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Published: July 30th 2013
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Prague Central Station
Look for train times on departure board. Today's blog starts with a random observation.
I am writing during breakfast, and the dude at the next table is the noisiest eater I have ever encountered. Each and every bite is announced with an obnoxious slurping sound (it's like a chimpanzee eating grapes). Ladies ... you know when you marry a guy and fix his wardrobe, but then after he looks presentable, he becomes resistant to the other ways you want to "change him." If he is a food slurper ... you need to nip it in the bud. Get on it ... report back!
I'm going to move tables now.
Ok ... I am back.
I would like to talk a bit about European train travel.
The Central Station in Prague is a 5 minute walk from my hotel. I climbed out of the shower about 15 minutes before departure. I toweled off, got dressed, walked to the station, took some photos for this blog, stepped onto the train, found a "non-reserved seat" (more on that later) and sat down. 2 minutes later the train pulled out and I was on my way to Budapest ... That my friends is a true story.
More Station
I even had a couple of minutes to take some photos. Here are some other observations:
1. With the exception of Warsaw Central Stations, which is a creepy Cold War relic, most central stations are new or massively-renovated facilities that make it easy for travelers to walk in the door, check the departure board and find their train. Even if you do not speak the language or are unable to guess at the language (Hungarian for example does not resemble any other "latin letter" language ... except, I am told, Finnish) it does not matter, because all you really need to know is the departure time. No two trains ever depart on the same minute, so even if you do not understand the city names on the departure board, if you know your train leaves at 8:33, then you climb on the 8:33 train, as opposed to the 8:32 train or the 8:34 train (my sister-in-law Jeanne is shaking her head right now ... it is unlikely she would ever be comfortable climbing on the 8:33 train, without first confirming the destination ... but honestly that is how it works).
2. You may have noticed that sometimes you get a couple of blogs in rapid succession, within a couple
of hours of each other. This is because I have been on a train for 4 or 5 hours and the trains are ... wait for it ... wi-fied.
3. I have a Global Eurorail Pass which allows me to travel anywhere in 32 European countries for one flat fee. Eurorail is not a train company. It is a service company. Eurorail has arrangements with all independent train companies in Europe, allowing Eurorail customers to ride those company's trains without payment of an additional fee. There are however, some caveats:
A. If you are over 26 and want a Eurorail Pass, you are required to buy a first class pass. First Class cars have some nicer amenities and the seating is 3 across rather than 4 across, but otherwise it differs very little from second class. If you are buying a single destination ticket or you are 26 or younger and buying a Eurorail Pass, save the money and go second class.
B. The freaking French ... As an alternative to a Global Eurorail Pass, you can also get "Regional Passes," "3-Country Passes," "2-Country Passes," or "1-Country Passes." These limited Eurorail Passes are significantly less expensive than
the Global Eurorail Pass, and are perfect for shorter trips confined to a specific region. Here's the rub ... as of January 1, 2013, France pulled out of the regional pass system. You can use Global Eurorail Passes in France, but NONE of the other Eurorail Passes work there. AAAGGGHHHRRR. This is hugely annoying and problematic. Try moving around western Europe without going through France! I discovered this problem when I was attempting to purchase a 3-country pass for Allie and Tyler. We could not make it work, and in the end we had to spend a bunch more money buying single destination tickets. The freaking French!
C. Reservations ... As I indicated, with a Eurorail Pass you just jump on the train and go. The risk is there may not be a reserved seat. It costs 3 Euro (about 5 bucks) to reserve a seat in advance. Early in the trip I would always check with the train company to see if a reserved seat was necessary. I would always get the same response ... "well there are seats available now, but we cannot guarantee seats will remain available, and if there are no seats you will have
to stand." LOL ... you have to admire the "up-selling." What I quickly figured out however, is that when you climb on the train, all of the reserved seats are marked for the conductor (sometimes there is a little screen that says "reserved" or "available for last minute reservation," and sometimes, on older trains, there is a slip of paper in a plastic holder above the seat that says "reserved"). If the seat is not "reserved," sit your butt down because you are good to go (use the 3 Euro you saved for a cold beer). I have yet to find a first class car that does not have available seats. I did notice, however, that on the Fast Train from Prague to Budapest there were many second class passengers were sitting on their bags in the areas where the train cars connect because they did not have reservations. It did not look super comfortable, especially since it is so hot, and those "connector sections" are not air conditioned. So if you are traveling by second class, maybe check online for available reserved seats, and if it looks tight, consider a reservation.
D. A Secret Way To Get Rid
of Unwanted Currency ... If you are a frequent reader of this blog you are aware of my frustration with all the different currencies (at this point I am up to 7). But ... I have discovered a partial solution to the currency problem. If a train is traveling through multiple countries, then the restaurant and/or bar car allows you to pay in the currency of any of those countries. So, if you need to dump some Hungarian Florents, plan on buying lunch or a couple of beers (in my case it is almost always a couple of beers) on the train and paying for them with Florents.
E. Smokers ... Smoking on trains in prohibited. I believe this is frustrating to the many, many Europeans who smoke. You should all quit by the way. It is really not good for you. Trains usually have multiple short stops on the way from one major city to another. For example, from Prague to Budapest there are maybe 6-8 stops. These stops are usually less than 2 minutes, just long enough for a couple of passengers to get off and a couple of others to board. As the train approaches these
short stops, smokers move to the doors, and when the train stops, they jump off, light up, and smoke until the departure whistle blows. Then they jump back on, their addiction satiated. Its a little nicotine ballet.
F. Multiple Stations In Really Big Cities ... Most European cities (even fairly large cities like Budapest and Berlin) have only one central mainline station. But the mega-cities, like London, Frankfurt or Paris have multiple mainline stations (London has 9). Make sure you know where you need to be. Often times, if you are changing trains, you arrive at one station and then you need to take a local train or underground to another station for departure.
Ok ... enough about trains.
For you Jacksgap fans, I could not have been more wrong about the big announcement. No "Amazing Race" for the twins (although I still think it is a GREAT IDEA). It turns out they are starting their own WebSite, called, unsurprisingly, www.jacksgap.com. So yet another lucrative commercial venture for the lads, who I am convinced are going to take over the world. Just a couple of thoughts. First, I liked the use of black and white in this week's vlog. Secondly, I always get a kick out of it when Jack calls Finn "Finney." I am not so enamored with "the Finnmeister." Also, for your reading pleasure I am attaching a link to a recent London Daily Mail article entitled "The Most Famous Twins You Have Never Heard Of." My favorite part was the twins' mom describing Finn's "lofty disdain" for his brother's antics.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2292586/Twintastic-Meet-YouTube-sensations-Jack-Finn-Harries-famous-identical-brothers-youve-heard-gap-year-blog-1-3m-adoring-subscribers.html
More from Budapest tomorrow.
JJF
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Sue
non-member comment
I love trains
See, it wasn't just for your birthday that I posted, I am reading your blog today! Anyways, these trains sure beat the Hiawatha (which by the way recently cut food service).