Trier, Germany looked so good on paper. Our schedule called for us to be there from the 28th to the 31st of October. We were going to have this great room near the city center (from what we could tell on AirBnB). Can I just say I was disappointed both in the room – and in the city? The room’s listing boasted a designated work area with common areas, a kitchen and a private ensuite (means a toilet and shower that isn’t shared). Reality was a bed, a sink, a bathroom. Nowhere to sit; no chairs. The “kitchen” did have a sink and stove but no hot water kettle, paper goods or towels. The “common area” was a couch in the hallway between the other 4 rooms. The “designated work area” was a little table about 14″ deep and maybe 30″ wide against a wall, with a stool instead of a chair – and no electrical plug. Bogus. Nonetheless, the city did have some cool sights – like the original Roman Gate for the city, the Port Nigra, along with St. Peter’s Cathedral. But it wasn’t like most of the other cities we’ve visited. It seemed a bit dirty and unfriendly. My perception was likely colored by the misrepresented room and our interactions with the host (rude) of the room.
Trier to Hamburg was a long travel day (Oct 31st). We left Trier at 9:30 in the morning and arrived in Hamburg in the late afternoon, after a couple train changes. Hamburg was interesting. The city was huge! It was also incredibly busy and we landed in the midst of the deepest downtown area with lots of beggars, vagrants and pockets of men drinking and laughing. What we thought was a “private room” turned out to be a 4th bedroom in an apartment shared by 3 young men. And we were all sharing their one bathroom.
We were supposed to be in Hamburg for 2 nights on our way to Copenhagen, but we’d just gotten word via the Eurail app that there was a planned rail strike for Nov 3rd — 8th. Because we didn’t want to get stuck on the Europe side of the Channel up in Scandinavia, (and because rain was forecast for 8 days straight, virtually guaranteeing we wouldn’t see the Northern Lights), we changed the date for our Eurostar “Chunnel” pass. Instead of heading to Copenhagen on the 2nd as we’d planned, we hightailed it to Brussels on the 1st and spent the night in a pretty skanky last-minute reservation hotel, again in the graffiti-covered downtown. Then, on the 2nd (today) we headed to London from Brussels and then immediately from London to Edinburgh. So, for 3 days, we’ve spent most of those entire days on trains! We’ll arrive in Edinburgh late this afternoon and continue the last legs of our trip in the UK!
More to come . . .
Hi Rick! It’s been so much fun to read all your posts (and Sherry’s). As you mentioned in one of your writings, it’s all so overwhelming it’s often hard to take it all in. What an amazing gift for the two of you to experience together. Truly inspiring. I hope the rest of your travels are safe and wonderful. I sure hope you saved an “how-to” so we can someday duplicate this trip!!
Hi Nolann! So glad you’ve enjoyed our ramblings. We’ve been to so many places now and tried to take in so much that I’m just about to the saturation point. Each museum and gallery becomes just a bit harder to focus on. And I suspect it’s also because I’m getting a little antsy to be home. Yes, this has been an indescribable gift for Sherry and me to experience this together. It’s crazy. And beautiful. And no, I don’t think we could replicate the process! It’s been pretty random, and we’ve just gone from place to place, trying to decide where we want to visit next. And checking our Eurail passes to make sure we can get there and back 🙂
Oh my! So sorry this leg of the trip has been pretty grueling! I’m praying you’re able to enjoy your next stops and find rest along the way!
Hi Jana, It’s almost embarrassing to call this “grueling!” We’re traveling throughout Europe for goodness’ sake! We have been able to enjoy the stops and the hiccups as well. We’re learning that way too often things don’t work out like they were planned . . . and we’ve had to roll with the changes. It’s been a blast! Thanks for following and we’re so looking forward to seeing you in a couple weeks!