What can you see from the train when travelling in and out of London?
Turns out there are a lot of good views from the train, and when the sun shines the countryside and London can look amazing. It beats being stuck in traffic.
Another trip south by train, this time with bike. Arrived at the station to meet the train to Inverness. It was windy.
And sunny.
Getting on to the sleeper.
The sleeper was not taking its normal route meaning it arrived 40minutes later than normal. Much of the extra time was spent manoeuvring through London.
A ride through London taking 19 minutes to get from Euston to Paddington, five minutes of which was spent stationary at traffic lights.
Oh dear, the English and Union Jack Flags being inappropriately displayed in Didcot. Very disrespectful! What can be more disrespectful than cheap Chinese made flags looking scrawny and scruffy.
From bright sunshine and blue skies in the far north to cloud in the south.
That was an amazing trip to Oulu and back.
Negatives: getting food poisoning and train delays. Germany really struggles to get trains to go on time. Eurostar also had its issues. I did have a 77 minute delay on the sleeper to Stockholm, but that worked in my favour. The sleeper Stockholm was also too hot and the curtains were poor allowing flashes of bright light into the cabin while travelling.
Questionable things: seeing people smoke on train platforms in Germany was strange, and also a bit objectionable. The speed that cars drive at in Hamburg is ridiculously high and not suited to the roads. Also objectionable.
Positives: the trains in Finland, Sweden and Denmark were great, excluding the sleeper. In time. The rolling stock was high quality throughout including Germany. Met some great people. The cycle facilities in Copenhagen and seeing so many cyclists was incredible. We should be doing this in the UK.
Exceeding expectations: The ferries between Stockholm and Helsinki were amazing, good prices, amazing views, great facilities. Finland in winter, incredible, stunning snowy landscapes.
Tips:
Don’t plan to catch the last train of the day.
Don’t make connections too tight.
Travel in your sports gear, make it multi purpose. (Sensibly)
Travel as light as possible.
Plan for the weather.
Don’t arrive late and leave early, it’s exhausting.
Staying for more than one night is more pleasant .
Rucksacks are better than wheelie luggage.
Make use of the late checkouts in hotels.
Carry just in case food and drink.
Make use of sleeper services.
Double check reservations.
Download apps for local public transport. They can be used to get the correct tickets and give directions.
Double check routes given by apps, sometimes they are sending you to the wrong place.
If in doubt, ask a local.
Chat to people on the trains.
Use tracking apps so friends and family can follow your progress. It’s fun and good for safety.
Give someone your itinerary- routes, hotels etc.
Look at and enjoy the landscape, as you travel through.
I was fit to travel the next day. Decided to reduce the odds of missing connections by catching an early train than planned.
I was traveling to Cologne, we were told there had been a problem with the staff arriving from a previous train. The train departed 40 minutes late. Following the announcements was interesting, as one train to München leapfrogged the other. They were going different routes.
Had time to stroll to the cathedral.
And watch aircraft flying by.
Back to the next delayed train, again 40 minutes and a platform change. Now heading towards Brussels.
The lateness of the train meant that the comfortable cushion to get through border control was disappearing.
I discovered another issue. Somehow the Interrail app had booked the wrong date for the Eurostar, and I had not spotted this, so no seat on the train. Thankfully the very helpful Eurostar employee got me on with a ticket, which strangely had no meal guarantee written on it. I was not sure what this meant.
Then another delay, by possibly an hour, dueto problems in the Netherlands. This would make my next connection in London very tight.
We left 44 minutes late.
I pointed out my non guarantee of meal when I received this meal.
Not very large portion but ideal as my appetite was not back.
It was now dark so no pictures.
The reduction in delay from an hour to 45 minutes meant I made the Caledonian Sleeper well on time. A quick walk from St Pancras to Euston.
And next morning in the Highlands…
Then heading further north.
Almost home.
Catching my first Danish train, to Hamburg.
There is still some snow about.
Crossed from Fyn to Jutland. Back to mainland Europe.
We enter Germany, At the border I am asked politely by a policeman why I was going to Hamburg, how long I was going to be there and where I was going next.
Next it is a crossing of the Kiel Canal
The track loops round to gain height. Do we travel underneath the track that we will travel on.
Walked to the hotel.
I always wondered what would happen if I took unwell on one of these trips. I found out when I started feeling a bit strange. This progressed to a very unpleasant evening, I must have picked up some kind of food poisoning.
Would I be in a fit state to continue?
I am staying in a hotel where the room is modelled on a cabin.
It’s practical and located close to the station in the middle of the city.
I went off to get some food.
Heading to a restaurant in the meat packing district.
Copenhagen had proper infrastructure for cyclists. I came across a cycle flyover.
As I was walking I spotted a group coming out of a sauna and entering a swimming pool which still had some ice on top.
Next morning it was a stroll around Copenhagen to find some breakfast and explore.
And back to the hotel.
The number of cyclists in the city was impressive, taking cars off the street. Everyone was wearing their normal clothes. It was noticeable that the cyclists followed the traffic signals. I had to keep my wits about me due to high numbers of cyclists, although they all seemed very attentive and careful.
Oulu is sixty miles south of the Artic circle and is this year’s European City of culture. Consequently there is a lot happening, even in February.
I walked from the station to the island Pikisaari, where I was staying. Walking mainly on compacted snow.
Crossing over frozen waterways.
Passed the oldest restaurant, which is on Pikisaari.
Onto my accommodation, TurusenSaha.
There is a supply of socks, eating area and cooking equipment.
The socks must be for those who have under estimated how cold it can be- outside. Very thoughtful.
I had a walk back to the centre.
The market has a cafe, fish, meat shops and shops aimed at tourists.
After buying some provisions in a supermarket, I headed back to my accommodation. It’s now getting dark.
It’s all well lit up.
While walking back I spotted something strange.
What was going on?
Holes in the ice are being cut to provide the competition pool.
The next day I was out and about.
Headed towards Nallikari Beach from Pikisaari.
Cyclists are out despite the cold.
I went to see the ice sculptures that had been made the previous week. That must have been quite a spectacle when they were being made.
I walked down to the beach.
Where does the beach start and end?
I could tell when I was on the beach as the snow was soft.
I then started walking on the sea.
There were tents scattered around and one man was fishing in a hole. No idea if he caught anything.
Heading back to Oulu via Pikisaari island. The steam generating industry buildings in the distance looked very atmospheric.
After having a coffee in Oulu centre and buying some food I headed back. It was snowing.
If there is snow covering the ground for a large part of the year the markings on the ground will be covered. The solution is to project the markings on to the snow.
The compacted snow got a dusting of soft snow overnight making it harder going as I headed to the station.
Had a little wander through Stockholm which is based on a series of islands.
Decided to drop off my luggage at the hotel.
And continue exploring on buses.
It got very cold once the sun went down, sub 10 degrees centigrade. I looked for an underground station and really struggled to find the entrance despite using the SL app. I didn’t quite know what I was looking for, eventually found a very inconspicuous entrance.
I purchased a 24 hour ticket for the public transport which I made good use of. The SL app was useful for navigation and buying tickets.
I shared a cabin with five other travellers.
The train set off late evening? Travelling through Denmark in the early hours.
The train was a bit dated with a seventies vibe,
Now getting close to Stockholm,
It’s an early start to catch the 0816 Eurostar to Brussels. The ticket tells me to turn up at 0701.
Not off to a good start, there is a 24 minute delay. But this should not be a problem as there is plenty of time for the connection at Brussels,
We travel through Kent.
Difficult to get decent photos from the train in Kent.
Struggled getting decent photos in France too.
I checked the notice board for the train to Cologne. Spotted that there was an issue, it looked like the train was delayed and was leaving from a different station, Brussels-Nord. I confirmed this, and was told what train to catch.
The next leg is to Hamburg. This train is also delayed, by maintenance work on the track.
Insight 