Archive: June 2011
Budapest – Munich – Zurich
The fun thing about night trains is that since you will be sleeping, you can be flexible and consider different routes: I board the night train from Budapest to Munich, on the way to Zurich. There’s a direct night train that departs Budapest each day at 18:05, arriving in Zurich at 6:05. [...] Read more
In Zurich
I hadn’t realized how beautiful Zurich is along the lake. Even in the overcast weather of the weekend, people spent the daylight hours outside along the water. Both the lakefront and Hauptbahnhof are the nerve center of Zurich, revealing two things: the people of Zurich appreciate nature, and appreciate their rail system. [...] Read more
Zurich – Munich – Budapest
The train ride from Zurich to Munich is amazing not only for its views, but also for its smell. The train meanders up close to farmlands and cows, proving a great trip for at least two senses (sight and smell), and sometimes for a third (hearing), as an occasional ‘MOO’ can be heard. [...] Read more
Budapest – Prague
I hear music coming from the earphone of a passenger next to me as the train departs Budapest. He gladly shares. It’s his Austrian brass band, and they had performed last week in Budapest. Read more
In Prague
The former Communist countries love their public swimming complexes. Each major city has at least one, if not several, of these complexes. Often open year- round, housing popular saunas and steam rooms during winter weather, the complexes open their outdoor lawns at the first rays of summer. In Prague, I visited the Plavecky complex, [...] Read more
Prague – Trutnov – Hostinne – Klasterska Lhota – Liberec – Jilemnice
I’m journeying into Bohemia to research my family history, but I could just as well be researching train culture. Leaving the cities (or the CITY, in the case of Czech), train culture changes dramatically. It feels a bit like journeying into Frontierland. Read more
In Hostinné
“I heard about you,” the woman who so kindly has been helping me with my family history in Hostinné says. “Yesterday, you were on the train, standing up, taking pictures, having fun.” Where her tone was between approving and disapproving, I couldn’t quite decipher. It struck me as an odd statement, [...] Read more
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