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Interrail
  • Martin Davis

Interrail

A 23-day adventure by Martin Read more
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  • Trip start
    September 4, 2017
  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Copenhagen

    September 5, 2017 in Denmark ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Welcomed into the airport with a free coffee, nice first impressions of Denmark. Train into downtown Copenhagen and a walk to my hostel.
    Dumped my bag in a lock up and went straight to the hostel bar. Everyone hooked to their phones apart from one table, so went to that one and chatted with them all night. Germans, Americans, and an Aussie - all lone travellers. Everyone laughed at the Americans for Trump, then at me for Brexit ha.
    The hostel has a shared meal every night at 1830, a lovely idea to meet other people - it was Chili last night.
    Off to explore the city today.    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Probably the best beer in the world

    September 5, 2017 in Denmark ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Met someone on a walking tour of Copenhagen who lives in Bristol. Small world! Going for a beer with them later.
    Covered a lot of ground today - 13km.

    Copenhagen is the home of Carlsberg and it tastes so much better here.

    Was on the end of more Brexit jokes today - so I've now decided I'm going to say I'm Irish ha. A Texan got most of the stick today from everyone.

    Danish tour guide Magnus kept saying for us to have a Hygge (pronounced 'Hoogli') time whilst in Copenhagen. Loosely translated it means 'cosy'.
    He also said there is such fierce rivalry between Sweden and Denmark that in Ikea, everything has a Swedish name, except for the toilet brush and carpet which are Danish ha.

    The most famous landmark gets a lot of stick from the locals. They all say it is shit so i had to confirm this myself. It's a little mermaid statue. And it is quite shit ha!

    Went to a good viewpoint up in a tower today, everyone was picking out lovely cathedrals and great architecture. Me? I was scouting for the Parken Stadium, home of FC København. Found it.

    Off to Hamburg tomorrow.    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler
    1

    Train on a ferry

    September 6, 2017 in Germany ⋅ 🌧 17 °C

    Had breakfast at the hostel with my German friends heading for Sweden.
    Got on a train that itself got on a ferry. Still have no idea how it did that.
    Chatted with a lovely German lady on the train who wanted to practice her English.

    The German guy checking me in saw I was from Bristol and said Rovers or City. 20 minutes later we were still talking and a queue had developed behind me. Strangely he supports Berwick Rangers (the only English team to play in the Scottish leagues).

    Jumped on a couple of the commuter ferries to get a cheap tour of Hamburg from the harbour, only once I had spent 30 minutes figuring out how to use the metro to get there.

    Having a beer and some currywurst and resting my legs ready for another walking tour tomorrow.    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    When in Hamburg...

    September 7, 2017 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Eat a hambur..... oh. Tradition here is to have a fish roll down by the harbour. So that's what I did. 🐟
    Saw the sights of Hamburg today on a walking tour. Went up a massive Church tower to get a good view point. Only found out once I had got to the top that there was a lift. Wondered why no one else looked knackered. Got the lift down instead.
    The city hall had a WW2 bomb come through the roof but not explode, but was otherwise not hit during the war - while the rest of Hamburg was flattened. Mad
    Also Hamburg is apparently famous for a museum of miniature things. Checked it out. Turns out it is pretty good. Had a fully functioning miniature airport. Attention to details was mad. Also had a replica of the Hamburg stadium. Pretty sweet
    Prague tomorrow. 6h30m on the train. 🚂    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Beer cheaper than water in Prague

    September 9, 2017 in Czech Republic ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Yes really. It's £1.10 for half a litre. Safe to say I haven't really drank a lot of water so far. Arrived yesterday, dumped my bag and headed for a beer garden up in the hills overlooking Prague to meet everyone from the hostel.
    Had briefly met one person checking in so it was like looking for a needle in a haystack but found them somehow. Had a free dinner back at the hostel and then played drinking games before we headed off for a bar together.

    Today I spent the day with 2 Israelis and 2 Germans who I'd met on the walking tour and we explored Prague together. Meeting them later for a beer, and then heading for the biggest club in Central Europe. Prague is beautiful.    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Best hostel yet

    September 11, 2017 in Czech Republic ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Yesterday I had a good wander about, sweeping up the sights I hadn't managed to see yet. It was a slower pace though thanks to a large hangover from Karlovy Lazne (the 5 floor night club) with my friends from the walking tour.
    Chose a great spot for lunch overlooking Prague away from the tourists. In the evening everyone from the hostel got together for stew and then played a drinking game called spoons 🥄- great fun. A few more beers in the old square, you can have a decent night out with about £7 worth ha. Onto Munich today via Nuremberg.    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Willkommen in München

    September 12, 2017 in Germany ⋅ 🌧 12 °C

    So after a bus from Prague to Nuremberg and a delayed train (1hr) from there to Munich (I thought the Germans were efficient) I arrived at my accommodation.. The Tent, Munich. Yes it really is a tent. It's like a massive gazebo with about 200 beds in it. It's fully booked out for Oktoberfest which starts this Saturday. They only heat it over Oktoberfest though... last night was cold - I slept fully clothed.

    Apparently in leaving the door open to the tent it makes it warmer.. my arse. At reception they give you 4 blankets at check in but I got a further two because it was so Baltic.
    Anyway, I survived the first night and went to explore Munich by foot. I met a Scottish chap on the walking tour and after having seen all the sights, we took refuge from the rain in the Hoffbrauhaus, Munich. It was packed at 1pm.
    We had a couple of 1L steins and chatted with the locals, and a band from Argentina on a European tour. Rolling Stones are in town, along with Anderlecht fans.

    I managed to get tickets for Bayern Munich v Anderlecht in the Champions League, which finished 3-0. An early red for the Belgians meant the game was never in doubt. I was adopted by a group of Bayern fans in the Munich markets after they discovered I supported a lowly English football team. They took me for dinner and then got me to the stadium before insisting they paid for my metro trip home. Lovely blokes.

    Incredible stadium the Allianz Arena. Dead impressed.
    My last full day in Munich included heading to the Eisbach which is a natural wave that lasts all year round that locals surf. Really cool. Finished by watching the Champions League games in an Irish Pub.
    Salzburg tomorrow by coach. Vienna on the weekend    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Birthplace of Mozart

    September 14, 2017 in Austria ⋅ 🌧 9 °C

    Salzburg. A bit of a culture overload here. Seems to be full of Mozart nonces. A lovely city however. Arrived on the early coach from Munich which meant I had 3 or 4 hours to explore in the sun before the clouds and rain arrived. Some breathtaking views. I always like to check out viewpoints in a new city and these didn't disappoint.
    Took a funicular up to an old Austrian fortress where you have amazing views of Salzburg one side, and from the other you can see some incredible mountain ranges.
    Took the hostel receptionist's advice on the best place to get a proper schnitzel so had one of them. It's basically bashed, breaded veal. But very nice along with some cranberry.
    Also stumbled on another running race. The second of my travels. Inspiring.
    Train to Vienna tomorrow    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Under-dressed in Vienna

    September 16, 2017 in Austria ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Yesterday saw me arrive in Vienna at around 11, so I jettisoned my heavy rucksack and set off to see the sights. Everywhere you turn in the centre there are ridiculous buildings. Before the walking tour I had a traditional Austrian Käsekrainer. It's essentially a cheese filled bratwurst shoved inside a hollowed out baguette. Perfect!
    Met some other backpackers in the bar - one will be in Slovenia at the same time as me. Played giant jenga and took advantage of cheap happy hour beer.
    Today I walked around sweeping up the rest of the major sights of Vienna, before deciding spontaneously to head for the Opera house to catch a show. They sell cheap last minute standing tickets on the night for an otherwise sold out show. Shame Opera is shite. Nice building though. Left after an hour. Hilarious that I paid €3 and people sat in the row in front paid potentially over €100. Also I'm proud to say I wore my Rovers shirt into the Opera house whilst everyone else was suited and booted.
    Slovenia tomorrow and less than a week until HJ joins me in Venice :)    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Bleddy amazing

    September 18, 2017 in Slovenia ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    Met a guy (Tim) on the bus up from Bled train station to Bled who was from Nottingham. Turns out he was in Vienna the same time as me, went to the same Opera and got the same trains from Austria to Slovenia. But we only met at the end of our mammoth 7 hour journey.
    Hung out with him the first night in Bled and went to a local bar where Slovenia beat Serbia in the Euro Basketball Final on the tele. There were good scenes from the locals.

    Monday I took an early bus to the other more unspoiled lake nearby, Bohinj. Hiked around it and after some initial torrential rain, the clouds cleared. Back in Bled I walked around that lake too with a friend I had met whilst in Prague, and we managed to get up to the viewpoint before it started raining. Got some great photos.

    In the evening I booked up to go on a day excursion with Tim and 6 others around the Triglav national park. With constant rain forecast all day for Tuesday, we thought it would be far better than sitting inside. Cracking first day in Slovenia. Love it here    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Soča

    September 19, 2017 in Slovenia ⋅ 🌧 0 °C

    Spent the whole day on a tour of Triglav National Park led by a Slovenian guide, Samo. Nice to have a break from big cities. The landscape of Slovenia is incredible.
    We started by trying to climb up one of the bigger mountains in the van, but it snowed so heavily that the very steep road was impassable - although Samo still tried to zig zag his way up whilst we all quietly shat ourselves that we would skid off the edge. Eventually he admitted defeat and turned round
    It was pretty wet all day but we didn't care, it made the rivers flow fast - which was great for white water rafting down the river Soča. Have never seen a river look so blue. An amazing experience and for a river that is normally full of other rafts, we had the whole thing to ourselves. My friend Tim filmed it on his GoPro. Couldn't stop grinning the whole time. We had multiple other stops at hidden spots including at a waterfall where the river was so full that we had to wade through the water to get to it. Then to finish we got on a car train which went through all the mountains instead of us having to drive around them. Much quicker.
    Samo took me to Ljubljana himself once he'd dropped everyone else off.
    Was welcomed to my hostel in LJ with a mug of hot wine. Perfect day    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Ljuvley Ljubljana

    September 20, 2017 in Slovenia ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    Spent one full day in Ljubljana before I set off for the coast of Slovenia to be by the sea. Did the usual walking tour which was great because LJ is so small. Really interesting to learn about how it used to be part of Yugoslavia and how they came to get independence.
    Spent the afternoon up at the Castle on the hill overlooking the city and then by the river with a local beer (Union) watching the world go buy in the sun.
    Had some traditional Slovenian dinner with friends I had made along the way during my travels who happened to be here also. English Tim from Bled and Aussie Sally from Vienna along with her friend. Then we went to an old squat turned trendy graffiti place where people hang out and drink beer called Metelkova.
    Piran tomorrow, which is a coastal town sandwiched between Italy and Croatia. Good weather is forecast finally!    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Piran

    September 21, 2017 in Slovenia ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    A quick stop in Piran before heading on to Venice tomorrow to meet up with HJ.
    Piran is a gorgeous little village on the tip of a narrow peninsula where, if you stand on the old city wall, you can see Croatia to your left and Italy to your right. A postcard perfect place.
    Spent some time walking around before I couldn't last any longer without a sea swim. Set up camp on the rocks of the harbour and had a lovely dip in the Adriatic Sea before drying off in the sun.
    Bought a couple of local beers and sat watching the sun set before heading away from the touristy restaurants to a local one further inland, where I had a belter of a tuna steak for dinner.
    I think Slovenia is my new favourite country.    Read more

  • Martin DavisInterrailTraveler

    Venice

    September 26, 2017 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    So the last leg of my inter rail journey. It started by meeting H at arrivals at the Venice airport and then heading out for a lovely meal together recommended by our air bnb host, whilst we caught up on lost time.
    On Saturday we followed our noses and wandered through the narrow streets and over the many bridges of Venice. We stopped regularly for a beer and some gelato and to watch the world go by.
    Sunday was spent mostly under umbrellas but we did more exploring and had another lovely traditional Venetian meal in the evening.
    Monday involved heading to an island off Venice called Burano, famous for its colourful houses, and then going up to the top of the Campanile in St Marks Square for a stunning view of Venice basking on the sun. We spent the afternoon perched by the Rialto bridge with a beer watching all the boats come and go. A lovely way to spend a few hours.
    Home today which marks an end to my inter rail adventure. :( I had a fantastic time. I made loads of brief friendships and met a few later on my travels. I took 2 planes, 7 trains, a ferry, 4 water taxis, 3 coaches, 4 buses, over 10 trams, a dozen metros and walked 412,841 steps (195 miles).
    On to the next adventure..    Read more

    Trip end
    September 26, 2017
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