I got to London from Sheffield an hour late due to terrible traffic. The driver was very apologetic and good humoured, which made the trip more bearable.
This photo is awful but it’s the only one from the bus.
I got off at Victoria feeling like I was starving and ducked out of the rain into a pizza place that promised real Neapolitan pizza.
Delivered! It was fantastic.
Also check out these fancy taps in the bathroom. Futuristic!
Feeling more at peace with myself and the world, I caught the jam-packed tube and then the Stansted Express and then taxi to the end. By the time I reached my quarters I did not feel particularly at peace with the world, more like a sardine that had spent too long in a can.
My accommodation for last night was pretty weird. I booked a place through booking.com that was in Takeley, a village very close to Stansted airport. It definitely didn’t look like a hotel and when I arrived it seemed to be a house made entirely of bedrooms. My room opened directly onto the back patio area, which had all the charm of a prison exercise yard.
‘Princess Rules’ is a pretty strange bit of decor in a room that’s probably most used by backpackers and low level business people.
In the morning I caught a local bus the one mile to the airport and met Danny, who had flown from Belfast. We haven’t seen each other in five years, although we talk many times a week over messenger. We both got married last year so I’m going to enjoy telling people about it and implying it was to each other, just to annoy him.
We quickly set about getting into trouble.
Well, Danny did. Then we had a glass of Prosecco at a bar while we waited for access to a lounge that Danny booked, where we could drink more Prosecco.
At the haunted bar, where a glass leapt off the bench and smashed for no reason because no one was anywhere near it. A terrible photo (post Prosecco) of the Escape Lounge, where we had three complimentary Prosecco and breakfast.The Ryanair terminal had its own special charm. I shouldn’t complain though, this was probably the best experience I’ve had with Ryanair… although it might’ve been all the Prosecco. Lesson learned! Ryanair plus four glasses of wine equals a tolerable experience. Boarding! It was windy.The final glass of Prosecco was accompanied by a large coffee on the flight.
We landed and saw our first shell, the symbol and marker of the Camino.
We caught the bus into Santiago de Compostella then bought a bag of strawberries to eat on the train. Danny smokes so he stocked up.
Next was the high speed train to A Coruna, where we were staying the night. It was a 30 minute walk across town to the apartment Danny had booked and we were very grateful to grab some bread, ham and tomatoes (to go along with some pilfered cheese from the airport lounge) and have a picnic at the coffee table before bed. we can head all the cafes and bars below are packed with people but we are so very tired!
Stairs in A Coruna.
Tomorrow we catch a bus to Ferrol to start our walk. wish us luck!
Well, things started out ok. I walked in the sunshine from my hotel the ten minutes to the station, only 30 minutes early for my train. I got some food from the handy shop adjoining the building.
Weird looking sheep!
I stood in the sun on the platform. For a regional station there was a surprising amount of art and interesting things along the platform.
It’s a cat curled up… although I could’ve found a better angle.A post carved with different languages but each statement was about peace.
Two trains were listed on the board, one for Manchester at 10:13 and one at 10:16. My ticket said 10:16 so I asked at the information counter and the lady said to wait for the 10:16. Turns out there was no 10:16 and I missed my train, despite being ridiculously early AND asking for clarification.
My face before I talked to the (dis)information woman.
I waited another 45 minutes for the next train, realising this was going to make me late so I phoned Rick (the widower of my second cousin, Angela… my second cousin in law?) to let him know I was going to be late.
I took a few more photos to pass the time.
Imagine if they put a plaque on every spot in the USA where someone was shot.
Eventually the train arrived and I went one stop to Lancaster to change for the train to Manchester, where I was going to change for the train to Whaley Bridge.
On the platform I talked to a lady who looked about my age but who was originally from South Africa. We had an interesting talk about places you feel connected to – she has lived in England so long she had an English accent and didn’t speak Afrikaans, so when she went back she didn’t feel like she quite belonged. I said I’d always felt a connection to Lancaster as I’d never stopped there but my grandfather was from that part of the world.
Anyhow, I’m sitting on the train to Manchester and the ticket collector very kindly let me off having a ticket for an earlier train and didn’t make me but a new one. I hope the collector on the next service is so nice!
I’ve entertained myself with marking a map of my travel in Cumbria. Green is walking, orange is public transport.
I had a quick exit from Heathrow after buying a new SIM card, probably from the exact same store I got my last one (sorry Charmaine, I forgot the one you gave me but luke will bring it) and then caught the tube to Kings Cross. It was a short walk of a couple of blocks in the rain to the Prince Arthur pub where I bought a large glass of wine, a packet of chips and sat in the cosy bar for a short while before heading to bed around 10.
If you like ties, old cameras or spinning wheels you’ll find a surprisingly wide collection of each dangling from the ceiling inside.
All the trains that go to the north west leave from Euston, which is almost next door to Kings Cross and St Pancras, and if you think I’ve spent enough time in London to be over the Monopoly board names you’d be sadly mistaken.
Getting my hopes up despite checking the radar.
I bought a sandwich to eat on the train, and as we pulled away from London the sun came out and the blue skies and green fields really lifted my heart. I’ve been feeling a bit anxious about all the travel and doing it solo, but being on a train and heading in the right direction with only a couple of hours to go I could feel myself relax.
The first sights of the fells brought a surprise – snow! Not an entirely welcome surprise, as I’d left my warmest coat at home. The air felt icy when I stepped out of Penrith station.
I walked through the rain to a camping goods store to buy fuel for my stove but they didn’t have the one I wanted. It wasn’t much of a loss since there’s no way I’m going to set up a tent in the current weather conditions. As I stood in the store planning my next move I looked out and saw it – SNOW!
I have made a terrible mistake.
So that was it, I booked a room in a pub in Askham, a little village outside Penrith, and called a local taxi to take me there.
The taxi was driven by Jacqui, and the taxi company is entirely comprised of Jacqui and her taxi😂. She turned up almost instantly, since she was dropping someone at the train station next door. We had a good chat on the way to Askham and I told her that I come from a family of taxi drivers. She gave me her card and I said I’d share it on the blog so here it is!
If you need a taxi in Penrith I’d highly recommend pre-booking, this lady is in high demand!
the room I booked is in a pub called The Punchbowl. There’s two other pubs in town but Jacqui said I’d picked the best. Phew!
If you’ve ever seen the movie ‘Hot Fuzz’ then you have a bit of an image of Askham. Not only did I have this thought but the guy behind the bar at my accommodation said the same thing. It’s extremely pretty, with swathes of daffodils on the village green and all very neat and tidy. It must be a popular spot in nice weather because I think I counted about 20 signs telling people where not to park. It wasn’t such a problem today of course.
I would’ve taken more photos but I was wearing gloves and it was raining sideways.
The highlight of the rest of the day was sitting by the bar in the Punchbowl and chatting to the bar staff and other patrons at the pub. One of the bar staff, Jack, is on his second last day here and we talked about proper cider, the joy of festivals and he showed me picture of his dogs, one of which is the size of a Shetland pony and does wear a Shetland pony’s coat when the weather gets cold. Speaking of dogs, more than ten came in at various times during the afternoon, none as big as a small horse, sadly.
I love the low ceilings and tartan carpet.
I had an amazing chicken pie for dinner, took a glass of wine up to my room and settled into a bath to relax before bed. Unfortunately the fire alarm went off and I had to jump out and dry off, burning myself slightly (and somewhat ironically) on the heated towel rail in my haste. It turned out there was no emergency and fortunately I didn’t have to stand in the car park for hours in the rain waiting for the fire truck to arrive, which is what would happen in Australia if a fire alarm went off for any reason.
So now I’m in bed, hoping for better weather but planning a trip by bus to Pooley Bridge and Penrith tomorrow if things don’t look good enough for walking.
Here’s a few photos of the room, just because I always like to remember what places looked like. Hopefully tomorrow I can get some decent photos of the village!
We had left ourselves a free day in Lauterbrunnen to see things in the area that caught our eye. First up was a Swiss culture festival that was being held up a nearby mountain.
We caught the usual assortment of trains and cable cars and arrived at Männlichen on a bright and sunny morning.
It turns out that there’s nothing but a hotel, playground and viewing point at the top, plus a herd of cows with bells to make it all one hundred percent Swiss. You could hear everyone stepping out of the cable car station making ‘oooh’ noises because the scene was just so pretty.
Wildflowers everywhere, snow-capped mountains all around and Grindelwald visible down the valley in the distance. We took some photos and had a wander then made our way to the hotel, where all kind of Swiss things were happening on the deck.
Alpenhorn!
Whip cracking demonstration. I don’t know if it’s actually easy or he was just really good at it.
We watched for a while and took some photos but it was all pretty similar to the music we’d seen in the last two days so we headed to our next activity, a cog-wheel train to Schynnige Platt. Even though this train had been on the map as an activity, it had looked pretty short and so we expected it to go to a low plateau where the Alpine Botanical Garden was reputed to be.
It turned out to be probably the most scenic ride we took in our whole time there! The sides of the little train were open, which meant it was much better for taking photos and videos (no reflection) and it took about forty minutes to get to the top.
There was not a whole lot there but we had a quick look at the Alpine Garden and then sat and had some lunch at the hotel. It was a perfect day with amazing visibility and pleasantly cool at that altitude.
If you go up Schynige Platt go to the top level of the hotel restaurant.
We had thought about trying to make it to Trümmelbach Falls afterwards but ran out of time so Luke visited them the next morning before we left while I packed my bag.
View from the Schynige Platt railway
We were very sad to leave the Bernese Oberland. By far our favorite place that we’d visited so far and it had raised a very high (unfairly high, some would say) bar for Geneva to reach. I don’t often go to countries and think that I would happily move there but Switzerland makes the list. One day we’ll come back and see it in a different season and visit more of its cities. One day!
One of the biggest tourist draws in this region is the complex at the saddle of the Jungfrau (young girl) and Monsch (monk) mountains. The buildings are reached by train from Kleine Scheidigg, a village high up in the Bernese Oberland. Another train is required from Lauterbrunnen to get to Kleine Scheidegg.
We rose at 6:15 to catch the first train, which left Lauterbrunnen at 7:07.
The train was almost full and it was the first one of the day! Mostly families and older people – I dare say not many young adults want to shell out the 200+ Swiss Francs that it costs to get here. With our Bernese Oberland Pass we rode free to Kleine Scheidegg and then 99CHF for the last section. Even at half price that’s 134 AUD. Steep in every sense of the word.
The train from Lauterbrunnen to Kleine Scheidegg was extremely scenic with little Swiss cottages and cows dotting the alpine scenery.
There was a bit of a mad rush to change trains and then the second section of the journey was almost entirely through a tunnel.
There is one stop before the top where viewing windows have been cut out and you can get off and look at the view for five minutes.
The Jungfraujoch station is underground and from there you can enjoy a range of thrilling attractions including a huge snow globe.
This sits in a tunnel lit with edelweiss flowers.
Weird but cute. There’s also some wooden statues in this long hall.
Then a ramp with a moving walkway that takes you past historical scenes and tributes to the workers who died during the construction of the tunnel. The whole thing was the brainchild of a Swiss millionaire who made his money on trains and wanted to achieve a great engineering feat.
There is a snow-carving gallery within the Aletsch glacier. It’s not very big but it is cute.
There are also several restaurants on different levels. We went to the cheapest and got hot chocolate in a paper cup for $10. Crikey!
The main reason for going to Jungfraujoch is undoubtedly the view so we’d been crossing our fingers all week as storms had been predicted and so far we’d only seen one shower.
Fortunately our luck held and the views were spectacular.
We’d taken warm clothes but I wish we’d had gloves. Still, we survived without and enjoyed ourselves. There is a section where you can walk out on the snow and even go for a hike but we weren’t prepared for that.
The viewing platform sits at 3571 metres above sea level, the highest either of us has ever been while still standing on the ground. Luke had a few moments of lightheadedness and I felt a little tingle in my legs but otherwise we were fine.
Last stop was a look through the world’s highest Lindt store. As we still have piles of chocolate from the class we did there was no need to buy anything.
We only stayed for an hour and a half but it was a spectacular 90 minutes and we were glad we went.
Back down to Kleine Scheidegg where we hopped aboard a train to Grindelwald, a town Rick Steves describes as tiny but which has grown hugely since he first visited.
The cog-wheel journey to Grindelwald is stunning.
The town of Grindelwald sits, as Lauterbrunnen does, in the shadow of large peaks, in this case the Eiger.
We hadn’t eaten much so we wandered up the main street to find some lunch. Everything looked expensive but we settled on a restaurant that did a cheap (ish) sandwich for 7CHF. But what sandwiches!
Also Luke kindly let me eat all his pickled onions and gherkins. What a gentleman!
Tired of hauling backpacks full of clothes around, we decided to head back to Lauterbrunnen and ended up having a nap, but not before seeing a noticeboard advertisement for some traditional folk entertainment at the local campsite. That was our evening sorted!
We wandered down to the campsite at about 6pm, keen to get a seat at the campsite restaurant as it had excellent reviews online.
We both ordered the small size of our chosen dishes.
Mac and cheese with potatoes, ham and a side of apple sauce.
We could’ve both survived off Luke’s plate for days.
We walked around the campsite for half an hour to aid our digestion and to ensure we didn’t fall into some sort of food coma, then it was time to grab a seat for the evening’s entertainment.
I assume this is the instrument you’re given in Swiss music classes if you can play anything else. Or maybe a punishment?
The choir sounded like the music from the Wes Anderson film, The Grand Budapest Hotel. One of our favourites!
All in all an outstanding day – hopefully the weather holds for our trip up Schilthorn tomorrow!
Here Comes The Planet 