What important things should I know before I go to Europe?

Im going to Italy and France for my spring break trip. I will be leaving from the United States. Is there anything I should know and be prepared for when I go on this trip. Please include as much detail as you can. This is my first time going on an international trip, so I am very nervous.

I am going with the "EF Education Tour" group, if that helps you any =]

Oh, I was going to say be prepared to not sleep on the plane, because there may be some rowdy school group, then I got to the end of your question, so I figure you ARE that rowdy school group. (actually, it isn't always a school group, our last flight it was a very tired and very unhappy three-year-old child that made it impossible for the rest of us.) You won't sleep. You will be FAR too excited.

Listen to your tour guides and teachers. Follow the rules, you don't want to be having detention or worse when you get back because you did something you KNEW you weren't supposed to be doing. Don't go off on your own...keep a buddy, that way, if one of you panics when you realize there's no way you're going to make it back in time for....whatever, you have someone to hopefully, have a cool head.

Keep a cool head. Stuff will happen. Probably not too serious stuff, but stuff. We had a minor injury in the group I was teacher aiding on a few years back...nothing serious, but if a kid panics, everyone starts to...It was a minor cut that needed to be tended to for a couple of days, just so you know. Our bus also had a flat tire. Again, could have been bad if one of the kids had panicked.

Be careful of pickpockets. Keep money in small amounts on you, and be aware, especially in crowded situations, like the Coliseum, and the Vatican, the Louvre, etc. These places get crowded, keep a hand on your camera, and your money someplace safe, and difficult to get to. They like to slice open the bottoms of pockets, and stuff.

Ok, there's good stuff to be aware of too...You have to try cr猫pes from a street vedor in Paris. Don't buy a lot of silly souvenirs, go for stuff that you think the French would buy. And if you really think you want something, DO buy it, or you'll regret it later. Postcards. Definitely buy really pretty postcards. You can make collages out of them when you get home. I bought a set of really pretty similar artwork ones, that I plan to put into a big frame with a matte with windows for each one.

And TAKE LOTS OF PHOTOS. Bring extra "film" with you. You think that 1 GB card is enough? Probably not. Take three. And use high resolution for your images, because you never know how much you're going to want to crop down.

And bring your brain, because this could be one of the great experiences of your life, and you don't want to be forgetting half of it in the next few years.

And bring a journal. If you can force yourself to write in it, it will be a great memory for you in years to come. My mother threw mine away when she was moving...didn't realize what it was. I'm still mad at her.

Oh yeah, and Bonne Voyage! (don't know how to spell it right in italian.)

Try to learn a few phrases, like hello, goodbye, thank you etc. That way the locals will like you better, and you don't look like the typical American tourist, who nobody likes. Keep an open mind to other cultures and try to be a polite guest.
People are cooler in Europe in some ways. They aren't all caught up in fads and commercialism like American students are. Since they are laid back this way, you can relax and be yourself, and they will generally be open and friendly with you. Just don't waste your whole trip going around saying how everything is better in America, just because you can't get a Slurpy at 3:00 AM in most of Europe.

The one thing I always screw up is with the power and converters. I have ruined everything - camera batteries, hair iron, clothing iron, and I think I even broke my converter this last time. Def learn the correct way to use them before you go.

Don't be nervous, just be polite (embeddeddog's answer is good). And be aware of pick pockets in crowded touristed areas.

You are going to have an amazing time!

As a former EFer, I can only give you one piece of advice - burn the backpack that EF gives you. You will stand out like a sore thumb. It is orange and blue and possibly the most repulsive thing I have ever seen.

Ok, people's sense of humour may be very different from what you are used to so be careful to not offend anyone and try not to be offended by things people say.