Smoking Restrictions in Europe

Hello, fellow travelers:

We just came from trip to Europe, and our biggest disappointment is that
while in Europe we have had constantly endanger our health by breathing
second hand smoke because smoking in Europe is widespread and unrestricted.

For example, after arriving to Vienna, we found the air in the arrival area
full of smoke and hard to breath. Sure, there were signs restricting smoking
to specific places, but those places were not physically separated from the
rest of the airport, the ventilation fixture above was inadequate, and the
smoke freely spread thru the whole arrival area. We really expected better
from the city that prides itself with high sophistication of classical
music.

While in Europe, we experienced inconvenience of second hand smoke
everywhere. On some occasions we had to leave (more like run) in classy
restaurant when two or four people would take the next table and immediately
start puffing cigarettes or cigars.

We never complained to management because, it seams such unrestrictive
smocking is accepted as normal in Europe. But does it have to be like that?

Being from Canada, and non-smokers, we really enjoy the clean air and
smoke-free environment we have here thanks to our smoke-control regulations.

Do not Europeans understand that second hand smoke is dangerous?

Our desire to avoid endangering our health with second smoke may be the
reason we are very hesitant to travel to Europe again until they introduce
some reasonable smoking restrictions.

I am wandering what others feel on this issue?

Regards.

"vmkng3" wrote in message
...
Hello, fellow travelers:

We just came from trip to Europe, and our biggest disappointment is that
while in Europe we have had constantly endanger our health by breathing
second hand smoke because smoking in Europe is widespread and unrestricted.
snip
Do not Europeans understand that second hand smoke is dangerous?

Our desire to avoid endangering our health with second smoke may be the
reason we are very hesitant to travel to Europe again until they introduce
some reasonable smoking restrictions.

I am wandering what others feel on this issue?


We are both non-smokers (as in neither of us has ever smoked, period - and we're
both now retired.) and were pleased to find our first totally non-smoking
restaurant this afternoon. Most restaurants make some weak attempt at providing
a non-smoking area, but the problem I suspect is that the ventilation required
to make it work properly is rarely maintained. We did find a non-smoking area in
a restaurant in Northern Italy with totally separate areas for smokers and
non-smokers. Marvellous!
We used to eat out regularly some years ago, but gave up after my birthday
celebration was spoilt by a smoker lighting up at the far side of a Chinese
restaurant in Milton Keynes. Smokers simply don't realise how pervasive their
smoke is. And, managers of public houses and similar know that in the UK, they
get more sales if smoking is allowed. (Not to mention that much of our health
service is funded from cigarette taxes.)

The sad thing is that the totally non-smoking restaurant we found is located in
one of the major food supermarkets, where smoking isn't allowed anyway. Hardly
the place for a celebratory meal!

--
M Stewart
Milton Keynes, UK
www.megalith.freeserve.co.uk/oddimage.htm

"Malcolm Stewart" schreef in
bericht ...
"vmkng3" wrote in message
...
Hello, fellow travelers:

We just came from trip to Europe, and our biggest disappointment is that
while in Europe we have had constantly endanger our health by breathing
second hand smoke because smoking in Europe is widespread and
unrestricted.
snip
Do not Europeans understand that second hand smoke is dangerous?

Yes, we know that second hand smoke is a bit bad for your health. However,
Europeans value freedom and we don't like to be told what we can and can not
do. A little bit of second hand smoke will kill nobody. Live and let live.

Sjoerd (non-smoker)

"vmkng3" wrote:

I am wandering what others feel on this issue?

Some mind; some don't.

Very few people who post in threads such as this are temperate. Let's
sit back and enjoy the row.

--
PB
The return address has been MUNGED

"vmkng3" wrote in
:


Hello, fellow travelers:

We just came from trip to Europe, and our biggest disappointment is
that while in Europe we have had constantly endanger our health by
breathing second hand smoke because smoking in Europe is widespread
and unrestricted.

For example, after arriving to Vienna, we found the air in the arrival
area full of smoke and hard to breath. Sure, there were signs
restricting smoking to specific places, but those places were not
physically separated from the rest of the airport, the ventilation
fixture above was inadequate, and the smoke freely spread thru the
whole arrival area. We really expected better from the city that
prides itself with high sophistication of classical music.

While in Europe, we experienced inconvenience of second hand smoke
everywhere. On some occasions we had to leave (more like run) in
classy restaurant when two or four people would take the next table
and immediately start puffing cigarettes or cigars.

We never complained to management because, it seams such unrestrictive
smocking is accepted as normal in Europe. But does it have to be like
that?

Being from Canada, and non-smokers, we really enjoy the clean air and
smoke-free environment we have here thanks to our smoke-control
regulations.

Do not Europeans understand that second hand smoke is dangerous?

Our desire to avoid endangering our health with second smoke may be
the reason we are very hesitant to travel to Europe again until they
introduce some reasonable smoking restrictions.

I am wandering what others feel on this issue?

Regards.




When we were in Vienna we stayed at the Mariott, the manager remarked to
us that the once a week smoke free restaurant was always sold out, did
he jump to the conclusion that he could sell out other nights, NO, did
he even consider it, NO. He just didn't get it and neither do many.

For example, after arriving to Vienna, we found the air in the
arrival area full of smoke and hard to breath.

Say what? I just traveled to Vienna and found the airport as clean
(air-wise) as any other airport. You must have walked by a bar
with lots of active smokers. That is true of some airports in the
USA as well. Smoking was not allowed in the airport proper,
only in bars and specified places.


Casey

Do not Europeans understand that second hand smoke is
dangerous?

Yes, we know that second hand smoke is a bit bad for your health.
However, Europeans value freedom and we don't like to be told
what we can and can not do. A little bit of second hand smoke will
kill nobody. Live and let live.

Your comment concerning freedom is ironic, considering that
America (and our province to the north, Canada ..... JUST
KIDDING!) think of ourselves as the land of the free. Yet more
and more of us now choose to live in covenant controlled areas
where we have yet another government telling us what we can and
cannot do.

That said, you are forgetting something. You are correct that a
passenger walking through an airport will not suffer any health
problems from breathing some second-hand smoke, as he/she
is only exposed to it for a short time. But remember the people
working in the area who breathe the smoke all day long. There
are many studies showing that breathing second-hand smoke for
an extended period is definitely detrimental to good health.


Casey

"Sjoerd" staggered to the nearest keyboard
and wrote:

Yes, we know that second hand smoke is a bit bad for your health. However,
Europeans value freedom and we don't like to be told what we can and can not
do. A little bit of second hand smoke will kill nobody. Live and let live.

If I could cut through Sjoerd's typical self-righteousness for a
moment, one difference between the US and Europe involves the class
distinctions related to smoking. In the US smoking is more a
blue-collar ('working class') phenomenon. It is much less common to
find professional or highly educated people who smoke. As an example
see http://focus.hms.harvard.edu/2000/Se...o_control.html

In contrast, when traveling to Europe I've noticed there is less of a
class difference in smoking habits. Often I work with European
professors and senior staff who smoke, something that would be
relatively unusual in the US. As a result smokers have more political
representation in Europe so that smoking restrictions have not
progressed as far as in the US. Were Europe to develop class
associations with smoking similar to those in the US, I suspect that
Europeans would see greater restrictions on smoking, any professed
value on 'freedom' notwithstanding.

Full disclosu I used to smoke; I haven't for years; for me, being
exposed to secondhand smoke an annoyance but not a big deal (except
for having the odor in my clothes and hair).


--

"Darby Jo" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 17 Oct 2003 15:49:53 -0700, "vmkng3"
wrote:

We just came from trip to Europe, and our biggest disappointment is that
while in Europe we have had constantly endanger our health by breathing
second hand smoke because smoking in Europe is widespread and
unrestricted.
snipped for brevity
Our desire to avoid endangering our health with second smoke may be the
reason we are very hesitant to travel to Europe again until they
introduce
some reasonable smoking restrictions.

I am wandering what others feel on this issue?

I live in a state in the U.S. where smoking is prohibited in
government buildings. Also, in my city, smoking in restaurants
is prohibited except when the restaurant has physically separated
and separately ventilated smoking and nonsmoking areas. As a
nonsmoker, I appreciate this.

I live in a large populous state in the U.S. where smoking is
prohibited in all public buildings including all offices, shopping
malls, restaurants, bars, sporting arenas (both indoor and out)
and airports. (You can smoke in your own home, certain
hotel rooms and parking lots everywhere.) Having lived here
my whole life, I get spoiled, and notice smoke a mile away.

I like to travel to France, where smoking is acceptable virtually
anywhere. When I get off the plane at Charles de Gaulle (a
nonsmoking facility), the blast of stale smoke that hits me as I
walk through the hallways always lets me know I've arrived and
reminds me of the nonconformist attitudes of the French. I
can't say I enjoy it, but I would never dare dictate or even
request that they change their way of life. I also don't let it
keep me away--if the smoke bothers me, I usually try to go
outdoors to get away from it. In restaurants, I'll sometimes eat
early to avoid the majority of it.

Surprisingly, last fall, on a trip to France, going through
Charles de Gaulle and spending a few days in Paris, I
didn't notice people smoking. It was so rare I just didn't
see it. For most the trip I was on a bike tour in central
France that stopped and ate each night at a one star
Michelin restaurant. In every single restaurant there was
either a real nonsmoking room or the entire restaurant
was nonsmoking. (It would have been a shame for any
of those meals to be tainted with smoke, they were
incredible.) This last June we went to Rome, Sorrento
and London. Again, the smoke wasn't overwhelming.
Perhaps it was eating outside that the smoke dissipated
quickly, but we just didn't notice it. Or perhaps smoking
in Europe isn't as pervasive as it used to be.

Only you can decide if it's a big enough deterrent for you to
vacation elsewhere. If you wait for smoking restrictions to be
instituted, you might be in for a long wait.

Darby Jo

In article t,
"Casey" wrote:

There
are many studies showing that breathing second-hand smoke for
an extended period is definitely detrimental to good health.

What are some of them, and by who ?

jay
Fri, Oct 17, 2003


--

Legend insists that as he finished his abject...
Galileo muttered under his breath: "Nevertheless, it does move."