Tag: Paris

Environment, Tourism, Travel

Thurso to Bucharest and back- the summary

Posted on by insightndes

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.

0
Travel

Paris to Inverness

Posted on by insightndes

Is it possible to get from Paris to Inverness in a day by train? Yes, and with only one change.

Paris to Inverness

It’s an early start but not overly early from the hotel. Onto the Gare Du Nord.

Loaded onto the Eurostar.
Leaving Paris
Speeding across France
Turbines in the distance.
Sunny with some mist
Some foggyness
Into Kent
St Pancras
Lunch or second breakfast at Giraffe , Kings Cross
LNER Train to Inverness
Loaded in the rack
Flat
Grantham
Still flat
Newcastle
Berwick on Tweed
Edinburgh
Near Linlithgow
Sun going down near Larbet
Near Dunblane
Near Auchterader
Perth – the motor mile
Inverness

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.

Soup
Main
Sleep
0
Travel

Linz to Paris

Posted on by insightndes
Sun catching the buildings early morning.
Linz HBF

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.

Frosty morning
Factory creating its own micro climate
Steam from factory
Mountains in the the distance
Approaching Salzburg
Leaving Saltzburg
Freilassing
Farm houses near Rosenheim, Germany
Coming into Munich
München Hauptbahnhof
The first leg of the trip done.
Leaving Munich
Amazing sunshine
Rides
River Iller?
Near Lindau
Bodensee

There follows a rapid set of border crossings. Germany into Austria into Switzerland. This happens skirting the edge of the Bodensee or Lake Constance.

It’s very green.
Bregenzer Acht
Farmhouse with chickens
The Rhine

Crossing into Switzerland

Bodensee near Rheineck
Bodensee in distance and we are climbing.
Flying the Swiss flag

Impressive buildings in St Gallen

Allotments on the approach to Zürich
Dog on train has been travelling for hours.
Zürich HB
The station is big.
TGV at Zürich

The next leg is the longest of the day on the very rapid TGV.

Gosken S-Däniken Nuclear Power Plant
Industry near Basle
Into France

The sun is going down.
Dijon
Gare de Lyon

The cycle across Paris is made interesting with the cycle ways being blocked by vans being used to pack away a market.

Accommodation
Food at a Lebanese restaurant

Four countries, four border crossings.

Bon nuit
0
Travel

London to Augsburg via Paris

Posted on by insightndes
It’s a grey morning.

A short walk to St Pancras station. As ever border control seems chaotic and the waiting area is packed and too hot.

St Pancras platform
Leaving St Pancras
Lunch under the sea.
Arriving in Paris
Gare du Nord
It’s not far to Gare de l‘est
Boarding at Gare de L‘Est
Heading out of Paris
The suburbs
The TGV is fast. It reached 319kph.
Supper
Arrived in Augsburg

Time for a quick late night tour.

Am Fischertor
Der Dom
Ibis am Hauptbahnhof

A pleasant but long day. Also confusing language wise. German, French, English (and some Polish) being spoken on the train. French bartender spoke to me in French until I hesitated ,then he switched to German.

0
Travel

Paris-London-Edinburgh

Posted on by insightndes
Hotel des Pyrenees, great location, crazy room shapes.
Street art in a tunnel next to the Seine- converted to pedestrian and cycle use.

Cycled to the Tour d’Eiffel. Paris is really cycle friendly and it turns out that this is a really good way to see Paris. I was surprised by the tunnel with the street art.

La Tour d’Eiffel
Armed military patrols around La Tour d’Eiffel
Time to kill before getting on the Eurostar at Gare Du Nord.
Église Saint-Vincent-de-Paul
View from Église Saint-Vincent-de-Paul
Sightseeing route
Catching the Eurostar at Gare Du Nord.

No Window seat on the Eurostar means it’s not easy to get pictures from the train.

Back at St Pancras
Next train is from Kings Cross

No seat booking but I am booked on the train. Stood up until we reached York.

North Sea
Berwick on Tweed

Edinburgh Waverley

0
Travel

Madrid-Barcelona-Paris

Posted on by insightndes
Through the blind of the sixth floor hotel room window

Not enough time in Madrid due to the late arrival and catching the 1030 train.

Parque de el Retiro. Beautiful and cool,
The super fast Spanish train

The next leg on the very fast Spanish service is not covered by Interrail. So had to pay for the ticket in advance on Trainline. But I had not realised that there is a baggage allowance. So I had to pay extra to get my luggage on the train.

Leaving Madrid
Super fast train

Changed to TGV at Barcelona,

View from upper deck of TGV
Arrived in Paris- Gare de Lyon
0
Travel

Madrid-Barcelona-Paris

Posted on by insightndes
Through the blind of the sixth floor hotel room window

Not enough time in Madrid due to the late arrival and catching the 1030 train.

Parque de el Retiro. Beautiful and cool,
The super fast Spanish train

The next leg on the very fast Spanish service is not covered by Interrail. So had to pay for the ticket in advance on Trainline. But I had not realised that there is a baggage allowance. So I had to pay extra to get my luggage on the train.

Leaving Madrid
Super fast train

Changed to TGV at Barcelona,

View from upper deck of TGV
Arrived in Paris- Gare de Lyon
0
Travel

Oxfordshire to Barcelona

Posted on by insightndes

A long way to go in one day!
Early start with the moon in the sky.

A revisit to Reading on the way to London.

Paddington nice and early.

Followed by an almost pleasant bike ride to St Pancras.

Stress at St Pancras as the gate for the 0701 Eurostar was closing. Still had a long wait on the train. Pleasant ride on the Eurostar but the electrical sockets don’t work. No matter, sure there will be opportunities later.


train

Arrived at Gare Du Nord

Ride across Paris from Gare du Nord to Gare de Lyon, followed by lunch, sightseeing, and a return to Gare de Lyon.

The ride from Paris to Barcelona was epic, long, fast and a good selection of French landscapes. Brits, Americans, Australians, Germans, French, Spaniards. A fun mix, and by the end of the journey we felt like we had experienced something together. Six hours travel time on the final leg of today.

0