I live in Europe. It is quite possible to find free wifi in Europe as well. The problem is that, often, you are very unlikely to find free wifi as a tourist. Some ISP, most notably T-online, have made it into a business model to specifically target places where travellers are most likely to be for their paid network: train stations and airports, hotels, coffee and food chains, tourist places.

But if you go off the beaten track, you are likely to find a coffee or mall with free access. This is actually the main reason I have the Nokia: it is very useful to find such hot spots. It has very good sensitivity, so I switch it on and look for open networks. When I find a ssid which is also the name of a coffee, I know where to sit and order a cup.