Köln to Brussels 🚅
Leaving Cologne, Germany at 9:42am (+02:00) on Tuesday the 16th of April 2024 and arriving in Brussels, Belgium at 11:35am (+02:00) on Tuesday the 16th of April 2024
I hope OBB reimburse me for this train
germany (16 out of 19)
- Traveled south by train through Sweden then spent a day in Malmo.
- Took the ferry to Germany for a day in Luebeck, most of day in Osnabrueck and a final travel day back home.
- Rested. Planted some flowers.
Munich to Köln 🚅
Leaving Munich, Germany at 3:16am (+02:00) on Tuesday the 16th of April 2024 and arriving in Cologne, Germany at 8:24am (+02:00) on Tuesday the 16th of April 2024
Replacement for vanished nightjet; conductor kind enough to let me travel without a ticket
Week in review: 27th March - 2nd April
Post created with https://apps.rhiaro.co.uk/no-ceremonies-are-necessary
🗁Added 18 photos to album Germany transit, March 2023.
The final leg. From Osnabrueck to Koeln Messe (a bit delayed). I walked across the bridge to Koeln Hbf, enjoying the sun and interesting architecture. I've spent a lot of time in Koeln airport bus station, but none in the city center itself.
I caught the next train to Brussels (delayed), and had time to march to the nearest place for an interesting vegan burger. Then back for the Eurostar. In London in time to catch an earlier train to Edinburgh than planned (and no issue with my seat reservation, or lack thereof, supposedly required with an interrail pass).
Then I had the genius realisation that I could grab the next train to Kirkcaldy on my interrail pass too, instead of waiting for the bus. I was also feeling a bit unwell and the bus all the way home from Edinburgh would definitely have finished me. I almost threw up on the 10 minute journey from Kirkcaldy train station to Dysart.
Anyway, I made it. It was good to be back in the hammock. But the whole trip immediately felt like a dream.
🗁Added 51 photos to album Germany transit, March 2023.
Breakfast and excellent conversation with my new hostel-dorm-friend J, before heading to the train station. Next stop: Osnabrueck (via Hamburg).
The sun was out, although it occasionally rained from nowhere. Another afternoon of wandering, although my energy was waning. The city was fine, with many interesting buildings, but not as nice as Luebeck somehow. Nowhere seemed to have wifi, except at the train station, which was excellent. I ate sweet potato waffles with not-feta at Snackwunder, and a tasty schwarma wrap at Gustav Grun.
🗁Added 94 photos to album Germany transit, March 2023.
After an uneventful ferry crossing, I arrived at the port of Rostock. Here, the bus ticket machines only accepted cash. Having just spent two weeks in Denmark/Sweden/Finland, I had forgotten what cash looks like. So I couldn't buy a bus ticket. Nothing bad happened. I made it to Rostock Hbf via a bus and an S-Bahn train (which I did buy a ticket for). I bopped around for a couple of hours, having breakfast at a bakery in a nearby shopping center. The toilets in Rostock Hbf cost money, but the ones in the supermarket at the shopping center do not.
Then I caught a (late) Flixbus to Luebeck. It dropped off right outside a stand with vegan currywurst, so that was the first order of business. It was a vaguely grey and drizzly but not too cold day. I walked along the river to check into my hostel - run by an anarchist queer feminist collective - which was a fantastic place.
I had another day of wandering on the agenda. I had delicioius Arabic coffee and hummus at My Hummus, then zigzagged my way through the old town, through small alleyways and around a great many churches. I went into the Hanse Museum, which was interesting, though I missed an opportunity to learn specifically about the role of Boston (UK) in Hanseatic merchant trading via the customisable interactive exhibit, as I accidentally told it to stick to Edinburgh instead.
I walked and sat in some parks. I bought marzipan, as apparently that's a thing in Luebeck. And ate dinner at Erdapfel, which has fancy vegan baked potatoes.
🗁Added 25 photos to album Copenhagen, March 2023.
The first legs of my journey to Finland: Edinburgh to Hamburg.
My first time on the Caledonian Sleeper, which even just for a (free, with interrail pass) seat was very spacious and comfortable, and came with all sorts of fancy things like earplugs. There are also vegan sausages on the breakfast menu. It's worth noting that the Sleeper website is quite ambiguous about which day an interrail pass needs to be active to be valid (departure or arrival day) so when I called (the only way to make a seat reservation with an interrail pass) I queried this; the staff weren't sure either, but as I wanted to take more trains on my arrival day they noted on my reservation that my pass is valid for the arrival day. I got no ticket, reference number or written confirmation of any kind, but when I arrived to board my name as on a list. Old skool.
This got me to London with enough hours to spare for a leisurely breakfast at Keystone Coffee near KGX, before the Eurostar to Amsterdam. In Amsterdam I had time for falafel, and then got on another train bound, I thought, to Osnabrueck, where I would change to another train for Hamburg.
It turned out that the line between the border and Osnabrueck had been closed for some time for engineering works, and the train was terminating early. I used the dB app to route around the closed bit of track, and alighted at Deventer.
Then to Enschede, and another change to Muenster, with a bit of delay. In Muenster everything was delayed by an increasing number of hours. I consoled myself with pretzel and coffee. Time passed and disgruntled passengers accumulated on the platform. Eventually the train to Hamburg-Harburg arrived, though one to Hbf wasn't far behind.. I contemplated waiting so I wouldn't have to change again, but after about 3 hours of delay I thought I should just get on the train that was there. It stopped on the track multiple times, and was delayed outside Bremen for ages. Eventually it gave up and terminated at Bremen. Everyone got off and got onto the InterCity to Hamburg Hbf which had caught up and been stuck behind us the whole way. Finally got into Hamburg after 2am.
I had a dorm bed in the Generator hostel right by the station. I sneaked in quietly to a bed with no pillow. Another dorm occupant decided 3am was a good time for the longest loudest shower in the history of humanity, followed by an hour of just-loud-enough to keep waking me prayer in a top bunk. So, not the best night's sleep ever.
The next morning I boarded the train to Copenhagen, and met several people who had been caught up in the same delays as me, and missed their onward connections, so Deutsche Bahn had put them all in a nice hotel overnight. More fool me my good planning with lots of buffer.
Bouncing around Europe
The plan was to visit every country in the EU (before March 2019 for reasons). The plan was to spend at least a month in each one, ideally in one place, and just kind of absorb the surroundings. I alternate remote laptop work with city wandering, rural hiking, chilling out with the kindle in parks, coffeeshops, and vegan cafes.
Things haven't gone quite to plan so far though. I've been pulled around by people and events, in no logical order. Not complaining, but I really need to slow down for a while.
My stay in Budapest was cut short on both ends, as at the beginning of March I had the opportunity to stay with Elizabeth and her family in Ljubljana for a long weekend. On the 21st of March, began a Vipassana meditation course in Mariazelle, Austria. I'd applied to sit, then agreed to serve when they emailed to say they were short-handed.
Dreading the complicated and lengthy public transport options to the Austrian mountains, at the last minute I managed to catch a ride with another meditation student from Budapest. I made no onward travel plans, guessing I could wing it at the end of the course; I wanted to be in Bratislava, but was confident I'd get a lift at least to Vienna.
I did. I slept almost the whole way and was surprised to find myself deposited in a random suburb around 11am. I metro'd to Erdberg bus station, which is not particularly well located. Oh also it was Easter Sunday. Nothing was functioning. No coffee, no food. The bus station was open, but their internet was down. Which meant... they couldn't sell any tickets. I was told to hang about half an hour, then buy a ticket from the driver on the next bus to Bratislava. The bus was full. Next bus in an hour. I went back into the station and it seemed that the internet was back on, and they were frantically selling tickets to frantic people. I joined a line. By the time I got to the front of the line, the internet was broken again. I asked after the nearest wifi hotspot, and was told to go to MacDonald's two subway stops away. That seemed like a hassle, so I wandered into the main bus pickup area, and hopped onto a FlixBus network for just long enough to buy a ticket for the next Bratislava bus with the Flix app, which I'd had the great foresight to download and hook up to my paypal right before I left the meditation center. Onwards.
Bratislava was a stop-gap. My next 'pull' was to meet my sister in Vienna. We hadn't seen each other for about three years, and she was over from the US for a conference. Her AirBnB was covered, so she agreed to let me sleep on the couch. Vienna is expensive, and spending a full two weeks there wasn't hugely appealing; hence Bratislava.
Good choice! I loved that city.
Vienna airport is about half way between Vienna and Bratislava in fact, so my sister caught a late bus after her flight landed and stayed in my AirBnBs for two nights in Bratislava. I packed a majority of my touristing in during the last two days of her visit.
We took a dead cheap and great quality Regiojet bus back to Vienna. We left our luggage in the FREE!!! lockers in the main Bratislava bus station for the first half of the day. I spent the week in Vienna working, indispersed with a little wandering and my first ~ ever ~ visit to a hair salon. There are plenty of vegan food options, including a bakery right in Stefansplatz metro station, though I mostly cooked in the flat. On my sister's free day, we hiked through vinyards to the eastern most foothill of the Alps (or something).
I caught an exceptionally good value Regiojet train to Brno, next. On the Vipassana retreat in Mariazelle I shared a room with P, who subsequently invited me to visit her in South Moravia any time. Since my next 'pull', a week after Vienna, was to Lyon for TheWebConf, and there are good Prague-Lyon bus connections, this is where I went next.
I spent a delightful week staying with P, her sister and parents in Hustopece. We synchronised our work hours, and when we were both free she took me to visit attractions in local villages, and for long walks in nature. We meditated together mornings and evenings almost every day. P is a yoga teacher; I joined her classes when there was space.
It so happened that P also needed to be in Prague on the 21st of April. We took the bus from Brno the night before, and stayed with her friend. In the evening we took a touristy river cruise, and went to Loving Hut. The next morning we walked from the suburbs to Prague Castle, and ate a good breakfast together.
I bussed to Lyon via Munich. The latter half of the journey was full of frustrated people, constant interruptions by the Swiss police, and general chaos. I didn't sleep much.
I have been to Lyon twice before, with my high school French exchange program. I've done the tourist things, though I don't remember them. I stayed with a friend, and mostly my time was filled with TheWebConf and trying to work. It was a hot and sunny week. I got to see a few people I haven't seen for a while and whom I was very happy indeed to spend time with. I almost didn't come to WebConf. France is the wrong direction. But I'm glad I did.
The week wound down quietly. With a late bus on Saturday night I spent the day between the library (wifi sucks, ports blocked), the river bank, YAAFA (no wifi, good falafel) and Perrache bus station (excellent wifi, seats, power).
I arrived to Munich bright and early, left my bag in a bus station locker, and explored.
Next stop Krakow, via another night bus. This time I was headed for a hostel, so I got to sleep in a bed. I explored the town center, and ate some good stuff. After brunch the next day I took a train to Gdynia. This was five hours, and much more expensive than Rome2Rio had led me to believe it would be, but such is life. I could've for half the price taken a 10 hour bus or a night train, but I kind of just wanted to be on my way.
In Gdynia my new landlady picked me up from the train station, I signed a one month lease for a room in a shared flat, and thus begins, at long last, the slowing down.
A day in Munich
Between night buses I spent a day in Munich. The medium sized lockers in the bus station are 2.50eur for 24 hours which seems like a pretty good deal. There was one left, so I left my backpack.
I ambled indirectly into town. Noticed I was in the vicinity of Max Pett, a fancy vegan restaurant. I didn't hold high hopes of it being open on a Sunday morning, but it wasn't much of a detour to go past. It was 10 minutes before opening! And they had scrambled tofu and baked beans! I ate a really delicious breakfast on a table outside in the sun, and stayed there for about three hours. Eduroam wifi reached, the staff were friendly, and did I mention the food was great. 15eur is usually a lot more than I want to pay for breakfast... but I managed to do enough work while I was there to break even.
I walked through the town center, taking pictures of churches and stuff, and generally enjoying the sun. There are a lot of green spaces. I stopped for an ice cream. Eventually got to the Bavarian State Library, which is very grand. There are large lockers in there too, and your 1eur gets refunded, so that's a good option in future.
I spent a few hours in the reading room, first hiding amongst the stacks on the floor and eventually at a desk.
By 1830 I started to think about food again. I'd been planning to go to Bodhi, near the bus station, but I'd planned this before the expensive Max Pett breakfast. I took a recommendation for Umi's cafe instead. Again I sat outside in the sun, and ate mushrooms and a giant spring roll from the salad counter, followed by a nougat tart. Not everything here is vegan (all vegetarian), but it's labelled well. I also had a really delicious almond milk iced coffee. And took some food to go.
I hauled myself back to the bus station and boarded a bus to Krakow. Feeling the effects of the previous night, even though I'd had two seats to myself and slept not terribly, I passed out almost at once.
Travel plan 🚅
Leaving Munich, Germany at 5:44am (+01:00) on Wednesday the 13th of May 2015 and arriving in Kufstein, Austria at 6:58am (+01:00) on Wednesday the 13th of May 2015
Munich Hauptbahnhof
Travel plan 🚅
Leaving Dusseldorf, Germany at 8:55pm (+01:00) on Tuesday the 12th of May 2015 and arriving in Munich, Germany at 5:02am (+01:00) on Wednesday the 13th of May 2015
Travel plan 🚅
Leaving Dusseldorf, Germany at 8:55pm (+01:00) on Tuesday the 12th of May 2015 and arriving in Munich, Germany at 5:02am (+01:00) on Wednesday the 13th of May 2015
Travel plan 🚅
Leaving Dusseldorf, Germany at 8:55pm (+01:00) on Tuesday the 12th of May 2015 and arriving in Munich, Germany at 5:02am (+01:00) on Wednesday the 13th of May 2015
Please please please let me post what I want, this time.
https://rhiaro.co.uk/Rheinturm
Longitude: 0
Latitude: 0
Free wifi (with mobile number), power socket, pretty quiet and ace views... Not bad for 6 Euros.