]] | [[San Jose]] | [[Santa Cruz]] | [[Monterrey]]
'''Southern California'''  [[Los Angeles]] | [[San Diego]] | [[Barstow]]
'''Sierra Nevada'''  [[Mammoth]] | [[Yosemite]] |  [[Bishop]] | [[Tahoe]]
|-
|}

== Major Highways ==
I-5 and CA-99 both run up and down the middle of California in the Central Valley, from Los Angeles up through Sacramento, Redding, and into [[Oregon]]. I-5 is a long-distance freeway; stick to truck stops. CA-99 is a more urban route, connecting towns and cities.

Route 1 goes up and down the Coast, with beautiful scenery, but not the easiest to hitch on for the most part. US-101 from San Francisco up through Marin (San Raphael), Sonoma (Santa Rosa), Mendocino (Mendocino) and Humboldt (Arcata, Eureka) Counties is arguably the easiest hitching in the US. Sonoma-north is all Redwoods, and it's beautiful...that is to say, if you have any time to spare at all, do take the 1!

== Recommended places ==
[[File:Justinhitching.JPG|thumb|right|200px|Justin hitchhiking to Arcata]]
The following places are recommended: Big Sur (I-1 &amp; I-101), Jade Beach, Crescent City has a beautiful shore/beach. Yosemite (Highway 120), Sequia National Park, and the redwoods are a must. The Haight-Ashbury (or just &quot;the Haight&quot;) district in [[San Francisco]] the famous epicenter of much of the 1960s' drug and music culture is long gone and beat like a drum, but you might meet a few interesting people there. [[Arcata]] is mad cool as well.

== Various ==
Vallejo seems pretty ghetto, though the rest stop in [[Vallejo]] is really good. It's full of Urban Sprawl.

[[Humboldt]] county is real good. They have a Hoopa Indian Reservation up there that is pretty good. They'll stop if you're walking on the side because they think you're one of them, and then once they stop they feel bad and give you a ride anyway. Lord Ellis peak took me about half an hour to get a ride to Redding.

Route 101, North from [[San Francisco]] and Route 1 South from the bay, towards [[Santa Cruz]], are great roads to hitch, arguably the easiest hitchhiking in the United States. Incredibly beautiful scenery too. 

Also, if you are heading down (or up) the coast, try and get to [[Mendocino]]. It's the county in Cali that produces the most marijuana, and there is this awesome communal farm there. Half the rides you get will even offer you a toke or two! Golden Gate Transit will get you up to Santa Rosa from the Bay Area, which is halfway there.

Highway 20, in between Yuba City (off Hwy 99) and Williams (off I-5) in Northern California is very, very bad for hitch hiking. Took 6 hours to catch a ride!

{{Template:States USA}}
[[trash:California]]

[[Category:California| ]]
[[Category:United States]]

[[fr:Californie]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Colorado</title>
    <id>1547</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34799</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T17:02:41Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{IsIn|United States of America}}

'''Colorado''' is a state of the [[United States]].

== Colorado's Front Range ==
[[Denver]] sucks and while it can be difficult there are ways out. West of Denver treated me pretty good though.

Other Major Cities on the Front Range include:
[[Colorado Springs]],
[[Boulder]],
and [[Fort Collins]]

== Western Colorado ==

Very easy: US. 50 from Salida to Grand Junction (gets a little harder once you hit the [[Utah]]    border, carry water)

Very easy: Rt. 135 from Gunnison to Crested Butte

Easy to Moderate: along 24 and 285 north of Salida 

Difficult: 92 and 133 between Carbondale and Delta (Low Traffic)

Easy: 550 Montrose to Durango

Very easy: US HGWY 6 over Loveland Pass for back-country skiers (Only in the winter, and only to the top of the mountain). Make sure to find a large pull-off area on a straight stretch of road.

'''Note''': When hitchiking in Western Colorado dont get dropped off around Bunea Vista or Canon City, Prisions are located here and you are likely to be stranded for long periods.


== Cities ==
* [[Denver]]
* [[Colorado Springs]]
* [[Fort Collins]]


{{Template:States USA}}

[[Category:United States]]
[[Category:Colorado]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Suite101</title>
    <id>1548</id>
    <revision>
      <id>15381</id>
      <timestamp>2007-11-04T04:26:14Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Fixing double redirect</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[Multimedia]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Liftari.org</title>
    <id>1549</id>
    <revision>
      <id>15382</id>
      <timestamp>2007-11-04T04:26:24Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Fixing double redirect</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[Multimedia]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Slovakia</title>
    <id>1550</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37792</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T23:01:26Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = Slovakia
|map = &lt;map lat='48.6667' lng='19.5' zoom='6' view='0' float='right' country='Slovakia'/&gt;
|language = Slovak
|capital = [[Bratislava]]
|pop = 5 455 000
|currency = Euro (EUR, €)
|hitch = {{average}}
}}
'''Slovakia''' is a member state of the [[European Union]] as well as the [[Schengen Agreement]]. Hitchhiking here seems not to be so easy. People rarely tend to stop, when you are standing at the road with a sign. So it is best to ask directly at gas stations. Some, but not many, speak English or German. Russian is more widely understood, but not necessarily liked.

Young people can speak English and it's not so bad with English in bigger towns. Of course in villages it can become difficult to understand each other. Hitchhiking in Slovak is 'autostop'.

Two weeks ago I was in Slovakia. I was at a gas station asking people for a lift. After 2 hours some cops arrived and told me that hitchhiking in Slovakia is illegal (everywhere!) and drivers can get a 100 euro fine (new law). After 4 hours the cops left the station and a Czech person took me. He told me that this is true...

You can find a lot of [http://stopar.sk/ offers for hitchhikers] at [http://www.stopar.sk/index.php?newlang=english stopar.sk] (available in English).
[[File:Hugo.JPG|thumb|200px|left]]
== Cities ==
* [[Bratislava]], the capital
* [[Banská Bystrica]]
* [[Kosice]]


{{hitchbase_country|172}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}

{{IsIn|Eastern Europe}}
[[trash:Slovakia]]

[[Category:Slovakia| ]]

[[de:Slowakei]]
[[fr:Slovaquie]]
[[pl:Słowacja]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Texas</title>
    <id>1551</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35532</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T19:04:54Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">&lt;map lat='31.541089879585808' lng='-99.2724609375' zoom='5' view='0' float='right'/&gt;
'''Texas''' is a state of the [[United States of America]]. Unfortunately. naw, naw. I'm joshin' yaw.
[[Austin (Texas)|Austin]] is the capital of Texas.

Waits can be long in rural areas, and in some parts of the state (such as West Texas), the distance between towns and the high speed limit can mean very long waits. However, in more populous rural areas, short hop rides are fairly available, and lifts from old ladies and volunteer fire chiefs are not uncommon. 

Listen Well Hitchers: Stay away from the border! Once you get down there, it's quite a nasty deliverance to climb back up far enough for folks to trust you. Let's say keep a ~50-100 mile buffer if you can. As if immigration paranoia weren't enough of a problem, for all people know you might be transporting drugs and unwanted intelligences. There are often border check-points some dozen miles up from the actual crossings that bother folks' consciences who often consider hitchhiking a sort of moral transgression (against capitalism, must be. sheesh. damn straight.).

A note: You can disguise your true colours without falling into blatant complicity with the rampant racism of Texas drivers. Nonetheless, it may be wise, as always, to test the conversational waters gingerly here. There are, of course, raging exceptions.

In [[El Paso (Texas)|El Paso]] municipality hitching is prohibited.(heh heh, whups)

==Experiences=
''El Paso -&gt; L.A. in a 53' beautiful RV with a phenomenal guy who left alseep in his vehicle with the keys in the ignition overnight in San Diego, after crossing the whole of Texas with unlicensed drivers (who tend, in my experience, to be either excellent or terrible drivers) and a near-three day wait in Laredo. What an awful place.''-k

=== Cities ===
* [[Austin (Texas)|Austin]]
* [[Dallas]]
* [[El Paso (Texas)|El Paso]]
* [[Houston (Texas)|Houston]]
* [[San Antonio (Texas)|San Antonio]]


{{Template:States USA}}

[[Category:Texas]]
[[Category:United States]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Ukraine</title>
    <id>1552</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37804</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T23:08:31Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Country
|country = Ukraine
|in = Eastern Europe
|map = &lt;map lat='49' lng='32' zoom='5' view='0' float='right' width='430'/&gt;
|language = Ukrainian
|capital = Kiev ([[Kyiv]])
|pop = 46,179,22 (2008 estimate)
|currency = Hryvnia (UAH)
|hitch = {{average}}
|hitchbase = 201
}}
Generally, hitchhiking is quite okay in '''Ukraine''', one of the biggest countries in [[Europe]].

The biggest problem you could meet is that the majority of the people don't speak English or other foreign language. Though, if your Ukrainian is good enough, and you feel like it: just go for it! Most of people speak Russian too. Besides, if you speak any of Slavic languages, the connection will be much easier, they are quite similar. Especially Ukrainians understand Polish – it is the closest of Slavic languages excepting Belorussian and Russian.
Generally Ukrainians are hospitable and open persons when you have no language barrier. They like to help foreigners besides.

== General tips ==
When hitchhiking in Ukraine do not be surprised if you are occasionally asked for money from drivers. It is not often, however, but it occurs. Of course you can always tell the drivers that you don't have money and that you are hitchhiking. It could be easier for you to put some phrases to your conversations in a car which could let drivers know that you are hitchhiker. 
Truck-drivers always recognize hitchhikers – in that case Ukraine is not an exception. 

The state of the roads are pretty dire in general, and the biggest problem is that the distances involved are usually pretty big (for example [[Lviv]] to [[Kyiv]] is around 550 km). It is allowed to hitchhike everywhere on the roadside, you just need to find the most lucky place. 

== Weather ==
In winter Ukraine can get very cold, for example in January 2006, it hit −35 °C, which makes hitchhiking very dangerous. The cost of train travel is very cheap – usually around one Euro for every 100 km (for overnight sleeping carriages), so bear that in mind when going from city to city.
It might be hot in summer (up to +35°C), so don't forget to take a hat with you to protect yourself from lots of sunbathing. 

== Food ==
Of course you can get stuck easily on the highway next to a turn-off from the main road because of nightfall. But there is also nice night-traffic of trucks caused by warm weather from May to September. Usually, there are some gas stations near to such places and there some favorite and famous places for stops known by drivers – something like unofficial rest-stations (there are no official but a lot of unofficial ones). You can easily find something to eat and to drink there and at almost all gas-stations there are night-shops. You can eat in some road-restaurants, they may be not expensive for foreigners from countries like the EU states – you can probably have some nice dinner there for $7-10 (2008).

== Crimes ==
Crimes related to hitch-hiking are not common in Ukraine. But a hitchhiker should avoid cars with drunken drivers or passengers. When you are a single girl it's better to find truck or a car with family for your safety. Avoid night-rides with “funny” drivers.
It is also necessary to keep your money in a safe place or on credit cards, the same for mobile phones – shit happens everywhere in the world.

== Cities ==
* [[Izmail]]
* [[Kamianets-Podilskyi]]
* [[Kyiv]]
* [[Lviv]]
* [[Odesa]]
* [[Kharkiv]]

== Border crossing ==
* [[Hrebenne-Rava Ruska border crossing]] with [[Poland]]
* [[Siret-Porubnoe border crossing]] with [[Romania]]

{{Template:Europe/countries}}
__NOTOC__

[[Category:Ukraine| ]]

[[de:Ukraine]]
[[es:Ucrania]]
[[fr:Ukraine]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Vancouver</title>
    <id>1553</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35598</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T19:15:44Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Vancouver''' is the metropole city of [[British Columbia]] and the third biggest city in [[Canada]].

It is illegal to hitchhike Westwards of [[Golden, BC]]. Thumbers are issued a fine and drivers are issued a bigger fine.

Hitchhikking is not illegal along the Sea-to-Sky Highway ([[BC highways|Hwy99]] - Vancouver to [[Whistler]]).

Where it is illegal or cannot be conducted in a safe manner, signs are clearly posted that indicated that picking up hitchikers is prohibited. (From a Sepetember 14th, 2006 letter from Kevin Falcon - BC Transportation Minister reference:#149730).

Hitch-hikers frequently pass through the city of Vancouver when going to or from [[Vancouver Island]]. The ferry to and from [[Victoria]] docks at Tswassen, southwest of the city, and the ferry to and from Nanaimo docks at Horseshoe Bay, northwest of the city. When arriving in the city en-route to the island, it's easy to take a local bus to one of the ferries if you're not able to get a ride straight there. But arriving on the mainland and heading farther east by thumb can be a bit more difficult. If possible, you should try to find a ride from someone while on the ferry boat. Talk with people and/or carry a sign. If you're heading towards Nelson, the Okanagan valley, or the Rockies, try to find a ride with someone going at least as far as Hope.

To leave the city heading east, the best option is to take the Sky-Train to Surrey and then get on a local bus that will take you to Langley - along the main [[BC highways|highway 1]]. From there you can get a ride further east towards Hope.


== Border Crossing to [[Washington]] ==

{{stub}}
{{IsIn|British Columbia}}

[[Category:Canada]]
[[Category:Illegal to hitchhike]]
[[Category:British Columbia]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Northern Europe</title>
    <id>1554</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37780</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:51:20Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">There are not so many cars in '''Northern Europe''', but that makes it nicer to hitchhike if you don't mind walking.

You can legally pitch your tent almost anywhere outside of cities. But remember, the winter can be extremely cold and dark in '''Northern Europe'''. Choose a country for more specific information.

== Countries ==
* [[File:Flag of Denmark.png|20px]] [[Denmark]]
* [[File:Flag of Estonia.png|20px]] [[Estonia]]
* [[File:Flag of Finland.png|20px]] [[Finland]]
* [[File:Flag Iceland.png|20px]] [[Iceland]]
* [[File:Flag Ireland.png|20px]] [[Ireland]]
* [[File:Flag of Latvia.png|20px]] [[Latvia]]
* [[File:Flag of Lithuania.png|20px]] [[Lithuania]]
* [[File:Flag of Norway.png|20px]] [[Norway]]
* [[File:Flag of Sweden.png|20px]] [[Sweden]]
* [[File:Flag uk.png|20px]] [[United Kingdom|United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland]]

=== Autonomic Islands or Regions ===
* [[File:Flag_of_Aaland_Finland.png|20px]] [[Åland Islands]]
* [[Channel Islands]]
** [[File:Flag of Guernsey UK.png|20px]] [[Guernsey]]
*** [[File:Flag of Alderney UK.png|20px]] [[Channel Islands|Alderney]]
*** [[File:Flag of Herm UK.png|20px]] [[Channel Islands|Herm]]
*** [[File:Flag of Sark UK.png|20px]] [[Channel Islands|Sark]]
** [[File:Flag of Jersey UK.png|20px]] [[Jersey]]
* [[File:Flag of the Faroe Islands.png|20px]] [[Faeroe Islands]]
* [[File:Flag Isle of Man UK.png|20px]] [[Isle of Man]]
* [[Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands]]
__NOTOC__

{{IsIn|Europe}}

[[Category:Europe]]

[[de:Nordeuropa]]
[[fr:Europe du nord]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>North America</title>
    <id>1555</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35859</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-16T23:59:32Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Adding: [[zh:北美]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">[[File:Kasper-hitch-nh.jpg|thumb|250px|[[User:guaka|guaka]]&lt;small&gt;&lt;sup&gt;[http://guaka.org site], [[User talk:guaka|wikitalk]]&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/small&gt; hitching in [[New England]], [[United States]], taken by [[amylin]], September 2007]]
Hitchhiking in '''North America''' has a long tradition. Though in recent times it has become harder. In some states in the [[United States]] (such as [[New York State]] or [[Arizona]]) the police are really harsh on hitchhikers, some others, like [[Oregon]], where it's even legal to walk on the freeway, are really friendly though. 

Hitchhiking in [[Canada]] and [[Mexico]] is a lot easier.

== Countries ==
* [[File:Flag Canada.png|20px]] [[Canada]]
* [[File:Flag of Mexico.png|20px]] [[Mexico]]
* [[File:Flag United States of America.png|20px]] [[United States]]

=== Autonomic Islands or Regions ===
* [[File:Flag Bermuda.png|20px]] [[Bermuda]]
* [[File:Flag of Greenland.png|20px]] [[Greenland]]
* [[File:Flag_Saint-Pierre_and_Miquelon.svg.png|20px]] [[Saint Pierre and Miquelon]]
{{IsIn|Americas}}

[[Category:Americas]]
[[Category:World]]

[[de:Nordamerika]]
[[zh:北美]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>United States</title>
    <id>1556</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1617</id>
      <timestamp>2005-12-19T21:32:40Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>#redirect [[United States of America]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[United States of America]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchhiking clubs</title>
    <id>1557</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37762</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:36:27Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Hitch-hiking clubs''' bring hitchhikers together, organize various competitions, meetings, etc. They are especially popular in countries of former Soviet Union.

=== [[Argentina]] ===
* http://www.autostopargentina.com.ar

=== [[Bulgaria]] ===
* http://www.stopbg.com

=== [[Belarus]] ===
* http://skydivision.org/

=== [[France]] ===
* [http://trans.euro.stop.free.fr/# Trans Europ Stop]
* [http://stopparticipatif.free.fr/ L'Auto-Stop Participatif]

=== [[Germany]] ===
* [http://hitchwiki.org/en/Abgefahren_e.V. abgefahren e.V] - The first German Autostop Society founded in 2006.

=== [[Lithuania]] ===
* Kaunas Hitch-Hiking Club &quot;KELIAIvis&quot; is the second largest hitchhiking community in Lithuania. See their blog [http://keliaivis.blogspot.com here] or join their Yahoo group [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/KELIAIvis/ here] (both in Lith. only)
* [[Vilnius Hitch-hiking Club]] is one of the leading hitchhiking organizations in [[Europe]]. They have often organized the International Hitch-hiking Conference and have a prominent web presence at [http://www.autostop.lt autostop.lt].

=== [[Netherlands]] ===
* [http://www.oostboc.com/ Bratislava Overleg Commissie] - The one and only [[Utrecht]] Hitchhiking Club founded in 2005.

=== [[Russia]] ===
* [[Academy of Free Travel]] (Moscow)
* [http://autostop.grumbler.org/index.shtml.win.ru Hitch-hikers of Ural]
* [http://www.msha-club.ru/ Hitch-Hiking School of Moscow]
* [[Saint Petersburg Autostop Guild]]
* [[Saint Petersburg Autostop League]]

=== [[Ukraine]] ===
* [http://www.mainroad.org.ua Ukrainian Hitch-Hiking Club &quot;Магистраль&quot;]

[[Category:General info]]
[[Category:Clubs]]

[[de:Trampverein]]
[[fr:Clubs]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Maps</title>
    <id>1558</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36371</id>
      <timestamp>2009-08-07T12:38:15Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>MrTweek</username>
        <id>3</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>/* Mobile phones */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Maps''' are essential to hitchhiking. Make sure you always have a good map with you, the scale should at least be 1:700.000.
In many countries it is very important to have a map that shows [[petrol station]]s, service areas, toll gates and other important places on the motorways.

You want to know were you are going. It also helps if petrol stations are marked, and you don't need city maps. Try and find a map that you don't have to open out to one large sheet of paper every time you want to use it; you will be using it often. Book-style maps are best.

== Paper maps and Atlas ==
'''Map Tips: Positive'''

* The ''Shell Euroatlas'' is good for [[Europe]], however, it's difficult to find.
* The ''Falk Länderkarte'' series (in German, but can be understood by everyone) is brilliant for individual European countries, with a useful, clever and compact fold-out page system. It is easy to find but only inside of [[Germany]] and neighbouring countries.
* The maps by ''Marco Polo'' are excellent for Europe. The 1:800,000 ratio version is the best (the name of this map changes in different countries). It is printed in [[Germany]] but is available across the continent.
* In Scandinavia (especially Finland) - the ''Esso'' country maps are great, and free from any Esso petrol station in [[Finland]] 
* For the [[United Kingdom]] AA maps are good but can get a bit too large.
* In Germany, you can get a booklet for free at the Rasthof restaurants which provide a map of all the country's Rasthof and the information about every one of them.
* [http://www.mapsworldwide.com/sku_33423.htm Collins Road Atlas: Europe 200] (1 : 1 000 000) is nice and has most petrol stations, even though it is a bit large (A3).
* The [http://www.anwb.nl/azf/zoek.html?azfid=contact Dutch ANWB]) has quite good European country maps for free (for its members, just ask in the shop some people at the cashpoint if they can take it for you), they also include the motorways to the country from and to the Netherlands.

It's recommended you have a map that is at least 1:1,000,000 ratio. 1:750,000 is usually good enough.

Remember that petrol stations often have maps for sale, including very local ones. If you need to find out the geography of the local area, simply walk into the shop, pick up a local map, study it, get the information you need, then put it back and walk out. Many service stations also have large maps on walls or notice boards.

'''Map Tips: Negative'''

* ''Michelin'' Individual Country maps are not the best to use, they do not list the Services Area and lots of useful information are absent, the scale ratio is often not good enough.


=== Europe ===
For Western, Northern and Southern Europe: ''one specific edition'' of the Marco Polo car map of [[Europe]] is great, it doesn't contain too much useless stuff like indices or city maps, and shows petrol stations on highways! Unfortunately [[User:guaka|guaka]]&lt;small&gt;&lt;sup&gt;[http://guaka.org site], [[User talk:guaka|wikitalk]]&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/small&gt; only found this one in [[Slovakia]].

&quot;Philip's compact atlas Europe&quot; shows service stations in some countries, is pretty compact and was available for 7 euro at the New English Book Store in [[Amsterdam]], in June 2008.

== Online maps ==
[[File:Google-maps mobile in Nokia N91.jpg|thumb|right|220px]]
For many countries in the world, there are very good maps at [http://maps.google.com Google]. You can also use [http://www.liftershalte.info/ Liftershalte.info], which is basically the same, except that it shows hitchhiking places.

There is also the fast growing incredible free (like [[wikipedia:Free Software|Free Software]]) OpenStreetMap ([http://openstreetmap.org/ openstreetmap.org]) that is already very good for England and Germany and has at least some data on many places where other services don't have anything at all!

For [[South America]] you can use [http://www.br.map24.com/ map24].

== Mobile phones ==
On most modern mobile phones, there are mapping applications. For Java enabled phones (almost any phone), you can use [http://www.mgmaps.com/ MGMaps], which uses maps from Google, Yahoo, Microsoft and even [http://OpenStreetMap.org/ OpenStreetMap]. It also supports GPS, if you have a receiver built-in or via bluetooth.

The Nokia N810 runs GNU/Linux, its GPS function is not great but it works okay in cars. You can easily get a lot of maps for the proprietary built-in software, at least for Europe, North America and some other parts of the world. Maemo Mapper is free software with loads of options, by default it downloads the maps from [http://OpenStreetMap.org/ OpenStreetMap] but you can also change it to use Yahoo or Google Maps.

* Check [[High-tech hitchhiking]] for some more information about using your mobile phone and other devices on the road

[[Category:Equipment]]

[[de:Landkarte]]
[[fi:Kartta]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Sacramento, California</title>
    <id>1559</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1623</id>
      <timestamp>2006-10-16T17:52:31Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">From '''Sacramento''' or [[Davis]] to the [[Bay Area]] and back is no sweat.
Do not go into South Sacramento, you will get stuck and probably fucked with.
If you can only get a ride to [[Vallejo]] it's an easy halfway point to the bay, get dropped off at the reststop.

{{stub}}

[[Category:California]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Sacramento</title>
    <id>1560</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1625</id>
      <timestamp>2005-12-19T21:39:36Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>#redirect [[Sacramento, California]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[Sacramento, California]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Connecticut</title>
    <id>1561</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34803</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T17:03:21Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{stub}}
'''Connecticut''' is a state in the [[United States]].

Hitchhiking along I-95 is not difficult as Connecticut maintains a very nice system of rest stops and service plazas across the state. Walk onto one and put your thumb out and you shouldn't have to wait long for a ride. In addition, several [[New York]]-[[Boston]] bus lines (Chinatown to Chinatown, 15 US$) make stops at the Fairfield [[service plaza]] (exit 21), and it is possible to talk your way on for free or a reduced price if you're a good negotiator. 

Watch out for mosquitos and black flies in the north east, the mosquitos can be ravenous. 

People are very friendly in Connecticut for the most part. There is a pretty high ratio of rich stuck up yuppies though.




{{Template:States USA}}

[[Category:United States]]
[[Category:Connecticut]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Paris</title>
    <id>1562</id>
    <revision>
      <id>38108</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-19T09:15:26Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Gagou282</username>
        <id>2101</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* Paris public transport */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Hitchhiking Zine nomination}}
'''Paris''' is the capital of [[France]].

== Hitching Out ==
The city is situated within a ring road (''le périphérique'', or ''le périph'') and whilst the actual city is relatively small, it is surrounded by endless suburbs. There are plenty of excellent spots for hitchhiking North (''Aire La Courneuve''), East ([[petrol station]]s and ''[[barrières de péage]]'') and also South (''Aire de Lisses'') 

&lt;map lat='48.83398957668602' lng='2.34283447265625' zoom='9' view='0' float='right'/&gt;

=== Northeast towards [[Lille]] and [[Belgium]] ===

==== Aire La Courneuve ====
Probably the best way to get to [[Belgium]] is by hitching at the petrol station [http://maps.google.es/maps?f=d&amp;hl=es&amp;geocode=5837971829389385952,48.934623,2.393732%3B3201522175225020794,48.920638,2.410383&amp;saddr=Aire+de+Service+de+La+Courneuve+%4048.934790,+2.393710&amp;daddr=&amp;mra=mr&amp;sll=48.918269,2.403388&amp;sspn=0.013649,0.040169&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=48.933157,2.396951&amp;spn=0.006823,0.020084&amp;t=k&amp;z=16&amp;om=1is ''Aire de Service de La Courneuve'']. BUT: if you take a closer look at the petrol station on google maps you will see that there is a wall surrounding this petrol station; nonetheless, one can get there if follows these tips:

First, get closer by public transport. Some options are:
* Bus 150 from ''Porte de la Villette'' (metro line 7), get off at ''Parc des Sports'' (next to the highway)
* Bus 250 from ''Fort d'Aubervilliers'' (metro line 7), get off at ''Parc des Sports'' (the quickest way?)
* [http://maps.google.de/maps?f=d&amp;hl=de&amp;geocode=&amp;saddr=La+Courneuve+Aubervilliers&amp;daddr=Rue+Paul+Verlaine,+93120+La+Courneuve,+Seine-Saint-Denis,+Ile-de-France,+Frankreich&amp;sll=48.926137,2.394161&amp;sspn=0.01892,0.040169&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;cd=1&amp;ll=48.928026,2.388539&amp;spn=0.018919,0.040169&amp;z=15&amp;om=1 ''La Courneuve Aubervilliers''] (RER B), and walk 2 km north along ''Boulevard Pasteur''. You can catch this train from ''Gare du Nord''.
* [http://maps.google.de/maps?f=d&amp;hl=de&amp;geocode=&amp;saddr=La+Courneuve,+8+Mai+1945&amp;daddr=rue+paul+verlaine&amp;sll=48.93333,2.392216&amp;sspn=0.009459,0.020084&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=48.926137,2.394161&amp;spn=0.01892,0.040169&amp;z=15&amp;om=1 ''La Courneuve, 8 Mai 1945''] (metro line 7) and make your way to ''rue Paul Verlaine'' by taking a tram &quot;T1&quot; and getting off at ''Six Routes''. 

If you arrive at the station Parc des Sports you will see large flats behind you. The wall on your left is the wall you will have to go over. 

Some options to enter:
# RECOMMENDED: You can hitch from the traffic lights before the highway ramp, and ask the driver to drop you off at the petrol station. From ''Parc des Sports'' go backward and follow the line of tram on the left you will find a small entrance on the right side of the road after approximately 500m on this road.
# There is a door which allows outside access but it is sometimes locked (latter was true on 01-06-08 and 28-09-08 also 29-11-08..). Walk away from the door and scale the concrete wall at the point where it becomes a fence.  Walk forward and you'll see where you have to go. (See [http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&amp;hl=en&amp;msa=0&amp;msid=107770710063601716204.00044840696bdf8a385ef&amp;ll=48.933654,2.393292&amp;spn=0.001334,0.004227&amp;t=h&amp;z=19 approximate location of the door].)
# If the door is locked you have to climb the wall that is approximately 1,90 m tall, and go through a broken fence [http://maps.google.de/maps?f=q&amp;hl=de&amp;geocode=&amp;q=paris+la+courneuve&amp;sll=50.785102,5.710144&amp;sspn=1.165162,2.570801&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;t=k&amp;om=1&amp;ll=48.933836,2.394&amp;spn=0.001182,0.002511&amp;z=19&amp;iwloc=addr here] - ''et voila'', you are at the petrol station.
# You can walk around the wall for about 70 meters towards the left, then walk down the little hill and walk through the bushes. You have to go through two fences to enter the petrol station.

20 minutes down the motorway a [[toll road]] starts - there you will see a [[toll station]] where everyone has to stop. It is a great place to get long-distance rides. Between the ''Aire La Courneuve'' and the ''barrière de péage'' (toll station) there is a small [[rest area]] and a fairly large petrol station with quite many cars stopping there. Ask your driver if he/she passes this service area.

[[File:Masaru.jpg|thumb|240px|right|Hitchhiker Masaru at ''Aire La Courneuve'']] 
Another option to get a ride towards Lille and/or Belgium is first to take a RER B to ''Stade de France'' and then walk up to the final traffic light where you can ask for a ride to the first petrol station on the motorway (''Aire La Courneuve'') which is about 5 km away.

Lastly, one can take a line 13 to ''Carrefour Pleyel'' and then walk along ''Boulevard Anatole France'' (see [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;hl=en&amp;geocode=&amp;saddr=Carrefour+Pleyel+station,+France&amp;daddr=charles+de+gaulle&amp;sll=48.927631,2.383518&amp;sspn=0.027124,0.080338&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=48.923881,2.358456&amp;spn=0.013563,0.040169&amp;t=h&amp;z=15&amp;om=1 Google Maps]) up until the beginning of the highway. There is a hitchhiking spot there which might be not the greatest one in the world but at least it can lead you to the next petrol station on the highway (make sure, though, the driver won't drop you off at the exit 4 of the highway).

==== Charles de Gaulle ====
''Charles de Gaulle'' airport can be an option for hitching North-East, although waiting times might vary a lot.

==== Porte de la Chapelle ====
That's where the [[A1 autoroute (France)|A1]] starts - local drivers say they often see hitchhikers there. To get there take a metro 12 to ''Porte de la Chapelle'', then walk to the roundabout. You can try getting a ride on the roundabout (there are traffic lights, which means that cars have to stop) or you can stand on the opposite side facing the roundabout where the highway starts. Another good option is to start hitchhiking in the same street where the metro is. There are 2 petrol stations in that very street, just 50m deeper into the city. They aren't overcrowded, and at the same time quite a few cars going up the North stop here for refill; nonetheless, at such places much is depended on your luck, and according to some hitchhikers this place won't make to the TOP10 best hitchhiking places in France. It is therefore rather recommended to hitchhike at the roundabout where a quiet lane right by the traffic lights gives you a good opportunity to get onto the highway (avoiding at the same time all the traffic that heads for ''Boulevard Periphique'').

=== A4 East, towards [[Metz]], [[Strasbourg]], [[Luxembourg]], [[Germany]], etc ===

==== Going directly to the ''barrière de péage'' ====
Take RER A4 to the last stop (''Marne-La-Vallee - Chessy''). The train journey length is around 45 minutes (6€ something). Take the bus number 59 (doesn't operate on Sundays, the ticket costs around 2 Euro) which leaves from the bus stop next to the RER train station at ''Eurodisney'','' Marne-La-Vallee'' ([http://www.metro-pole.net/hor/fiche/6759.11.html timetable 2008 here]). It takes ten minutes to arrive at the “Truffaut” gardening centre which is beside the péage (stop Coutevroult - Truffaut). From there, walk back a bit and go through what seems to be a police station's parking area and is called &quot;voie de service&quot; on the map - you will get to the green area right outside the péage - and you won't need to jump any of the fences! From this ''barrière de péage'' it is easy to get rides to [[Metz]] or even straight to [[Germany]]. You might meet people (gendarmes or highway staff) in that &quot;voie de service&quot; - even if they try to talk you out of it, remember ''it is allowed'' to hitchhike ''in the car park'' by the peage.

Attention, the bus 59 runs every hour. It is usually timed to start 5 min after the arrival of the RER so hurry yourself up from the train. Follow the signs &quot;gare routière&quot; (bus station). If bus 59 doesn't start before 30 min, consider using bus 34 (see bellow).

If you decide to hitch from this péage on Sunday you can take the bus no. 34 (1.60 €, [http://www.metro-pole.net/hor/fiche/5134.20.html timetable]) to bus stop &quot;Bailly-Romainvilliers - Place de l'Europe&quot; , then walk for about 2kilometers. You will soon see the motorway A4 and péage. Here's the [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;source=s_d&amp;saddr=bailly+romainvilliers+place+de+l%27europe&amp;daddr=48.853562,2.839065&amp;geocode=&amp;hl=en&amp;mra=dme&amp;mrcr=0&amp;mrsp=1&amp;sz=15&amp;dirflg=w&amp;sll=48.850992,2.833614&amp;sspn=0.012962,0.027637&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;z=15 route].

The ''barrière de péage'' is located [http://maps.google.es/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=48.854077,2.83959&amp;daddr=&amp;hl=es&amp;geocode=&amp;mra=dme&amp;mrcr=0&amp;mrsp=0&amp;sz=17&amp;sll=48.853788,2.839912&amp;sspn=0.003586,0.009656&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=48.850258,2.830095&amp;spn=0.014346,0.038624&amp;t=h&amp;z=15 here].

==== Via petrol station ====

[[File:Zoe.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Hitchhiker Zoe in Paris during the [[888]] event]]
The first petrol station is close to RER A station ''Bussy St.Georges''. From this station walk South for about 1 km along a bigger road which will lead you to a roundabout. You can try hitchhiking from there but the needed petrol station will be just a bit more than 2 km from there. You can walk on the grass field next to the highway. The petrol station is called ''La Ferrière''. Another option to reach this petrol station is to walk through the industrial zone of ''Bussy'' area, to the South of the railway, then reach the bridge over the highway and follow further by walking on the grass until the actual petrol station. Most of the walk will be on the road which means you will save some time while at the same time such a walk won't be so annoying if you happen to hitchhike in winter (then you apparently don't wanna go through the fields). You can follow [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;hl=en&amp;saddr=gare,+bussy+saint+georges,+france&amp;daddr=chemin+de+la+rue+pavee,+bussy+saint+georges,+france&amp;sll=48.831899,2.723193&amp;sspn=0.01291,0.040169&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;z=15&amp;ll=48.831814,2.726369&amp;spn=0.01291,0.040169&amp;t=h&amp;om=0 this route] on Google Maps.

==== Various other options ====
* If you go to ''Bussy-St-Georges'' you can also try to catch a bus nr.4 or nr.44 from the metro station ''Gutenberg''. When at ''Bussy-St-Georges'', walk sraight to the bridge (don't take the first bridge left after the bus stop because than you will have to jump over the fence and to walk through the field (and hitchhiking with wet feet isn't that good, obviously)). The péage is not far from there, although it might be a bit further than the closest highway ramp.

* Take the RER Line A (Red) in direction of ''Boissy St Legere'' until the station ''Nogent Sur Marne'' (~2€). Leave the station in direction of ''Rue Joinville'' and follow the sign to the A4. It is a 30 min walk. If some driver stops for you, ask if he/she can take you at least to the next petrol station (there is no toll road (péage) to get there, so it is likely that you will get a ride there).

=== A6 South to [[Lyon]], [[Marseille]], [[Barcelona]], [[Italy]] ===

'''Aire de Lisses''': this petrol station is situated about 35kms South of Paris, however it's near to an RER station (15 minutes by walk) so you can easily get there. In order to get out of the several rings of highways surrounding Paris it could be really useful to start hitching from this place, especially since you get directly on the A6, after all the branch-offs. To get there you have to take the RER D toward Melun or Malesherbes (!via Corbeil!). After Corbeil-Essonnes the second station is Villabé. The station is not marked on googlemaps but don't worry, it's there:  [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=Rue+d%27Ambreville,+91100+Villab%C3%A9,+Franciaorsz%C3%A1g&amp;daddr=48.592221,2.443964&amp;hl=hu&amp;geocode=&amp;mra=dme&amp;mrcr=0&amp;mrsp=1&amp;sz=16&amp;dirflg=w&amp;sll=48.592959,2.44184&amp;sspn=0.005947,0.013604&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=48.592959,2.452869&amp;spn=0.023786,0.054417&amp;z=14 ''the way from Villabé RER station to Aire de Lisses''] 

A hitchhiking spot at ''Porte d'Orleans'' (at the &quot;périferique&quot;) seems quite a good place to get a ride (metro ''Porte d'Orleans''). There's a petrol station, and a good spot (just besides the &quot;Novotel&quot; building) at the traffic junction to the &quot;périferique extérieur&quot;. Don't go with those cars which head for suburbs only - next [[tollway]] or a petrol station is about 50 km away.

=== A10 South to [[Orleans]], [[Bordeaux]], [[Spain]] ===
[[File:888_signs.jpg|thumb|240px|left|A small collection of the &quot;Paris&quot; signs for the [[Project 888]] where over 150 hitchhikers gathered and camped in front of the Eiffel Tower.]]
This motorway follows the route of the '''A6''' (see above) from Paris, and splits afterwards near [[Antony]]/[[Rungis]]. There's no petrol station between ''Porte d'Orleans'' and the A6xA10 junction except [http://maps.google.fr/?ie=UTF8&amp;ll=48.739447,2.302011&amp;spn=0.001638,0.003455&amp;t=h&amp;z=18 this one] (good enough one, according to some hitchhikers). An easy option is to stand at ''Porte d'Orleans'' (the same as for the A6 options) with a sign specifying that you go to [[Orléans]]. There is a ''[[barrière de péage]]'' in ''Saint Arnoult'', before the split between A10 and A11, so you can accept a ride going to Orléans or to [[Chartres]], for example. Make sure, though, the driver will leave you at least at the &quot;péage de Saint Arnoult&quot;. French hitchhiker [[User:Pietshah|Pietshah]] did this route tons of times and had very little troubles.

Similarly ''Porte d'Italie'' which is not far from  ''Porte d'Orleans''  is a good place to hitch from. Additionally if you walk down the exit there at the traffic lights there is an overhead bypass which can keep you dry in the rain.



You can also take the RER to ''Massy-Palaiseau''.  From there you will be able to follow motoway signs for the A6 and A10.
Go down the ''Avenue Carnot'' along the railway towards the ''autoroute''. After a while there you will see a long stretch of a road with lots of space for cars. Keep going and you will reach a roundabout. If you keep following this road, you will reach a motorway exit underneath a bridge. It would be a good idea to use a sign with &quot;Chartres&quot; as this will make sure to get a ride at least to the first ''barrière de péage'' (30+ km) at St.Arnault. When already there, you might as well pull up the sign &quot;SPAIN&quot; - you might even get a truck straight to Portugal. 

&lt;
Getting onto the A10 highway is not an easy task, and will involve a train ride and some walking. 
The first petrol station is situated near the village called ''Briis-sous-Forges''. To get there you need to take either RER B to ''Massy-Palaiseau'' or RER C to ''Dourdan'' (ticket costs around 7€). From there take the bus 91.03 to ''Briis-sous-Forges''. It runs about 3 times an hour on weekdays, once an hour on Saturdays, and there are no buses on Sundays. The petrol station is situated a couple of kms North from the village. To reach it you will need to find ''Route d'Invilliers'', a small local road parallel to the highway. Once you are there, make sure your driver takes the right road as the A11 starts not far away. 
Another solution is to start hitching at ''Dourdan''. Go to ''rue d'Etampes'' and start thumbing at a roundabout there. In ''Les-granges-du-roi'' take the D838 that will lead you to the A10 motorway ramp. Note, though, that it is a bit far to walk - around 10 km -, and the traffic is weak. Hitch there before the ''barrière de péage'' with a sign &quot;Orleans&quot;.

=== A11 South-West to [[Le Mans]], [[Nantes]], [[Rennes]] and all parts of [[Brittany]] ===
This highway splits from the A10 near ''Dourdan''. There are several possibilities go get on this motorway: 

# The petrol station at ''Briis-sous-Forges''. Look at the A10 section's options.
# Take a train to ''Rambouillet'' from ''Paris-Montparnasse'' (about 7€) and start hitching on the N10 South, until the A11 motorway ramp.
# Take the train from ''Paris-Montparnasse'' to ''Chartres'' (12€) and start hitching from there. You might want to go to the service station ''Chartres-Gasville'' on the A11 east of ''Chartres'' (bus plus one hour walk!). From the train station, take one of many [http://www.filibus.fr/pages/55 buses] that stop at the ''Morard'' station. Here starts bus 12, take it and get off at ''N.Conté'' - some minutes before you arrive there, memorize the route: the bus croses the motorway, and comes to a big roundabout where it turns right and continues to a second small roundabout to turn right again to arrive at ''N.Conté''. Now comes 1 hour of walk: go back to the big roundabout and turn right (east) to follow the N10 until you come to a small city. There you encounter the next roundabout, where you turn left. Follow the street, it bends to the right and ends on the ''Rue du Bois Paris'' where you turn left (north). After 500 meters comes the motorway, continue until you have crossed it. The service station is 400 meters east, so try to pass throught the trees on your right and follow the street to the service station.
# Another good spot (and cheaper to get to) is ''Portes d'Orleans'' (see info above - section A6) where you can hitch with a sign &quot;Chartres&quot; or &quot;A10&quot;/&quot;A11&quot;. If you get a ride to ''Péage de Saint Arnoult'' (from someone going to Orleans - A10 - for example), accept it, since it is before the highway split.

== Paris public transport ==
Public transport in Paris consists of a metro (lines from number 1 to 14), RER (fast trains serving the suburbs with relatively few inner city stops, lines from letter A to E), buses (lines from number 20 to ...?) and trams (lines from T1 to T4).  If you want to make a few voyages, the cheapest option is to buy a carnet of 10 single tickets (around 11 euros).  You can travel to the end of RER lines for around 15 euros.  If you stay in Paris for several days and will use transport often you can also buy a pass &quot;Mobilis&quot; for one or several days (5,6 € for one day inside Paris) - it is valid on metro, RER and ground transportation; if you stay for a week or more - get a &quot;Carte Orange&quot; for 16.3 € a week (you'll also need a photo for this one). All prices as of fall 2008.

=== Metro system ===
Ticket checks never occur on actual metro trains, and ticket controllers seem to employ 1 of 2 approaches: first one includes ticket controllers forming a line inside a metro tunnel or station exit and checking all the exiting travelers (since they are uniformed it is easy to see them from a distance unless they decide to hide around the corner); second one involves civil-dressed controllers watching the gates and busting those jumping over - they'll either stop them directly themselves, or radio-report to uniformed controllers who then will ask a stopped person to show a valid ticket.  

Checks are said never to occur during rush hours; peak times for these controls are evenings, weekends and the beginning of a new month. Except for the major stations, it is pretty easy to jump over the barriers, or pass through following other people passing to the ticket-zone. Only on major stations one is required to have a validated ticket when exiting. As in some other countries, one can be relax about the ticket booth staff since they have nothing to do with ticket checks.

=== RER system ===
Uniformed controllers will ask for validated tickets on trains, and since the RER shares the metro infrastructure, you might be a subject to the checks in similar order mentioned above. It is possible to travel for free, even though you stand a higher chance of being busted. It seems that checks can occur at any time, so the best time to travel for free is a rush hour when controls are impossible due to congestion. The highest risk of being checked seems to occur on transfer stations from RER to metro stations.

=== Buses ===
Like in most cities of France, you can walk onto the bus without showing or validating a ticket. Checks are said to be rare, and occur mainly late at night.

=== Fines and punishments ===
French transport police won't make any exceptions for foreigners. Although it is said it might be possible to talk them out of fining a &quot;dumb tourist&quot; they are mainly hostile. Most commonly they will ask for a 40 euro fine which can be paid directly in cash or by credit card. Alternatively you can plead poverty, and if you show a valid ID they will post a fine to the address and the name written on ID.

=== Going to ''Charles de Gaulle''/''Roissy'' airport ===
Bus line 350 goes to ''Gare de l'Est'', and line 351 - to ''Place de la Nation''. You're supposed to validate 3 tickets (which is a lot cheaper than travelling by RER); checks are said rare to occur.

== Sleeping in Paris ==
[[Hospitality exchange#Hospitality exchange networks|Hospitality exchange]] networks can be a great choice when staying low-budget in Paris. However, one must plan usually such staying well ahead since Paris is a popular destination for many backpackers, and many hospitality exchange networks' members are usually overloaded with requests to have guests.

It is also possible to sleep in the ''Champs de Mars'' in front of the Eiffel Tower - police generally lets you sleep until 9 or 10 in the morning. There are many trees that offer you a protection in case of a rain. You can also put up a tent (at night) in a discrete spot although keep in mind that police officers will wake you up around the sunrise. You can also sleep under the bridge at the Seine river on the other side of the Eiffel Tower. During the first European Hitchhikers Week ([[888]]) around 50 people slept in front of the Eiffel Tower.

&lt;!--
== Eat ==
--&gt;

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    <title>Strasbourg</title>
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        <username>Lanigiro</username>
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      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Strasbourg''' is one of the bigger cities of [[France]]. It is the siege of the European Parliament, and pretty ''bourgeois''.

In theory it seems doable to hitchhike directly from the center, as there is the entrance to several highways. However, the people of the city are not very hitchhike-friendly, so it is better to directly go to a petrol station on the highway.

== Getting around ==
&lt;map lat='48.55388717497782' lng='7.7474212646484375' zoom='11' view='0' float='right' height='400'/&gt;
Public transport is very cheap for a western European city. A 24 hour pass is only 3,50 EUR, for 4,80 EUR you get a 24 hour pass for 3 persons.

== Hitching out ==
=== Going east ([[Germany]]) {{Autobahn|5}} ===
You can take the regional train going to [[Kehl]] which is already in [[Germany]] (around 6 minutes for 2-3 euro). In Kehl you've got a big road going directly to the motorway A5 - and everyone who's coming from [[France]] is using this road. You also find a petrol station!

Also, to go from Stasbourg to Kehl, you can use the bus (line #21 ; one bus every 30 min. Watch out on Sunday, the first bus leaves first at 9.30 am). It's a bit longer but quite cheaper (1,30 euro instead of 3,50 for train) and it stops in several places from &quot;Ancienne Douanne&quot; to the east side of the city (useful if you are in the eastern part of the city).

By train, for 2 euro more, you can continue after Kehl till Appenweier. From there you can walk or hitchhike to the petrol station &quot;Rasthof Renchtal&quot; (2,5 km check the route on maps.google.com ). It can be a good alternative to Kehl because in 30 minutes more, you're on the German motorway network.

=== Going North ([[Metz]], [[Saarbrücken]]) and South ([[Mulhouse]], [[Switzerland]]) ===
Take the tram (red line) to Illkirch Lixenbuhl and then the bus (line 2) to Ostwald Eglise. From the bus stop, with your back to the church, turn right and walk down the road towards the big house around some green fields at the junction.You then turn right and you keep walking up this road parallel to the the Nachtweid forest.

A small road runs along its edge and leads to the first petrol station on the A35 motorway. This is for traffic going '''SOUTH''' towards Mulhouse and Switzerland. 

Across from this is the second petrol station for the '''NORTH''' (Metz, Saarbrucken, etc). You can access this from a muddy path beside the bridge.

=== Going North ([[Metz]], [[Saarbrücken]], [[Paris]]) ===
Take a regional train direction ''Brumath'' and make sure this one stops at ''Stephansfeld''. From there you can walk within 15 min to the gas station on the A4 and start hitchhiking straight at the gas station.

=== Going west ===
# Join the A4 by the &quot;going north route&quot; (see upper). Good solution for Paris.
# Join the N4: take the &quot;bus interurbain&quot; [http://www.cts-strasbourg.fr/Portals/0/PDF/horaires/interurbains/hiver/205.pdf #205],[http://www.cts-strasbourg.fr/Portals/0/PDF/horaires/interurbains/hiver/206.pdf #206 or #207] from &quot;Ancienne synagogue-Les Halles&quot; or &quot;Gare Centrale&quot; to Ittenheim (1,80 euros). From Ittenheim's bus stop, walk till the entry of the village (3 minutes), and you're on the best spot of the N4 to leave Strasbourg. This road has the advantage to be free of fees so many cool people use it. I recommend it to go to Metz and Nancy cause you don't loose a lot of time compared to motorways and you have many more chances to get a lift. Very efficient, I never waited more than 5 minutes there!


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    <title>Japan</title>
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      <text xml:space="preserve">:''Copied from [http://wikitravel.org/en/Hitchhiking_in_Japan Wikitravel] with permission from the author, [http://jpatokal.iki.fi Jani Patokallio].'' &lt;!-- this version: http://wikitravel.org/wiki/en/index.php?title=Hitchhiking_in_Japan&amp;oldid=111542 --&gt;
&lt;!-- [[Image:Bihoro_Pass.JPG|thumb|240px|[[Bihoro]] Pass and Highway 243, [[Akan National Park|Akan National Park]], [[Hokkaido]]]] --&gt;

Hitchhiking in '''Japan''' is quite easy, and the key to true budget travel in the country and the way to escape the country's ruinously expensive domestic transport costs, where an hour on the Shinkansen can set you back ¥10,000. Coupled with [[camping]], you can effectively cut down your daily budget to food and admission fees alone — although it is wise to allow for the occasional (literal) rainy day.

== Where to hitch ==
It is almost impossible to hitch out of [[Tokyo]] or any large Japanese city by waving your thumb on the [[Tokyo/Ginza|Ginza]]. Thus, to get out, you have to find the places where drivers going out congregate, which in practice means '''service areas''' (サービスエリア ''sābisu eria'', '''SA''') or '''parking areas''' ('''PA''') on the large toll expressways (高速道路 ''kōsokudōro'') connecting Japan's major cities. As you might guess, service areas are larger and better equipped than parking areas, but surprisingly few Japanese are familiar with the difference so it's easier to label them all service areas.

A useful rule of the thumb (pun intended) is that if you can get somewhere on a train for less than 2000 yen, hitchhiking the distance is unlikely to be worth the trouble. For destinations around Tokyo, such as for [[Mount Fuji]], [[Hakone]], [[Nikko]], hitchhiking is unlikely to be worth the trouble... until you actually get there, that is. All three regions have expensive local transport but plenty of unhurried tourists driving about, always a good combination for the hitchhiker.

=== Getting on the expressway ===
Due to a complex conspiracy, all SA/PAs are located as inconveniently as possible, and entrance to them from outside on foot is officially prohibited. However, the inconvenience is managable when you know the route (are you willing to sit on a local train for an hour to save 9000 yen?) and, as so often happens in Japan, official regulations go unenforced or downright ignored.

Aside from SA/PAs, the second way to get on the expressway is to hitch outside an interchange. ICs do tend to be a bit closer to town, but in Tokyo they are usually in the middle of very heavy traffic and with few, if any, places where hitching is even remotely possible, so getting rides also takes considerably longer. It is generally preferably to sit on a local for an extra half an hour and maybe even pay a few yen for the privilege of not having to choke on exhaust for an hour.

The third method would be take a long-distance bus that uses the expressway and stops at a parking area along the way. However, cataloguing which routes go where on which roads and which service areas they stop at would be a fairly difficult enterprise, you'll also need to buy a rather expensive bus ticket just to get on the thing, and you'll probably freak out the bus attendants who will certainly notice if the only ''gaijin'' on the bus doesn't come back from the break.

=== Hitching on the expressway ===
At the SA/PA itself, the best place to hitch is near the offramp to the
expressway, ideally so that you've visible from the buildings — this way drivers can see you as they go in and think about picking you up before they get in their car and make the choice. From a service area with decent traffic, you are very likely to get a ride within minutes.

Once you've made it onto the expressway, it's easy to keep bouncing from one SA/PA to the next one, but a decent highway map is imperative so you know the best place to get off if your destination and your driver's path diverge. It's entirely possible to cover 500 kilometers or more in a single day by using expressways.

Note that it is '''illegal''' to stop a car or walk on foot anywhere on the expressway itself, including tollbooths, and you will be rapidly picked up by the highway police if you try. Do not allow your driver to drop you off outside a service area.

=== Hitching elsewhere ===
Outside the expressway system on ordinary toll-free national highways (国道 ''kokudō''), there are also occasional service areas of a sort, known as ''Michi-no-Eki'' (道の駅), lit. &quot;Road stations&quot;. These are excellent places to get dropped off, fuel up, consult maps and grab rides.

Other traditional favorites include the offramps of roadside gas stations and convenience stores. The keys are '''visibility''' and '''accessibility''': drivers have to be able to spot you in advance, and they have to be able to stop and pick you up without endangering themselves or others.

Note that it is '''illegal''' to hitchhike near road crossings or from bus stops, although in rural areas where buses drop by just 2-3 times a day the latter is often tolerated. The very end of a merging lane after a crossing is also OK, as long as you are more than 5 meters away from the crossing itself. In general, hitchhiking is legal and Japanese police don't hassle hitchhikers, but they do have fairly wide-ranging powers to act on anything that disturbs or distracts traffic, so use common sense.

== How to hitch ==
Except for the occasional impoverished student in the wide expanses of Hokkaido, there is very little tradition of hitchhiking in Japan, and you will more likely than not be the first hitchhiker that your driver has ever even seen, much less picked up. The key to hitchhiking is thus to assuage these fears and look as '''harmless and friendly''' as possible.

The top worries of a Japanese driver when they see a hitchhiking gaijin are: Can he '''communicate'''? Does he know how to behave? The quick way to answer those questions is with a [[sign]]: 日本語できる！ (''Nihongo dekiru!''), literally &quot;Japanese can!&quot;, is just six characters and works like a charm. And you don't really need to know Japanese all that well to use such a sign, as long as you can communicate... somehow...

Second on the agenda is '''[[appearance]]'''. This is not the place for a mop of unruly hair, ripped jeans and sunglasses — foreigners are by default scary, and you need to do your best to look like you stepped out of an L.L. Bean catalog. Neat trousers, clean shirt, a hat to protect you from the sun instead of sunglasses. If you have a huge rucksack, hide it off to the side.

With these down pat, it's time to '''assume the pose''' and hitch. Hitchhiking being an unusual phenomenon, the best-recognized pose will be the classic Western style: left hand extended straight, thumb up, and a winning smile on your face. Try to look drivers in the eye as they approach and perhaps even make a small bow of appreciation, especially if they slow down to take a better look at you or, better yet, loop back for a second look. And persevere: you may get picked up by the first car, or you may have to wait a while, but you ''will'' be picked up sooner or later.

Once the car does stop, a window will roll down and you will almost always be asked a simple question: ''Doko made?'' (&quot;To where?&quot;) Do not make the mistake of giving your final destination, as the driver may assume that you will insist on going all the way. (This is also why it's usually not wise to use a destination sign.) Instead, pick the nearest major waypoint and state ''X no hō'' (&quot;In the direction of X&quot;).

== When to hitch ==
Like other tourism in Japan, the best times of year are spring and fall, when it's not too hot and not too cold. Hitching in the summer risks sunburn and dehydration, while winter is simply too cold.

Distasteful as it may be to get up at 6 AM on vacation, as a hitchhiker you must get an '''early start'''. Many of the longest rides are available early in the morning, and your hitchhiking day will come to an end when the sun goes down.

If the weather is bad, it's best to give up hitchhiking for the day and figure out something else to do. A sodden figure standing forlornly in the rain with his thumb out is not a pitiful figure in Japan, he's a dangerous lunatic.

== Who to hitch with ==
In Japan, as everywhere else, your '''gender''' matters when hitchhiking. On an ascending scale of difficulty, the best combinations are:
# Girl alone (but see below)
# Two girls
# Boy and girl couple
# Boy alone
# Two boys
# Three or more people

While a single girl (or woman) is likely to get picked up very fast, this has its risks: Japan has its fair share of perverts and predators and a lone hitchhiker in a foreign country is a vulnerable target.

As for '''who will pick you up''', the range of humanity you will encounter is surprising and, once you've crossed the threshold into their car, the generosity and [[trust]] will amaze you. You will be picked up by young couples, grizzled old farmers, families with small children, traveling salesmen, single women, ''yakuza'' mobsters, Buddhist monks... and, almost without exception, you will be offered drinks and snacks, bought lunch and quite possibly offered a ''tatami'' (floor) for the night. But try to distinguish between offers of genuine goodwill and interest and offers out of duty or perceived obligation, as your driver is likely to feel that he is a host and he must treat you as an honored guest, despite any inconvenience or even financial expense that this might cause.

As a guest, you will not be expected (or allowed) to pay any expenses. Be thankful for this, as Japan's expressway tolls are ''extremely'' high: for example, the trip from [[Tokyo]] to [[Osaka]] costs around ¥8000 in tolls alone.

== See also ==
=== Links ===
* '''[http://www.j-sapa.or.jp/ J-SaPa]''', the organization behind all of Japan's expressway service areas, has a useful website with news, maps and search — but unfortunately it's entirely in Japanese.

=== Atlases ===
* '''Road Atlas Japan''' (ISBN 4-398-20104-1) — a hitchhiker's invaluable companion, listing pretty much every major road in the country in both English and Japanese. Difficult to find overseas but available in any larger Japanese bookstore (including [http://www.amazon.co.jp/exec/obidos/ASIN/4398201041/ Amazon.co.jp]); look for the lurid orange cover.

=== Books ===
Will Ferguson has written a number of informative and entertaining books about hitchhiking in Japan. These include:
* '''Hitchhiker's Guide to Japan''' (ISBN 0-8048-2068-6) — practical guide to hitchhiking with a number of tested itineraries
* '''Hokkaido Highway Blues''' (ISBN 1-56947-234-3) — the story of an epic hitchhiking trip across the entire country
[[trash:Japan]]
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[[Category:Japan|*]]
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[[es:Japón]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:America</title>
    <id>1567</id>
    <revision>
      <id>14750</id>
      <timestamp>2007-10-13T20:39:47Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Speckmade</username>
        <id>23</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>Redirecting to [[Category:Americas]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#REDIRECT [[:Category:Americas]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:World</title>
    <id>1568</id>
    <revision>
      <id>33702</id>
      <timestamp>2009-05-28T12:11:22Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>89.156.213.38</ip>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">&lt;!-- well... --&gt;

[[Category:Browse]]

[[trash:Category:World]]

[[de:Kategorie:Erde]]
[[es:Categoría:Mundo]]
[[fr:Catégorie:Continent]]</text>
    </revision>
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  <page>
    <title>Категория:Africa</title>
    <id>1569</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37485</id>
      <timestamp>2009-09-25T12:16:57Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Kb</username>
        <id>1332</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>IsIn World</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{IsIn|World}}
[[Category:World]]

[[de:Kategorie:Afrika]]
[[es:Categoría:África]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:Asia</title>
    <id>1570</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37479</id>
      <timestamp>2009-09-25T11:58:06Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Kb</username>
        <id>1332</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>IsIn World</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{IsIn|World}}
[[Category:World]]

[[de:Kategorie:Asien]]
[[es:Categoría:Asia]]
[[fr:Catégorie:Asie]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Germany</title>
    <id>1571</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37757</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:32:05Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = Germany
|map = &lt;map lat='51.39920565355378' lng='9.9755859375' zoom='5' view='0' height='320' width='260' float='left' country='Germany' /&gt;
|language = German
|capital = [[Berlin]]
|pop = 82,314,900
|currency = Euro (€)
|hitch = {{good}}
}}
[[File:2003 Hitch-hiking in Germany.jpg|thumb|left|250px|[[User:Sigurdas|Sigurdas]] thumbing towards Nürnberg, 2003.]]
'''Germany''' is a member state of the [[European Union]] as well as the [[Schengen Agreement]]. It is a great country for [[hitchhiking]], both on motorways (via [[on-ramp]]s, [[service station]]s, more seldom - parking lots) and local roads. Motorway is called ''Autobahn'' in German, while a [[service area]] is ''Raststätte''. Latter one is a very common place for hitching a ride - many drivers stop there for re-fuel and some rest. There you will often find [[maps]] (both of Germany and Europe in general) that indicate every single petrol station or any other service area located on motorways; in addition, there are map stands (usually by the main entrance to a petrol station) that give a general overview of all service areas on the territory of Germany. Motorway ramps usually are a good option to get a free ride, too. One has to make sure, though, not to end up on co called ''Schnellstrasse'' (it usually leads to motorways) where cars go fast and can not stop.

Many German motorways have no speed limits, therefore you might wanna first try to get a ride hitching a personal car before asking truck drivers. Trucks are great for a night-ride; however, there are restrictions, like in [[France]], of when trucks are allowed on a motorway. In Germany most trucks aren't allowed on motorways on Sundays or public holidays before 22:00.

If you travel a specific motorway, have a look at the '''[[Template:Highways DE|&quot;German motorways&quot;]]''' page where you can find very specific information and hints about hitchhiking on German motorway ramps, etc. - for example, the route [[Amsterdam]]–[[Berlin]] along the [[A2 (Germany)|A2]] and [[A30 (Germany)|A30]].

* See also: '''Tips on Hitchhiking Germany''', an article on [http://www.digihitch.com/europe/western_europe/149_1_1_article.html Digihitch] by [http://www.digihitch.com/userinfo-dsmith4721.html David Smith].

=== License plates ===
There are between one and three letters on a license plate which show the city or region where the car is registered. For example, look for license plates starting with '''B''' if you're hitching to [[Berlin]]. Have a look at the articles on Wikipedia for more information: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_car_number_plates German car number plates] (in English) and [http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_der_Kfz-Kennzeichen_in_Deutschland Liste der Kfz-Kennzeichen in Deutschland] (in German).

=== Crossing the border ===
Germany has signed a [[Schengen Agreement]] which means that borders with other Schengen countries are open. Since 2009, all neighbour countries are Schengen members as well, so there are no border checks at all anymore.

At the Swiss border, there are still custom controls, but that will probably only affect you if you are in a truck. (Switzerland has joined the Schengen Agreement in 2009!)

=== Carpooling ''(Mitfahrgelegenheit)'' ===
Germany has a national carpooling website that gives opportunities both to the driver and to the ride-seeker to find each other and share a ride together with its cost for fuel. Unfortunately, the website, called [http://www.mitfahrgelegenheit.de/ Mitfahrgelegenheit], is exclusively in German. Nonetheless, it is quite easy to understand how everything works: you can scroll search from your departure point ''(von)'' to a destination ''(nach)''; you can see exact ride dates and number of passenger places offered. If you search for a ride from or to Germany, click on ''Europa'' link. Contacting a driver is usually done by email, although some drivers do leave their phone numbers). When getting in contact with the driver, one should find an agreement on a price and departure place/date/time. 

Such a system offers a low cost alternative to hitchhiking. A similar system exists in [[Belgium]], too.

Experiences has shown, however, that hitchhiking very often is faster than ''Mitfahrgelegenheit'' since the driver often drives into cities on their route to pick up new passengers (or to leave them at their exact destination spot). 

''Note: Abfahrt = Departure / Ankunft = Arrival''

=== Maps ===
[[File:IMG 5392.JPG|thumb|250px|right|[[Tiziano]] hitching from [[Berlin]] to [[Munich]]]]
If you're not staying in Germany for long you can hitch through having any map of Germany that has motorway petrol stations marked on it. For that, go to any petrol station located on a motorway and ask for an &quot;Autobahn-Guide&quot; - it is for free. You'll get a booklet describing all services on German motorways and including a map with an overview of all motorway petrol stations and other service areas. For more information look here: [http://www.tank.rast.de/standorte/servicenetz/index.php tank.rast.de]. While on a petrol station, you can also find more detailed maps for ~5 Euro.

Recommended maps for hitchhiking are '''Michelin Regional''', the orange ones with the numbers 541-546. There are six of these maps, each covering a different part of Germany. They are very detailed and show every single petrol station, hotel, restaurant, or a parking place on German motorways. The scale is equal to 1:350000. Bigger city maps are included, too. You can usually get these maps in local bookstores for about EUR 8.

Hitchhiker [[User:Platschi|Platschi]] suggests that the ''Aral Straßen-Atlas Deutschland &amp; Europa'' can be very good for hitchhiking trips, too: it contains a detailed map of Germany and of the bordering countries, with city maps of the biggest German cities, and all service stations located on motorways. Price: EUR 7,95. Available on all ''Aral'' service stations, and in German bookstores.

=== Eating ===
Try to avoid eating on motorway [[rest area|service stations]] if you want to save money and to have a good taste of food. These restaurants are notoriously expensive (very often you have to pay for the toilet, too) and the food quality is quite low.

At some service stations with a [[Sanifair]] system you get a EUR 0,50 coupon for the toilet which you can use as a valid equivalent to monetary payment when buying things at the petrol station shop or in the restaurant. If you're lucky you can also find thrown away [http://hitchwiki.org/en/Image:Sanifair_voucher.jpg Sanifair vouchers] for free.

Nearly everywhere in Germany you can drink water from the tap.

Keep in mind that most shops (including supermarkets) are not allowed to be open on Sundays. There are no 24h-shops, although non-stop petrol stations often offer some food choices (very limited, though).
 
When in bigger cities, you can usually get the cheapest food at Turkish and Italian restaurants.

=== Practical links ===
* [http://deu.anarchopedia.org/index.php/Deutschland:Trampstellen Hitchhiking spots in Germany], in German, on a GFDL wiki
* [http://www.hitch-hiking.org/ www.hitch-hiking.org], general information on hitchhiking (in English and German)
* [http://www.liftershalte.info/?country=DE A map with good/bad places to hitchhike]
* [http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Autobahn_1-999.png Overview of motorways in Germany]
* [http://www.best-restaurants.de/aurade.htm A map with motorway restaurants in Germany]
* [http://www.gastro-stars.com  Best Restaurants in Germany]
* [http://www.tank.rast.de/standorte/servicenetz/index.php/ Service stations on German motorways]

&lt;!--* [http://www.linksundrechts.com/karten/u_oesterreich.gif Autobahnübersicht Österreich]
* [http://www.autostrade.de/ Autobahnübersicht Italien]
* [http://stuenings-nt.stuenings.de/LuR/karten/01519.gif Autobahnübersicht Italien]

* [http://www.bibione.com/index_de.html Bibione - Offizielle HP]
* [http://www.bibione.com/vetrina/images/mappa_dintorni.jpg Bibione Übersichts Karte]
* [http://www.bibione.com/upload//sito_bibione/162sito_bibione.jpg Bibione Strand]
--&gt;

{{Hitchbase_country|73}}


{{Highways DE}}
{{Template:Cities Germany}}
{{States Germany}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}

{{IsIn|Western Europe}}
[[wikipedia:Germany]]
[[trash:Germany]]
[[digi:Germany]]
__NOTOC__

[[Category:Germany| ]]
[[Category:Western Europe]]

[[de:Deutschland]]
[[es:Alemania]]
[[fr:Allemagne]]
[[pl:Niemcy]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Sweden</title>
    <id>1572</id>
    <revision>
      <id>38212</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-25T12:42:29Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Liftarkungen</username>
        <id>1985</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* Cities */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = of Sweden
|map= &lt;map lat='63' lng='17' zoom='4' view='0' width='270' height='350' country='Sweden'/&gt;
|language = none (Swedish ''de facto'')
|capital = [[Stockholm]]
|pop = 9,234,209
|currency = Swedish krona (SEK)
|hitch = {{good}} to {{bad}}}}
[[File:Gas_station_in_Sweden.jpg|thumb|left|250px|A big van driven by a group of Germans, and Israeli hitch-hiker Erga (on the left) on a petrol station on the E4 towards [[Stockholm]]]]
'''Sweden''' is a member state of the [[European Union]] as well as the [[Schengen Agreement]]. Many say that hitching in Sweden sucks. But it works very well! As anywhere in Western [[Europe]], the motorways are the holy temples of car driving religion and someone standing on them is committing blasphemy. But you can hitch on the motorway ramps as well as on local roads. Better bring a good map, though, so that you won't end up in an unexpected place.

Especially in northern Sweden there are only few main roads, which means that you might have a shorter time waiting and longer lifts. Be careful to stand somewhere where there is some sign of civilization. As especially in the north the roads are no real motorways and accessible for pedestrians, you can stop all the traffic, especially if you stand on something like a bus stop. When the streets are real motorways you have to take care a little on which petrol station you end up, as there are too much of them, with sometimes only little traffic on each of them, and as most of the petrol stations are one or two kilometers away from the motorway. On the other hand, cars can go faster on motorways than on small local roads and you can expect lifts to be faster.

== Cities ==
* [[Göteborg]]
* [[Halmstad]]
* [[Lund]]
* [[Karlskrona]]
* [[Malmö]]
* [[Mellerud]]
* [[Norrköping]]
* [[Nyköping]]
* [[Stockholm]]
* [[Sundsvall]]
* [[Trollhättan]]

== Crossing the border ==
Sweden is in the [[Schengen treaty]]. This treaty is rather well respected at the Finnish and Norwegian borders but has stricter regulations at the terminals where ferries from [[Denmark]] port, or at the bridge uniting [[Copenhagen]] with [[Malmö]]. Stricter control and special attention is usually applied to those who look like &quot;being of another race&quot;. If you are unlucky, you might be made to strip during their search. The reasons of such strict control derive from the Sweden's specific economic situation (incl. high taxes on alcohol, tobacco, etc.) which attracts a number of smugglers, and a high-standard social security system which is a target of illegal immigrants. Keep in mind, though, that the personality check is not applied to everyone but only to some at random order so you have more chances to quickly cross the border than get stuck explaining to the officials that you are neither an illegal immigrant nor a smuggler.

== Language &amp; Communication ==
There is no special need of practicing your Swedish since almost everyone speaks English there. Although it can still be useful to speak a couple of words of Swedish for the few people who don't speak English – some immigrants for example, who are more likely to pick up hitchhikers even so. Check out the [[Northern Europe phrasebook#Swedish|Swedish phrasebook]]. Hitchhiking means ''liftar''.

Also, when asking for lifts at petrol stations, some people don't understand that you are hitchhiking and start to explain you the way as if you had an own car. 

[[File:2002 Lodging for the night.jpg|thumb|280px|right|Ready to sleep – a pitched tent outside the road in northern Sweden.]]
[[File:Gas station north from Gavle in Sweden.JPG|thumb|220px|right|Petrol station by the lake, north from [[Gävle]].]]
== Camping ==

In Sweden, the wonderful Allemansrätt has existed for many centuries only as a customary law, but since 1994 it is part of the Swedish constitution. As in other Nordic countries, the Swedish right to roam comes with an equal emphasis being placed upon the responsibility to look after the countryside; the maxim is &quot;'''Do not disturb, do not destroy'''&quot;. 

The Allemansrätt gives a person the right to access, walk, cycle, ride, ski, and camp on any land - with the exception of private gardens, the immediate vicinity of a dwelling house and land under cultivation, and with restrictions for nature reserves and other protected areas. This means that you could put up a tent for free almost anywhere as long as it doesn't disturb anybody. Make sure to '''not leave any garbage''' in the nature – we should really take the responsibility for those future generations will have the same democratic right to the nature as we have, and of course have any nature at all.. 
Very welcome to enjoy the Swedish nature!

== Useful things ==
'''Internet''' you can normally get at the public or university libraries for free. Sometimes you have to ask for a guest account.

There's a quite useful '''[[map]]''' (&quot;vägkarta&quot;) which you can get at ''OKQ8'' petrol stations. It's for whole Sweden and has all ''OKQ8'' petrol stations on it, which can be quite handy when hitchhiking and looking for a good place to be dropped off.

You might come across the &quot;Swedish mile&quot; (also '''Scandinavian mile'''). This unit of length is used in informal speech an measures 10 km. So 8 ''mil'' would be 80 km.

It is quite usual to send a '''thanksaying-message''' the day after a party or after a meeting − saying something like &quot;Thanks for yesterday&quot;. When you '''enter a flat''' or an apartment, it is a must to take off ones shoes!

== Links ==
* [http://www.skjutsgruppen.nu Skjutsgruppen.nu] - [[rideshare]] network within the social networks. Also on Twitter: twitter.com/skjutsgruppen
* [http://www.samakning.se Samåkning.se] - [[rideshare]] network (for Sweden and [[Northern Europe]] in general)
* [http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=5889849780] - facebookgroup for Swedish hitchhikers
{{hitchbase_country|185}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}
{{IsIn|Scandinavia}}

[[trash:Sweden]]

[[Category:Northern Europe]]
[[Category:Sweden| ]]
[[Category:East Route from North Cape to Cape of Good Hope]]

[[de:Schweden]]
[[es:Suecia]]
[[fi:Ruotsi]]
[[fr:Suède]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Australia</title>
    <id>1573</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35808</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-15T14:16:23Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* The Outback */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = of Australia
|map= &lt;map lat='-27' lng='133' zoom='4' view='0' float='right' height='400' width='450' country='Australia'/&gt;
|language = English (de facto)
|capital = [[Canberra]]
|pop = 21,468,700
|currency = Australian dollar (AUD)
|hitch = from {{average}} to {{good}}
}}
In '''Australia''' hitching is okay as anywhere else in Western culture, as long as you´re between [[Adelaide]] and [[Brisbane]]. In the outback, though, you´ll get more empty beer cans thrown on you than rides; some hitchhikers, however, wouldn't agree with that, stating, that even hitchhiking through the desert can be pretty OK.

== The Outback ==
I don't know about others, but hitchhiking throughout the outback was easy.  The people were friendly, especially the aboriginal folks who would have six people already jammed in a little car and still squeeze you in.  I managed from Broome through to Kununurra, Katherine up to Darwin and down to Alice.  The only time I had to wait more than a half-hour was when I was dropped off on the turn off to Batchelor, which while on the main highway, is a real bad spot with nothing and no one for a long ways.  Anyway, give it a go.  Watch where you swim and don't worry about the snakes.  I never seen a single snake in three months of bush living and wwoofing in remote places.  Definitely fill up a few litres of water when you have the chance.  It is very easy to get dehydrated.  If you can get decent water, all the better.  Most bores were quite brackish tasting and all roadhouse taps were heavily chlorinated -- here's to a good litre of fresh rainwater on a sunny 45 degree day!  (Amory Tarr)

When going to the outback go to truck stops and talk to them there, a lot of truck companies don't allow anyone but the drivers in their trucks but if you talk to the truckies at stops they are much more likely to wave that rule. The only time truckies truly cannot give you a lift is when they are operating under a dangerous goods license and then, by law they are not allowed to have another passenger in the vehicle. For example petrol tankers, transporting more than one trailer of gas, etc. Not all companies have rules against taking passengers. The truckies will take you long distances, from [[Port Augusta]] all the way to [[Darwin]] or [[Perth]], but if you want to get off the main road, then you'll have to wait awhile.

My own experience does not quite agree with the above comment... Recent changes to [[insurance]] costs throughout the western world, have meant that trucks face stricter and stricter insurance limitations, one of which is that they are commonly not allowed to have any unlisted passengers in their vehicles. These rules are normally enforced by larger companies, where all riders sign in at the depot prior to the trucks departure. If you personally know a driver it is often possible for them to sign you in and take you along to help keep them awake. These rules don't really apply to owner/operators, unless on long term contract to a particular company. Unfortunately it's hard for you to know which trucks it will or wont apply to, though you can be confident that the big name trucks like Australia Post, Woolworths etc this is absolutely the case. All of this does not mean you can't get a ride in a truck in Aus. What it does mean is that our global fear of strangers has gone up here as much as elsewhere, and the amount of trucks picking up 'strangers' is greatly diminished. I have had some great lifts with road trains, Australia Post trucks etc etc, though they seem less and less common. In fact my first go at driving a road train was on a hitch across the Nullabor   Desert, a truly mad but memorable experience of driving 50tonnes of rolling monster across the midnight plains (Dave Hodgkin)

== Police ==
Laws regarding  hitchhiking come under State not Federal jurisdiction, I have been arrested and charged with hitchhiking in Queensland, though chargers were later dropped (long story). Throughout Australia, it is however illegal to incite a vehicle to stop in a non stopping zone. Such zones include bridges (and 30 odd meters either side, road edges with an unbroken white or yellow line, spots within 30 meters of an intersection, etc. As a rule of thumb remember that Australian Police are fairly relaxed, more so in the country than the city, but they will get toey if they believe your actions are placing yourself or others in danger. Choose  your hitching site carefully, as always look for somewhere well lit, with plenty of room to for approaching vehicles to see you well in advance and room for them to pull on to the shoulder with out blocking traffic.

Most police officers won't harass you, but some cops might tell you that it's illegal to hitchhike in Australia. Don't show your thumb when you see a cop car, and if they stop, just tell them that you're waiting for a ride share that should have showed up a lot earlier.

:''It is illegal but I've had police stop twice, once to tell me go back to town and catch a bus (but left me alone besides telling to do that) and the second time the cop gave me a lift about 40 or 50km to the border of Victoria/South Australia.''

:''It's illegal to hitch in no-pedestrian zones like freeways but other places it seems to vary state to state. I don't think it's against the law at all in most places and I've never had any troubles anywhere in the eastern states.''

:''Wait on gas stations or truck stops for a ride. This way you won't get into trouble with the police, can ask people for a lift and you're close to water, food and a toilet.''

Exact legislation can be found at Austlii;
[http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/sinodisp/au/legis/wa/consol_reg/rtc2000113/s259.html?query=hitch%20hike WA]
[http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/disp.pl/au/legis/nsw/consol_reg/rr2008104/s236.html?query=Road%20Rules%202008%20REG%20236 NSW]

== Australia Particular Advice ==
Australia poses some interesting and unique challengers for hitchhikers, distances between populated areas can be vast, by far the majority of Australians live next to the sea, with the majority of those living in the state capital cities. Temperatures in inland Australia can exceed 50 degrees Celsius in summer and go well below freezing in winter. In many ways Australia is an extreme environment, with some pretty extreme pests, people and weather, when it rains it pours, when it blows up a gale, it howls. But in saying this when Australia or Australians smile on you, the heavens open up from above and you can find yourself, taken in, taken home and for all practical purposes adopted for life.

I have been stuck for up to 3 days in a number of places in Australia, (notably Cooperpeedy and Ningin) whilst on the other hand I've been given the keys to the family holiday home and told to make myself at home when I get there (In Manjamup on the way from Perth to Albany), or taken home for a week, nurtured and spoilt rotten. Whatever the circumstance you find yourself in, more than in other countries be prepared.
-Let someone know where you are heading and how long till they should next expect to hear from you
-Carry more water than you think you need
-Walking out of town, to look like your motivated, may leave you somewhere very isolated
-Be very careful about not annoying your host, I've been thrown out of a truck by an irate driver, off his head on nodoze, for some quite harmless comment, 200k from the nearest town...

== When you're really stuck for a place to stay... ==
You know you're off the tourist track when you get to a town with out a backpackers. Most small towns have a town pub that offers pretty cheap accommodation and many have a free campground on teh edge of town or a picnic spot beside a river
*Schoolyards, normally there is somewhere discrete under cover, in most small towns there is green grass, and even toilets and drinking water, just set your alarm early and get out before 7:30ish when cleaning staff etc may start to arrive. (The primary school on thee edge of My Isa has rescued me on more than one occasion.
*Non Returned soldiers areas at Cemeteries, clearly not for the superstitious, but these sites, tend to have nice soft green grass, and often have free public toilets and fresh drinking water. The cemetery at the end of thee railway line in Hexam on your way north out of Sydney is a classic, if headed north through from Canberra or Melbourne, you can jump the train in Campbeltown or Paramater, ride it through to Central, change to the Newcastle line, then switch to the Hexam line, and get off at the unnamed station for free, right next to the best cemetery I have ever slept in, right next to the princess highway.
*Many remote areas have shade structures as bus shelters, these can provide quite a comfortable nights sleep, as can late night train stations  (spent my time on the floor of the girls toilet at Ningin railway station) Church Foyers (3 nights in the foyer of the underground church in Cooperpeedy).
*Showgrounds on the edge of towns often have toilets water and a place undercover.

== When you're really stuck for a ride ==
Jumping railway cars is also still possible in Australia, (although you did not hear it from me).
*The three day journey from Mt Isa to the coast on the coal trains (pick up a Beanbag, a tarp and a shade cloth from the Op-shop in town, few things bet making love on a pile of coal at 20km/h under the desert stars :)
*The cargo train across the Nullabor, a trip of a lifetime, my mate Alex did it, certainly one of those life changing adventures

== When really stuck for food... ==
I have been helped out when stuck in a small town, by the Country Womens Association, best scones of my life, nothing beats hunger to increase the flavour of jam and cream
I've eaten my share of roadside fruits from passing orchards, and cooked my share of roadkill, the smell quickly gives away the freshness or otherwise. 
The best introduction you'll ever have to roadkill delights is a fresh kangaroo tail. Make sure the tale is still flexible and the smell is only of dirty fur, not the smell of old meat, Kangaroos are hit by trucks everyday in Aus, so this is not as uncommon as it sounds. Hack off the tale as close the rump as possible, do this by cutting all the way around the tail, through the fur, then levering and breaking the tail between two vertebrate, nit as hard or messy as it sounds. I recommend dragging the roo off behind some bushes before you start this process as mad hitchhikers wielding knives under the full moon, does not do much for our reputation.
To cook the tail, first build a large fire over some clean ground, preferably riverside sand, though well above the water table, when  the fire is at full blaze, singe all the fur off the tail, scraping it clean with the back of a knife or a sharp rock, repeat this a few times as it takes a while to sear off all the fur, being careful not to over cook or burst the skin as this is the wrapping material for cooking. Let your fire burn down till it has strong hot coals and the ground below has started to really heat up (30-40mins depending how much of a fire you made) scrap the fire off to one side and dig a whole in the sand where the fire was using a stick, bury the tail about 15-20cm below the surface (check, but this area should already be nice and hot by now)and return the fire to above. Re-stoke the fire and cook for a further 40mins till the fire dies down. letting the fire die down slowly will allow  the Tail to really cook through nicely. Scrap the fire out of the way and dig up the tail. You will know when it is done, if the fat is sizzling and the skin is starting to split in places, if still not done, roll over and cook for a further 20-30mins. The amount of fat and grissle in the tail ensures that this is one of the few parts of the roo that its hard to actually over cook
Snake is also a great introduction to roadkill, choose a fresh wet smelling snake, chop off the head and squashed bits, cut open along the belly and degut, sew the stomach back together with thin twigs and cook as per instructions for roo tail above. the same goes for most lizards
Nothing beats the total delight of fresh billy tea boiled in a discarded coke can, fresh damper and road kill under a full moon beside the road...

== When really stuck for water ==

If really stuck in the middle of nowhere, and yes it does happen and has happened to me! Remember to go into casual energy conservation mode, wander down the road till you find a nice shady spot not to far from the road edge and chill out, get up when you can hear a car approaching from either direction, and stand beside the road, looking clean presentable forlorn and lost... a &quot;help&quot; sign helps, but many people will slow down, look very innocent, look very unarmed etc, remember the primary aim at this point is to get out of wherever you are, which direction simply does not matter, just get to the nearest town. You can live for a month without food, but you will die without water in a few days

Never ever decide to take a short-cut across a paddock or field, stick with the road. If bitten by a snake or even if you trip over and sprain and ankle in the middle of a field, there is no guarantee that you will be found by anybody before you have dried out and desiccated like a dead-dingos-donga!

Yes you can drink your own piss to stay alive, no its not pleasant, no I don't recommend it. If you are stuck on one of Australias mad dirt &quot;highways&quot; like the Tanami or the Gunbarrel, a solar still is your best bet. Choose a very sunny location and Dig a whole in the ground as big as you have a plastic bag or tarp or tent fly to cover it, (1mx1m up to 1.5mx1.5m, 30-50cm deep), place a container in the middle of the whole.. rides side coke can is fine, grind the top off on the road by rubbing around and around in circles, doesn't take that long when your bored. Place your piss, green branches, fresh road kill (or better just its blood) or anything wet in the whole around the can. You can include battery acid, Radiator water etc. Stretch your fly/tent/tarp/plastic over the top of the whole, sealing around the edges with sand or dirt.  Place a small rock in the middle of the tarp/plastic/fly so the whole top slopes down to above the can, leave in the sun for 4-5hours. This also works for really muddy shitty water when u have no fire to cook it. 

Other than that, you can get away with drinking just bout any water if you can boil it for a good 10-15mins. This includes, roadside puddles, brown sludge from underground, radiator liquid.  As an old blackfella friend of mine once said, when looking for water in the outback, simply head down hill and when you get to the lowest point dig a whole... this works really well if there are any large hills or rock outcrops around, but for me, is a tad harder when the whole landscape appears flat and I'm bloody thirsty.... either way my advice still stands... stick to the road, the road is your friend. its actually pretty hard to get lost in the desert or outback, you really have to try hard. a cursory glance at a map should tell you which way the nearest roads are before you head out to wherever your heading, by walking only ion the early morning or late evening, you can easily know if your walking generally east west north or south simply by the sun angle, then rest during the day and the night and head for the nearest decent road. In the heat of the day, semi burying yourself in the sand under the shade of a tree helps, but gets boring. Sorting gravel into different colored piles loses its attraction after a few days as does plying god with the ants...

Australia has water legislation that makes it mandatory to share water if you have it, makes it legal for anyone to have access to any permanent river or water source

All in all, you will probably never need the above tips, but if your not on the edge of your comfort zone, your not trying, and for me being stuck in teh middle of nowhere and learning to chill and enjoy, is the true zen of Hitchhiking

Some of my most amazing experiences have included a night wrapped in cardboard in abandoned wheat silo in the cold of winter, sharing a humpy with blackfellas in a town camp on the edge of tennant creek, waking up by bashing my head on the underside of a dodge van i had crawled under to avoid the rain to be offered a cupa tea by the occupants, digging my car out of a saltlake when we took a wrong turn with two English backpackers as rain clouds loomed... This to me is the real Australia (dave hodgkin)

== Personal experiences ==
:''I have hitched the entire coast line of Australia, and although there are sometimes a long wait between rides, I have met some of the most generous and welcoming people, make sure you get to the edge of the towns, just where the highways start or turn from a 70 into a 100, or similar.'' (author unknown)

== Cities ==
* [[Adelaide]]
* [[Brisbane]]
* [[Canberra]] (capital)
* [[Darwin]]
* [[Hobart]]
* [[Melbourne]]
* [[Perth]]
* [[Sydney]]

== Highways ==
* [[Bruce Highway]]
* [[Hume Highway]], from Sydney to Melbourne
* [[New England Highway]], from Sydney to Brisbane
* [[Pacific Motorway]], from Sydney to Brisbane
* [[Princes Highway]], from Sydney to Melbourne
* [[Stuart Highway]], from Darwin to Adelaide

== Links ==
* [http://maps.google.com Google Maps] supports finding routes in Australia


{{States Australia}}
__NOTOC__
{{IsIn|Earth}}
[[trash:Australia]]
[[wikipedia:Australia]]
{{Excellent}}
{{IsIn|Oceania}}

[[Category:Australia| ]]
[[Category:Oceania]]

[[de:Australien]]
[[es:Australia]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>New Zealand</title>
    <id>1574</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35232</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:15:09Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">[[File:Elsa amylin kiwi experience.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Elsa and [[amylin]] hitching the Kiwi experience]]
'''New Zealand''' is a reasonably okay country for hitchhiking. There are a lot of friendly people. By hitching you'll be involved a lot in the local life. You'll have invitations to parties, homes. An useful site to find lifts is [http://www.backpackerscarpooling.com backpackerscarpooling]
Cars drive on the left side, so be careful if you're not experienced with that.

There are only motorways around the big cities, [[Auckland]], [[Christchurch]], [[Wellington]] and [[Dunedin]]

== In General ==
Another awesome place to travel, [[WWOOF]] and hitch. Not as many long distance rides as in the Australian outback, but towns were quite close together. Amory Tarr had no troubles coming up and down the west coast (South Island), or in fact anywhere really. The only problem spot was in the concrete jungle that is auckland. It is illegal to even walk on any of the motorways, including the on-ramps ($200 instant fine). It is also a very, very big city to walk across. If you want to head south your best bet is to go to the bus station under the sky tower and get a ticket to Bombay junction (about $15) and when you get there, walk across the road to the on ramp which has plenty of space. Heading north, get a bus to Orewa (which is worth visiting on its own) and hitch from there.

== South Island ==
On the South Island you will often be picked up by travelers, especially along the West Coast, where there isn't a lot of traffic. 

If you are hitching between Greymouth and Wanaka you might have the fortune to score a ride with one of the DHL drivers aka the local posties. They are a couple of awesome guys who meet up in Fox Glacier to swap packages (and hitch hikers too if you are lucky!).
 
An easy way to catch your lift is using the website of backpackerscarpooling.com in New Zealand Here you'll find travellers sharing their transport. A great way to meet like-minded travellers going the same way as you.
== Maps ==
*[http://www.newzealand.com/travel/destinations/new-zealand-map/interactive_map_home.cfm/ newzealand.com]
*[http://smaps.co.nz/ smaps.co.nz] - searchable database and fast loading maps

== When? ==
Summers start in October/November but being a maritime climate the weather can be changeable. The weather in January - March is a little more settled.

== North Island ==
* [[Auckland]], biggest city
* [[Hamilton (New Zealand)]]
* [[New Plymouth]]
* [[Wellington]], the capital city

== South Island ==
* [[Blenheim]]
* [[Christchurch]]
* [[Dunedin]]
* [[Invercargill]]
* [[Kaikoura]]
* [[Nelson]]
* [[Picton]]
* [[Queenstown]]
* [[Richmond]]
* [[Aoraki/Mt Cook]]

{{IsIn|Oceania}}
&lt;!--
[[lh:NZ]]
[[digi:world/Oceania/New-Zealand]]
[[cswiki:New Zealand]]
[[wikitravel:New Zealand]]--&gt;
[[trash:New Zealand]]
{{hitchbase_country|141}}

[[Category:New Zealand| ]]
[[Category:Oceania]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Reutlingen</title>
    <id>1575</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35383</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:40:14Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">&lt;map lat='48.49067206152607' lng='9.211349487304688' zoom='13' view='0' float='right'/&gt;
'''Reutlingen''' is a middle sized city south of [[Stuttgart]].

== Hitching Out ==
=== North, East towards [[Stuttgart]], [[Ulm]] ===
To get towards [[Stuttgart]] and [[Ulm]] it is best ''not'' to stand next to the direct &quot;Schnellstraße&quot; '''B27''' between ''Orschel-Hagen'' and ''Römerschanze'', but go to the other side of the city. If you're far away from the city center take line #1 (towards ''Orschel-Hagen'') or line #7 (towards ''Efeu'') to the stop ''Karlsstrasse/Fernmeldeamt''. 
This busstop is the place to stand as it is at the intersection which leads to the '''B28'''. 
=== South towards nowhere ===
If you want to go south or to the Swabian Jura you should stand at the busstop in the ''Lederstrasse''. This is where you can also find the ADAC or the Lois. It it in the city center on the way towards [[Pfullingen]] and [[Eningen]]. If you can't find it, ask locals, they usually know it.

If you ever need to go somewhere by bus you can find the overview of Reutlingen's bus lines [https://www.stadtwerke-reutlingen.de/rsv/bilder/pdfs/Liniennetzplan1.pdf here]

[[Category:Baden-Württemberg]]
[[Category:Germany]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Weingarten</title>
    <id>1576</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35632</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T19:21:24Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Weingarten''' is a town in South [[Germany]], in the south of [[Baden-Württemberg]] close to [[Ravensburg]]. 

There is not much to see or do here, except for a PH (a kind of university just for teachers), a FH (rather technical university) and the famous Basilica there is nothing. There is not even a motorway.

== Hitching Out ==
=== South or North towards [[Friedrichshafen]], [[Konstanz]], [[Ulm]] ===
&lt;map lat='47.815315959078454' lng='9.632724523544312' zoom='13' view='3' float='right' /&gt;
To get out of Weingarten you have to go towards the ''Burger King''. 
To get there you follow the ''Waldseeerstraße'' towards the intersection at 'Domicil' and then turn left (if you come from [[Ravensburg]]) or right (if you come from [[Baienfurt]]). Just follow the street ''Niederbiegerstraße'' until you get to the next intersection with two traffic lights. Behind it there is a small strip of grass where you can stand, the cars can stop at a lay-by just behind it (see map).

If you want to travel south carry a sign with FN (for [[Friedrichshafen]]) or KN (for [[Konstanz]]), if you want to go north it is best to ask for a ride towards [[Ulm]]. If you want to go towards RT ([[Reutlingen]]) write some small town on the way an you sign ''(Saulgau, Riedlingen, Zwiefalten)''. 

Usually it doesn't take very long to get a lift, even if you're two is shouldn't take longer than half an hour.

[[Category:Baden-Württemberg]]
[[Category:Germany]]

[[de:Weingarten]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Ulm</title>
    <id>1577</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35589</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T19:14:14Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox German Location
|country = Germany
|map = &lt;map lat='48.3968' lng='9.99' zoom='12' view='3' float='right'/&gt;
|pop = 120,925 (31 Dec 2006)
|state = Baden-Württemberg
|plate = UL
|motorways = [[A7 (Germany)|A7]],  [[A8 (Germany)|A8]]
}}
'''Ulm''' is a middle sized [[Germany|German]] city in [[Baden-Württemberg]], east of [[Stuttgart]] and west of [[Munich]].

== Hitching Out ==
=== North towards [[A8 (Germany)|A8]] ([[Stuttgart]], [[München]]) ===
If you want to go towards [[Stuttgart]] this spot is perfect. There is an Esso petrol station at the B10/B28 just before the IKEA intersection. It takes about 10 minutes to get on from there. If you get dropped off at the trainstation you can get there easily by taking the crossover left of it, going right  and left again into ''Bleichstraße''. At the end of it you will find the petrol station.
If you want to go towards [[Nürnberg]] it is more time consuming, but within an hour you should get away (one hour for one girl hitchhiking on her own). Otherwise try getting to the Spot in [[Neu-Ulm]] directly.

=== South towards [[Memmingen]] ===
If you want to go south you can try the service station on the other side of the road. It is not perfect, but also works.

=== East towards [[A7 (Germany)|A7]] ([[Austria]], [[Würzburg]]) ===
If you want to travel on the [[A7 (Germany)|A7]] try to start directly in [[Neu-Ulm]].

Another possibility to get to the [[A7 (Germany)|A7]] that is much faster in some anonymous hitchhikers opinion: Take bus #58 from the main bus station (near train station) towards direction ''Albeck'' and get out at ''Rasthaus Seligweiler'' (There is a bus every hour) Link to [http://maps.google.de/maps?f=q&amp;hl=de&amp;q=seligweiler&amp;sll=48.460031,10.034852&amp;sspn=0.023792,0.053902&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=48.45801,10.031333&amp;spn=0.023793,0.053902&amp;z=15&amp;iwloc=addr&amp;om=1 this place].

There is a bus station where you can hitchhike easily towards direction ''Heidenheim'' (it's a small motorway, that leads to the [[A7 (Germany)|A7]]).
You need to ask the driver if he goes at least to ''Autobahnraststätte Lonetal''. From ''Rasthaus Seligweiler'' it's also very easy to get on the [[A8 (Germany)|A8]] in both directions ([[Stuttgart]] or [[Munich]]).

{{hitchbase_city|59}}
__NOTOC__

[[Category:E43]]
[[Category:E52]]
[[Category:Germany]]

[[de:Ulm]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:Germany</title>
    <id>1578</id>
    <revision>
      <id>31153</id>
      <timestamp>2009-02-21T19:06:26Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Speckmade</username>
        <id>23</id>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{IsIn|Europe}}
[[Category:Europe]]

[[de:Kategorie:Deutschland]]
[[fr:Catégorie:Allemagne]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Dominica</title>
    <id>1579</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34460</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T09:29:46Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Quarim</username>
        <id>1290</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Country
|country = of Dominica
|in = Caribbean
|map = &lt;map lat='15.41' lng='-61.37' zoom='10' view='3' country=Dominica' height='350'/&gt;
|language = English
|capital = [[Roseau]]
|pop = 72,514
|currency = East Caribbean dollar (XCD)
|hitch = ?
|hitchbase = 55
}}
'''Dominica''' is a small island nation in the [[Caribbean]] located in a chain of islands called the ''Lesser Antilles''.

It has surprisingly lot of highways and shares something with [[Germany]] − no speed limits! Hitching works and people are friendly. Watch out for the cars that have TX-plates. They're taxis and might want money.

[[Category:Caribbean]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Saint Lucia</title>
    <id>1580</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35416</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:45:33Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = Saint Lucia
|in = Caribbean
|map = &lt;map lat='13.9' lng='-60.95' zoom='10' view='0' country='Saint Lucia' height='350'/&gt;
|language = English
|capital = [[Castries]]
|pop = 160,765
|currency = East Caribbean Dollar (XCD)
|hitch = {{bad}}
|hitchbase = 181
}}
Hitching on the [[Caribbean]] island '''Saint Lucia''' can't really be recommended. A hitchhiking culture doesn't really exist there. Local minibuses run frequently and people just don't understand why someone wants to hitch. This can be a problem on Sundays when local minibuses don't run on every route.

== Border crossing ==
This truly is a country where you can't get in without an onward ticket. However, if you're coming by a ferry from [[Martinique]], they'll force you to buy an open return ticket. But if you then will fly somewhere from St. Lucia, you can cash the ticket back when you show the air ticket. And as a matter of fact, you can even sell your open ferry ticket. Good to know is also that the catamaran from Martinique is not the only alternative. From the town of Marin in Martinique you'll find a little water bus coming to [[Castries]]. Not remarkable difference in the price. No ship connection to [[St. Vincent]] though the country can be seen from the southern tip of St. Lucia.

[[Category:Caribbean]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Thailand</title>
    <id>1581</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35533</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T19:05:08Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = of Thailand
|language = Thai
|capital = [[Bangkok]]
|pop = 63,038,247
|currency = Baht (THB)
|hitch = {{very good}}
}}
[[File:Amylin-thai-pickup.jpg|thumb|220px|left|[[amylin]] riding in the back of a hitched pick-up truck from [[Chiang Rai]] to the [[Laos]] border in [[Thailand]].]]
'''Thailand''' is a wonderful hitchhiking country - but you have to be persistent. People are not familiar with the concept of hitchhiking and they always want to drop you off at a bus station.

=== National Parks ===
* [[Khai Yai NP]]

=== Cities ===
* [[Bangkok]]
* [[Chiang Mai]], [[Chiang Rai]], [[Chon Buri]]
* [[Khon Kaen]]
* [[Lampang]]
* [[Nakhon Ratchasima]]
* [[Pattaya]], [[Phuket]]


In Thailand, 1st &amp; second class buses often have air conditioning - way too cold and you have to watch B-class movies on the video screen. Hitching you don't have to freeze and you can get acquainted with locals and some foreigners too. They don't ask money for the rides but if a someone not so rich offers you a long ride, it would be polite to offer him a lunch if you can afford it.

However, 3rd class trains are really cheap (48 THB from [[Bangkok]] to [[Aranyaprathet]], which is 6 km from the [[Cambodia]]n border), and it might be inconvenient to get to a good hitching spot when you're leaving [[Bangkok]]. 
Local buses are often great value too - and exciting if you're packed in with animals, bags &amp; anything that will fit.

There are &lt;i&gt;lots&lt;/i&gt; of motorbikes in Thailand, who are happy to pick up hitchikers. Remember it can be difficult if you're wearing a backpack and always ask/signal/mime if they have a spare helmet.

&lt;!--useful information for hitchhiking :) ?
==Language==
Thai is a language with 6 tones.--&gt;
{{IsIn|South-Eastern Asia}}

[[Category:Asia]]
[[Category:Thailand|*]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Mongolia</title>
    <id>1582</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35191</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:08:13Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = of Mongolia
|map = &lt;map lat='47' lng='104' zoom='4' view='0'/&gt;
|language = Mongolian
|capital = [[Ulan Bator]]
|pop = 2,951,786
|currency = Tögrög (MNT)
|hitch = ?
|avp = mongolia
}}
If you plan to hitch in '''Mongolia''', it is good to know that drivers expect to be paid. Before entering the car bargain for the price and expect a jam-packed car, packed with amazingly friendly people! Expect flat tyres, overheating jeeps and not much more than 100km a day. 

But of course you can get free rides! One big problem is to make them understand that and understand them.

Hitchhiking in the far west: [[Bayan Oelgi]], is very hard to hitch. It took [[User:Worldhitch|Worldhitch]] 2 weeks from the Russian border in [[Bayan Oelgi]] to Ulan Bator. Getting a Chinese visa is easy in Ulan Bator, Russian is not so easy – like in any other place.

== Cities ==
* [[Ulan Bator]] (capital)
* [[Bayan Oelgi]]

== Roads ==
There are just some hundreds of km of paved road from [[Ulan Bator]] in some directions and that's it. No roads, no signs. The trunk roads out of Ulan Bator are paved and reasonably trafficked. Be careful if you walk out of the cities, along the ''roads'' so you don't get lost, and take water with you. Confusingly, names of cities equal names of states, so make sure city and state match.  

== Border Crossing ==
=== To [[China]] ===
Hitchhiking from Ulan Bator to Zamyn Yyd (Chinese border) it is not too difficult. The ''road'' (half of the way down is paved) stays close to the Transmongolian Railway and gives you the security not to die of thirst. [[User:Worldhitch|Worldhitch]] also got a lift by the great Defektoskop train. 

== Sleeping ==
[[Camping]] is great in Mongolia.
__NOTOC__

{{IsIn|Asia}}

[[Category:Mongolia| ]]

[[de:Mongolei]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:California</title>
    <id>1584</id>
    <revision>
      <id>30208</id>
      <timestamp>2009-01-19T04:41:16Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Sigurdas</username>
        <id>1658</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>cat.correction</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">[[Category:United States]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchwiki:New entries</title>
    <id>1585</id>
    <revision>
      <id>9124</id>
      <timestamp>2006-11-24T00:51:41Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Admin</username>
        <id>1</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>[[Hitchhiking Wiki:New entries]] moved to [[Hitchwiki:New entries]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">To enter a new entry to the Guide, start by pressing the &quot;edit&quot; link on the top of the page. You get to the editing page of this page. Don't edit the existing text, just add 

&lt;pre&gt;&lt;nowiki&gt; * [[Title of your entry]] &lt;/nowiki&gt;&lt;/pre&gt;

and click &quot;Save page&quot;. 


This adds a link to a page that you can now create. You can see the difference to the pages that exist by the color: existing pages are linked with blue and the new link is in red.

Click on the link you just added. You enter to the editing page for a new entry - this is the place where you can write your tip or article.

This is the easy way. You can be more creative and add additional links and pages to existing pages - the new pages do not neccessarily have to be added by creating the link ''here''.

You can get additional help to editing by clickin on the &quot;Editing help&quot; link under the textfield in editing mode.

Click edit and simply add your link like this: &lt;tt&gt;&lt;nowiki&gt;[[your link]]&lt;/nowiki&gt;&lt;/tt&gt;. After that you can click on the (probably) red link, and start writing. Don't worry too much about style, spelling or ''wiki syntax''. Just type whatever you know as a hitchhiker about that place!
Other people will make sure your addition will be integrated into the site.


==List of new entries==
 
* [[London]]
* [[Kiev]]
* [[Hong Kong]]
* [[Zanjan]]
* ...</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Packing</title>
    <id>1586</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1677</id>
      <timestamp>2006-08-24T03:22:56Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>merge: #redirect [[Things to carry]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[Things to carry]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Berlin</title>
    <id>1587</id>
    <revision>
      <id>38177</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-22T12:32:34Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Wukk</username>
        <id>1478</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* Altglienicke */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">__NOTOC__
{{Hitchhiking Zine nomination}}
{{Infobox German Location
|country = Germany
|map = &lt;map lat='52.5' lng='13.3' zoom='9' view='0' float='right' height='300' width='400' country='Germany'/&gt;
|pop = 3,405,483 (31 Juli 2007)
|state = Berlin
|plate = B
|motorways = [[A2 (Germany)|A2]],  [[A9 (Germany)|A9]],  [[A10 (Germany)|A10]],  [[A11 (Germany)|A11]],  [[A12 (Germany)|A12]],  [[A13 (Germany)|A13]],  [[A24 (Germany)|A24]]
}}
'''Berlin''' is the capital of [[Germany]].

== Hitching Out ==

=== Northwest towards [[Hamburg]], [[Rostock]] and [[Scandinavia]] {{Autobahn|24}} ===
For hitchhiking to Hamburg prepare a cardboard sign with &quot;HH&quot; written on it, which is the number plate sign for cars from Hamburg and understood widely. &quot;HRO&quot; stands for Rostock by the way.

==== Rasthof Stolper Heide ====
The hitchhiking-spot in Henningsdorf '''Rasthof Stolper Heide''' is the best option to reach [[Hamburg]], [[Rostock]] or [[Scandinavia]]. You are going to have to go on a 2 km walk in total (part of which involves gorgeous forests...). S-Bahn station ''Heiligensee'' (S25 towards Henningsdorf, 2.10 € ticket), walk down Ruppiner Chaussee northwards about 200 meters and turn right on an asphalt walking path (− there's a sign saying &quot;Berliner Mauerweg&quot; or something). Follow the path for 10-15 minutes. Cross the bridge over the motorway and you will see a short railing on the your left. You can easily jump over and then walk down the little hill to the motorway. Walk along the way for about 600/700m, if you walk on the path in the woods you will be on the wrong side of a tall green fence and have to go back. The large petrol station is there. You can easily get a direct ride to [[Hamburg]] from here.

A very close-by spot that saves you the 2 km walk: Get off one station earlier, ''Schulzendorf'' (S25 towards Henningsdorf, 2.10€ ticket). Get out from the front of the train, and out of the station, follow Ruppiner Chaussee north, and take the first right (Schulzendorfer Straße). And there you are, on the motorway access ramp, 5 min walk from the station.  Traffic is pretty low, but cars are very slow and can get a good view at you. You can take ''any'' ride. If the car doesn't go your way, he can drop you off at the petrol station &quot;Rasthof Stolper Heide&quot; some kilometers uproad. 

==== Prenzlauer Promenade ====
The street '''Prenzlauer Promenade''' is called ''Prenzlauer Allee'' in the city centre and becomes the Autobahn A114 next to the ''S-Bahn'' station ''Pankow-Heinersdorf''. From there, just walk 500m down the bridge and you've got a traffic-light as well as two petrol stations, both on the right side for the drivers going towards the Autobahn. It may be worth walking to the second petrol station as it's cheaper and more frequented.

You can also wait opposite of ''McDonald's'' for a lift. Sometimes you will meet other hitchhikers here, too. If someone offers a lift &quot;only&quot; to a gas station on the highway (&quot;Linumer Bruch&quot; for instance) take it, since from a highway gas station it is very easy to get another lift. 

==== Kurt-Schumacher-Damm ====
If you want to hitchhike towards [[Hamburg]] or [[Schwerin]] on the A24 it is the best to go with the U6 towards ''Alt-Tegel'' and get off at ''Kurt-Schumacher-Platz'' and then start walking towards the motorway. About 2 minutes away from the U-Bahn station there is a ''Jet'' petrol station. You can either ask the drivers who stop there or stand at the road right before it. (Update January 2009: Spot is open again!)

=== North East towards [[Szczecin]], [[Gdansk]] (Danzig) {{Autobahn|11}} ===
==== Berliner Allee ====
Borough Pankow, part Weißensee: Take the tram M4 to ''Berliner Allee/Indira-Gandhi-Str.'' which can be caught at Alexanderplatz. Then walk along the ''Berliner Allee'' just around the half circle of the road and find a decent place where cars can pull over. Many cars at this intersection have Polish License and are heading North East, some as far as Gdansk. Use a sign with the city ''[[Szczecin]]'' and surely a Polish driver will stop, though be prepared to mix your languages and refer to cities by there Polish names. Check the map for the street view.

=== South towards [[Leipzig]] {{Autobahn|9}} and West towards [[Magdeburg]], [[Hannover]] {{Autobahn|2}}===
==== Rasthof Michendorf ====
* '''This one also works for East towards Poland!''' 
Just 30 minutes by ''Regionalbahn'' (train) south west of Berlin. This is the most direct option. You easily get hitches to the south or west as well as to the east (Poland). Take a train (e.g. RE3 to [[Dessau]], check [http://www.fahrinfo-berlin.de/Fahrinfo/bin/ fahrinfo-berlin.de] for route information.) from the center (2.80 EUR). Get off at the train station ''Michendorf''. Leave the station at the left side (in direction of the train). Turn right into the Potsdamer Straße, at the bus stop, and walk for 20 minutes straight on it. 

To go west or south ([[Magdeburg]], [[Hannover]] or [[Leipzig]], [[Munich]]) turn right into Feldstraße and follow it till you see the [[service station]]. Enter via the green emergency door. 

If you want to go east towards [[Poland]] or [[Dresden]] turn right after the tunnel (it's a small sandy road through a wood). Follow the road until you are at the restaurant at the [[rest area]]. This is a long arena so walk around the restaurant area, car parks, and petrol pumps.

[[File:IMG 5392.JPG|thumb|250px|right|[[Tiziano]] hitching from Berlin to [[Munich]]]]
==== Raststätte Grunewald ====
For going South or West you can try the '''Raststätte Grunewald'''. Take the ''S-Bahn'' train ''S7'' towards ''Potsdam'' or ''S1'' towards ''Wannsee'' and get out at ''Nikolasee''. Walk out of the train station, cross the bridge and you'll see the [[petrol station]] next to you. Usually you will encounter some other hitchhikers (&quot;I stood there with 14 other Hitchhikers on a sunny Monday morning, 9 o`clock. Maybe Grunewald is a HH place, that is too well known!&quot; --Bocia), but normally you get a car at the petrol station within a few minutes − at least to ''Michendorf''! Also standing at the traffic lights before the [[on-ramp]] seems to be useful!

==== Trampstelle [[Potsdam]] ====
There is a local campaign for an official hitchhiking spot in Potsdam, they made a petition and won it :)
The hitchhiking spot is planned now and will be established soon.

==== Aral at Kaiserdamm ====
Another option is the ''Aral'' petrol station at '''Kaiserdamm''' near the central bus station. Take U2 to ''Kaiserdamm'' (if you come from direction ''Zoo'') and go out in the driving direction. Leave the station on the left exit. After 50m there's the petrol station. It depends on the day, sometimes it's very easy to get away there, sometimes it's harder.

=== South towards [[Dresden]] {{Autobahn|13}} and East towards [[Frankfurt (Oder)]], [[Poland]] {{Autobahn|12}} ===
If you are going further than Dresden (e.g. Czech Republic) on the A13, also take a look on the [[Dresden]] page.

You may also try [[Berlin#Rasthof Michendorf|Rasthof Michendorf]] for getting lifts east or southeast.

==== Schöneweide ====
Take a train to the S-Bahn station ''Schöneweide'', get out there and walk out of the station East, turn right on Michael-Brückner Strasse and after 300 meter you'll find two big [[service station]]s − although the [[Autobahn]] is far away these are mostly the last possibilities for cars to get petrol. The place was once crowded with hitchhikers but is normally empty now and works fine! Locals usually stop at the second petrol station because it's cheaper normally. Also, behind this petrol station is a Burger King &quot;Restaurant&quot;. If you choose your spot well, you can show a sign both to cars on the street who could stop at the Burger King entrance (but often drive too fast though) and to people leaving the second petrol station or entering Burger King.

However the attendants at the service station will ask you to look for your ride elsewhere and may even call the police.  The road leading to the [[Autobahn]] is a no stopping zone, so the best solution is to stand near the Burger King, where a driver can pull in.  There is no better spot further up the road toward the [[Autobahn]]. 
2008-08-24: I used this petrol stations quite often and never had problems. What the hell did you do? -[[User:atopia|Ben]]

==== Altglienicke ====
Alternatively go to the S-Bahn station ''Altglienicke''. Leave the platform illegally at the east end, then hike over the rails, which will bring you to the B96. The road is also named ''Am Seegraben''. There is a wide emergency lane and a speed limit of 50 km/h. Use a sign to get a lift to [[Dresden]] (DD), [[Braunschweig]] (BS), [[Hannover]](H), ''[[Berlin#Rasthof Michendorf|Rasthof Michendorf]]'' or [[Frankfurt (Oder)]] (FF) / [[Poland]] ([[Poznan]]). It is not allowed to hitchhike on that spot, though it's very likely that you will obtain a good lift in short time. Remember: Running over the rails can cost you something around 25 Euro if they catch you.

'''Attention'''
Cars are driving too fast and you'll bring yourself in danger.people start honking also...
'''so better not using this hitchhike spot'''.after a while the police appeared and sent us away.(August 2009)--[[User:Wukk|Wukk]] 12:32, 22 October 2009 (UTC)

==== Grünbergallee ====
You can also take the S-Bahn one station further to ''S Grünbergallee''. You'll find a big road and a big hardware-store (called ''Hornbach''). There is a right-going lane at the big road. Just show a sign saying ''Dresden'' at the beginning of this lane. Sometimes you can ask drivers at the parking lot of the hardware-store if they can take you to the first petrol station on the Autobahn (this is just a  minutes ride). From there you can be lucky, too.

==== Tempelhof ====
Another possibility is to go to Tempelhof S or U Bahnhof, which is easy to reach. Then simply follow the sign towards Dresden (A100). There are two red lights, for people coming from north and south, so they have time to see you. You should ask for A113 or A13, or simply if they are going in the way to Ikea, and get dropped on the petrol station before the big mall (before Waltersdorf, check map also). Bus #263 from S-Bahn station Grünau also goes to/near this petrol station. '''Please read the discussion page'''!


== Hitching In ==
A word about getting into Berlin since the ring is so big and maybe you are on a ride that's only passing by.

=== East and West ===
The best is to get off at ''Rasthof Michendorf'' (after all the ring interchanges). There is a bridge over the Autobahn nearby so if you are coming from [[Poland]] you can jump over and easily find someone going into the city. 
Alternatively, when coming from the east about 2 km before the interchange &quot;Berlin Zentrum&quot; (it's really is not a good idea to get off at interchanges on the autobahn), there is an exit for ''[[Königs Wusterhausen]]''. There will be a lot of commercial shopping buildings you will see just before you need to exit and as you are exiting will see the McDonalds. Then, if you can't find a ride going into Berlin (which could be rare actually) walk about 1 km into the nearest town. There is a bus going to Berlin for 1 EUR.

== Resources ==

=== Drink ===
At ''Hauptbahnhof'' the McDonalds has free refills, pick up a cup and get high on fizzy drinks.
 
=== Internet access ===
Sidewalk express (internet) is located in the food court at ''Hauptbahnhof'', pick up some of the leftover receipts and enter the code, there is usually some time left. This is the internet I'm using now.

=== Public transport ===
Blackriding is possible, albeit risky. Controllers are very frequent and wear civil clothes, so they cannot be noticed before the doors are closed. And since they do not receive hourly wage but salary depending on how many people they catch, playing the &quot;dumb tourist&quot; will have no effect on them; they want you in their record. The good news is that even if they ask you to pay the fine on the spot (40 euros), you can say you don't have the money and then you have two weeks to pay it. Or, give them a false address and just never pay it.


{{IsIn|Germany}}
[[trash:Berlin]]
[[wikipedia:Berlin]]

[[Category:Germany]]
[[Category:E26]]
[[Category:E28]]
[[Category:E30]]
[[Category:E36]]
[[Category:E51]]
[[Category:E55]]
[[Category:Route Amsterdam - Berlin]]

[[de:Berlin]]
[[fr:Berlin]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Nijmegen</title>
    <id>1588</id>
    <revision>
      <id>38034</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-17T18:01:41Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Clint.hotvedt</username>
        <id>1885</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Dutch Location
|country = Netherlands
|native name = Nimwegen
|map = &lt;map lat='51.833' lng='5.865' width='350' height='330' zoom='11' view='3'/&gt;
|pop = 161.675
|state = Gelderland
|motorways = [[A73 (Netherlands)|A73]], [[A50 (Netherlands)|A50]], [[A15 (Netherlands)|A15]]
}}
'''Nijmegen''' is a [[Netherlands|Dutch]] university city close to the [[Germany|German border]] and city of [[Kleve]]. Hitching here is fairly easy. There are three so called ''[[liftershalte]]s''.

== Hitching Out ==
=== North towards [[Arnhem]], [[Apeldoorn]], [[Hengelo]] and [[Groningen]] ===
At the verkeersplein near the Waalbrug (direction [[Arnhem]]) there is a liftershalte. However, at the petrol station on the A325 almost everybody is going to Arnhem, so if you want to go beyond, you don't want to get a ride from someone merely going towards Arnhem (unless it's raining).

=== East towards [[Germany]], [[Kleve]] ===
Near the official hitchhiking spot leading north, use the sliproad at this junction in the direction of [[Kleve]] (the road is the N325, the street is ''Nieuwe Ubbergseweg''). Don't bother walking further along the N325, there are no further good spots until the German border.

For further afield in Germany, try the junction with motorway [[A73 (Netherlands)|A73]] in Dukenburg. Okay, it's quite a way out of city centre, and there is little place to safely stop, but this is such a busy entrance, and there are so many cars going long-distance here that it's child's play to get a long ride. Even more so because just before the motorway split between [[A73 (Netherlands)|A73]] and [[A77 (Netherlands)|A77]] is just 15 kilometres south of here, and it has a large service area right before it. So any car going to [[Boxmeer]] or further can pick you up here, and there are many of those. When trying to hitch out towards [[Düsseldorf]], [[Köln]] or further, one should use this ramp.

=== South / West towards [[Venlo]], [[Eindhoven]], [[Den Bosch]] ===
At the ''Graafseweg'' (direction [[Venlo]] and [['s-Hertogenbosch]]) there is a liftershalte (often used as a parking spot), and many cars passing by are local. Better is to walk down to the intersection of Graafseweg and Neerbosscheweg (about 30 min. walk) and raise sign there. About one-fourth of cars passing here are for destinations in [[Brabant]] and [[Limburg]] province, so waiting times are fairly minimal considering the amount of (slow-moving) traffic and the good place to stop. It's also possible to get bus 2 and 99 here.

Another spot is there where one should try to get rides to [[Düsseldorf]] or [[Köln]] directly at the onramp of [[A73 (Netherlands)|A73]] southbound. It's quite a way out, and there's not a whole lot of space to stop, but the statistics are overwhelmingly in your favour here, at least 50% are going to [[Boxmeer]] or further from here, which means they can drop you off at the [[service station]] before the [[A73 (Netherlands)|A73]] / [[A77 (Netherlands)|A77]] split. 


At the ''St. Annastraat'', close to the university, there is a liftershalte. This one should only be used for '''local''' hitchhiking, towards [[Malden]], [[Gennep]] or [[Mook]].

=== West towards [[Rotterdam]], [[Utrecht]], [[Den Haag]] and [[Amsterdam]] ===

Use either the [[liftershalte]] near the Waal bridge mentioned in the '''North''' section, or use the petrol station past the Neerbosschebrug in the Lindenholt neighbourhood. Take bus 7 for the petrol station, you can see it on your right side if the bus turns into Lindenholt past the bridge. Avoid rides to Arnhem when using the [[liftershalte]], unless it's possible to be dropped off on the right side of Arnhem, if you're familliar with that city. Remember that it's usually much easier to hitch out of Nijmegen than to hitch out of Arnhem, so it doesn't really matter if you turn 3, 4 or 10 rides down.

[[trash:Nijmegen]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Nuth</title>
    <id>1589</id>
    <revision>
      <id>26188</id>
      <timestamp>2008-10-14T10:49:27Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>infobox</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Dutch Location
|country = Netherlands
|map = &lt;map lat='50.91840259229272' lng='5.891847610473633' zoom='14' view='3'/&gt;
|pop = 5,490
|state = Limburg
|motorways = [[A76 (Netherlands)|A76]]
}}
'''Nuth''' is a town in the province of [[Limburg]] in the south of the [[Netherlands]], in between [[Belgium]] and [[Germany]]. Nuth lies on the highway [[A76 (Netherlands)|A76]].

== Hitching Out ==
=== North or West towards [[Eindhoven]], [[Nijmegen]], Belgium ===
To go north, in the direction of Eindhoven or Nijmegen or towards [[Antwerpen]], Belgium, you can try the ramp. It's not ideal, but after a while cars will stop. You can accept a ride to [[Beek]], since there's a lot more traffic there.</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:Netherlands</title>
    <id>1590</id>
    <revision>
      <id>26267</id>
      <timestamp>2008-10-15T10:31:40Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>some text</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">This category sorts all relevant articles for the [[Netherlands]]. For cities, browse the specific province subcategories.

[[Category:Western Europe]]
[[de:Kategorie:Niederlande]]
[[es:Category:Países Bajos]]
[[fr:Catégorie:Pays Bas]]
{{IsIn|Western Europe}}</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Turkey</title>
    <id>1591</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37803</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T23:08:00Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Country
|country = Turkey
|language = Turkish
|map = &lt;map lat='39.29' lng='35' zoom='5' view='0' width='450' height='250' country='Turkey'/&gt;
|capital = [[Ankara]]
|pop = 71,158,647
|currency = New Turkish Lira (TRY)
|hitch = {{very good}}
|hitchbase = 196
|avp = turkey
}}
Hitchhiking in '''Turkey''' is easy. Sometimes it may be customary to contribute a few Lira, but for most hitchhikers this is unheard of. Looking like a Western backpacker will get you a lot of attention when travelling outside the major tourist areas. Often, the first vehicle to pass will stop for you (sometimes even if they are going the opposite direction!) Lifts with big trucks are the most common − partly because personal cars are very often quite full. Turkish truck drivers are generally very friendly and helpful but may not speak a word of English. Knowing some German may help. 

Some drivers might ask you for money, and if you are not willing to contribute to the cost of the ride, please learn to say ''Param yok'' (I have no money) before getting in the car.

While waiting beside the road, many town-to-town minibus drivers (which can be recognized by banners proclaiming town names all over) and occasionally intercity buses will flash their headlights or honk at you − to ask whether you'd like a ride (for a fee, of course). Shake your head both sides to show you're not interested.


[[User:Alex|alex]]: I did not find it difficult to hitchhike in Turkey. Most lifts I had have been with trucks (coming from the East), trucks have also been what I saw the most in the east. I did find it easy to get a long lift across Turkey, even when I found it difficult to get such a lift at the boarder to Iran directly (most trucks went along the coast South at the time I have been there). However, I also found the truck drivers I met quite lonely and searching for (close) contact.


Having a [[Signs|signboard]] (together with the thumb extended) certainly helps, since most Turkish hitchhikers don't use one and therefore it draws much more attention from drivers un-used to seeing signboards. Writing the name of first town on your route -no matter how small it is- and the name of a farther and bigger city is good.  

== Getting In ==
Citizens of most EU and other Western countries can get a 3 months visa for 10 Euro or more. German, Czech and Italian citizens are allowed to enter the country without any visa at all.

Hitchhiker [[User:Guaka|Guaka]] had a terrible experience at the [[Kapitan Andreevo]]-Kapıkule [[border crossing]] in October 2008 when he was refused entry by a grumpy border guard who was probably looking for ''baksheesh''. It took a lot of convincing to be allowed back to the truck to get back his (Guaka's) backpack. The next day there was no problem to get in.

{{Cities Turkey}}

== Safety ==
Following the [[Pippa|recent events]] in April 2008, this [http://youarealltourists.blogspot.com/2008/04/hitchhiking-guide-to-turkey-for-girls.html hitchhiking guide to Turkey for girls] might be an interesting piece to read for everyone (not only for girls) who's planning to hitchhike in Turkey. Safety is always important while hitchhiking, so check the [[Safety]] article before going out to wave your thumb!

== Climate ==
[[File:Erzurum.JPG|thumb|250px|In [[winter]] it can be cold.]]
During the summer temperatures tend to rise above 35 °C, especially in the South, so it is recommended to secure yourself with sufficient supplies of water, and to plan travelling in a way that most of the actual hitchhiking would be earlier in the morning or in very late afternoon, to avoid a burning sun.

In [[winter]], though, it can be quite cold in Turkey.

== Transportation ==
[[File:Mikeeg555 hitching in Turkey.jpg|thumb|250px|left|[[User:Mikeeg555|Mikeeg555]] hitching in Turkey]]
When you hitchhike in this country, people might try putting you on a ''dolmuş'' (mınıbus) or bringing you to the ''otogar'' (bus station). The dolmuş is the most common way of public transport inside and between cities &amp; towns. These small buses that are advised to be used for small distances will stop anywhere on the road even if you don't signal them to stop. Generally, the ride on a dolmuş costs between 1 and 3 Lira.

For larger distances buses (coaches) are more common. They provide reliable service and are pretty comfortable. Free tea and snacks are generally served along the way, and the buses tend to stop in nice [[rest area]]s. Some drivers who pick you up as a hitchhiker may try to convince you to take a bus. If you do end up on a bus they are relatively cheap although not as cheap as trains which are slower but more adventurous.

== Food ==
You will never have to worry about lack of [[food]] in Turkey. Many truck drivers have coffee makers in their truck. Turkish people are very generous, and it is seldom that you get a ride without a driver offering you food. The food in Turkey is relatively cheap, and is very meat-based. There is also a variety of a good local produce of tasty sweets and snacks. The tea (black tea or apple tea in Istanbul) is ''the'' national drink, and almost all the people that you meet offer you a tea − this is probably the most common way of showing you their hospitable culture.

== Sleep ==
[[Hospitality exchange]] networks have many friendly members in Turkey, and they can help you with an accommodation.

All towns in Turkey have an ''OtoGar'', a bus terminal. Most of these offer a warm and fairly safe place to spend a night. Nonetheless, be careful and try to place your luggage in such a way so that you are surely to be awaken in case if someone tries to take your things. 

Smaller towns outside the main tourist areas have very cheap hotels, starting at 8 Lira.

Many truck drivers will have an extra bunk in their truck cabin, and they are usually happy to offer it to a hitchhiker.

== License plates ==
The first two numbers of the Turkish car plates indicate the city a car is registered in. These are sorted from 1 to 81 alphabetically. This rule is not applicable for villages that recently received the status of cities.

The number is given to a whole province, e.g. [[Antalya]] and [[Alanya]] are both 07, as they are situated in the same province (Antalya Province).

[[File:Turkish-truck-and-truck-driver-2008.jpg|thumb|right|350px|A truck, the driver, a boy working at the gas station and [[User:Guaka|guaka]], October 2008]]
&lt;table border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
* 01 [[Adana]]
* 02 [[Adıyaman]]
* 03 [[Afyonkarahisar]]
* 04 [[Ağrı]]
* 05 [[Amasya]]
* 06 [[Ankara]]
* 07 [[Antalya]]
* 08 [[Artvin]]
* 09 [[Aydın]]
* 10 [[Balıkesir]]
* 11 [[Bilecik]]
* 12 [[Bingöl]]
* 13 [[Bitlis]]
* 14 [[Bolu]]
* 15 [[Burdur]]
* 16 [[Bursa]]
* 17 [[Çanakkale]]
* 18 [[Çankırı]]
* 19 [[Çorum]]
* 20 [[Denizli]]
* 21 [[Diyarbakır]]
* 22 [[Edirne]]
* 23 [[Elazığ]]
* 24 [[Erzincan]]
* 25 [[Erzurum]]
* 26 [[Eskişehir]]
* 27 [[Gaziantep]]
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;td&gt;
* 28 [[Giresun]]
* 29 [[Gümüşhane]]
* 30 [[Hakkari]]
* 31 [[Hatay]]
* 32 [[Isparta]]
* 33 [[Mersin]]
* 34 [[Istanbul]]
* 35 [[Izmir]]
* 36 [[Kars]]
* 37 [[Kastamonu]]
* 38 [[Kayseri]]
* 39 [[Kırklareli]]
* 40 [[Kırşehir]]
* 41 [[Kocaeli]]
* 42 [[Konya]]
* 43 [[Kütahya]]
* 44 [[Malatya]]
* 45 [[Manisa]]
* 46 [[Kahramanmaraş]]
* 47 [[Mardin]]
* 48 [[Muğla]]
* 49 [[Muş]]
* 50 [[Nevşehir]]
* 51 [[Niğde]]
* 52 [[Ordu]]
* 53 [[Rize]]
* 54 [[Sakarya]]
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;td&gt;
* 55 [[Samsun]]
* 56 [[Siirt]]
* 57 [[Sinop]]
* 58 [[Sivas]]
* 59 [[Tekirdağ]]
* 60 [[Tokat]]
* 61 [[Trabzon]]
* 62 [[Tunceli]]
* 63 [[Şanlıurfa]]
* 64 [[Uşak]]
* 65 [[Van]]
* 66 [[Yozgat]]
* 67 [[Zonguldak]]
* 68 [[Aksaray]]
* 69 [[Bayburt]]
* 70 [[Karaman]]
* 71 [[Kırıkkale]]
* 72 [[Batman]]
* 73 [[Şırnak]]
* 74 [[Bartın]]
* 75 [[Ardahan]]
* 76 [[Iğdır]]
* 77 [[Yalova]]
* 78 [[Karabük]]
* 79 [[Kilis]]
* 80 [[Osmaniye]]
* 81 [[Düzce]]
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/table&gt;

== Regions ==
* [[Antalya (Province)]]
* [[Muğla (Province)]]

== Links ==
* [http://youarealltourists.blogspot.com/2008/04/hitchhiking-guide-to-turkey-for-girls.html Hitchhiking Guide to Turkey for girls]
* [http://abgefahren.hitchbase.com/DE/blogs/alex/20090213/just-hitching-rides-journey-eid-christmas Just hitching rides: A journey from Eid to Christmas] (Hitchhiking from Yemen to Germany), abgefahren Blogs

{{hitchbase_country|196}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}
[[wikipedia:Turkey]]
{{IsIn|Western Asia}}

__NOTOC__

[[Category:Turkey| ]]
[[Category:Western Asia]]
[[Category:Southern Europe]]
[[Category:East Route from North Cape to Cape of Good Hope]]

[[de:Türkei]]
[[es:Turquia]]
[[fr:Turquie]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>South Africa</title>
    <id>1592</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35468</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:54:13Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Hitching in '''South Africa''' is possible.

It seems however that the old apartheid continues now in a voluntary way in hitching business. Whites give rides to whites and blacks stop for blacks. Whites don't ask money for the rides but blacks charge. So, hitching culture exists in its European form among the whites.

In 2010, '''South Africa''' will be the hosting country of the FIFA World Cup. 

== Cities ==
* [[Cape Town]]
* [[Johannesburg]]
* [[Pretoria]]


{{IsIn|Southern Africa}}

[[Category:Africa]]
[[Category:South Africa]]
[[Category:East Route from North Cape to Cape of Good Hope]]

[[de:Südafrika]]
[[es:Sudáfrica]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Konstanz</title>
    <id>1593</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37386</id>
      <timestamp>2009-09-19T08:34:07Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Kb</username>
        <id>1332</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>structure, infobox</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox German Location
|country = Germany
|map = &lt;map lat='47.663333' lng='9.175278' zoom='11' view='3' /&gt;
|pop = 82,608 ''(31. Dez. 2008)''
|state = Baden-Württemberg
|plate = KN
|motorways = [[A7 (Switzerland)|A7]]
|hitchbase = 326
}}
'''Konstanz''' is a city at the Lake Constance in south Germany at the Swiss border.

== Hitching Out ==
=== South towards [[Switzerland]], [[A7 (Switzerland)|A7]] ===
To get to any city in Switzerland go to the main border and hold up your sign at the parking lot on the Swiss side. Just a couple of meters behind it the motorway A7 starts.

Many cars go to the next [[petrol station]] from there, for petrol is much cheaper in Switzerland than in [[Germany]]. 

=== East towards [[Meersburg]], [[Ravensburg]] ===
If you want to go to Ravensburg it is best to take the ferry to Meersburg (last stop of Bus No 1). It usually goes 4 times an hour, [[at night]] just once every hour. Ask the people who drive there either while waiting for the ferry or in the little café on the ship. If it is cold or raining you can wait in a heated waiting room until the ferry arrives.

=== West towards [[A81(Germany)|A81]], [[Singen]], [[Stuttgart]] ===
Going west on the 33 towards the A81 Stuttgart−Singen, there is no really good place to stop. The first service area is [[Engen|Rasthof Hegau]].

__NOTOC__
[[Category:Germany]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Ravensburg</title>
    <id>1594</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35378</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:39:23Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox German Location
|country = Germany
|map = &lt;map lat='47.77763636' lng='9.6089172363' zoom='12' view='3' /&gt;
|pop = 47,690 (31 Dec 2005)
|state = Baden-Württemberg
|plate = RV
|motorways = -
}}
'''Ravensburg''' is a small city in the south of [[Germany]] (where the jigsaw puzzels are from).

== Heading Out ==
=== South towards [[Friedrichshafen]], [[Konstanz]] ===
To get towards [[Friedrichshafen]] (''FN'') or [[Konstanz]] (''KN'') go to the intersection ''Meersburgerstaße/Jahnstraße/Georgstraße'' close to ''Omira''. Unfortunately drivers who want to go towards these directions can't agree on the right way, so they go both ways: Jahnstraße and Meersburgerstraße (over the bridge).

[[Category:Germany]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Freiburg im Breisgau</title>
    <id>1595</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37081</id>
      <timestamp>2009-09-09T11:47:48Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>MrTweek</username>
        <id>3</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>/* North, South towards A5, France, Basel (Switzerland), Karlsruhe */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox German Location
|country = Germany
|pop = 217,548 (31 Dec 2006)
|state = Baden-Württemberg
|plate = FR
|motorways = [[A5 (Germany)|A5]]
}}
'''Freiburg im Breisgau''' is a student-city in the South of [[Germany]]. It is very close to the French border, and not far away from [[Switzerland]] as well. (It's the biggest Freiburg in Germany, there is also [[Freiburg/Elbe]] and [[Freiburg im Üechtland]] in Switzerland.)

Freiburg might be a good stopover for a longer trip in [[Europe]] because its quite central and easy to exit and to leave. Another advantage is that it's easy to find free [[accomodation]] via [[hospitality exchange network]]s in Freiburg.

Freiburg is a nice student town with around 220.000 inhabitants – 40.000 of them are students. So you definitely gonna find someone to drink a beer with.

In September 2007, the German hitchhiking club [[abgefahren e.V.]] hold his first gathering near Freiburg and also published the first (un)official German hitchhiking-spot in Freiburg.

== Hitching Out ==
=== Direction East [[Donaueschingen]], [[Engen]], [[Konstanz]], [[Singen]], [[Ravensburg]] ===

Get to the south east of the city where the ''Leo-Wohleb-Straße'' and ''Schwarzwaldstraße'' meet each other (B31). Somewhere there is a strip of grass right in front of a side road. As this is a busy road leading out of the town waiting time is not very long.
You should walk until the road goes into a tunnel. Some 50 meters before the entrance are some nice spots to get a ride.

Alternative for holders of '''Regio Karten''' (Monthly Tickets for the Public Transportation in the [http://www.rfv.de RVF]) or ''Semester Tickets'':

You can take a train to [[Löffingen]] (switch trains in Neustadt, trains depart every hour), for free if you have a ''Semsterticket/Regio Karte'' and from there you can walk through the town to the B31. In [[Löffingen]] is a petrol station where it s quite easy to get rides to the '''A81''' ([[Singen]] - [[Stuttgart]]).

=== North ([[Karlsruhe]]) and South ([[Mulhouse]], [[Basel]]) {{Autobahn|5}} ===
&lt;map lat='47.9909987154148' lng='7.84449577331543' zoom='15' view='3' float='right' /&gt;

Take a tram till &quot;Holzmarkt&quot;. Line 2,3 or 5 are heading there. Walk from the stop outside of the city towards direction of the river ''Dreisam''. There you are turning right and at the traffic light you can ask the cars for your destination.
* For heading north the next petrol station is &quot;Mahlberg&quot; right before [[Offenburg]]. For heading south there is no petrol station before the motorway leads to [[France]] ([[Mulhouse]], [[Besançon]], [[Lyon]]) but there is one before [[Basel]] ([[Switzerland]]).
* If you want to go to France it might be better to get to the ramp ''Freiburg Nord''. You can get there with tram line 2 towards ''Zähringen'', get out at the last station. From there it's a 400 meters walking to the spot. Try to get a ride from there to the [[A5 (Germany)|A5]] direction south. This way you pass by the service station ''Schauinsland'' which is the last one before France.
* Another option to get to the service station ''Schauinsland'' is to take Bus No. 36 towards Hochdorf, exit Bus station Högestraße. From there its just a few minutes walk to the service station. (see map)


You can as well wait after the crossroad with a sign. (I don't recommend that, but if you don t speak German make sign &quot;A5 -&gt; KA ([[Karlsruhe]]) or BS ([[Basel]]&quot;.)

== Hitching In ==
It's not recommended, if you are coming from north to get off at &quot;Schauninsland&quot; petrol station. But if you get stuck there you can walk in the next village (Hochdorf) and take the bus 25 or 36 to Freiburg will take about 40 min to center. Try to find someone in [[Mahlberg]], [[Baden Baden]] or [[Bruchsal]] who is going straight there. The motorway doesn't go directly through the city so driver are unlikely to go 15 km extra just to drop you off in the city if they want to continue their trip. If you are coming from the south you can get off at the &quot;Breisgau&quot; service station. There shouldn't be a problem with finding someone who is going into town.

Another, though not the best solution, is to get off at exit 61 &quot;Freiburg Nord&quot; on the A5. The driver can make U-Turn and get back on the motorway (well, if it's not a truck). There's no really much room to stop, so you'll have to ask people stopping on the red light, most of them will be going to the city. Better don't go there if you're not alone, as you'll have to hop in very quickly.
__NOTOC__

[[Category:Germany]]

[[de:Freiburg im Breisgau]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Bad Saulgau</title>
    <id>1596</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34658</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T16:40:51Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Bad Saulgau''' is a small town in southern [[Germany]] situated at the ''Oberschwäbische Barockstraße''.
== Hitching Out ==
&lt;map lat='48.012778980957016' lng='9.49819564819336' zoom='13' view='0' float='right'/&gt;
=== Heading north ===
If you want to go north towards [[Reutlingen]] or [[Sigmaringen]], start at the ''JET'' petrol station on the B32 at the end of the town. 

=== Heading south ===
If you want to go south towards [[Ravensburg]] you should stand somewhere close to the train tracks next to the shopping centers at the other end of town. This also is the B32.

[[Category:Baden-Württemberg]]
[[Category:Germany]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Sigmaringen</title>
    <id>1597</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35451</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:51:23Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Sigmaringen''' is a town on the Swabian Alb. 

== Heading east ==

If you want to hitch towards [[Bad Saulgau]], [[Riedlingen]] or [[Ravensburg]] go to the roundabout before the busstop on B32 at the Binger Straße.

[[Category:Baden-Württemberg]]
[[Category:Germany]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Riedlingen</title>
    <id>1598</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35390</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:41:23Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">&lt;map lat='48.15612350772293' lng='9.476566314697266' zoom='13' view='0' float='right'/&gt;
'''Riedlingen''' is a small town in the [[Germany|German]] ''Bundesland'' [[Baden-Württemberg]], located in the South of the country.

== Hitching Out ==
=== North towards [[Reutlingen]] ===
If you want to go north towards [[Reutlingen]], go to the hospital (at the far end of town). There is a bus stop and all cars that pass will go your direction. 
=== South towards [[Bad Saulgau]] ===
If you want to go south towards [[Bad Saulgau]] either stay on the other side of the hospital or go through the town. If you're almost out of it and back on the big street ''B312'' there is a bus stop next to an old house.
{{IsIn|Baden-Württemberg}}

[[Category:Baden-Württemberg]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Karlsruhe</title>
    <id>1599</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36634</id>
      <timestamp>2009-08-18T16:00:51Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>MrTweek</username>
        <id>3</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>better</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">__NOTOC__
{{Infobox German Location
|country = Germany
|state = Baden-Württemberg
|map = &lt;map lat='49' lng='8.41' zoom='12' view='3'/&gt;
|plate = KA
|pop = 286.000
|motorways = [[A5 (Germany)|A5]], [[A8 (Germany)|A8]], [[A65 (Germany)|A65]]
|hitchbase = 33
}}
'''Karlsruhe''' is a city in [[Germany]] in the federal state (“Bundesland”) [[Baden-Württemberg]], located close to the French border and connected by the [[A5 (Germany)|A5]] and [[A8 (Germany)|A8]].

== Hitching out ==
=== Direction North, South, East {{Autobahn|5}} {{Autobahn|8}} ===
==== Option 1 ====
The [[A5 (Germany)|A5]] is passing Karlsruhe and connects it to [[Frankfurt am Main]], [[Basel]], [[Stuttgart]] and other cities.
The best ramp is Karlsruhe-Durlach. Take the tram '''1''', '''2''', '''S4''' or '''S5''' to ''Weinweg''. There is a petrol station close by where you can ask people, or you can stand nearby the exit of the petrol station - around 10 meters away from it. There is a safe place where the people can turn off behind you. You can also stand directly on the ramp, waving a sign or a thumb. The hard shoulder serves enough space for anyone to stop, but the cars go quite fast. 

==== Option 2 ====
Near [[Bruchsal]], there is a very huge service area at the [[A5 (Germany)|A5]]. It's about 40 minutes by tram and bus and the fare is 3 EUR. See [[Bruchsal]] for details.

=== Direction South, West, East {{Autobahn|5}} {{Autobahn|8}} {{Autobahn|65}}===


The Bus Station ''Beiertheim West'' makes a good hitchhiking spot in direction south ([[A5 (Germany|A5]], [[Basel]]) but there are also many cars going in direction [[Stuttgart]] or [[Landau]].
It is served by the bus no. 062 from ''Hauptbahnhof'' or ''Entenfang'', but you can also take tram no. 2 to ''Welfenstraße'' or just walk 10 minutes from the main station along ''Eberstraße''.

== Sleep ==
There is a camping site in ''Durlach''. Just take a tram to Durlach, there is a lot of signs for it. Karlsruhe also has a quite active Couchsurfing community.

== Internet Access ==
In the town center, between ''Europaplatz'' and ''Marktplatz'' there are a some info terminals called ''blue spots'' where you can see town maps, send emails and surf the internet for free.

== Public transport ==
Public transport is quite good. The tram lines go into all the neighbouring towns. Within the city, they go all night at weekends. Fares are about 2 EUR per trip. Tickets are checked quite often, even at night.
[[wikipedia:Karlsruhe]]

[[Category:Germany]]
[[Category:E35]]
[[Category:E52]]
[[Category:E35]]
[[Category:E52]]

[[de:Karlsruhe]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Обсуждение участника:Deleea</title>
    <id>1600</id>
    <revision>
      <id>13513</id>
      <timestamp>2007-09-08T17:37:21Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>68.173.217.219</ip>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve" />
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:Baden-Württemberg</title>
    <id>1601</id>
    <revision>
      <id>29334</id>
      <timestamp>2008-12-19T19:47:37Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>add map</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">[[Image:Deutschland_Lage_von_Baden-Württemberg.png|250px|thumb||right|Location of '''Baden-Württemberg''' in [[Germany]]]]
'''Baden-Würtemberg''' is a [[Germany|German]] federal state (german ''Bundesland'').

It is the gateway state if you want to go to [[Lyon]], [[Milano]] or [[Switzerland]]. The highways [[A5 (Germany)|A5]] and the [[A81 (Germany)|A81]] are crossing '''Baden-Württemberg''' in north-south direction, the [[A8 (Germany)|A8]] and [[A6 (Germany)|A6]] in direction west-east.

It is third largest in both area and population among the country's sixteen states, with an area of 35,742 square kilometers (13,800.1 sq mi) and 10.7 million inhabitants (both almost equivalent to all of [[Belgium]]). It's capital is [[Stuttgart]].

===Language===
In many areas of '''Baden-Württemberg''', residents speak the distinctive dialects of Swabian (''Schwäbisch'') and ''Badisch''/Allemanic, which both are known for being almost unintelligible to northern Germans, especially in its stronger forms in the countryside. In the northern part of '''Baden-Württemberg''', i.e. the area around [[Heidelberg]] and [[Mannheim]], a third kind of dialect is spoken, known as ''Kurpfälzisch''. 

&lt;!--### Interwiki links ### --&gt;
{{wikipedia}}
{{States Germany}}
[[Category:Germany]]
{{IsIn|Germany}}
[[de:Category:Baden-Württemberg]]
&lt;!--### End ###--&gt;</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Baden-Württemberg</title>
    <id>1602</id>
    <revision>
      <id>21118</id>
      <timestamp>2008-06-13T18:25:26Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>MrTweek</username>
        <id>3</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>{{IsIn|Germany}}</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#redirect [[:Category:Baden-Württemberg]]
{{IsIn|Germany}}</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Amsterdam</title>
    <id>1603</id>
    <revision>
      <id>38100</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-18T13:09:37Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Clint.hotvedt</username>
        <id>1885</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Dutch Location
|country = Netherlands
|map = &lt;map lat='52.38278242102423' lng='4.90844612121582' zoom='11' view='3'/&gt;
|pop = 742,880
|state = Noord Holland
|motorways = [[A1 (Netherlands)|A1]], [[A2 (Netherlands)|A2]], [[A4 (Netherlands)|A4]], [[A7 (Netherlands)|A7]], [[A8 (Netherlands)|A8]], [[A9 (Netherlands)|A9]], [[A10 (Netherlands)|A10]],
}}
[[File:IMG_5336.jpg|right|thumb|266px|Hitching at the Prins Bernhardplein liftplaats]]
'''Amsterdam''' is the capital of the [[Netherlands]].

Amsterdam is often abbreviated '''A'dam''', which can be a nice alternative to put on your signs.

== Hitching In ==
During daylight it's usually not a problem to hitch on on-ramps close to Amsterdam, so if you've been at petrol station for 25 minutes you might want to give it a try at an on-ramp closer-by.

Public transport is fairly okay in the Netherlands. There are convenient metros from e.g. the Bijlmer. It could be worth it to get a &quot;15-strippenkaart&quot; (6,90 EUR, valid on local buses, trams and metros in the entire country).

Coming from South there is a petrol station just a couple of kilometers before Amsterdam. There are enough people stopping before going into the city, [[User:Alex|alex]] never waited longer than 10 minutes to get a ride, with most of the times putting my bag directly from one car into another. So get off there when your driver doesn't go where you need to be in Amsterdam and catch easily a ride that goes to the district you want to go - this will save you some bugs and 30-60 minutes getting to the other side of town.

== Hitching Out ==
=== West towards [[Haarlem]], [[Leiden]], [[Den Haag]], [[Delft]] ===
There is an official [[liftplaats]] about 100 meters south of metro station Sloterdijk on Haarlemmerweg. Here you will find a lot of traffic going straight to [[Haarlem]], and possibly even cars going to [[Leiden]], and further to [[Delft]] and [[Den Haag]]. Though, most cars going there will use the Ring A10 and then the A4 to [[Den Haag]].

* For [[User:Liva|Liva]] it was not the best place even though you have had to do it when you're anyway there...
* For [[User:Lilylove|Lilylove]] it was a great spot to get to [[Delft]]. After several uses, it only ever took me one ride to get from Amsterdam to Delft direct.

=== North towards [[Alkmaar]], [[Zaandam]] ===
There is an A10 on-ramp near Sloterdijk station. Exit the station and go 200m east on ''Hatostraat'', 250m north on ''La Guardiaweg'' and 250m east on ''Basisweg'' and then cross over to the on-ramp.

Another ramp is a little way up the street from the last. Get there from the last by continuing further down ''Basisweg'' (which becomes ''Transformatorweg'' until ''Kabelweg''). Follow this north past s101 (''Nieuwe Hemweg''). The ramp is off of ''Vlothavenweg''.

&lt;map lat='52.342785761313266' lng='4.922003746032715' zoom='13' view='3' float='right' /&gt;

=== East towards [[Amersfoort]], [[Hengelo]], [[Osnabrück]], [[Hamburg]], [[Bremen]], [[Berlin]] ===
There is a [[liftplaats]], a spot specifically for hitchhiking, at the Gooiseweg next to the Prins Bernhardplein situated before NS Station Amsterdam Amstel (pass the bus stop). This road leads to the ramp of the S112 of the A10, the motorway around Amsterdam (direction [[A1 (Netherlands)|A1]] and [[A2 (Netherlands)|A2]]). A little further on that road and behind the bend you will find a petrol-station where you can talk to drivers, often a better way for getting a ride.

Most cars here will drive along the [[A1 (Netherlands)|A1]] towards [[Amersfoort]], [[Hengelo]] and [[Germany]]. The first petrol-station is just 8 kilometers further, just after [[Muiden]]. Are you hitching in direction of [[Berlin]] or [[Hamburg]], you might find the route-page from [[:Category:Route_Amsterdam_-_Berlin|Amsterdam to Berlin]] very useful.

'''The following link opens Google Streetview for an oversight of the Prins Bernhardplein spot.
[http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&amp;source=embed&amp;hl=nl&amp;geocode=&amp;q=nijmegen&amp;sll=54.711929,-2.026978&amp;sspn=1.450195,5.625&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;hq=&amp;hnear=Nijmegen,+Gelderland,+Nederland&amp;ll=51.841692,5.858651&amp;spn=0.002995,0.006899&amp;z=17&amp;layer=c&amp;cbll=52.348494,4.921329&amp;panoid=k3vgTBi77Aac6qX7Sboz4g&amp;cbp=12,112.19,,0,5&gt;]

From the [[liftplaats]] you can also find rides to [[Utrecht]], [[Arnhem]], [[Nijmegen]] and [[Belgium]], though you will find hitching from here relatively harder compared to the Utrechtsebrug, which is ''the'' spot for Utrecht.

Since there are so many different directions (and sometimes even many hitchhikers) it's better to make a sign.

There are trains, trams (12,51) and metros to Amstel station from most other stations in Amsterdam. It is a 1 minute walk from there, just behind the FORTIS Bank.
[[File:IMGP0763.jpg|right|thumb|266px|Hitchhikers at the Prins Bernhardplein liftplaats]]

=== South and Southeast towards [[Utrecht]], [[Breda]], [[Nijmegen]], [[Arnhem]], [[Düsseldorf]], [[Antwerpen]], [[Brussels]], [[Paris]] ===
You can either go and hitch from the same spot as for going West at the Amstel Station, or hitch from where the motorway to Utrecht starts, which is called the Utrechtsebrug. This second option definitely gives you more cars going into the right direction and generally a lot less waiting time.

At the Utrechtsebrug you have several options. First, head to the Martin Luther King Park in Amsterdam Zuid where the motorway to [[A2 (Netherlands)|A2]]-motorway starts, which leads to [[Utrecht]] and further to [[Den Bosch]], [[Eindhoven]] and [[Maastricht]]. Take tram 25 to its end-stop or tram 4 or 12 and walk from the Vrijheidslaan south through the Rijnstraat to the motorway ([[A10 (Netherlands)|A10]]/ [[A2 (Netherlands)|A2]]). At the end of this road before the crossing, you'll find traffic lights where you can pro-actively ask drivers to drop you at the massive Haarrijn service station (See below). The best traffic lights to pick, as there are three sets here, is the one on your left side when you are standing facing the bridge.

From here you can also walk over the bridge, walk along the motorway over the grass towards a small petrol station 250 meters further, behind the bend. Be careful when walking here, the space between you and cars is minimal. 

Just before Utrecht, after exit 5 ([[Breukelen]]) and just some kilometers before the Utrecht Ring you find a big petrol-station called [http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verzorgingsplaats_Haarrijn Haarrijn]. This is an excellent spot to find drivers for larger distances.

== Sleep ==
If you are caught in the rain with nowhere to go, the best place to stay dry that [[Zac]] found was outside the train station.

: ''After walking all night in the pouring rain, trying to stay dry and warm wherever I could, I finally crashed outside the train station until the wee hours of the morning. At that time I moved inside of the station. This had mixed results. It was warmer and drier, but the security guards walked by and gave me a kick every time I dozed off.''

There is another solution if you're caught in the rain : you can sleep on one of the tour boats parked along the river in front of central station, some of them have a roof outside the cabin and it can be a quite confortable place. Policemen or guards sometimes come and kick you out, but far less than in the station.

== Buy ==
&quot;Philip's compact atlas Europe&quot; shows service stations in some countries, is pretty compact and was available for 7 euros at the New English Book Store in [[Amsterdam]], in June 2008.

It's not recommended to carry any type of illegal drugs with you while hitchhiking. A bit of weed inside the borders of the Netherlands is not going to get you into trouble. But taking any amount of weed (or anything else) across the border could be a problem for you and possibly your driver. And it's not worth it.


__NOTOC__
[[trash:Amsterdam]]
[[wikipedia:Amsterdam]]

[[Category:E35]]
[[Category:E19]]
[[Category:E22]]
[[Category:Route Amsterdam - Berlin]]

[[de:Amsterdam]]
[[es:Amsterdam]]
[[fr:Amsterdam]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Den Haag</title>
    <id>1604</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37654</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-05T16:10:09Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>[[trash:Den Haag]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Dutch Location
|country = Netherlands
|map = &lt;map lat='52.051645977410494' lng='4.316253662109375' zoom='11' view='3'/&gt;
|pop = 478,948
|state = Zuid Holland
|motorways = [[A4 (Netherlands)|A4]], [[A12 (Netherlands)|A12]], [[A13 (Netherlands)|A13]]
}}
'''Den Haag''' or '''The Hague''' is a big city in the [[Netherlands]]. It is located in the province of [[Zuid Holland]].

== Hitching Out ==

=== North, West, South towards [[Utrecht]], [[Amsterdam]], [[Rotterdam]] ===
The [[liftershalte]], a spot for hitchhiking at the beginning of the [[A12 (Netherlands)|A12]] next to the Malieveld not far from the central Station is great when you're going in the direction of [[Utrecht]], but it could also work when going north towards [[Amsterdam]] or south towards [[Rotterdam]] and [[Belgium]].

[[Category:E30]]
[[trash:Den Haag]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Enschede</title>
    <id>1605</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34873</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T17:15:02Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">__NOTOC__
{{Infobox Dutch Location
|country = Netherlands
|map = &lt;map lat='52.22065572' lng='6.8815612792968' zoom='12' view='3' height='250' /&gt;
|pop = 154,311 (01 Jun 2007)
|state = Overijssel
|motorways = [[A1 (Netherlands)|A1]], [[A35 (Netherlands)|A35]]
}}
'''Enschede''' is a city in the east of the [[Netherlands]].
There was a [[liftershalte]], a spot for hitchhikers, on the Westerval, at the Parkweg (direction [[A35 (Netherlands)|A35]]). It disappeared somehow in 2006.

== Hitching Out ==

=== North towards [[Hengelo]], [[Oldenzaal]], [[A1 (Netherlands)|A1]] service station ===
If you want to go towards the service station '' 't Lonnekermeer'' for long hitches into [[Germany]], get yourself towards the Deurningerstraat until end of town. Some 50m behind the last traffic light you'll have some space for cars to stop, pretty awesome spot for hitches towards Oldenzaal. For the service station, hitchhike for around 5-6 km and get out just behind the railway crossing. Walk up the bridge and at its left you can walk down towards the highway and the petrol station.

=== East towards [[Germany]] ===
; Option 1 along the highway towards [[Osnabrück]]
There is an [[A1 (Netherlands)|A1]] on-ramp in [[Oldenzaal]]-Zuid. This is around 6 km north of Enschede. You can get there by taking the bus, line #60 or #62 towards Oldenzaal/Denekamp from the central bus station in Enschede. The price is 2,50 Euro, but sometimes paying 2 Euro is enough when you say you want to get out at ''Hanzepoort''.

Get out of the bus at ''Hanzepoort'', cross the street and walk 50m to the right. There you can stand along the [[hard shoulder]] at the [[on-ramp]] up to the Dutch highway [[A1 (Netherlands)|A1]] (German  [[A30 (Germany)|A30]]) towards [[Bad Bentheim]] / Osnabrück. Average waiting time is 7 minutes, most people go to Germany, mostly to [[Nordhorn]] or Bad Bentheim near the border. This ramp is the 2nd last before the German border, try to get to the parking area at the border, there you can find trucks that might go more east towards Osnabrück, [[Hannover]] or [[Berlin]]. If you like going faster, check out the article for the A30, maybe it's better to catch a ride towards the on-ramp Nordhorn/Bentheim and from there getting a ride eastwards much faster.

; Option 2 via [[Gronau]] and towards [[Münster]]
For hitchhiking towards Münster take bus #1 (costs EUR 1,20) towards ''Wesselerbrink'' and get out at ''TC Tubantia''. There you can already see the highway in front of you, just walk the 500 meters up to the ramp. Additional, you can also take line #2, for this see the spot below. At this spot the highway [[A35 (Netherlands)|A35]] begins. For hitchhiking towards Gronau use the space in front of the traffic lights or walk a bit down the ramp.

=== West towards [[Hengelo]], [[Apeldoorn]], [[Utrecht]], [[Amsterdam]] ===
To get on the [[A35 (Netherlands)|A35]] you just have to go to the Zuiderval. Take bus #2 towards ''Helmerhoek'' and get out at the ''P+R Zuiderval'' and walk to the higway (100 meters). You can also take line #1, for this see the spot above. There are traffic lights and enough space for cars to stop. Use a sign with ''Deventer'' and try to get a lift to the petrol station before Deventer.

[[File:Oldenzaal_ramp.jpg|thumb|250px|left|On-ramp [[Oldenzaal]]-Zuid towards [[Germany]].]]

=== All other directions ===
If you are at the University of Twente, try this: Go to the entry of the University, go the &quot;Auke Vleerstraat&quot; straightforward for around one kilometer (crossing two traffic circles, two bridges). After the second bridge you'll find traffic lights. Directly behind these traffic lights is a bus bay where you can stand perfectly to show all coming cars that you need a lift up on to the A35 to the east (Gronau ([[Germany]]) or to the west to [[Hengelo]] (Highway A1). Only problem is that you need a direct lift onto the highway, as before the approach road towards the highway is nearly impossible to hitch.

== Sleeping ==
It's possible to camp somewhere on the University campus, if you ask the security guys at the campus entry kindly to put your tent on a hidden spot somewhere between the trees. There's much green on the campus, only thing will be geese that are hanging around there. ;) There's also a campsite between [[Hengelo]] and '''Enschede''', not far from the University.

{{IsIn|Overijssel}}

[[Category:Overijssel]]
[[Category:Route Amsterdam - Berlin]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Groningen</title>
    <id>1606</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34948</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T17:27:32Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Dutch Location
|country = Netherlands
|map = &lt;map lat='53.21137858470816' lng='6.568450927734375' zoom='12' view='3'/&gt;
|pop = 183,000
|state = Groningen
|motorways = [[A7 (Netherlands)|A7]], [[A28 (Netherlands)|A28]]
|hitchbase = 663
}}
'''Groningen''' a province and the biggest city in the north of the [[Netherlands]].

== Hitching Out ==
=== South towards [[Assen]] ===
There is a [[liftershalte]], a spot for hitchhiking, at the Emmaviaduct, the road to the A28, 200 meter westwards of Central Station, in the direction of Assen.
=== East towards [[Germany]] ===
Hitching east towards Germany is harder since there's no obvious place to start hitching. Probably the best is the from traffic light at the crossing of the Europaweg and the Sontweg (close to Ikea). There's a bus stop right after the traffic lights, so people can stop for you.

In weekends it is very hard to get to Germany this way. Instead hitch to [[Winschoten]] and try to get a hitch there, since a lot of Germans go shopping in Winschoten.
{{IsIn|:Category:Groningen}}

[[Category:E22]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:Stubs</title>
    <id>1607</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35706</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T23:45:43Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Adding: [[ru:Категория:Незавершённые статьи]]; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Please be a nice hitchhiker and add something to the articles in this category!

Stubs are articles that need information. Check this list once in a while, and if you might have any information for one of those articles, feel free to add them. This list should, in fact, be empty.
[[fr:Catégorie:Ébauches]]

[[Category:Help]]

[[de:Kategorie:Stubs]]
[[ru:Категория:Незавершённые статьи]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Utrecht</title>
    <id>1608</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36030</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-23T12:31:08Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>-dutchism</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Dutch Location
|country = Netherlands
|map = &lt;map lat='52.0845695959468' lng='5.1189422607421875' zoom='12' view='3'/&gt;
|pop = 300,030
|state = Utrecht
|motorways = [[A2 (Netherlands)|A2]], [[A12 (Netherlands)|A12]], [[A27 (Netherlands)|A27]], [[A28 (Netherlands)|A28]]
|hitchbase = 419
}}
'''Utrecht''' is a city in the [[Netherlands]].

== Hitching Out ==
=== North: [[Amsterdam]], [[Amersfoort]], South: [[Breda]], [[Belgium]] ===
There is a [[liftershalte]] - a special spot for hitchhiking - at the ramp of the ''Waterlinieweg'' near ''De Galgewaard'' stadium. It's good for going northwards on the A27 and A28 or southwards on the A12, A2 and A27. Official hitching spot, indicated by a traffic sign with a thumb on it. 
To get there, take bus 12 from the Central Station and get off at bus stop 'Stadion Galgewaard'. Cross the road and you're at the driveaway! 


Another spot is an on-ramp on the A27 near the ''Veemarkthallen''. Take bus #5 from central station towards ''Voordorp''. Get off at ''Kemal Ataturkstraat'' and take bus #77 towards ''Bilthoven''. Get off at P+R Veemarkt. [[Europeangirl]] usually uses this spot and it takes her between 1 to 30 minutes to get a ride.

==Sleeping==
If you get stranded in Utrecht you can stay at the Strowis Budget Hostel (Boothstraat 8) It's in the middle of the city. The Boothstraat is a side street of the Voorstraat. It's priced at 15 euro a night. For all you outside sleepers there, it's best to stay at the university area (De Uithof) Take bus 11 or 12 at the main train station in Utrecht (Utrecht centraal Station) and you will know where to get out when you see the large school buildings. There are great spots to camp there and little to no guards. It's pretty far away from the city center so you should be able to sleep pretty safe there.

{{IsIn|:Category:Utrecht}}
{{hitchbase_city|419}}



[[Category:Utrecht]]
[[Category:E30]]
[[Category:E35]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Maastricht</title>
    <id>1609</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37573</id>
      <timestamp>2009-09-29T14:47:22Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>=== West towards [[Hasselt]], [[Leuven]], [[Brussels]] === :''please add info''</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox Dutch Location
|country = Netherlands
|map = &lt;map lat='50.84930707388861' lng='5.700874328613281' zoom='12' view='3'/&gt;
|pop = 117,548
|state = Limburg
|motorways = [[A2 (Netherlands)|A2]], [[A79 (Netherlands)|A79]]
|hitchbase = 131
}}
'''Maastricht''' is the most southern city of the [[Netherlands]], located in the province of [[Limburg]].

== Hitching Out ==

=== North towards [[Eindhoven]] (and motorway towards [[Aachen]]/[[Köln]], [[Germany]]) ===
There is a ''[[liftershalte]]'', a special spot for hitchhiknig, at the beginning of the [[A2 (Netherlands)|A2]] near the soccer stadium ''De Geusselt'' (Viaductweg x N2/A2) (direction [[Eindhoven]]) and the [[A79 (Netherlands)|A79]] (direction [[Heerlen]]). Though with the future upgrade of the N2 to [[A2 (Netherlands)|A2]] this [[liftershalte]] might be receded! So please leave some hitchhiking sign there everytime you hitchhike so that the authorities might change their mind.

It is also possible to use this spot to hitchhike towards the motorway [[Aachen]] and then on to [[Köln]] and further. However, it is not always simple to catch somebody crossing the boarder (30-60 minutes waiting-time on average). Some people recommend to catch a lift to [[Heerlen]] and then catch another one to [[Aachen]].

Towards [[Heerlen]] and [[Germany]] you can obviously also hike towards the last traffic lights on the roads that lead towards the official hitchhiking spot and ask there for a ride (AC=Aachen).

[[File:Tmoon.jpg|thumb|250px|right|[[User:Tmoon|Tmoon]] hitching out of Maastricht]]

=== East towards [[Gulpen]], [[Aachen]] ([[Germany]]) ===
Take the bus #53 or #54 from the center towards ''Akersteenweg''. At this bus stop you'll find a petrol station. There you can try to get a lift towards [[Aachen]] in [[Germany]].

=== South towards [[Liege]] ===

Follow the rail track from the Central Station out of the town in a southern direction from the backside exit (use the bridge over the rails). At the first rail/road crossing south of the station hike on over the cycling path and later, still by the side of the railway, over Gerardusweg. Follow this way until the end, thus you walk under a bridge and you will arrive at a motorway entrance on the junction named Europaplein; some hundreds of meters further on at the other side of the railway is the trainstation Maastricht Randwyck. If you stand at the corner of the road across from the sign pointing at the A2/Luik (Liege) you will get a lift.

=== West towards [[Hasselt]], [[Leuven]], [[Brussels]] ===
:''please add info''


__NOTOC__

[[Category:E25]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchwiki:Why this wiki</title>
    <id>1610</id>
    <revision>
      <id>24595</id>
      <timestamp>2008-09-06T12:29:35Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{background}}
'''Why add hitchhiking info to this wiki?'''

* [[project:about|This project]] uses the [http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html GNU Free Documentation License], a free, copyleft license, implying that anyone can copy, modify or even sell it. And any copy and modification will also be under this license. (So if someone starts selling it, anyone can. So the price will be low, and improvements can easily be put back into this site.)
* It will be easy to take this information in your favourite portable device running GNU/Linux. 
* It's a wiki, so information is supposed to become more accurate over time.
* Because you can!

== Why not to add to [http://wikitravel.org/ Wikitravel] ==
* It gets lost in big articles containing irrelevant information for hitchhikers.
* A lot of stuff on Wikitravel gets deleted.
* Wikitravel still doesn't provide a database dump and that is needed to make versions for devices like phones.
** Hitchwiki database dumps are available at http://hitchwiki.org/dumps/

Of course, it is suggested you doubly-license your work here under both the GFDL and the CC-BY-SA licenses (all versions, since Wikitravel is still on version 1.0).

== Why not to add to [http://wikipedia.org/ Wikipedia] ==
* Hitchhiking info doesn't really fit well into an encyclopedia.

== Why not add to other hitchhiking websites ==
# There are no other [[websites about hitchhiking|websites primarily about hitchhiking]] using a free license. If there are any: please mention, it might be possible to cooperate.
# There are no other wikis about hitchhiking. And wikis are cool!


[[Category:Philosophy]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Hitchwiki:Hitchhiker's point of view</title>
    <id>1611</id>
    <revision>
      <id>24396</id>
      <timestamp>2008-09-03T21:35:16Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Guaka</username>
        <id>2</id>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{background}}
This is a wiki for [[hitchhikers]], so we don't need a ''neutral'' point of view, we need the '''hitchhiker's point of view'''.

If we stick to writing simple, straightforward articles, then we will end up with a simple, straightforward guide. It'll be a wonderful source of information, and the wiki element of it is something to be admired. But the end product will just be a copy of what already exists on the Internet.
With HPOV we've got the potential to really make effective use of this wiki and create a guide that's unique in every way, and more interesting to read.

== Personal stories ==
Personal stories can be very illustrative of the hitchhiking situation in a place. So this is definitely allowed. But it should be in a different style, clearly seperated from the rest of the article.

: ''If so, what is a hitchhiker, and what is the hitchhikers point of view? If a non-hitchhiker wanted to hitchhike out of town, what would be his or her point of view?''

A hitchhiker is someone who hitchhikes. Anybody is welcome to hitchhike. The hitchhiker's point of view is one from standing on the side of the road or at a gas station and asking for a ride. Or someone who is interested in doing this and looking for more information about how, where, what, who, whatever.

If there is point-of-view information, you can use &lt;nowiki&gt;~~~&lt;/nowiki&gt;. E.g. “[[User:Guaka|Guaka]]&lt;small&gt;&lt;sup&gt;[[User talk:Guaka|Talk]][http://www1.couchsurfing.com/guaka CS]&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/small&gt; waited less than 5 minutes on this spot.”

It's also great to add pictures of yourself hitchhiking.

Tom: I strongly believe we should be heading towards a guide that contains not only information about hitchhiking, but also a range of related personal stories and experiences. Not only because information can already be found elsewhere, but also because stories relating to a piece of information make that information easier to memorise. For example, the Signs page could include any anecdotes that you want to tell about signs that you've used in certain situations, and what happened. Info about a hitchhiking spot in a city could include a story about something interesting that happened there, the shitty food that you were trying to eat, the driver that gave you a wonderful lift, food, a bed for the night, etc. Also, I don't think there's anything pretentious about adding our names to article pages; we don't need to try and hide the personal touch of this wiki!
I just feel that with the unique way in which this guide is being created, we shouldn't let it just become an information source like any other of the great guides out there, but instead show that hitchhikers are a living, breathing community, full with energy to burn and stories to tell. I haven't gone as far as I've described in any articles yet, but I would if it was encouraged, I would love to read your tales and I'm sure any non-contributing visitors would too.</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Aachen</title>
    <id>1612</id>
    <revision>
      <id>36874</id>
      <timestamp>2009-09-01T21:32:22Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>N0id</username>
        <id>2043</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>directions to exit #2 and service station at the belgium-german border</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{Infobox German Location
|country = Germany
|pop = 258,770 (31 Dec 2006)
|state = North Rhine-Westphalia
|plate = AC
|motorways = [[A4 (Germany)|A4]], [[A44 (Germany)|A44]], [[A544 (Germany)|A544]]
}}
'''Aachen''' is a city in [[North Rhine-Westphalia]], [[Germany]], close to the [[Netherlands]] and [[Belgium]].

Apparently - ''from what [[User:Guaka|Guaka]] has heard'' - there is a somewhat official hitchhiking spot at ''Europaplatz''.

Cars number plates starting with letters '''AC''' are registered in this locality. License plates with '''DN''' indicate that a car is from a neighbour locality of Düren.

== Hitching Out ==
=== West towards [[Netherlands]], [[Belgium]], East towards [[Köln]] ===
There is a nice [[petrol station]], ''Aachener Land'', on the A4, not too far east of Aachen. It is good for heading towards Netherlands or Belgium, while the other side offers good opportunities to hitch towards almost any region in [[Germany]]. The fastest way to get there is by taking a bus #52 from the ''Busbahnhof''. It stops close to the [[service area]]. It should be also mentioned that there are good chances of meeting ticket controllers while on that bus; in addition, you have to show your ticket to the driver when entering the bus (although generally you can show anything looking like a ticket and probably get away with it). Another option is to start hitchhiking from ''Europaplatz'' just where the cars enter the motorway from a [[roundabout]]. When going East (direction Köln), leave ''Aachener Land'' behind you. When going West, step out at the petrol station and do a little walk over the bridge nearby to cross the motorway.

&lt;map lat='50.79269814077799' lng='6.1571502685546875' zoom='12' view='0' width='400'/&gt;
There is quite a few [[police]] controls around Aachen, so make sure you are not bringing any drugs from the Netherlands to Germany as you might get controlled, although hitchhiker [[User:Fverhart|Fverhart]] writes: ''&quot;I don't like drugs and I was never checked on the border. Once in my life I had some marihuana with me, our host so kindly asked for it that I took the risk, although I did not know what kind of risk I was actually running.&quot;''

Alternatively, if heading towards the Netherlands one can walk from the ''Ponttor'' while in Aachen for about two kilometers up the ''Roermonderstrasse''. There are some petrol stations where you can find a Dutch driver. If you are going to [[Maastricht]] you can also go to ''Vaalserstrasse'' or take a bus to ''Vaals''. The roundabout at the West end of Vaals, for instance, is a good place to hitchhike.

Another option to go to in the direction of Belgium, especially if you want to go to [[Liège]] or [[Luxembourg]], is to go to the service station on the German-Belgium border at the A44. Take bus #11, #36, #55, or #SB63 from ''Busbahnhof'' or ''Hauptbahnhof'' (central station) to ''Oberforstbach Laschet'', get out and walk back the direction you came from. You have to walk a few hundred meters until you reach a bridge after which you turn left to get to the service station after 150-200m (you can either walk through the fields or use the exit and walk along the autobahn). At the same bridge there is also the exit #2 ''Aachen-Lichtenbusch'' at the A44 which you can use to go either in the direction of Köln (or at least to the service station ''Aachener Land'') or in the direction of Belgium. 

To get to the service station or the exit you can also hitchhike from the bus station ''Aachen Siegel'' (reachable by the lines #11, #21, #36, #46, #53 and #SB63 or by foot - ask locals for directions) which is perfect if you want to hitchhike south to the Eifel in the direction of Roetgen, Monschau, Simmerath or further. 

[[Category:E40]]
[[Category:Germany]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Poland</title>
    <id>1613</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37782</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:54:30Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = Poland
|language = Polish
|capital = [[Warsaw]]
|map = &lt;map lat='52' lng='19' zoom='5' view='0' country='Poland' /&gt;
|pop = 38,135,876
|currency = Złoty (PLN)
|hitch = {{good}}
}}
'''Poland''' is a member state of the [[European Union]] as well as the [[Schengen Agreement]]. It is pretty good country for hitchhiking. Many drivers generally believe that others do not stop and that hitchhiking days are over in Poland, which however does not prevent hundreds of them from stopping. Since 1958 till the beginning of 90's hitchhiking in Poland was an official way of traveling organized by National Tourist Board, when hitchhikers had their ID with [[insurance]] included and drivers could win prizes every year. Thousands of people were hitchhiking through all these years – and most of them have cars today, so very often do they repay the debt. 

=== General Hitchhiking Info ===
Quite common way to [[hitchhike]] in Poland is to stand on the side of the road with your hand extended and/or thumb pointing upwards. Some hikers also wave their hands up and down, which is widely understood as ''&quot;I only need a short ride&quot;''. This way of hitchhiking is popular between villagers and high school students who look for a lift for a short distance. They very rarely do write their destination on a [[sign|sheet of paper]] or some piece of cardboard. Waving is enough to make a driver stop. In the past in some regions of Poland elderly people were also giving small tips to the drivers, which is usually uncommon nowadays.
 
Travellers who look for a longer ride usually make a sign with a name of a city they go to or through. Some drivers prefer to take travellers and tourists. Because of that it is a good idea to place your backpack in front of you and make a sign which makes you look like a &lt;i&gt;professional hitchhiker&lt;/i&gt;.

[[File:Krakow_to_ukraine.JPG|left|thumb|250px|Hitchhiker in [[Kraków]]]]

=== Tips ===
[[CB radio]] is quite popular in Poland not only among truck drivers, which might help in getting a ride. If you're lucky they can ask other drivers to take you further. You might even ask them gently to do that, especially in bad weather conditions or by night.
Hitching by night is possible in Poland but not easy. On national roads try to find bright spot where drivers can see you. Use bright clothes. The best options are petrol stations where you can speak with the drivers while they fill up the tank.

=== Borders ===
As mentioned above Poland joined [[Schengen Agreement]] which means there is no more passport control on the borders with Lithuania, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Germany. In most places there are still speed limits on the borders, there are also parking lots, toilets and currency exchange offices, which makes these places pretty good spots for hitchhiking. On new roads built however there are no speed limits anymore. To Ukraine you can go by foot in Medyka, but not in Korczowa!!! (there you can wait for 3 hours because there are too much cars..)

=== Roads ===
Even though the Polish road network has improved gigantically over the last two decades, by Western European standards, Poland has still quite poorly developed infrastructure of roads. The road network consists of motorways (''autostrada'') i.e. A2, expressways (''droga ekspresowa'') with lower speed limits than motorways i.e. S6, national roads (''droga krajowa''), which are mostly single lane i.e. 92 and other regional roads. At the moment there is lots of investments in the road network, especially because Poland will be hosting European Football Championship final tournament in 2012.

Except for the motorways and expressways, it is generally accepted to hitchhike on the side of the road in almost any suitable place. Unlike many European states, the police are generally friendly towards hitchhikers as long as they behave properly. Some of the newly-refurbished national roads have &quot;no pedestrians&quot; signs near major towns, but it's still uncommon. This means that if you plan to go through any major town in your journey, it is usually better to exit the car before arriving in the city - else, you might have to walk till the end of the no-pedestrians area.
On motorways and expressways the best place to hitchhike is either a sliproad or, preferably, one of the petrol stations or toll booths.

See also: &lt;br /&gt;
[[Changes in Polish motorways and expressways network|Up-to-date info about investments in Polish motorways and expressways network on Google Maps]]&lt;br /&gt;
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roads_and_expressways_in_Poland Roads and expressways in '''Poland''']&lt;br /&gt;

=== Language ===
[[File:Guaka-hitching-in-poland-2008.jpg|thumb|right|220px|[[User:Guaka|guaka]] hitching in Poland]]
According to a 2001 survey by CBOS (Polish survey office), roughly 42% of Poles speak at least one foreign language fluently. Generally, 23% of Poles speak Russian, 16% speak English and a similar percentage speaks [[Germany|German]]. Other languages often spoken are [[France|French]], [[Czech Republic|Czech]], [[Slovakia|Slovak]] and other Slavic languages. According to the same survey, among the youngsters (students and pupils) the percentage to speak at least one foreign language fluently reached 66, as compared to 50% of those under 35 and 40% of those between 35 and 54 years of age [http://jezyki.nauka.pl/index.php/id=index/dept=38/cath=59/news=134/view=1]. According to a similar survey prepared in late 2005 by TNS Opinion &amp; Social for the European Commission, the percentage of people who speak one foreign language decently is 57%. At the same time roughly 32% are bi-lingual and 4% tri-lingual [http://www.egospodarka.pl/13770,Znajomosc-jezykow-obcych-w-Europie,1,39,1.html]. Except for younger people, foreign languages (mostly [[England|English]]) are commonly spoken by businessmen and educated people (87%), urban populations (50%) and small business (48%). However, it is hard to predict the knowledge of languages of a driver by his car as educated people in '''Poland''' are generally poorly-paid.

Apart from the people who speak foreign languages, a vast majority of Poles do understand some basic constructions of other Slavic languages and of English. Due to World War II history and the number of war films created afterwards, also some basic words of the German language are commonly known.

=== Communication &amp; Dictionary ===
[[File:Warsaw - poznan.JPG|thumb|left|225px]]
The Polish language is generally hard to learn for most native English speakers. Even the most basic constructions you might need while on the road require the usage of quite complicated grammar and the use of grammatical gender, proper declension and a number of other categories non-existent in modern English. However, contrary to French or German people, Poles are generally friendly towards foreigners who try to speak their language. Because of that do not be afraid to commit mistakes. They might at times sound funny, but most Polish people would be astonished by the fact that you tried.

Apart from the basic set of words and constructions found in every guidebook, there are some words hitchhikers might find particularly useful. Check also the Wikipedia articles on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_language Polish language] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_phonology Polish phonology] for more info on proper pronunciation. You can buy a decent guidebook or dictionary in any major town in '''Poland'''.
* hitchhiking – autostop / stop (“awto-stop] / [stop“)
* hitchhiker – autostopowicz (“awto-stopovich“)
* we're travelling to... – jedziemy do... (“yeh-dzhye-mee doh“)
* Where is the best place to hitchhike to...? – Skąd najlepiej łapać stopa do...? [skont nay-leh-pyey wapach stopa do...“)
* Which way to...? – Którędy do...? (“ktoo-ren-dee doh“)
* Where is the nearest...? – Gdzie jest najbliższy...? (“g'dzhe yest nay-bleezh-shee“)
* motorway exit for... – zjazd na... (“zyazd nah“)
* phone booth – budka telefoniczna (“boot-ka teh-leh-fonn-eech-nah“)
* bus stop – przystanek (“pshee-stah-nek“)
* train station – dworzec (“dvoh-zhets“)
* filling station – stacja benzynowa (“stats-yah behn-zee-nova“)
* ATM – bankomat (“bankomat“)
* dictionary – słownik (“swoh-v-nick“)
* guidebook/guide – przewodnik (“psheh-vod-nick“)
* map / plan – mapa / plan (“mah-pah] [pla-n“)
* road shoulder – pobocze (“poh-boh-cheh“)
* lane – pas (“pass“)
* Good morning - Dzien dobry (&quot;dzhehn dobri&quot;)
* Good bye - Do widzenia (&quot;do veedzehnah&quot;)
* See you later - Do zobaczenia (&quot;do zobahchehnah&quot;)
* It's nice to meet you - Milo mi (&quot;meewo mee&quot;)
* Excuse me - Przepraszam (&quot;pshehprahshahm&quot;)
* Yes - Tak (&quot;tahk&quot;)
* No - Nie (&quot;neh&quot;)
* Please - Prosze (&quot;prosheh&quot;)
* Thank you - Dziekuje (&quot;dzhehnkooyeh&quot;)
* Hello - Dzien dobry (&quot;dzhehn dobri&quot;)
* I'm sick - Jestem chory (&quot;yehstehm hori&quot;)

See also the Polish dictionary in Hitchwiki's [[Eastern Europe phrasebook]].

=== Number plates ===
Here you find a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Plcarplates379v06.png#file map] with the car registration plate codes of '''Poland'''.
It facilitates hitching at spots where you can see a car registration plate (petrol stations, borders, traffic lights)and choose the proper one. In short, the plates consist of two or three letters and four digits. The first letter denotes the voivodeship (region) and is followed by one or two letters denoting a major town. Usually voivodeship capitals and major towns have two letters, while smaller towns have three. For instance cars from Warsaw could have plates ranging from WA XXXX to WZ XXXX, while all cars from [[Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki]] have WND XXXX plates.

== Border crossing ==
* [[Hrebenne-Rava Ruska border crossing]] with [[Ukraine]]

== Links ==
* [[Overview of good hitchhiking spots from former website Digimer Autostop]]
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roads_and_expressways_in_Poland Roads and expressways in Poland]

{{hitchbase_country|155}}
{{IsIn|Eastern Europe}}
{{Cities Poland}}
{{Voivodeships Poland}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}
__NOTOC__

[[Category:Poland| ]]

[[de:Polen]]
[[es:Polonia]]
[[fi:Puola]]
[[fr:Pologne]]
[[pl:Polska]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Lithuania</title>
    <id>1614</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35843</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-16T21:08:46Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Paluch</username>
        <id>1363</id>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = of Lithuania
|language = Lithuanian
|map = &lt;map lat='55.26659815231191' lng='23.40087890625' zoom='6' view='3' country='Lithuania'/&gt;
|capital = [[Vilnius]]
|pop = 3,361,600
|currency = Litas (Lt)
|hitch = {{good}}
}}
'''Lithuania''' is a member state of the [[European Union]] as well as the [[Schengen Agreement]]. It has borders to [[Latvia]], [[Belarus]], [[Poland]] and [[Kaliningrad]] ([[Russia]]). Like the other Baltics it is a nice country to hitchhike. There are many active hitchhikers.[[File:Agne-from-vilnius-to-radviliskis.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Agne hitchhiking in Lithuania.]]
But when going from [[Latvia]] to [[Poland]] try to get a direct hitch to the Polish border − it's rather hard getting a car on this highway − it's built for quickly crossing Lithuania!

Like many countries in Eastern Europe hitchhiking on the highways isn't really forbidden. Often there are bus stops where many hitchhikers try to get rides. Don't be scared to walk next to a highway, especially if it's next to a city. The locals and even schoolkids do it, so drivers are used to it.

Get yourself a SIM card for your mobile phone if you want to stay in touch with Lithuanians. The cheapest start at the equivalent of EUR 0,30 at most kiosks.



== Cities ==

* [[Alytus]]
* [[Kaunas]], [[Klaipėda]], [[Kretinga]]
* [[Marijampolė]]
* [[Panevėžys]]
* [[Šiauliai]]
* [[Vilnius]]

== Links ==
* Kaunas Hitch-Hiking Club &quot;KELIAIvis&quot; is the second largest hitchhiking community in Lithuania. See their blog [http://keliaivis.blogspot.com here] or join their Yahoo group [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/KELIAIvis/ here]'' (both in Lith. only)''
* [[Vilnius Hitch-hiking Club]] is one of the leading hitchhiking organizations in [[Europe]]. They have often organized the International Hitch-hiking Conference and have a prominent web presence at [http://www.autostop.lt autostop.lt] ''(Lith/Eng)''
* [http://www.vaziuojam.lt Važiuojam.lt] - [[rideshare]] network ''(Lith.)''
* [http://netranzuok.lt Netranzuok.lt] - another car-pooling service ''(Lith.)''
{{IsIn|Northern Europe}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}

[[trash:Lithuania]]

[[Category:Lithuania| ]]
[[Category:Northern Europe]]

[[de:Litauen]]
[[es:Lituania]]
[[pl:Litwa]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Kaunas</title>
    <id>1615</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35051</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T17:44:53Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Kaunas''' is a city in [[Lithuania]].

== Hitching Out ==
&lt;map lat='54.895564790773385' lng='23.87744873046875' zoom='10' view='0' float='right'/&gt;
== East towards Vilnius ==
When going to [[Vilnius]] you take a bus to the highway. There is a bus stop (look below) on the highway where it's possible to get rides, but it might also be a good idea to not deal with the hitchhiking competition and place yourself at the entrance of the highway.

Quite far away from [[Vilnius]] there is a huge ''hypermarket'' ('''Maxima Baze''') next to the highway with a free bus to the center.

=== South towards [[Poland]] ===
*The best way to get to [[Poland]] is to take mini bus 105 from the train station and to get off right after Garliava when you will see a petrol station. The hitchhiking conditions are fantastic: there is plenty of space for cars to stop in front of that petrol station and cars are not driving that fast. You might want to have a PL sign in hand. You can ask your driver to let you off right at border. If you walk back towards Lithuania from the border and make a left, you will get to a very large parking where loads of trucks are parked there. You may be able to get a ride to close to any country in Western Europe.
[[File:Kns_to_vln.JPG|thumb|left|250px|Along the road towards [[Vilnius]]]]

*Alternatively get a bus from the center to IX Fortas (I think its bus 23 or 35 buses), this is the main road where the motorway to Vilnius joins up with the E67 (Via Baltica north and south) - with a PL sign you should easily get a lift from a truck to the [[Budzisko-Kalvarija border checkpoint]] or further. Be aware that the border is now virtually non-existent, except for an occasional random check, so try to get a ride to at least [[Suwalki]] or [[Augustow]].

=== West towards [[Klaipeda]], North towards [[Latvia]] ===
*Heading for [[Latvia]] you want to get on the [[Klaipeda]] road (the A1) and then turn onto the via Baltica (the A8). You can accept rides going to the split (20km) and then hitch past the split. From the split it should not take you more than 10min to get a ride. Whatever you do, try not to get dropped off on the [[Panevezis]] ring. [[Garthelgard]] got stuck there for more than 4 hours. There is a great petrol station past the [[Panevezis]] ring and after the roads merge or a lot of space on the side of the road.

=== Overnight ===
Kaunas is a horrible place to be stuck in overnight, and there are only a couple of youth hostels, both of which close early, and are rather tricky to find. If you DO happen to get stuck here, then go the Best Western, but instead of going in, turn left. There's an alleyway on the right which leads to a place which rents out apartments. It's open late, and if you explain the situation, then you might be lucky enough to get yourself a bit of a deal on a room that would otherwise have been empty. You'll have to use all of your powers of persuasion though!
[[trash:Kaunas]]
__NOTOC__

[[Category:Lithuania]]
[[Category:E85]]
[[Category:E67]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Vilnius</title>
    <id>1616</id>
    <revision>
      <id>38110</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-19T16:25:56Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>78.60.160.152</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* West towards Warsaw (Poland), Kaunas, Klaipėda */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">'''Vilnius''' is the capital of [[Lithuania]].

== Hitching In ==
When coming from [[Kaunas]] ask the driver politely if he drives near the place of your destination. If the answer is negative, it might be more convenient to take a free bus from a huge ''hypermarket'' called &quot;Maxima&quot; which is situated ~13 kilometres away from Vilnius ([http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=Pirkli%C5%B3+gatv%C4%97,+Vilnius+LT-02029,+Litauen&amp;daddr=Vilnius,+Lithuania&amp;hl=en&amp;geocode=&amp;mra=ls&amp;sll=37.0625,-95.677068&amp;sspn=35.821085,56.601563&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;z=12 map]) to the city centre or to some other destinations in the city.

== Hitching Out ==
=== North towards [[Riga]] ([[Latvia]]), [[Panevėžys]], [[Šiauliai]] ===
[[File:Vln to kns.JPG|thumb|250px|right|A hitchhiking spot towards [[Kaunas]].]]
A hitch-hiking spot towards Riga (as well as towards Panevėžys and Šiauliai) is situated behind the bus stop after one of the major street crossings in Pašilaičiai/Fabijoniškės at pretty much the end of the Ukmergės avenue ([http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=Vilnius,+Lithuania&amp;daddr=54.73146,25.237141&amp;hl=en&amp;geocode=&amp;mra=dme&amp;mrcr=0&amp;mrsp=1&amp;sz=13&amp;sll=54.722043,25.252075&amp;sspn=0.051058,0.11055&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;z=13 map]). There are many buses going this direction ([http://vilniustransport.lt/images/mrweb_1.gif see the Vilnius public transport network]) so you won't have troubles of getting to so called Via Baltica road (E67). It is also a popular spot for locals to hitch-hike to their homes in towns nearby, so the smart thing would be to go a little bit further and to write your destination on a hard paper to show to the drivers.

=== West towards [[Warsaw]] ([[Poland]]), [[Kaunas]], [[Klaipėda]] ===
There are two places in Vilnius offering you a good possibility to get a ride towards Poland. Remember that in order to get to Poland you need first head towards Kaunas - it is a quicker and better way (other possibilities include hitching via [[Alytus]] ([http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=vilnius&amp;daddr=alytus+to:sejny&amp;hl=en&amp;geocode=&amp;mra=ls&amp;sll=54.399748,24.312744&amp;sspn=1.646814,3.537598&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=54.399645,24.31346&amp;spn=3.293822,7.075195&amp;z=7 map]) or via [[Trakai]] and [[Prienai]] ([http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=vilnius&amp;daddr=trakai+to:marijampol%C4%97+to:Suwalki&amp;hl=en&amp;geocode=&amp;mra=ls&amp;sll=53.569676,25.872803&amp;sspn=1.67996,3.537598&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=54.482805,23.873291&amp;spn=3.287153,7.075195&amp;z=7 map]) - it is not recommended to take these routes simply because these are very local roads with low traffic).

So the first spot is next to the huge shopping mall &quot;Maxima&quot; which lies outside the city, you can get there by taking a free bus (run by &quot;Maxima&quot; every hour, at **:45 from &quot;Gerosios.&quot;) from the end stop of trolleybuses on the Savanorių avenue (stop named &quot;Gerosios Vilties&quot;) with bus (or trolly bus) 4,6,11,12,14,15,16. see the [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=Pirkli%C5%B3+gatv%C4%97,+Vilnius+LT-02029,+Litauen&amp;daddr=Vilnius,+Lithuania&amp;hl=en&amp;geocode=&amp;mra=ls&amp;sll=37.0625,-95.677068&amp;sspn=35.821085,56.601563&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;z=12 map]; once you are there, jump over the road onto the other side - there you will see a small parking space which is a perfect spot for the cars to stop while you are thumbing on the road. This place has never failed, and waiting times are always good.
Now some fences are being build between the bus stop and hitch-hiking spot, so it's better to take bus Nr. 29 at Savanorių bus stop towards Grigiškės, get out at huge market Gariūnai and then walk a little bit further, turn right and you'll appear standing on the highway to Kaunas. 

The second spot is situated at the end of Savanorių avenue (see the [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=Vilnius,+Lithuania&amp;daddr=54.643744,25.203581&amp;hl=en&amp;geocode=&amp;mra=dme&amp;mrcr=0&amp;mrsp=1&amp;sz=14&amp;sll=54.642453,25.203323&amp;sspn=0.025579,0.055275&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;ll=54.654769,25.227356&amp;spn=0.102285,0.2211&amp;z=12 map], picture on the right), many buses and trolleybuses go there - it is easy to get there but the waiting time can be longer in comparison with the first described spot - it is mostly because of 2 reasons: less traffic towards Kaunas (since it is a road towards Alytus and Trakai, too), and competition (there wouldn't be a day without some local short-distance hitch-hiker standing and thumbing there).

=== South-East towards [[Minsk]] ([[Belarus]]) ===
After you get on the Minsk Road (''Minsko plentas'' in Lithuanian, [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&amp;saddr=Vilnius,+Lithuania&amp;daddr=Minsko+plentas&amp;hl=en&amp;geocode=&amp;mra=ls&amp;sll=54.722043,25.252075&amp;sspn=0.051058,0.11055&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;z=13 see the map]) you'll see a huge supermarket on your right. You might as well look for Belorussians at the parking lot by this shopping mall - it is possible to convince some of them to take you to the border. If this doesn't work, walk about 50 meters ahead where the last slip road ends and a soft verge starts, and start thumbing there.

When you get to the border at Medinikai it is a lot faster to cross it as a pedestrian (it is allowed to cross the border on foot), and start hitch-hiking on the other side.

{{hitchbase_city|126}}
[[trash:Vilnius]]

[[Category:Lithuania]]
[[Category:E85]]
[[Category:E28]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:Lithuania</title>
    <id>1617</id>
    <revision>
      <id>32022</id>
      <timestamp>2009-04-08T08:37:39Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Speckmade</username>
        <id>23</id>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{IsIn|Europe}}

[[Category:Europe]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Brazil</title>
    <id>1618</id>
    <revision>
      <id>37741</id>
      <timestamp>2009-10-09T22:20:37Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Interwiki standardization; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">{{infobox Country
|country = of Brazil
|in = South America
|language = Portuguese
|capital = [[Brasilia]]
|pop = 190,467,249
|currency = Real
|hitch = {{good}} to {{bad}}
}}
'''Brazil''' is a country in [[South America]]. It has a border with every country on the continent except [[Chile]] and [[Ecuador]]. Brazil is a huge country and [[hitchhiking]] depends a lot on area as to how receptive people will be and your chances in getting rides. Some Brazilians consider their country violent and dangerous part due to the media's love to seize on the stories and exaggerate them.

== Regions ==
Brazil needs to be taken with caution but hitchhiking is doable in every area except within greater [[São Paulo]], as you are over shadowed due to the volumes of traffic. On roadsides, care must be taken because of the erratic ways of Brazilian Motorists. Many use the slip lanes to overtake traffic or swerve to allow others past.

Areas like the Amazon and Pantanal backlands are much easier when asking on road sides and at [[petrol station]]s. Areas where there is purely the one national highway make life easier for reaching intended destination. put your mind to it and its very possible to cover a little over 300 kilometer daily or more depending on area. North East may be trickier as there are less cars and peoples fear of Bandidos but when you get someone they will be talkative and friendly.

== Maps ==
[[File:Brazil highways.jpg|thumb|300px]]
[http://www.br.map24.com/ map24] is a useful online route planner for Brazil and the rest of South America. [http://www.guiamais.com.br/ruas GuiaMais] is another great website with maps and route planning for Brazil only.

== Cities ==
* [[Porto Alegre]]
* [[Rio de Janeiro]]
* [[São Paulo]]
* [[Florianópolis]]
* [[Brasília]]
* [[Vitória]]
* [[Recife]]
* [[Salvador]]
* [[Manaus]]
* [[Belo Horizonte]]
* [[Maceió]]
* [[Fortaleza]]
* [[São Luiz]]
* [[Belém]]

[[Category:Brazil|*]]
[[Category:South America]]

[[es:Brasil]]
[[fr:Brésil]]
[[pt:Brasil]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:Brazil</title>
    <id>1619</id>
    <revision>
      <id>11057</id>
      <timestamp>2007-04-28T06:31:19Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>61.166.140.235</ip>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">[[Category:South America]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>North Korea</title>
    <id>1620</id>
    <revision>
      <id>27666</id>
      <timestamp>2008-11-11T13:14:42Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>77.166.165.137</ip>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Unless there is a revolution, '''North Korea''' is probably the last country on the face of the planet Earth where you can go put up your thumb on the side of the road. You'll probably have more luck in [[South Korea]].

[[Category:Asia]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Справка:Contents</title>
    <id>1621</id>
    <revision>
      <id>30815</id>
      <timestamp>2009-02-05T12:05:57Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>MrTweek</username>
        <id>3</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">If you want to add information about your favorite spot, your country or anything else, here you find information on how to do so.

'''First''', you can just search for the city or country of your choice. If you get redirected to an article, it seems that information about your city or country already exists. For adding information, just click on the &lt;tt&gt;edit&lt;/tt&gt; button at the top of the article. Then you'll find yourself a box with text where you can easily add your information.

If no article exists about your destination city or country, the search will ask you if you want to create a new article. Just click on ''create this page''. Tada!

Don't worry too much about layout and stuff, there are a lot of other hitchhikers who check and correct articles if necessary.

When you want to go deeper into the creation of articles, have a look at the following pages:
* [[How to create new articles]]
** [[How to add maps to articles]]
** [[How to create a navigation box]]
** [[How to add the country infobox|How to add the country infobox to your article]]
** [[Template:Infobox ServiceStation|How to add a service station infobox to your article]]
* [[help:Copying from Wikipedia|Copying from Wikipedia]]
and – should it ever be necessary –
* [[Help:How to delete pages|How to delete pages]]

To get an overview of discussions and things to do, watch this page:
* [[hitchwiki:overview|Overview Hitchwiki]]
&lt;!--
* [[help:Administrators|Administrators]]
* [[help:Editing|Editing]]
* [[help:Images|Images]]
--&gt;

[[Category:Help| ]]

[[de:Tramperwiki:Hilfe]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Шаблон:Wikilinks</title>
    <id>1622</id>
    <revision>
      <id>16455</id>
      <timestamp>2007-12-15T13:45:15Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Speckmade</username>
        <id>23</id>
      </contributor>
      <text xml:space="preserve">[[cswiki:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[wikitravel:{{PAGENAME}}]]&lt;noinclude&gt;


[[Category:Templates]]&lt;/noinclude&gt;</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Шаблон:Phrasebook/English</title>
    <id>1623</id>
    <revision>
      <id>18591</id>
      <timestamp>2008-02-29T12:58:31Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>ups</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">=== English ===
# Hello 
# Excuse me.. 
# Do you possibly drive in the direction of ...?
# Could I get a lift to...?
# - a gasstation / a service area / a parking place? / along the highway 
# Is the lift free? / I can't pay.
# Do you speak ...? / any other languages / Could you speak slower, please?
# yes / no / maybe / no thanks /
# That’s great / perfect / bad / no problem 
# I don't understand. / I don't know.
# I'm going to ... / Where are you going to?
# My name is... / What's your name? / I’m from... / Where are you from?
# I’m ... years old. / How old are you?
# I study.... / My subjects are... / I’m in my ... year. / I will become a ....
# I have a boy-friend/a girl-friend. / I'm married.
# I’m on holiday. / I visit friends in... / I'm hitchhiking around...
# I will stay for... / I’m going back...
# Don’t touch me! / Let me out! / Stop! / Help!
# Can you drop me off here?
# Thank you! / Have a nice day/trip!
# Where can I find ...? 
# - the city centre /  a map
# - a toilet / a supermarket / a pharmacy / a campsite
# - an internetcafe / a cashmachine / a bank
# - a metrostation / a busstation / a trainstation
# - the highway to ... / a good hitchhikingspot
# water / (herbal) tea / hot chocolate / coffee
# beer / (red, white) wine / juice
# vegetarian / diner / bread / a cheap restaurant
# Cheers! / Enjoy your meal!
# I’m hungry / thirsty / fine / cold / hot / sick
# north / east / south / west
# yesterday / today / tomorrow
# zero / one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight / nine / ten
# eleven / twelve / thirteen / fourteen / fifteen / sixteen / seventeen / eighteen / nineteen / twenty
# twenty-one / thirty 
# hour / day / week / month / kilometre
# left / right / straight on / before/ after
# this / next / last /
# often / seldom / never / long / short
# up / down / over / under
# How far is it (on foot)? / Where are we?
# How much does it cost? / What time is it?
# We are looking for a place to sleep.
# Where can we buy a ticket?
# Who? / What? / Where? / Why? / When?
# How? / How much? / How long? / Which?

&lt;noinclude&gt;
[[Category:Templates]]
&lt;/noinclude&gt;</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Phrasebooks/English</title>
    <id>1624</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1753</id>
      <timestamp>2006-05-04T23:35:20Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#REDIRECT [[Template:Phrasebook/English]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Шаблон:Phrasebooks/English</title>
    <id>1625</id>
    <revision>
      <id>1755</id>
      <timestamp>2005-12-27T14:15:35Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <ip>Guaka</ip>
      </contributor>
      <comment>Template:Phrasebooks/English moved to Template:Phrasebook/English</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">#REDIRECT [[Template:Phrasebook/English]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Шаблон:Phrasebook/German</title>
    <id>1626</id>
    <revision>
      <id>18593</id>
      <timestamp>2008-02-29T15:19:07Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>deutsch</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">=== German ===
# Hello - '''Hallo'''
# Excuse me.. - '''Entschuldigen Sie,...''' 
# Do you possibly drive in the direction of ...? - '''Fahren Sie eventuell Richtung....'''
# Could I get a lift to...? - '''Könnten Sie mich bis ...... mitnehmen?'''
# - a gasstation / a service area / a parking place? / along the highway - '''- eine Tankstelle / ein Rastplatz / ein Parkplatz / entlang der Autobahn'''
# Is the lift free? / I can't pay.- '''Ist es umsonst? / Ich kann nicht bezahlen.'''
# Do you speak ...? / any other languages / Could you speak slower, please? - '''Sprechen Sie... / Andere Sprachen? / Könnten Sie etwas langsamer sprechen?'''
# yes / no / maybe / no thanks /- '''ja / nein / vielleicht / nein, Danke'''
# That’s great / perfect / bad / no problem - '''Das ist großartig / perfekt / schlecht / Kein Problem'''
# I don't understand. / I don't know.- '''Ich verstehe es nicht / Ich habe keine Ahnung'''
# I'm going to ... / Where are you going to?- '''Ich fahre nach... / Wo fahren Sie hin?'''
# My name is... / What's your name? / I’m from... / Where are you from?- '''Mein Name ist.... / Wie heisst du? / Ich komme aus... / Wo kommst du her?'''
# I’m ... years old. / How old are you? - '''Ich bin .... Jahre alt. / Wie alt bist du?'''
# I study.... / My subjects are... / I’m in my ... year. / I will become a .... - '''Ich studiere... / Meine Fächer sind... / Ich bin im .... Jahr. / Ich werde später...'''
# I have a boy-friend/a girl-friend. / I'm married. - '''Ich habe einen Freund/Freundin. / Ich bin verheiratet.'''
# I’m on holiday. / I visit friends in... / I'm hitchhiking around... - '''Ich habe Ferien. / Ich besuche Freunde in.... / Ich trampe durch die Gegend.'''
# I will stay for... / I’m going back... - '''Ich bleibe für... / Ich fahre zurück am....'''
# Don’t touch me! / Let me out! / Stop! / Help! - '''Fass mich nicht an! / Lassen Sie mich raus! / Stop! / Hilfe!'''
# Can you drop me off here? - '''Können Sie mich hier raus lassen?'''
# Thank you! / Have a nice day/trip! - '''Vielen Dank! / Einen schönen Tag/Reise noch!'''
# Where can I find ...? - '''Wo finde ich...'''
# - the city centre /  a map - '''das Stadtzentrum / eine Karte'''
# - a toilet / a supermarket / a pharmacy / a campsite - '''eine Toilette / einen Supermarkt / eine Apotheke / einen Zeltplatz'''
# - an internetcafe / a cashmachine / a bank - '''ein Internetcafe / einen Bankautomaten / eine Bank'''
# - a metrostation / a busstation / a trainstation - '''die U-Bahn / den Busbahnhof / den Hauptbahnhof'''
# - the highway to ... / a good hitchhikingspot - '''die Autobahn nach... / eine gute Trampstelle'''
# water / (herbal) tea / hot chocolate / coffee - '''Wasser / (Kräuter) Tee / warme Schokolade / Kaffee'''
# beer / (red, white) wine / juice - '''Bier / (Rot-, Weiss-) Wein / Orangensaft'''
# vegetarian / diner / bread / a cheap restaurant - '''Vegetarisch / Dinner / Brot / ein günstiges Restaurant'''
# Cheers! / Enjoy your meal! - '''Prost! / Guten Appetit'''
# I’m hungry / thirsty / fine / cold / hot / sick - '''Ich habe Hunger! / Durst / fein / kalt / heiss / krank'''
# north / east / south / west - '''Norden / Osten / Süden / Westen'''
# yesterday / today / tomorrow - '''gestern / heute / morgen '''
# zero / one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight / nine / ten - '''null / eins / zwei / drei / vier / fünf / sechs / sieben / acht / neun / zehn'''
# eleven / twelve / thirteen / fourteen / fifteen / sixteen / seventeen / eighteen / nineteen / twenty - '''elf / zwölf / dreizehn / vierzehn / fünfzehn / sechszehn / siebzehn / achtzehn / neunzehn / zwanzig'''
# twenty-one / thirty - '''einundzwanzig / dreißig'''
# hour / day / week / month / kilometre - '''Stunde / Tag / Woche / Monat / Kilometer'''
# left / right / straight on / before/ after - '''Links / Rechts / Geradeaus / Vorher / Nachher'''
# this / next / last / - '''diese / nächste / letzte'''
# often / seldom / never / long / short - '''oft / selten / nie / lang / kurz'''
# up / down / over / under - '''hoch / runter / über / unter'''
# How far is it (on foot)? / Where are we? - '''Wie weit ist es noch (zu Fuss)? / Wo sind wir?'''
# How much does it cost? / What time is it? - '''Wie viel kostet dass? / Wie spät ist es?'''
# We are looking for a place to sleep. - '''Wir suchen einen Schlafplatz'''
# Where can we buy a ticket? - '''Wo können wir ein Ticket kaufen?'''
# Who? / What? / Where? / Why? / When? - '''Wer? / Was? / Wo? / Warum? / Wann?'''
# How? / How much? / How long? / Which? - '''Wie? / Wie viel? / Wie lang? / Welche? '''

&lt;noinclude&gt;
[[Category:Templates]]
&lt;/noinclude&gt;</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Western Europe phrasebook</title>
    <id>1627</id>
    <revision>
      <id>22487</id>
      <timestamp>2008-07-15T07:39:38Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>MrTweek</username>
        <id>3</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/203.158.221.227|203.158.221.227]] ([[User talk:203.158.221.227|Talk]]); changed back to last version by [[User:Maplefanta|Maplefanta]]</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">__TOC__
This '''[[Western Europe]] phrasebook''' for hitchhiking is a work in progress.

&lt;small&gt;
&lt;table&gt;
&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/English}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/German}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/French}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Spanish}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Dutch}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;/table&gt;

[[Category:Phrasebook]]
[[Category:Europe]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>South America phrasebook</title>
    <id>1628</id>
    <revision>
      <id>14093</id>
      <timestamp>2007-09-23T16:20:43Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>cat</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">Hitchhiking phrasebook for [[South America]].

{{Phrasebook/English}}
{{Phrasebook/Spanish}}

{{Phrasebook/Portuguese}}

[[Category:Phrasebook]]
[[Category:South America]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Шаблон:Phrasebook/French</title>
    <id>1629</id>
    <revision>
      <id>29865</id>
      <timestamp>2009-01-11T14:24:48Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Sitarane</username>
        <id>1505</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* French */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">=== French ===

# Hello / '''Bonjour.  Salut.'''
# Excuse me / '''Excusez-moi'''
# Do you possibly drive in the direction of ...? / '''Allez-vous en direction de ... ?'''
# Could I get a lift to...? / '''Pouvez-vous m'amener jusqu'à ... ?'''
# - a gasstation / a service area / a parking place? / along the highway / '''- une station service / / une aire de repos / / un parking / / le long de l'autoroute / /'''
# Is the lift free? / / I can't pay. / '''Le trajet est gratuit?  / / Je ne peux pas payer / /'''
# Do you speak ...? / any other languages / Could you speak slower, please? '''Parlez-vous ...? / / une autre langue / / (Pouvez-vous parler) plus lentement, s'il vous plaît? / /'''
# yes / no / maybe / no thanks / '''Oui / non / peut-être / non merci'''
# That’s great / perfect / bad / no problem '''C'est bien / / parfait / / pas bon / / Pas de problème / /'''
# I don't understand. / I don't know. '''Je ne comprends pas // Je ne sais pas / /'''
# I'm going to ... / Where are you going to? '''Je vais à ... / / Où allez-vous? / /'''
# My name is... / What's your name? / I’m from... / Where are you from? '''Je m'appelle ... / / Comment vous appellez-vous ? / / Je viens de ... / / D'où venez-vous? / /'''
# I’m ... years old. / How old are you? '''J'ai ... ans / / Quel âge avez-vous? / /'''
# I study.... / My subjects are... / I’m in my ... year. / I will become a .... '''J'étudie ... / / Mes matières sont... / / Je suis en (4e,5e,6e) année / / Je veux devenir ... / /'''
# I have a boy-friend/a girl-friend. / I'm married. '''J'ai un petit ami/une petite amie / / Je suis marié'''
# I’m on holiday. / I visit friends in... / I'm hitchhiking around... '''Je suis en vacances / / Je vais voir des amis à ... / / je fais du stop autour de ... / /'''
# I will stay for... / I’m going back... '''Je vais rester pendant ... / / Je reviens le .../ /'''
# Don’t touch me! / Let me out! / Stop! / Help! '''Ne me touchez pas! / /Laissez-moi sortir! / /Stop! / / A l'aide ! / /'''
# Can you drop me off here? '''Pouvez-vous me déposer ici, s'il vous plaît? / /'''
# Thank you! / Have a nice day/trip! '''Merci! / / Bonne journée ! / / Bon voyage! / /'''
# Where can I find ...? '''Où puis-je trouver...? '''
# - a toilet / a supermarket / a pharmacy / a campsite - the city centre / a map '''- une toilette / / un supermarché / / une pharmacie / / un camping / / le centre-ville / / une carte / /'''
# - an internetcafe / a cashmachine / a bank '''- un cybercafé / / un distributeur de billets / / une banque / /'''
# - a metrostation / a busstation / a trainstation '''- une station de métro / / une station de bus / / une gare / /'''
# - the highway to ... / a good hitchhikingspot '''- l'autoroute pour ... / / un bon endroit pour faire du stop / /'''
# water / (herbal) tea / hot chocolate / coffee '''eau / / thé (aux herbes) / / chocolat chaud / / café/ /'''
# beer / (red, white) wine / juice '''bière / / vin (rouge, blanc) / / jus / /'''
# vegetarian / diner / bread / a cheap restaurant '''végétarien / / petit restaurant / /pain / / un restaurant pas cher / /'''
# Cheers! / Enjoy your meal! '''Bon appétit!'''
# I’m hungry / thirsty / fine / cold / hot / sick '''J'ai faim / / soif/ / bien / / froid / / chaud / / Je suis malade / /'''
# north / east / south / west '''nord/ / est / / sud / / ouest / /'''
# yesterday / today / tomorrow '''hier / / aujourd'hui / / demain / /'''
# zero / one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight / nine / ten '''zero / / un / / deux / / trois / / quatre / / cinq / / six / / sept / / huit / / neuf / /  dix / /'''
# eleven / twelve / thirteen / fourteen / fifteen / sixteen / seventeen / eighteen / nineteen / twenty '''onze / / douze/ / treize/ / quatorze/ / quinze/ / seize/ / dix-sept/ / dix-huit/ / dix-neuf/ / vingt/ /,'''
# twenty-one / thirty '''vingt-et-un / / trente/ /'''
# hour / day / week / month / kilometre '''heure/ / jour/ / semaine/ / mois / / kilomètre / /'''
# left / right / straight on / before/ after '''gauche/ / droite/ / tout droit / / avant / / après/ /'''
#  this / next / last '''ce/cette/ / prochain/prochaine/ / dernier/dernière/ /''' 
# often / seldom / never / long / short '''souvent/ / rarement/ / jamais/ / long// court//'''
# up / down / over / under '''en haut/ / en bas/ / dessus/ / dessous//'''
# How far is it (on foot)? / Where are we? '''C'est loin comment (à pied) ?/ / Où sommes-nous ?//'''
# How much does it cost? / What time is it? '''Combien ça coûte ?/ / Quelle heure est-il ?//'''
# We are looking for a place to sleep. '''Nous cherchons un endroit où dormir.//'''
# Where can we buy a ticket? '''Où pouvons-nous acheter un billet ?//'''
# Who? / What? / Where? / Why? / When? '''Qui ?/ / Quoi ?/ / Où ?/ / Pourquoi ?// Quand ?//'''
# How? / How much? / How long? / Which? '''Comment ?/ / Combien ?/ / combien de temps ?/ / Lequel : Laquelle ?//''' &lt;noinclude&gt;


[[Category:Templates]]&lt;/noinclude&gt;</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Шаблон:Phrasebook/Dutch</title>
    <id>1630</id>
    <revision>
      <id>18317</id>
      <timestamp>2008-02-07T18:28:17Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>work in progress...</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">=== Dutch ===
# Hoi
# Sorry,...
# Rijd u toevallig richting...?
# Kunt u mij misschien tot ... mee nemen? /      /
# - een tank station /    / een parkeerplaats?/     /  langs de snelweg /     /
# Is deze lift gratis? /     / Ik heb geen geld. /    /
# Spreekt u ...? /     / een andere taal /      /  Kunt u misschien iets langzamer spreken? /        /
# ja / misschien /            / nee, bedankt /   /
# Dat is fantastisch /    / perfect /  / slecht. /  / Geen probleem. /  /
# Ik versta u niet. // Geen flauw idee. /   /
# Ik ga naar ... /   / Waar gaat u heen? /     /
# Ik heet ... /   / Hoe heet jij? /   / Ik kom uit ... /                 / Waar ben jij vandaan? /    /
# Ik ben …. /    / Hoe oud ben jij? /   /
# Ik studeer... // Mijn vakken zijn… /    / Ik ben vierde/vijfdejaars student.  /      / Ik word leraar. /    /
# Ik heb een vriend/een vriendin. / / Ik ben getrouwd.
# Ik ga op vacantie. /    / Ik bezoek vrienden in… /    / Ik lift een beetje rond …  /    /
# Ik blijf voor … /    / Ik ga … terug./    /
# Pak me niet aan!/    / Laat me uit! /   / Stop! /  / Hulp! /  /
# Kunt u mij hier uit laten? /         /
# Bedankt! /  / Een fijne dag nog! /    / trip ! /  /
# Waar kan ik een ... vinden? /    /het stadcentrum /   / een kaartje /  /
# - een toilet /    / een supermarkt /    / de apotheek /   / een kampeerplaats
# - een internetcafe /    / een bankautomaat /   / een bank /  /
# - het metrostation /  / het busstation /  / het treinstation /  /
# - de snelweg naar  ... /   / een goede liftplaats /     /
# water /   / (kruidachtig) thee /    / warme chocomel /    / koffie /  /
# bier /  / (rood, wit) wijn /  / jus d'organge /  /
# vegetarisch /   / diner /   / brood /  / een goedkoop restaurant /   /
# Proost! /    / Enjoy your meal! /  /
# Ik heb honger /  / dorst/  / fijn /  / koud /   / warm /     / misselijk /         /
# noord/    / oost /    / zuid /    /  west /    /
# gisteren /      / vandaag /    / morgen /     /
# null /    / een /    / twee /    /  drie /    / vier /    / vijf /    / zes /         / zeven /    / acht /    / negen /    / tien /    /, 
# elf /         / twaalf/         / dertien/         / viertien /            / vijftien /            / zestien /           / zeventien /            / achtien /            / negentien /            / twintig /            /
# eenentwintig /              /, ... dertig/            /.  
# uur/            / dag/            / week /            / maand /            / kilometer /            /
# links /            / rechts /            / rechtdoor /            // voor /           / naar /            /
# deze/            / volgende /            / laatste /            /
# vaak /            / raar /            / nooit /            // lang /            / kort /            /
# op /            / /   naar beneden         / / over /            / onder /            /,
# Hoe ver is het (te lopen)? /                / Waar zijn wij? /              /
# Hoeveel kost het? /                / Hoe laat is het? /              /
# We are looking for a place to sleep. /                 /
# Waar kan ik een ticket gaan kopen? /                 /
# Wie? /            / Wat? /            / Waar? /            / Waarom? /            / Wanneer? /            /
# Hoe? /            / Hoe veel? /             /Hoe lang?  /             /Welke? /            /

 
 

I would like to have…

Do you drive in to the town or do you pass it?&lt;noinclude&gt;


[[Category:Templates]]&lt;/noinclude&gt;






&lt;noinclude&gt;


[[Category:Templates]]&lt;/noinclude&gt;</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Eastern Europe phrasebook</title>
    <id>1631</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35948</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-19T01:54:41Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Bodzioslaw</username>
        <id>1969</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* Polish */  introduction, new words, revision</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">This '''[[Eastern Europe]] phrasebook''' for hitchhikers is a work in progress.

== Eastern Europe ==
Russian is probably the most important language to learn. Many older people speak or at least understand Russian, especially when their mother tongue is a Slavic language. The second most important language is probably Polish, since it is widely understood in [[Czech Republic]], [[Slovakia]], [[Lithuania]] and [[Ukraine]].
 
=== Russian ===

# Hello = Здравствуйте (Привет) - '''Zdrastvuyte'''( more formal)/ Привет- '''Privet''' (more informal)
# Excuse me.. = Извините (Прошу прощения) - '''Izvinite / Proshoo(u:) proscheniya'''
# Do you possibly drive in the direction of ...? = Вы случайно не едете в сторону ...?- '''Vi edete v napravlenii …?'''
# Could I get a lift to...? = Вы можете меня подвезти к ...? - '''Vi ne mogli bi podvezti menya k …?''' 
# - a petrol station / a service area / a parking place? / along the highway = заправке / сервисной зоне / парковке? - '''benzopravke/ rayonu(u:) obsluzhivaniya/ parkovke/ pau(o:) doroge'''
# Is the lift free? / I can't pay. = Это бесплатно? / У меня нет денег. - '''Yeto besplatno?/ U(u:) menya net deneg'''
# Do you speak ...? / any other languages / Could you speak slower, please? = Вы говорите на ...? / других языках? / Говорите, пожалуйста, помедленнее. - '''Vi govorite na…?/ drugih yazikah?Govorite, pozhal(oo(u:))ysta, medlennee.'''
# yes / no / maybe / no thanks / = Да / Нет / Может быть / Нет, спасибо - '''da/ net/ vozmozhno/ net, spasibo'''
# That’s great / perfect / bad / no problem = Хорошо / Отлично / Плохо / Нет проблем - '''Yeto velikolepno/ otlichno/ ploho/ net problem'''
# I don't understand. / I don't know. = Я не понимаю. / Я не знаю. - '''Ya ne ponimayu/ Ya ne znayu'''
# I'm going to ... / Where are you going to? = Мне нужно в ... (Я еду в ...) / Куда вы едете? - '''Mne nuzhno v … /( Ya edu(u:) v…)/ Ku(u:)da vi edete?'''
# My name is... / What's your name? / I’m from... / Where are you from? = Меня зовут ... / Как вас зовут? / Я из ... / Откуда вы? - '''Menya zovut …/ Kak vas zovut?/ Ya iz.../Otku(u:)da vi?'''
# I’m ... years old. / How old are you? = Мне ... лет. / Сколько вам лет?- '''Mne … let./ Skol’ko vam let?'''
# I study.... / My subjects are... / I’m in my ... year. / I will become a .... = Я изучаю ... / Я изучаю ... / Я на ... курсе. - '''Ya izuchayu… / Ya izuchayu…/ Yan a … kurse.'''
# I have a boy-friend/a girl-friend. / I'm married. = У меня есть парень/девушка. / Я [male]женат, [female]замужем.- '''U(u:) menya est’ paren’/devushka. Ya(male) zhenat, Ya(female) zamuzhem.'''
# I’m on holiday. / I visit friends in... / I'm hitchhiking around... = У меня каникулы / Я еду в гости к друзьям в ... / Я путешествую автостопом. - '''U(u:) menya kaniku(u:)/ Ya edu v gosti k druz’yam v …/ Ya pu(u:)teshestvuyu avtostopom. ''' 
# I will stay for... / I’m going back... = Я проведу там ... / Я возвращаюсь ...- '''Ya provedu tam …/ Ya vozvraschayus’…''' 
# Don’t touch me! / Let me out! / Stop! / Help! = Не трогай меня! / Пусти! / Стой! (Останови!) / Помогите!-'''Ne troga(Λ)y menya!/ P(oo(u:))sti!/ Stoy!(Ostanovi)/Pomoghite!'''
# Can you drop me off here? = Вы можете меня здесь высадить? - '''Vi mozhete menya zdes’ vysadit’?'''
# Thank you! / Have a nice day/trip! = Спасибо! / Хорошей дороги! - '''Spasibo!/ Horoshey dorogi!'''
# Where can I find ...? = Как мне найти ...? (or just Где ...?) - '''Kak mne na(Λ)yti…? ( Gde?)'''
# - the city centre / a map = центр города / карту - '''tsentr goroda/ kartu(u:)'''
# - a toilet / a supermarket / a pharmacy / a campsite = туалет / супермаркет / аптека / место для палатки - '''tu(u:)a(Λ)let/supermarket/apteka/ mesto dlya palatki'''
# - an internetcafe / a cashmachine / a bank = интернет-кафе / банкомат / банк - '''internet-ka(Λ)fe/ ba(Λ)nkomat/ ba(Λ)nk'''
# - a metrostation / a busstation / a trainstation = станция метро / автостанция / вокзал - '''sta(Λ)ntsiya metro/ a(Λ)vtosta(Λ)ntsiya/ vokza(Λ)l'''
# - the highway to ... / a good hitchhikingspot = трасса в сторону ... / хорошее место для автостопа - '''tra(Λ)ssa v storonu(u:)…/ horoshee mesto dlya a(Λ)vtostopa''' 
# water / (herbal) tea / hot chocolate / coffee = вода / (травяной) чай / горячий шоколад / кофе - '''voda(Λ)/ cha(Λ)y/ goryachiy shokola(Λ)d/kofe'''
# beer / (red, white) wine / juice = пиво / (красное, белое) вино / сок - '''pivo/(kra(Λ)snoe, beloe) vino/ sok'''
# vegetarian / diner / bread / a cheap restaurant = вегетарианец / столовая / хлеб / дешевый ресторан - '''vegetarianets/stolovaya/ hleb/ deshoviy restoran'''
# Cheers! / Enjoy your meal! = На здоровье! / Приятного аппетита! - '''Na zdorovie ! Priyatnogo appetita!'''
# I’m hungry / thirsty / fine / cold / hot / sick = Я голодный / Я хочу пить / Я в порядке / Мне холодно / Мне жарко / Мне плохо - '''Ya golodniy/ Ya hochu pit’ / Ya v poryadke/ Mne holodno/Mne zharko/ Mne ploho'''
# north / east / south / west = север / восток / юг / запад - '''sever/vostok/yug/zapad'''
# yesterday / today / tomorrow = вчера / сегодня / завтра - '''vchera/ segodnya/ zavtra'''
# zero / one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight / nine / ten = ноль / один / два / три / четыре / пять / шесть / семь / восемь / девять / десять - '''nol’/odin/dva/tri/chetire/pyat’/shest’/sem’/ vosem’/ devyat’/ desyat’/'''
# eleven / twelve / thirteen / fourteen / fifteen / sixteen / seventeen / eighteen / nineteen / twenty = одиннадцать / двенадцать / тринадцать / четырнадцать / пятнадцать / шестнадцать / семнадцать / восемнадцать / девятнадцать / двадцать - '''odinadtsat’/dvenadtsat’/trinadtsat’/chetirnadtsat’/ petnadtsat’/ shestnadtsat’/semnadtsat’/vosemnadtsat’/devetnadtsat’/ dvadtsat’'''
# twenty-one / thirty = двадцать один / тридцать - '''dvadtsat’ odin/ tridtsat’'''
# hour / day / week / month / kilometre = час / день / неделя / месяц / километр - '''chas/ den’/ nedelya/ mesyats/ kilometr'''
# left / right / straight on / before/ after = налево / направо / прямо / перед / после - '''nalevo/ napravo/ pryamo/ pered/ posle'''
# this / next / last / = этот / следующий / последний - '''Yetot/sledu(u:)yuschiy/ posledniy'''
# often / seldom / never / long / short = часто / редко / никогда / далеко / близко - '''chasto/redko/nikogda/ daleko/ blizko'''
# up / down / over / under = вверх / вниз / над / под - '''vverh/ vniz/ nad/ pod'''
# How far is it (on foot)? / Where are we? = Это далеко (пешком)? / Где мы? - '''Yeto daleko(peshkom)? / Gde mi?'''
# How much does it cost? / What time is it? = Сколько это стоит? / Который час? - '''Skol’ko yeto stoit/ Kotoriy chas?'''
# We are looking for a place to sleep. = Мы ищем где можно переночевать. - '''Mi ischem gde mozhno perenochevat’.'''
# Where can we buy a ticket? = Где купить билет? - '''Gde kupit’ bilet?'''
# Who? / What? / Where? / Why? / When? = Кто? / Что? / Где? / Почему? / Когда? - '''Kto?/ Chto?/ Gde?/ Pochemu(u:)?/ Kogda?'''
# How? / How much? / How long? / Which? = Как? / Сколько? / Как долго? / Какой? - '''Kak?/ Skol’ko?/ Kak dolgo?/ Kakoy?
'''

=== Polish ===
It is polite to speak to an unknown person (specially older than you) using the forms &quot;'''pan'''&quot; (mister) for men and &quot;'''pani'''&quot; (mrs) for women.
# Hello - '''Cześć(informal) / Dzień dobry (good morning, good afternoon) / Dobry wieczór (good evening)'''
# Excuse me... - '''Przepraszam...'''
# Do you possibly drive in the direction of ...? - '''Czy jedzie pan/pani w kierunku ...?'''
# Could I get a lift to...?
# - a gasstation / a service area / a parking place? / along the highway - '''stacja benzynowa'''
# Is the lift free? / I can't pay.
# Do you speak ... (russian, english, german, french)? / any other languages / Could you speak slower, please? - '''Czy mowi pan/pani po ... (rosyjsku, angielsku, niemiecku, francusku)? / w jakimś obcym języku / Czy może pan/pani mówić wolniej?'''
# yes / no / maybe / no thanks - '''tak / nie / może / nie, dziękuję'''
# That’s great / perfect / bad / no problem - '''to bardzo dobrze / świetnie / źle / to nie jest problem'''
# I don't understand. / I don't know. - '''Nie rozumiem / Nie wiem'''
# I'm going to ... / Where are you going to?
# My name is... / What's your name? / I’m from... / Where are you from? - '''Nazywam się... / Jak się pan/pani nazywa?'''
# I’m ... years old. / How old are you? - '''Mam ... lat /''' 
# I study.... / My subjects are... / I’m in my ... year. / I will become a .... - '''Studiuję...'''
# I have a boy-friend/a girl-friend. / I'm married. - '''Mam chłopaka/dziewczynę. / Jestem żonaty/zamężna.'''
# I’m on holiday. / I visit friends in... / I'm hitchhiking around... - '''Jestem na wakacjach. / Odwiedzam przyjaciół w ... / Jeżdżę autostopem w ...'''
# I will stay for... / I’m going back...
# Don’t touch me! / Let me out! / Stop! / Help! - '''Nie dotykaj mnie! / Wypuść mnie! / Przestań! / Pomocy!'''
# Can you drop me off here? - '''Czy może mnie pan/pani wysadzić tutaj?'''
# Thank you! / Have a nice day/trip! - '''Dziękuję! / Dobrego dnia/Dobrej podróży!'''
# Where can I find ...? - '''Gdzie moge znaleźć...?'''
# - the city centre / a map - '''centrum miasta / mapę'''
# - a toilet / a supermarket / a pharmacy / a campsite - '''toaletę / supermarket / aptekę /'''
# - an internetcafe / a cashmachine / a bank - '''kawiarenkę internetową / bankomat / bank'''
# - a metrostation / a busstation / a trainstation - '''stacja metra / przystanek autobusowy / stacja kolejowa'''
# - the highway to ... / a good hitchhikingspot - '''autostrada do... / dobre miejsce do łapania stopa'''
# water / (herbal) tea / hot chocolate / coffee - '''woda / herbata / gorąca czekolada / kawa''' 
# beer / (red, white) wine / juice - '''piwo / (czerwone, białe) wino / sok'''
# vegetarian / diner / bread / a cheap restaurant - '''wegetarianin / obiad / chleb / tania restauracja'''
# Cheers! / Enjoy your meal! - '''Na zdrowie! / Smacznego!'''
# I’m hungry / I'm thirsty / I'm fine / I'm cold / I'm hot / I'm sick - ''' Jestem głodny / Chce mi się pić / Wszystko w porządku / Zimno mi / Gorąco mi / Jestem chory'''
# north / east / south / west - '''północ / wschód / południe / zachód'''
# yesterday / today / tomorrow - '''wczoraj / dzisiaj / jutro'''
# zero / one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight / nine / ten - '''zero / jeden / dwa / trzy / cztery / pięć / sześć / siedem / osiem / dziewięć /dziesięć'''
# eleven / twelve / thirteen / fourteen / fifteen / sixteen / seventeen / eighteen / nineteen / twenty - '''jedenaście / dwanaście / trzynaście / czternaście / piętnaście / szesnaście / siedemnaście / osiemnaście / dziewiętnaście / dwadzieścia'''
# twenty-one / thirty - '''dwadzieścia jeden / trzydzieści'''
# hour / day / week / month / kilometre - '''godzina / dzień / tydzień / miesiąc / kilometr'''
# left / right / straight on / before / after - '''lewo / prawo / prosto / przed / za''' 
# this / next / last - '''ten(m.)/ta(f.) / następny(m.)/następna(f.) / ostatni(m.)/ostatnia(f.)'''
# often / seldom / never / long / short - '''często / rzadko / nigdy'''
# up / down / over / under
# How far is it (on foot)? / Where are we? - '''Jak daleko (pieszo)? / Gdzie jesteśmy?'''
# How much does it cost? / What time is it? - '''Ile to kosztuje? / Która godzina?'''
# We are looking for a place to sleep.
# Where can we buy a ticket? - '''Gdzie możemy kupić bilet?'''
# Who? / What? / Where? / Why? / When? - '''Kto? / Co? / Gdzie? / Dlaczego? / Kiedy?'''
# How? / How much? / How long? / Which? - '''Jak? / Ile? / Jak długo? / Który(m.)?/Która(f.)'''

=== Czech ===

Czech is an incredibly difficult language to learn, but learn these few phrases and you will get around the country a lot more easily, especially outside cities.

Even names of towns can be pronounced incorrectly very easily. Consider the name of the town [[Olomouc]], which is pronounced ''ollo-moats''. For more information about pronouncing see the [http://wikitravel.org/en/Czech_phrasebook Czech phrasebook on Wikitravel].


I don't speak Czech - Nemluvím Český [naym-loo-veem ches-kee]

Do you speak English? - Mluvíte Anglicky? [mloo-vee-teh an-glits-kee]

Hello (formal) – Dobrý den [dob-ree den]

Hello (informal) – Ahoj! [a-hoy]

Help! – Pomoc! [poh-moats]

I understand - Rozumím [roz-oo-meem]

I don’t understand – Nerozumím [nay-roz-oo-meem]

It’s also worth remembering that in Czech the emphasis is nearly always on the first syllable of a word, and hardly ever on its second or third syllable.

'''Numbers'''
one - jeden / jedna / jedno
two - dva / dvě
three - tři
four - čtyři
five - pět
six - šest  
seven - sedm - pronounced &quot;sedum&quot; 
eight - osm - pronounced &quot;osum&quot; 
nine - devět
ten - deset
eleven - jedenáct 
twelve - dvanáct 
thirteen - třináct 
fourteen - čtrnáct  
fifteen - patnáct  
sixteen - šestnáct 
seventeen - sedmnáct - pronounced &quot;sedumnáct&quot; 
eighteen - osmnáct - pronounced &quot;osumnáct&quot; 
nineteen - devatenáct 
twenty - dvacet
twenty one - dvacet jedna
twenty two - dvacet dva
twenty three - dvacet tři 
thirty - třicet 
forty - čtyřicet 
fifty - padesát
sixty - šedesát  
seventy - sedmdesát - pronounced &quot;sedumdesát&quot; 
eighty - osmdesát - pronounced &quot;osumdesát&quot;
ninety - devadesát
one hundred - sto
two hundred - dvě stě 
three hundred - tři sta 
four hundred - čtyři sta
five hundred - pět set

# Hello - '''Ahoj (informal) / Dobrý večer (good morning) / dobrý večer (good evening) '''
# Excuse me... - '''promiňte'''
# Do you possibly drive in the direction of  Prague? - '''Jedete směrem do Prahy?'''
# Could I get a lift to ...? '''Můžete mne vzít ...'''
#    - a gasstation / a parking place? / along the highway - '''  k benzínce / na parkoviště / k dálnici '''
# Can you lift me to … for free? / I can't pay. '''Můžete mne vzít zdarma do … ? Nemohu to zaplatit.'''
# Do you speak a foreign language? / Could you speak slower, please? - ''' mluvíte nějakou cizí řečí? / Můžete prosím mluvit pomaleji.
# yes / no / maybe / no thanks - '''ano / ne / možná / ne děkuji'''
# That’s great / perfect / bad / no problem - '''to je vynikající / perfektní / špatný / to není problém'''
# I don't understand. / I don't know. - '''nerozumím / nevím'''
# I'm going to ... / Where are you going to? '''ja jdu do. kam jdete
# My name is... / What's your name? / I’m from... / Where are you from? '''Jmenuji se … / Jak se jmenujete? / Jsem z … / Odkud jste?'''
# I’m ... years old. / How old are you? - Je mi ... let/ Kolik je ti?
#  I study.... / My subjects are... / I’m in my ... year. / I will become a ....
# I have a boy-friend/a girl-friend. / I'm married.
# I’m on holiday. / I visit friends in... / I'm hitchhiking around... - ..
# I will stay for... / I’m going back...
# Don’t touch me! / Let me out! / Stop! / Help! - '''Nešahejte na mne! / Pusťte mě ven! / Zastavte! / Pomóc!'''
# Can you drop me off here? '''Tady mi můžete zastavit ?''' 
# Thank you! / Have a nice day! - '''Děkuji! / Pěkný den!'''
# Where can I find ...? - '''Kde mohu najít ...?'''
# - the city centre / a map - '''cetrum města / mapa ''' 
# - a toilet / a supermarket / a pharmacy / a campsite - '''záchod / obchod / lékárna / kempink'''
# - an internetcafe / a cashmachine / a bank - '''internetová kavárna / bankomat / banka'''
# - a metrostation / a busstation / a trainstation - '''zastávka metra / autobusová zastávka / vlakové nádraží'''
# - the highway to ... / a good hitchhikingspot - 
#  water / tea / hot chocolate / coffee - '''woda / čaj / horká čokoláda / káva'''
# beer / (red, white) wine / juice - '''piwo / (červené, bílé) víno / džus'''
# vegetarian / diner / bread / a cheap restaurant
# Cheers! / Enjoy your meal!
# I’m hungry / thirsty / fine / cold / hot / sick
# north / east / south / west - '''sever / východ / jih / západ'''
# yesterday / today / tomorrow - '''včera / dnes / zítra'''
# zero / one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight / nine / ten - '''nula / jeden / dva / tři / čtyři / pět / šest / sedum / osum / devět /deset'''
# eleven / twelve / thirteen / fourteen / fifteen / sixteen / seventeen / eighteen / nineteen / twenty - '''jedenáct / dvanáct / třináct / čtrnáct /patnáct/ šestnáct / sedmumnáct / osumnáct / devatenáct / dvacet'''
# twenty-one / thirty - '''dvacet jedna / třicet'''
# hour / day / week / month / kilometre - '''hodina / den / týden / měsíc / kilometr'''
# left / right / straight on / before / after - '''vlevo / vpravo / rovno / před'''
# this / next / last - '''to / další / poslední'''
# often / seldom / never / long / short
# up / down / over / under - '''nahoru /dolu/přes/ pod'''
# How far is it (on foot)? / Where are we? - '''Jak daleko je to(pěšky)? / Kde jsme?'''
# How much does it cost? / What time is it? - '''Kolik to stojí? / kolik je hodin?'''
# We are looking for a place to sleep.
# Where can we buy a ticket? - '''Kde si mohu koupit lístek?'''
# Who? / What? / Where? / Why? / When? - '''Kdo? / Co? / Kde? / Proč? / Kdy?'''
# How? / How much? / How long? / Which? - '''Jak? / kolik? / Jak dłuoho? / Který(m.)? / Která(f.)'''

=== Slovak ===
''(to be filled)''

=== Lithuanian ===

# Hello - '''Labas'''
# Excuse me.. - '''Atsiprašau ..''' 
# Do you possibly drive in the direction of ...? - '''Gal jūs vairuojate link ...?''' 
# Could I get a lift...? - '''Ar galėtumėte pavežti ...?''' 
## to a gas station - '''iki degalinės'''
## to a parking place? - '''iki automobilių stovimo aikštelės'''
## along the highway - '''palei autostradą''' 
# Is the lift free? / I (we) can't pay - '''Ar pavežtumėte nemokamai? / Aš (mes) negaliu (negalime) mokėti.''' 
# Do you speak ...? / any other languages / Could you speak slower, please? - '''Ar jūs kalbate ...? / kokią nors kitą kalbą / Atsiprašau, ar galėtumete kalbėti lėčiau?''' 
# yes / no / maybe / no thanks - '''taip / ne / gal / ne, ačiū''' 
# That’s great / perfect / bad / no problem - '''Puiku / Gerai / Blogai / Jokių problemų'''
# I don't understand. / I don't know - '''Aš nesuprantu. / Nežinau.'''
# I'm going to ... / Where are you going to? - '''Aš keliauju į ... / Kur keliaujate jūs?'''
# My name is... / What's your name? / I’m from... / Where are you from? -''' Mano vardas yra ... / Koks jūsų vardas? / Esu iš ... / Iš kur esate jūs?''' 
# I’m ... years old. / How old are you? - '''Esu ... metų amžiaus. / Kiek jums metų?'''
# I study.... / My subjects are... / I’m in my ... year. / I will become a .... - '''Aš studijuoju .... / Mano dalykai yra ... / Tai mano ... studijų metai. / Aš busiu .... pagal profesiją.'''
# I have a boy-friend/a girl-friend. / I'm married. - '''Aš turiu vaikiną/merginą. / Esu vedęs''' ''(woman should say'' '''Esu ištekėjusi''' '')''
# I’m on holiday. / I visit friends in... / I'm hitchhiking around... - '''Aš esu atostogose. / Lankau draugus ... / Keliauju autostopu aplink ...'''
# I will stay for... / I’m going back... - '''Aš busiu čia ... / Važiuosiu atgal ...'''
# Don’t touch me! / Let me out! / Stop! / Help! - ''' Neliesk manęs! / Išleisk mane! / Sustok! / Padėkit!''' ''(hope you never have to say that)'' 
# Can you drop me off here? - '''Ar galite išleisti mane čia?''' 
# Thank you! / Have a nice day! / Have a nice trip! - '''Ačiū! / Geros dienos! / Laimingos kelionės!'''
# Where can I find ...? - '''Kur galėčiau rasti ...?'''
## the city center - ''' miesto centrą'''
## a (city) map - '''(miesto) žemėlapį'''
## a toilet - '''tualetą'''
## a supermarket - '''supermarketą'''
## a pharmacy - '''vaistinę'''
## a campsite - '''stovyklavietę'''
## an internetcafe - '''interneto kavinę'''
## a cashmachine - '''bankomatą'''
## a bank - '''banką'''
## a metrostation - '''metro'''
## a busstation - '''autobusų stotį'''
## a trainstation - '''traukinių stotį'''
## the highway to ... - '''automagistralę link...'''
### a good hitchhiking spot - '''gerą vietą autostopui'''
## water - '''vandens'''
## (herbal/green/black) tea - '''(žolelių/žalios/juodos) arbatos'''
## hot chocolate - '''karštą šokoladą'''
## coffee / good coffee place - '''kavos / geros kavinės'''
## beer - '''alaus'''
## (red, white) wine - '''(raudono, baltojo) vyno'''
## juice - '''sulčių'''
## vegetarian (vegan) food / restaurant - '''vegetariško (veganiško) maisto / kavinę'''
## bread - '''duonos'''
## a cheap restaurant - '''pigų restoraną'''
# Cheers! -''' Į sveikatą!''' 
# Enjoy your meal! -''' Skanaus'''!
# I’m fine -''' Laikausi puikiai'''
# I’m... - '''Esu...'''
## hungry - '''alkanas'''
## thirsty - '''ištroškęs'''
## cold - '''sušalęs'''
## sweaty - '''suprakaitavęs'''
## sick - '''susirgęs'''
# north / east / south / west -''' į šiaurę / į rytus / į pietus / į vakarus''' 
# yesterday / today / tomorrow - '''vakar / šiandien / rytoj''' 
# ''Numbers:'' '''nulis 0 / vienas 1 / du 2 / tris 3 / keturi 4 / penki 5 / šeši 6 / septyni 7 / aštuoni 8 / devyni 9 / dešimt 10 / vienuolika 11 / dvylika 12 / trylika 13 / keturiolika 14 / penkiolika 15 / šešiolika 16 / septyniolika 17 / aštuoniolika 18 / devyniolika 19 / dvidešimt 20 / dvidešimt vienas 21 / trisdešimt 30 / šimtas 100 / tūkstantis 1'000 '''
# hour / day / week / month / kilometre - '''valanda / diena / savaitė / mėnnuo / kilometras'''
# left / right / straight on / before/ after this / next / last - '''kairė / dešinė / tiesiai / prieš / po (už) / kitas / paskutinis''' 
# often / seldom / never / long / short - '''dažnai / retai / niekada / ilgai / trumpai''' 
# up / down / over / under - '''aukštyn / žemyn / virš / po'''
# How far is it (on foot)? / Where are we? -''' Kaip toli iki ten jei eiti pėsčiomis? / Kur mes esame?'''
# How much does it cost? / What time is it? - '''Kiek tai kainuoja? / Kuri dabar valanda?''' 
# We are looking for a place to sleep. -''' Mes ieškome kur pernakvoti.'''
# Where can we buy a ticket? - '''Kur mes galime nusipirkti bilietą?'''
# Who? / What? / Where? / Why? / When? - '''Kas? / Kas? / Kur? / Kodėl? / Kada?''' 
# How? / How much? / How long? / Which? - '''Kaip? / Kiek? / Kaip ilgai? / Kuris?'''

=== Hungarian ===
'''Vocabulary'''
* Hitchhiking - stoppolás, stop [shtopolash, shtop]
* High-way - autópálya [autopaya]
* Petrol station - benzinkút [benzeenkut]
* Ring road - körgyűrű [koerdyuru]
* Map - térkép
* Bus stop - buszmegálló [bus-megh-allo]


'''Greetings'''
* Hello - hello, szia [seeya] 
* Good day - jó napot [yo napot]
* Good morning - jó reggelt [yo reghelt]
* Good evening - jó estét [yo eshtet]
* Goodbye - viszlát [whislat]
* Bye - viszlát, hello
* Thank you - köszönöm [koesoenoem] 
* Thanks - köszi [koesi]

'''Directions'''
* From - -ból, -ből [at the end of a word, like ''London''ból.]
* Towards - felé [eg. ''Budapest'' felé]
* Through - keresztül -on, -en, ön [eg. keresztül ''Pécs''en, keresztül ''Győr''ön] or át -on, -en, -ön [eg. át ''Budapes''ten]
* (To the) left - bal(ra) [bal(ra)]
* (To the) right - jobb(ra) [yobb(ra)]
* Straignt on - egyenesen (edyeneshen)

* Where are you going to? - Merre mész? [Merre mes?]
* I'm travelling to ... - ... felé megyek. [... fele medyek]
* Please, stop here - Állj meg itt, légyszi
* A bit further - Kicsit előrébb [kitcheet eloerebb]


'''General'''

# Hello - '''Hello'''
# Excuse me.. - '''Elnézést,...''' [al-neh-zesht]
# Do you possibly drive in the direction of ...? - '''Ugye ... felé mész?''' [uh-dje ... feleh mehs]
# Could I get a lift to...? - '''El tudnál vinni ...?''' [al tuhd-nahl vinny ...]
# - a gasstation / a service area / a parking place? / along the highway - '''- egy benzinkút '''[ehdj benzeenkut]''' / egy pihenő '''[ehdj pee-henoe]''' / egy parkoló '''[ehdj paarkolo]''' / az autópályán''' [az autopayahn]
# Is the lift free? / I can't pay.- '''Ingyen viszel?'''[Indjen whis-al]''' / Nem tudok fizetni.''' [nem to-dok fee-zet-nee]
# Do you speak ...? / any other languages / Could you speak slower, please? - '''Beszélsz... ? / Másik nyelven? / Kérlek, lassabban beszélj?'''
# yes / no / maybe / no thanks /- '''igen / nem / talán / nem, köszönöm'''
# That’s great / perfect / bad / no problem - '''Nagyszerű / tökéletes / rossz / nem probléma'''
# I don't understand. / I don't know.- '''Nem értem. / Nem tudom.'''
# I'm going to ... / Where are you going to?- '''... felé megyek. / Merre mész?'''
# My name is... / What's your name? / I’m from... / Where are you from?- '''...-nak hívnak. / Hogy hívnak? / ...-ból jövök. / Honnan származol?'''
# I’m ... years old. / How old are you? - '''... éves vagyok. / Hány éves vagy?'''
# I study.... / My subjects are... / I’m in my ... year. / I will become a .... - '''... -ot tanulok. / Tantárgyaim ... / ... évben vagyok. / ... leszek.'''
# I have a boy-friend/a girl-friend. / I'm married. - '''Van barátom/barátnőm. / Házas vagyok.'''
# I’m on holiday. / I visit friends in... / I'm hitchhiking around... - '''Nyaralok. / Barátokat látogatok ...-ban. / ... fele stoppolok.'''
# I will stay for... / I’m going back... - ''' ... ideig maradok. / ... megyek vissza.'''
# Don’t touch me! / Let me out! / Stop! / Help! - '''Ne érj hozzám! / Engedj ki! / Állj! / Segítség!'''
# Can you drop me off here? - '''Ki tudnál itt tenni?'''
# Thank you! / Have a nice day/trip! - '''Köszönöm! / Jó napot/utat!'''
# Where can I find ...? - '''Hol találom ...?'''
# - the city centre / a map - '''a városközpont(ot) / egy térkép(et)'''
# - a toilet / a supermarket / a pharmacy / a campsite - '''egy vécé(t) / egy szupermarket(ot) / egy patiká(t) / egy kemping(et)'''
# - an internetcafe / a cashmachine / a bank - '''egy internetkávézó(t) / egy bankautomatá(t) / egy bank(ot)'''
# - a metrostation / a busstation / a trainstation - '''egy metróállomás(t) / egy buszállomás(t) / a főpályaudvar(t)'''
# - the highway to ... / a good hitchhikingspot - '''az autópályá(t) ... fele / egy jó stopphely(et)'''
# water / (herbal) tea / hot chocolate / coffee - '''víz / (gyógy) teá / forró csoki / kávé'''
# beer / (red, white) wine / juice - '''sör / (vörös, fehér) bor / üdítő'''
# vegetarian / diner / bread / a cheap restaurant - '''vega / ebéd / kenyér / egy olcsó étterem'''
# Cheers! / Enjoy your meal! - '''Egészségedre! / Jó étvágyat!'''
# I’m hungry / thirsty / fine / cold / hot / sick - '''Éhes vagyok! / szomjas / oké / hideg / forró / beteg'''
# north / east / south / west - '''észak / kelet / dél / nyugat'''
# yesterday / today / tomorrow - '''tegnap / ma / holnap '''
# zero / one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight / nine / ten - '''nulla / egy / kettő / három / négy / öt / hat / hét / nyolc / kilenc / tíz'''
# eleven / twelve / thirteen / fourteen / fifteen / sixteen / seventeen / eighteen / nineteen / twenty - '''tizenegy / tizenkettő / tizenhárom / tizennégy / tizenöt / tizenhat / tizenhét / tizennyolc / tizenkilenc / húsz'''
# twenty-one / thirty - '''huszonegy / harminc'''
# hour / day / week / month / kilometre - '''óra / nap / hét / hónap / kilométer'''
# left / right / straight on / before/ after - '''bal / jobb / egyenesen / előtte / utána'''
# this / next / last / - '''ez / következő / utolsó'''
# often / seldom / never / long / short - '''gyakran / ritkán / soha / hosszú / rövid'''
# up / down / over / under - '''fel / le/ felett / alatt'''
# How far is it (on foot)? / Where are we? - '''Milyen messze van (gyalog)? / Hol vagyunk?'''
# How much does it cost? / What time is it? - '''Mennyibe kerül? / Mennyi az idő?'''
# We are looking for a place to sleep. - '''Helyet keresünk, ahol alhatunk.'''
# Where can we buy a ticket? - '''Hol vehetünk jegyeket?'''
# Who? / What? / Where? / Why? / When? - '''Ki? / Mi? / Hol? / Miért? / Mikor?'''
# How? / How much? / How long? / Which? - '''Hogyan? / Mennyi? / Milyen hosszú? / Melyik? '''

=== Slovenian ===

=== Serbian/Croatian/Bosnian ===
The Serbian Travel Club offers a [http://www.serbiatravelers.org/en/index.php/basics/42-basics/414-serbian-phrasebook Serbian Phrasebook] as well as a [http://www.serbiatravelers.org/en/index.php/hitchhiking/489-hitchhiking-phrasebook special Phrasebook for Hitchhiking].

=== Bulgarian ===

=== Romanian ===
----

Romanian is one of the few non-Slavic East-European languages. It is related with French, Italian, Spanish etc. Speakers of one of these languages will find it easier to pronounce and understand Romanian.&lt;br /&gt;

[[Romanian phrasebook]]

=== Albanian ===

=== Greek ===

=== Turkish ===
Turkish is a bit hard in grammar and pronounciation but if you know some tips it's very easy.

Ş:sh Ç:ch

Merhaba - Hello(formal)

Selam - Hello(informal)

Afedersiniz - Excuse me

Evet - Yes Hayır - No Biraz - A little bit

Teşekkürler - Thanks Tamam - Okay

İngilizce konuşabilir misiniz? - Can you speak English?

Anlamıyorum - I don't understand

Bilmiyorum - I don't know

.........'a gidiyorum - I'm going to ........

Bu harika - That's great Çok iyi - Very good 

Sorun yok - No problem Çok kötü - Very bad

Benim ismim ....,sizin isminiz ne? - My name is ....,what's your name?

.... yaşındayım - I'm ... years old

Nerelisiniz? - Where are you from?

........'dan geliyorum - I'm coming from .....

Bekarım - I'm single Evliyim - I'm married

Erkek(M)/kız(F) arkadaşım var - I have a boyfriend/girlfriend

Bana dokunma! - Don't touch me! İmdat! - Help! 

Lütfen bana yardım edin! - Help me please!

Dur - Stop! İstemiyorum - I don't want

İnmek istiyorum - I want to get off

Burada inebilir miyim? - Can i drop off here?

Günaydın - Good morning İyi günler - Have a good day 

İyi akşamlar - Good evening İyi geceler - Good night 

Hoşçakal - Good bye Görüşürüz - See you

Water - Su Beer - Bira Wine - Şarap 

Meyve suyu - Fruit juice 

Ekmek - Bread Yemek - Meal 

Açım / susadım / üşüdüm - I'm hungry / thirsty / cold

....... nerede? / Where is ......?

Uzak mı? - Is it far? Yakın mı? - Is it close?

Doğu - East West - Batı Kuzey - North Güney - South

Uyumak için bir yer arıyorum - I'm looking for a place to sleep 

Ucuz - Cheap Pahalı - Expensive

Nasıl? - How? Why? - Neden? Who? - Kim?

Saat kaç? - What time is it?

Kaç para? - How much does it cost?

Numbers in Turkish

1-bir 2-iki 3-üç 4-dört 5-beş 6-altı 7-yedi 8-sekiz 9-dokuz 10-on

[[Category:Europe]]
[[Category:Phrasebook]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Northern Europe phrasebook</title>
    <id>1632</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35250</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T18:18:03Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">==Northern Europe==
Don't bother to try asking in Danish, Swedish, Norwegian or Finnish. Almost all people in [[Northern Europe]] speak English at reasonable level, and will be confused when you try to speak their language - and if you do speak it at a reasonable level, you won't need this phrasebook.

=== Danish ===

=== Finnish ===
# Moi | Hei //
# Anteeksi.. //
# Olisitteko mahdollisesti ajamassa X...n suuntaan? //
# Saisinko kyydin ...? / /
# - huoltoasemalle / / a service area / / parkkipaikalle?/ / moottoritien varteen / /
# Onko tämä kyyti ilmainen? / / En voi maksaa. / /
# Puhutteko ...? / / muita kieliä / / Voisitteko puhua hitaammin? / /
# Kyllä/ / Ei / / Ehkä / / ei kiitos / /
# Se on hienoa / / täydellistä / / huonoa. / / Ei ongelmaa. / /
# En ymmärrä. // // En tiedä. / /
# Olen menossa ... / / Mihin te olette menossa? / /
# Nimeni on ... / / Mikä sinun nimesi on (teidän nimenne on)? / / Tulen ...sta / / Mistä sinä olet (te olette)? / /
# Olen … vuotias. / / Kuinka vanha sinä olet? / /
# Opiskelen pedagogiaa. / / Opiskelemian aineita ovat… / / Olen neljännen / viidennen vuoden opiskelija. / / Minusta tulee opettaja. / /
# Minulla on poikaystävä/tyttöystävä. / / Olen naimisissa.
# Olen lomalla. / / Vierailen ystävien luon …ssa / / Liftaan ympäri … / /
# Aion viipyä … / / Olen menossa takaisin …/ /
# Älä koske minuun!/ /Päästä minut ulos! / /Lopeta! / / Apua! / /
# Jättäisitkö minut pois tässä? / /
# Kiitos! / / Hauskaa päivänjatkoa / / matkaa ! / /
# Mistä löydän ...? / / kaupungin keskustan / / kartan / /
# -vessan / / kaupan / / apteekin / / leirintäalueen
# - nettikahvilan / / pankkiautomaatin / / pankin / /
# - metroaseman / / bussiaseman / / juna-aseman / /
# - moottoritien ... / / hyvän liftauspaikan / /
# vesi / / (yrtti) tee / /kaakao / /kahvi/ /
# olut/ / (puna-, valko-) viini / / mehu / /
# kasvis / /diner / /bread / / halvan ravintolan / /
# Kippis! / / Hyvää ruokahalua! / /
# Minulla on nälkä / / jano / / hyvä olo / / kylmä / / kuuma / / kipeä olo. / /
# pohjoinen/ /, itä/ /, etelä/ /, länsi / /
# eilen/ /, tänään/ /, huomenna/ /
# nolla/ /, yksi/ /, kaksi/ /, kolma/ /, neljä / /, viisi / /, kuusi / /, seitsemän / /, kahdeksan / /, yhdeksän/ / , kymmenen / /, 
# yksitoista / /, kaksitoista / /, kolmetoista / /, neljätoista / /, viisitoista / /, kuusitoista / /, seitsemäntoista / /, kahdeksantoista / /, yhdeksäntoista / /, kaksikymmentä / /,
# kaksikymmentäyksi / /, ... kolmekymmentä / /. 
# tunti/ /, päivä/ /, viikko/ /, kuukausi / / kilometri / /
# vasemmalla/ /, oikealla/ /, suoraan edessäpäin / // ennen/ /, jälkeen/ /
# tämä/ /, seuraava/ /, viimeinen/ /
# usein/ /, harvoin/ /, ei ikinä/ // pitkä/ /, lyhyt/ /
# ylhäällä/ /, alhaalla/ / / yli/ / alle/ /,
# kuinka kaukana se on (kävellen)? / / Missä olemme? / /
# Paljonko se maksaa? / / Paljonko kello on? / /
# Etsimme nukkumapaikkaa. / /
# Mistä voimme ostaa lipun? / /
# Kuka? / / Mikä? / / Missä? / / Miksi? / / Milloin? / /
# Miten? / / Kuinka paljon? / /Kuinka pitkään? / /Kumpi? / /&lt;noinclude&gt;


&lt;/noinclude&gt;

=== Icelandic ===

# Hæ
# Afsakið
#
#
#
#
# Talarðu... (ensku = English) /.?./ Gætir þú talað svolítið hægar?
# Já / nei / kannski / nei takk
#
# Ég skil ekki. / Ég veit ekki.
# Ég er að fara í... / Hvert ertu að fara?
# Ég heiti.. / Hvad heitir þú? / Ég er frá... / Hvaðan ert þú?
# .?./ Hvað ertu gamall/gömul? (male/fem)
#
#
#
#
#
#
# Takk fyrir!
#
#
#
#
#
#
# vatn / te / súkkulaði / kaffi
# bjór / vín / safi / 
# grænmetissæta / .?. / brauð
# Skál!
# Ég er svangur/svöng (male/fem)
# norður / austur / suður / vestur
# í gær / í dag / á morgun
# núll / einn / tveir / þrír / fjórir / fimm / sex / sjö / átta / níu / tíu
# ellefu / tólf / þréttán / fjórtán / fimmtán / sextán / sautján / áutján / nítján / tuttugu
# tuttugu og einn / þrjátíu
# tími / dagur / vika / mánuður / kílómetri
# vinstri / hægri / áfram
#
#
#
# Hversu langt í burtu er það? / Hvar erum við?
# .?. / Hvað er klukkan?
#
#
#
#
#
# Hver? / Hvað? / Hvar? / Af hverju? /Hvenær?
# Hvernig? /

=== Swedish ===

# Hej
# Ursäkta
# Åker du mot...?
# Skulle jag kunna få lift till...?
# en bensinmack / en rastplats / en parkeringsplats / längs motorvägen
# Är det gratis? / Jag kan inte betala.
# Talar du...? / några andra språk / Skulle du kunna tala långsammare?
# ja / nej / kanske / nej tack
# Vad bra! / härligt / dåligt / inga problem
# Jag förstår inte. / Jag vet inte.
# Jag ska till... / Vart ska du?
# Jag heter... / Vad heter du? / Jag kommer från... / Vart kommer du från?
# Jag är... år gammal. / Hur gammal är du?
# Jag studerar.... / Mina ämnen är... / Jag är på mitt...(första, andra, tredje, fjärde) år / Jag ska bli...
# Jag har pojkvän/flickvän. / Jag är gift.
# Jag är på semester. / Jag ska hälsa på kompisar i... / Jag liftar runt i...
# Jag ska stanna här i... / Jag åker tillbaka...
# Rör mig inte! / Släpp ut mig! / Stanna! / Hjälp!
# Kan du släppa av mig här? 
# Tack! / Ha en trevlig dag/resa!
# Var kan jag finna/hitta...? 
# - centrumet / en karta
# - en toalett / en mataffär / ett apotek / en campingplats
# - ett internetkafé / en bankomat / en bank
# - en tunnelbanestation / en busstation / en tågstation
# - motorvägen till... / ett bra liftarställe
# - vatten / (ört-) te / varm choklad / kaffe
# - öl / (rött, vitt) vin / jos
# vegetarian / (ett) matställe / bröd / en billig restaurang
# Skål! / Smaklig måltid! 
# Jag är hungrig / törstig / (jag mår) toppen / kall / varm / sjuk
# norr / öster / söder / väster
# igår / idag / imorgon
# noll / ett / två / tre / fyra / fem / sex / sju / åtta / nio / tio
# elva / tolv / tretton / fjorton / femton / sexton / sjutton / arton / nitton / tjugo
# tjugoett / trettio 
# timma / dag / vecka / månad / kilometer
# vänster / höger / rakt fram / före / efter
# den/det här / nästa / sista
# ofta / sällan / aldrig / länge / kort
# upp / ner / över / under
# Hur långt är det (till fots)? / Var är vi?
# Hur mycket kostar det? / Vad är klockan?
# Vi håller på att leta efter någonstans att sova.
# Var kan man köpa biljett?
# Vem? / Vad? / Var? / Varför? / När? 
# Hur? / Hur mycket? / Hur länge? / Vilken?

&lt;noinclude&gt;
&lt;/noinclude&gt;

=== Norwegian ===

# Hei
# Unnskyld
# Far du til...?
#
#
#
# Snakker du...?
# ja, nei, kanskje
# Jeg forstår ikke / Jeg vet ikke

[[Category:Templates]]
[[Category:Templates]]
[[Category:Phrasebook]]
[[Category:Europe]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Africa phrasebook</title>
    <id>1633</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34593</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T16:01:36Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">In [[Africa]] the most useful languages are probably English and French. After that it depends on which countries you're going.

{{Phrasebook/French}}

=== Portuguese ===

=== Arabic ===

=== Bambara ===

=== Peul ===

=== Swahili ===

=== Afrikaans ===

{{Phrasebook/English}}

[[Category:Phrasebook]]
[[Category:Africa]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Asia phrasebook</title>
    <id>1634</id>
    <revision>
      <id>34638</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T16:09:06Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>Robot: Cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">==[[Asia]]==
=== [[Japan]]ese ===

=== Chinese ===
my limited knowledge of hitchhiking chinese. the problem is the pronounciation.
best 
ni chu nar le? where do you go?
wo chu ..... i go to....
meio chian no money...the only way i know to tell them that you are hitchhiking
gong lu high way
gao se gong lu expressway
zega /nega this/that
nar where

best option: let a driver who knows some english translate your most important phrases into chinese characters and show em.
[[User:Worldhitch|Worldhitch]] 17:45, 7 October 2007 (CEST)

=== Hindi/Urdu ===

=== Farsi ===

=== Thai ===

=== Vietnamese ===
{{stub}}

[[Category:Phrasebook]]
[[Category:Asia]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Southern Europe phrasebook</title>
    <id>1635</id>
    <revision>
      <id>18585</id>
      <timestamp>2008-02-28T16:00:36Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Platschi</username>
        <id>112</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>toc</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">This article contains hitchhiking phrasebooks for [[Southern Europe]].
__TOC__
&lt;small&gt;
&lt;table&gt;
&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Albanian}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Bosnian}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Catalan}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Croatian}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Greek}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Italian}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Macedonian}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Maltese}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Montenegrin}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Portuguese}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Serbian}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Slovenian}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td&gt;
{{Phrasebook/Spanish}}
&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;/table&gt;

[[Category:Phrasebook]]
[[Category:Europe]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Категория:Phrasebook</title>
    <id>1636</id>
    <revision>
      <id>35713</id>
      <timestamp>2009-07-10T23:49:44Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Lanigiro</username>
        <id>173</id>
      </contributor>
      <minor/>
      <comment>robot Adding: [[de:Kategorie:Sammlung von Redewendungen]]; cosmetic changes</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">&lt;!-- testing some things... (good!) --&gt;

[[Category:Equipment]]

[[de:Kategorie:Sammlung von Redewendungen]]</text>
    </revision>
  </page>
  <page>
    <title>Шаблон:Phrasebook/Spanish</title>
    <id>1637</id>
    <revision>
      <id>23107</id>
      <timestamp>2008-07-31T13:45:52Z</timestamp>
      <contributor>
        <username>Ataqlibert</username>
        <id>1502</id>
      </contributor>
      <comment>/* Spanish */</comment>
      <text xml:space="preserve">=== Spanish ===
# ¡Hola! / ¡Buenos días!
# Perdón...
# Va usted a ...?
# Yo podría ir con usted?
# gasolinera / / estación de servicio / / aparcamiento / / por el camino
# Es gratis? / / Es que no puedo pagar.
# Habla Usted ...? otros idiomas? / / Puede hablar más despacio, por favor?
# Si / No / Tal vez / No, gracias
# Muy bien / / Estupendo / / Mal / / No hay problema.
# No le entiendo. / / No sé. 
# Voy a... / / Adonde va Usted?
# Me llamo ... / / Como se llama Usted? / / Soy de ... / / De donde es Usted?
# Tengo ... años. / / Cuántos años tiene Usted?
# Estudio...
# Tengo novio/novia. / / Estoy casado/casada.
# Estoy de vacaci
