Ljubljana to Karlshue
Thankfully the promised rain held off until I had made it to the pickup point for my GoOpti transfer and then it pelted down. It seems this is Ljubljana's way of welcoming and fare-welling me. The transfer was a bit late, but we made it to Trieste airport pretty close to on time. Then I stood in the open checkin queue for Lufthansa for a good 40 minutes, with very little progress.
We were a multi-nation queue of increasingly impatient people, but lacking a common language to successfully whine to one another. The French woman behind me went to three different counters, not Lufthansa counters 😳, to complain of the slow progress. Okaaay. Obviously I shared her frustration, but if she got any closer to attempting to push in front of me I was ready to drop the shoulder. Once through, I heroically survived having no lounge access for at least 30 minutes before departure.
Eddie and Lari were waiting for me at Frankfurt and it was oh so good to have such a welcoming committee. Okay, maybe it was a slightly hungover welcoming committee, but no complaints. Parked right outside was Lari's Audi SP3 Sports which OMG certainly has a tone and attitude. And a bit of speed. What a delicious car! Though I don't think I'd ever get comfortable with tooling along at 180kmp plus. I tried to act nonchalant and unconcerned, not sure I pulled it off. Don't think I screamed though, so points there.
Lari is an ATC and has lived in Karlsruhe for almost 10 years. Her apartment is fantastic, and she had recently repainted the (my) guestroom and purchased additional furniture for my anticipated stay. I didn't know she had done that, before I paid for 2 nights at a city hotel - non refundable. So along with the worthless Adria Airways ticket, I did a bit of doubling up on arrangements for Karlsruhe.
We went for a late afternoon walk to the castle/palace. What a wonderful free, open space surrounding it. Lots of paths, walks, riding trails and grassy areas, and all being happily utilised by the locals. Lari had made an apple tea cake, this was followed an hour or so later with antipasti, and Eddie made us pizzas for dinner - how wonderful to taste these again!
Next morning was a traditional Bavarian (?) breakfast of pretzels, white sausages with special mustard and a wheat beer. The white sausages certainly didn't look too appetising, particularly after removing the skin, but were delicious. I definitely would never have chosen them if I'd seen them on a buffet.
It was a public holiday and Lari drove us to Heidelberg for a wander and a bit of schnapps tasting and buying. I wanted to taste Hazelnut schnapps, remembering the potent brew gifted to us by Mal's rellies in 1987. The memory held up well, and I bought a bottle for Ed and Lari, and one to take home.
What a picturesque town it is. The rain held off nicely for our visit. We had coffee and cake, and Lari was terrorised by a wasp (which Eddie later drowned but we won't mention that). Back in Karlsruhe, we had super-sized Schnitzels for dinner, followed by wine and schnapps at home. Again, I slept like a log.
I loved these trees which appeared to have more leaves at the bottom, than the top.
Next morning I finalised my packing while the young'uns had another
sleep in. Lari made us an Austrian pancake-based breakfast, which was
definitely worth waiting for. Eddie and I got a tram to the train
station to secure my rail reservation, but disaster! it was sold out.
The staff member suggested we go to the platform and speak with the
conductor when the train arrived, to see if there were any cancellations.
While waiting for the train, I checked other options. The website
seemed to indicate all remaining trains to Paris that day and the next
were sold out. I was getting increasingly anxious and annoyed with
myself for not booking earlier. Although I had a paid Eurail 1st class
pass, reservations were required for these trains. I had been about to
book a few days prior, but held off when Eddie asked about timing and
said they were making plans for my visit. Totally my fault, and I
hadn't even considered the possibility it would be sold out. Eddie was the centre of calm and confidence, declaring it would all work out okay. It was so good to have his (unfounded) reassurances.
When the train arrived, Ed dashed on with my bag and motioned for me to follow when he spied some seating. Luckily this train had a dining car, and I nabbed one of these seats while Ed lifted my 23kg bag onto the overhead rack in the adjoining carriage. He gave me a quick kiss and dashed back to the platform. We decided that instead of speaking to the conductor, I'd just take my chances on being able to stay in the dining car. As the train pulled out and I waved goodbye, I had tears rolling down my cheeks. So sad to say goodbye so quickly, and knowing I probably won't see him again for 12 months. I was teary for quite some time, which I hadn't expected but perhaps the stress of no ticket added to all the emotion.
After 30 minutes, the conductor checked my Eurail pass and then of course asked to see my reservation. I explained staff at train station said it was sold out and that I should make my way to the dining car and speak to the conductor. I may have fibbed about the dining car bit, but with the exchange of 28 Euros, I was allowed to stay. What a relief. All that remained was to get a tall, muscly volunteer to get my bag down in Paris.
We were a multi-nation queue of increasingly impatient people, but lacking a common language to successfully whine to one another. The French woman behind me went to three different counters, not Lufthansa counters 😳, to complain of the slow progress. Okaaay. Obviously I shared her frustration, but if she got any closer to attempting to push in front of me I was ready to drop the shoulder. Once through, I heroically survived having no lounge access for at least 30 minutes before departure.
Eddie and Lari were waiting for me at Frankfurt and it was oh so good to have such a welcoming committee. Okay, maybe it was a slightly hungover welcoming committee, but no complaints. Parked right outside was Lari's Audi SP3 Sports which OMG certainly has a tone and attitude. And a bit of speed. What a delicious car! Though I don't think I'd ever get comfortable with tooling along at 180kmp plus. I tried to act nonchalant and unconcerned, not sure I pulled it off. Don't think I screamed though, so points there.
Lari is an ATC and has lived in Karlsruhe for almost 10 years. Her apartment is fantastic, and she had recently repainted the (my) guestroom and purchased additional furniture for my anticipated stay. I didn't know she had done that, before I paid for 2 nights at a city hotel - non refundable. So along with the worthless Adria Airways ticket, I did a bit of doubling up on arrangements for Karlsruhe.
We went for a late afternoon walk to the castle/palace. What a wonderful free, open space surrounding it. Lots of paths, walks, riding trails and grassy areas, and all being happily utilised by the locals. Lari had made an apple tea cake, this was followed an hour or so later with antipasti, and Eddie made us pizzas for dinner - how wonderful to taste these again!
Next morning was a traditional Bavarian (?) breakfast of pretzels, white sausages with special mustard and a wheat beer. The white sausages certainly didn't look too appetising, particularly after removing the skin, but were delicious. I definitely would never have chosen them if I'd seen them on a buffet.
It was a public holiday and Lari drove us to Heidelberg for a wander and a bit of schnapps tasting and buying. I wanted to taste Hazelnut schnapps, remembering the potent brew gifted to us by Mal's rellies in 1987. The memory held up well, and I bought a bottle for Ed and Lari, and one to take home.
What a picturesque town it is. The rain held off nicely for our visit. We had coffee and cake, and Lari was terrorised by a wasp (which Eddie later drowned but we won't mention that). Back in Karlsruhe, we had super-sized Schnitzels for dinner, followed by wine and schnapps at home. Again, I slept like a log.
 |
| The super schnitzel |
I loved these trees which appeared to have more leaves at the bottom, than the top.
When the train arrived, Ed dashed on with my bag and motioned for me to follow when he spied some seating. Luckily this train had a dining car, and I nabbed one of these seats while Ed lifted my 23kg bag onto the overhead rack in the adjoining carriage. He gave me a quick kiss and dashed back to the platform. We decided that instead of speaking to the conductor, I'd just take my chances on being able to stay in the dining car. As the train pulled out and I waved goodbye, I had tears rolling down my cheeks. So sad to say goodbye so quickly, and knowing I probably won't see him again for 12 months. I was teary for quite some time, which I hadn't expected but perhaps the stress of no ticket added to all the emotion.
After 30 minutes, the conductor checked my Eurail pass and then of course asked to see my reservation. I explained staff at train station said it was sold out and that I should make my way to the dining car and speak to the conductor. I may have fibbed about the dining car bit, but with the exchange of 28 Euros, I was allowed to stay. What a relief. All that remained was to get a tall, muscly volunteer to get my bag down in Paris.
Oh my goodness. You must have felt like the world was crumbling at the station. No doubt you weren’t at all at ease until you safely had your seat. Thank goodness for Eddy and it must have been so hard to leave him. I bet you were like me saying about your luggage “Next time, I’m not, not bringing so much!”
ReplyDeleteYes I still can improve with luggage. I definitely take less each trip, so I guess I just have to keep traveling until I perfect it! Laptop and camera gear probably add 2.5kg, so that's a disadvantage from the start. I can usually manage the case on/off train, but the overhead one would have been impossible. Eddie certainly saved the day, I would have been a mess without his calm confidence. Lesson learned re rail bookings in Germany!
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