Just an update - for those who are in the US and moving to Europe, it seems the Capital One No Hassles miles card is the best - with no foreign transaction fees and no annual fee! I'm not sure the money spent to miles conversion is the best but you have flexibility in getting free tickets on any airline. If anyone has had a bad experience with this card, let me know - but I'm going to give it a try as it seems the best option when coming from the US.

Thanks for all the input!