Night Riding the Trains of Europe
At 20 years old, I had one more year at university, a cheap RT charter ticket for 10 weeks in Europe and nary a plan nor obligation. I had a Eurail Pass, a backpack. a copy of Europe on 5 Dollars a Day and a rail map, and was off on my first big adventure, with a budget of little more than 5 dollars per day. (My Eurail Pass included one month of unlimited First Class travel for about $150.)
“Night Riding” on the Red and Cream of the legendary TEE was how I rolled. There was nothing like standing on the platform when that big TEE locomotive rumbled into the station pulling a full consist of TEE express coaches. Night riding most nights and exploring on foot by day gave me the time to meet people and discover new places. At the end of my day, I’d return to the train station, board the next express train to a new destination, or if I wanted to see more of the place I was in, travel to a destination 4-5 hours away, then return.
Unlike today, trains were not crowded then. Even the TEEs had empty seats and compartments. The three-wide bench seats faced one another and pulled down as a bed which filled the compartment. Night trains were less crowded, so I always had a First Class compartment “bed” to myself and would sleep like a baby to the sounds and motion of the train. A conductor might come through once or twice a night, I’d flash my train pass and go right back to sleep. When the sun rose, I could raise the shade, pull down the windows and ride with my head out the window.
Every day was an adventure. A few included:
Started talking to two young women on their way north from Copenhagen and the next thing I knew, we were all off to Narvic, Norway, above the Arctic Circle;
Met an American going to Med School in Spain, on his way to Majorca. He asked if I’d been there and whether I’d like to join him. Spent the next three days on the beaches of Majorca, sleeping on the floor of his house;
Joined a few guys heading to the German Grand Prix in Nürburgring. Slept on the ground and watched some of the world’s greatest grand prix drivers navigating turns on one of the most dangerous F1 courses; and
Jumped a train from Madrid going south to Algeciras, then took the ferry to Gibraltar, a little bit of Britain overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar. You could see Africa from the top of the rock.
I slept on trains three or four nights straight, then stayed at a hostel or cheap hotel to clean up, do my laundry, repack my bag and get one delicious night of sleep before hitting the rails again.
In my first Summer of Trains, I was writing and living my bucket list every day.
Details:
Daily Intake: a baguette, ham, cheese, chocolate, coffee, local specialties, an occasional brewery tour
Typical Day: Walk through the town, visit art museums big and small, and churches to see the amazing art – paintings, sculptures and frescoes studied in Art History
Best Non-Train Trip: Rhine Cruise from Koblenz to Mainz (then free on Eurail Pass)
Most Exciting Event: German Grand Prix at Nürburgring (before there were guardrails)
Best Accommodations: Catholic Youth Center, overlooking Lake le Léman and Mount Blanc, Lausanne ($2.50/night for private room)
Biggest Regret: Not taking the 50 cent ferry ride from Gibraltar to Morocco. (Who gets to visit a continent they’ve never seen for a dollar!)
Countries Visited: England, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Luxembourg, Monaco and Gibraltar (UK Territory).
Seriously? People really did bring chickens and other small animals on the local trains, especially in Italy and Spain.
The Trans Europ Express (TEE) was launched in 1957 to provide a network of fast, comfortable and primarily first-class trains across Europe, to compete with the growing air travel market, particularly for business travelers, by offering a convenient way to travel between major European cities. These very fast trains connected 80 western European cities — virtually without interruption at border stations. The TEE was innovative not only technically, but also in terms of design. The strikingly designed trains in red and cream livery contributed to the legend. It was the predecessor of high-speed rail travel available today throughout Europe.
