The far north is a joy when the views are clear and the days are long.
The breakfast did leave me hungry.
15 mins of delay at Waterloo due to incoming train being late, there was an obstacle on the line.
I had to get myself into the front five carriages as the train splits at Bournemouth.
I am about to start my minor backtrack.
The journey
The map taken from the Interrail app shows just how far the journey was, but misses the far north line and the detour to Oxfordshire.
From the Interrail app: 5784 km distance
15 trains on the Interrail ticket, 20 in total.
Seven countries.
Weather
Sunny almost throughout, but a big variation in temperature. Highest ,around 14 centigrade in Augsburg, lowest -10 in Bucharest.
Food
The food was good, but had to get creative in the meat centric countries. I had my first experience of a Lebanese restaurant in Bucharest, the very good Coin-Vert Libanez.
I had to fight through the snow and ice to get to it. A week later I had my second Lebanese restaurant experience in Paris.
Plenty of good food on this trip.
Hotels
I stayed in three Premier Inn plus rooms, three varieties of Ibis: budget, styles and no moniker, a Radisdon Individuals Schiller Park in Linz and Ramada by Wyndham in Bucharest.
Best bed:Premier Inn plus
Best shower: Premier Inn plus
Best view: Ramada by Wyndham
Best location: Hotel Schiller Park- in central location near the railway station.
Best breakfast: Ramada by Wyndham
Best rooms: Premier Inn plus
Most expensive: Premier Inn St Pancras
Best check out times: Ibis / check out by noon.
I like the simplicity of the Ibis Budget.
Locations
Both Augsburg and Linz were amazing places to visit. Smaller and not as busy as Vienna but interesting buildings and history. Bucharest lacked the beautiful buildings but the lake was beautiful.
Travelling by train emphasised the change in landscape and buildings. Farmhouses are tiny and ramshackled in Romanian but huge and well maintained in Austria and Germany.
People
As well as meeting the natives of each country that I visited I was surprised to meet people from so many other countries. I had conversations with Qataris, Russians, Albanians, Norwegians, New Zealanders, Moldovans, Canadians, Taiwanese and probably more. Talking to Austrians in German with their local accents was a joy, including a woman in her 90s from Vienna,
Cycling
Cycling was awful in Bucharest, but faster than cars. Driving in Bucharest also looks awful. Paris cycle way provision is good in Paris, but blocked by vehicles on the Sunday. Vienna was busy, Augsburg pleasant. I heard a tram hitting a car in Vienna and saw the massive crumpled side of the car, the tram just drove off. The closest I came to an accident was Inverness, where a car was being driven at 60 mph in a 30 zone, as I was turning right. The bike gave a good way to cross cities between stations and to get to hotels. It was also a great luggage trolley.
Yesterday there had been issues with the far north line, with rail replacement buses provided, but today the train seems to be running.
Due to the early start Premier Inn provided a pack breakfast.
The train arrives almost on time.
Is it possible to get from Paris to Inverness in a day by train? Yes, and with only one change.
It’s an early start but not overly early from the hotel. Onto the Gare Du Nord.
Arrived at Inverness just after 8 having left London at 12 and Paris at 9:10 French time. 90 minutes to change in London, but 12 hours to get from Paris to Inverness.
The train I was planning to catch already was delayed by 45 minutes, which was making the next connection tight. But I had arrived early at the station and so caught an earlier train, which way delayed by 7 minutes. It arrived on time to München.
There follows a rapid set of border crossings. Germany into Austria into Switzerland. This happens skirting the edge of the Bodensee or Lake Constance.
Crossing into Switzerland
Impressive buildings in St Gallen
The next leg is the longest of the day on the very rapid TGV.
The cycle across Paris is made interesting with the cycle ways being blocked by vans being used to pack away a market.
Four countries, four border crossings.
I start the visit to Linz with some food at a nearby Korean restaurant.
The next day I explore.
Back to the hotel for breakfast.
And then more exploration.
I think I can see the top of the steeple from my hotel window.
Interesting courtyards and passages off streets
More views
Time for refreshment.
And then have a trip on the Pöstlingbergzug. This heads from the Hauptplatz to the Pöstlingbergkirche. Which appears in my earlier photos on the other side of the valley.
And then out for dinner at a pasta restaurant which makes food to order-no waiters.
Trams
The temperature has climbed but it’s foggy in Bucharest
Cycling in Bucharest is awful, but faster than driving, bus or walking. Could the tram be faster?
I am told that I will be joined in the cabin at Timisoara, where we are due to arrive at 0716. I set the alarm for 0700.
The train is late at Timisoara, so could have had a longer lay in. I am joined by three Iranian students.
There’s a check before the border. The Iranians of course attract attention and my passport is checked.
Just over the border in Hungary there is a bit of a wait.
It seems that the rail operator has built in a big pause at the border, longer than our wait, so we are back on time.
Unfortunately no time to explore- on to the next leg.
There loads of wind turbines near the border on the Austrian side.
The train was 45 mins late to Linz. I managed to complete the journey within 24 hours, just. The total time on the train 23 hours.
A few pictures from Bucharest.
The Cara cu bere is a restaurant serving traditional food with something extra…..
The food:
One train, almost 19 hours..,,
I have a bed booked for the train. I have no idea of the quality of the accommodation.
Three of us sharing the cabin. So there followed a game of Jenga to fit everything in.
The train set off, crossing the border into Hungary just after half past nine, Austrian time. I slept through most of Hungary, but was woken up by shouting, possibly in Budapest.
We crossed in Romania at around 3:45.
It’s a long journey from the border to Bucharest, under bright blue almost cloudless skies.
Many of the houses are small but colourful.
It’s cold outside but looks dry with the grass parched.
I didn’t see any livestock, apart from close to houses. Presumably due to the grazing being poor at this time of year.
We start seeing snow.
The snow is getting thicker and the buildings have the look of a resort.
The journey flew past in a flash. I slept well, much to my surprise. I shared the cabin with an Austrian and a Romanian who works in Austria, but barely speaks German. They were good company.
Slightly uncomfortable ride across to the hotel, trying to use the smaller roads.
And time for a quick explore.
Arrived in Vienna in the dark.
It’s always unnerving cycling in a country for the first time. What is available in terms of cycle paths, how do the motorists behave. There are lots of good cycle ways in Vienna but I ended up on one road with no cycle path which was uncomfortable.
Looked for a restaurant close to the hotel and found..
Lovely food.
And next day..,
Then it’s back to the Hauptbahnhof.
Insight 