Had a few minutes to spare today and thought back to the first long distance train I and we travelled, and more important the reason for it. I thought it was a good general question for a thread here, so here goes...
What brought you to long Distance train travel?
I'll start this off
A way back I was facing a mid life crisis and needed a challenge, so decided to walk through various areas of France over 3 months. That was 3 months on my own carrying my own camping and other required bits and without any support except for 3 weeks out of 12 where my non athletic wife Rosie walked with me, her achievement was far greater than mine.
Ended at a small fishing seaside town Le Grau de Roi where at the lighthouse at the end of the quay that jutted into the Med Rosie and I opened a bottle of Champagne and shared it with a stranger.
We travelled back to the UK with first a bus to Marseilles then an overnight sleeper to Calais. Nothing remarkable you may say but Rosie and I were affected dramatically by the return trip each for our own reasons. She until recently taught 4-6 year olds and has the same wonder and approach to life as them, or as is possible for a grown woman. She found going to bed and being rocked to sleep, occasionally waking up when we stopped at stations with foreign names and then waking in full light in another type of world, northern France. To her this was an amazing feat almost beyond her imagination.
For me I had travelled at 3 mph for 12 weeks, no bursts of speed in anything mechanical except I rode a bicycle for 1/2 a day. I began to wonder during that walk at river barges passing me at maybe 10 mph if they were the larger powerful types, they increasingly appeared very fast to a walker.
Getting on the old country bus to Marseilles was astounding to me, we travelled at around 40 mph and this felt like the speed of light, I laughed a lot on that bus ride as I love speed and that felt FAST!
Then we boarded the train and the luxury of a real bed, fast gentle speed and sitting in a dining car on a seat to eat were amazing. Sitting at a table is not to be taken for granted after 12 weeks sitting or laying on the ground to eat or rest. We promised ourselves there and then we would travel by train a lot in the future but in particular on sleepers with dining cars, but life and stuff got in the way for more than 15 years.
Last year we managed our first sleeper since Marseilles - Calais, it was a now discontinued train Paris - Madrid. great cabin, crap beds, fabulous diner and a waiter that made our day.
Next up the Ghan and next Spring the first of two or three in the US, there's no stopping us now.
What's your story?
What brought you to long Distance train travel?
I'll start this off
A way back I was facing a mid life crisis and needed a challenge, so decided to walk through various areas of France over 3 months. That was 3 months on my own carrying my own camping and other required bits and without any support except for 3 weeks out of 12 where my non athletic wife Rosie walked with me, her achievement was far greater than mine.
Ended at a small fishing seaside town Le Grau de Roi where at the lighthouse at the end of the quay that jutted into the Med Rosie and I opened a bottle of Champagne and shared it with a stranger.
We travelled back to the UK with first a bus to Marseilles then an overnight sleeper to Calais. Nothing remarkable you may say but Rosie and I were affected dramatically by the return trip each for our own reasons. She until recently taught 4-6 year olds and has the same wonder and approach to life as them, or as is possible for a grown woman. She found going to bed and being rocked to sleep, occasionally waking up when we stopped at stations with foreign names and then waking in full light in another type of world, northern France. To her this was an amazing feat almost beyond her imagination.
For me I had travelled at 3 mph for 12 weeks, no bursts of speed in anything mechanical except I rode a bicycle for 1/2 a day. I began to wonder during that walk at river barges passing me at maybe 10 mph if they were the larger powerful types, they increasingly appeared very fast to a walker.
Getting on the old country bus to Marseilles was astounding to me, we travelled at around 40 mph and this felt like the speed of light, I laughed a lot on that bus ride as I love speed and that felt FAST!
Then we boarded the train and the luxury of a real bed, fast gentle speed and sitting in a dining car on a seat to eat were amazing. Sitting at a table is not to be taken for granted after 12 weeks sitting or laying on the ground to eat or rest. We promised ourselves there and then we would travel by train a lot in the future but in particular on sleepers with dining cars, but life and stuff got in the way for more than 15 years.
Last year we managed our first sleeper since Marseilles - Calais, it was a now discontinued train Paris - Madrid. great cabin, crap beds, fabulous diner and a waiter that made our day.
Next up the Ghan and next Spring the first of two or three in the US, there's no stopping us now.
What's your story?
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