August 26, 2020 to August 27, 2020
A perilous voyage
Enough train changes to last me the rest of my life
[NB this will be a short entry as I pick it out on my phone. A fuller account - and better photos- will be filled in on my return]
After the always somewhat restless final day of work, I set off down the hill with the fully-laden - and worryingly heavy - Shift. I may regret taking that rye bread all the way to Germany (coals to Newcastle, if ever there was).
The train to London, and traversing the city via London bridge (this is not the famous one) went smoothly. Very good proportion of mask wearing.
Reaching the port at Harwich, I was jauntily informed by the train guard that the ferry was late. So it was: by two hours. My nervousness about connecting with trains the other side was somewhat assuaged by an entertaining chat I had with a Russian builder and a man who was transporting a cat- while on a folding bike.
Astonishingly, even at midnight I got a reasonable meal. Even more incredibly the ferry did make up the time as promised. As a kicker we flew through passport control - and by 8:30 I was at the metro.
Trains went swimmingly - I actually made up over an hour by jumping on earlier trains -until I made my third change, in Düsseldorf. A small delay to the 4 hour intercity led to a domino effect, and I missed my 5th and final change to Munich by minutes. Plan B was to take slower trains via Ulm - and this is where I currently am, on a rather tortuous stopper that will nevertheless get me into Munich just after midnight. The hotel’s expecting me, so should have a plush place to sleep tonight.
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I am fairly worn out, lifting the bike up stairs during tight changes has threatened to rupture me on a couple of occasions. No harm done though, and most importantly no troubles with crossing borders with the virus situation - and with reaching Munich I think I can call this an (exhausting) win.
Today's ride: 10 km (6 miles)
Total: 10 km (6 miles)
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3 years ago