Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
• Europeans write a few of their numbers differently than we do: 1 = , 4 = , 7 = .
• In Europe, dates appear as day/month/year, so Christmas is 25/12/14.
• Commas are decimal points and decimals are commas. A dollar and a half is $1,50,
one thousand is 1.000, and there are 5.280 feet in a mile.
• When counting with fingers, start with your thumb. If you hold up your first finger to
request one item, you'll probably get two.
• What Americans call the second floor of a building is the first floor in Europe.
• On escalators and moving sidewalks, Europeans keep the left “lane” open for passing.
Keep to the right.
Akilogramis2.2pounds,andlliterisaboutaquart,oralmostfourtoagallon.Akilometer
is six-tenths of a mile. I figure kilometers to miles by cutting them in half and adding back
10 percent of the original (120 km: 60 + 12 = 72 miles, 300 km: 150 + 30 = 180 miles).
1 foot = 0.3 meter
1 yard = 0.9 meter
1 mile = 1.6 kilometers
1 centimeter = 0.4 inch
1 meter = 39.4 inches
1 kilometer = 0.62 mile
1 square yard = 0.8 square meter
1 square mile = 2.6 square kilometers
1 ounce = 28 grams
1 quart = 0.95 liter
1 kilogram = 2.2 pounds
32°F = 0°C
When shopping forclothing, use these US-to-European comparisons as general guidelines
(but note that no conversion is perfect).
