In May 2022 there was a one day sale. Everyone was talking about it. 50% off Interrail tickets for the 50th anniversary.
The 3 month pass was only £100 more than the 1 month pass. But I had a house. A dog. A divorce to sort. A community project I was deeply embedded in every day every hour. Surely I couldn’t manage to let go.
I bought a 3 month pass anyway. You have 11 months to start using a digital Interrail or Eurail ticket. That was my deadline. April 2023.
I worked on gradually handing over my community project responsibilities and knowledge. I got the house in a state to sell. I gave focus to the amicable divorce project.
The house sold in January 2023, making me a nomad. The last community responsibilities were handed over. My kids are wonderful adults doing their adult things. I was a judge’s signature away from not being married. The one thing I didn’t let go of was the dog.
My Latest Posts
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- Sweden felt like homeMy Swedish friend of many decades picked us up from the ferry. Everything in Stockholm felt so familiar and English – even TV. The ice cream is even better though.… Read more: Sweden felt like home
- Being a dog on a ferry from Tallinn to StockholmThe Tallink ferries between Tallinn and Stockholm are dog friendly. They also stop off at the Finnish island of Aland at 4am on the way to Sweden. Just remember that… Read more: Being a dog on a ferry from Tallinn to Stockholm
- Tall tales and tails in TallinnBaspie the Railway Dog found Tallinn Estonia a relaxing city for a dog. Away from the mosquitos of the forests, and lacking in crowds in early June, despite a cruise… Read more: Tall tales and tails in Tallinn
- Wild camping in EstoniaEstonia is fabulous at wild camping. The RMK app (with an English option) is the national resource for telling you where all the best facilitated wild camping spots are and… Read more: Wild camping in Estonia
- City stress travelling with a dogCities just aren’t so fun with a dog, let alone for a dog. Many of the pleasures that may have been enhanced by a human companion are not shared with… Read more: City stress travelling with a dog
- Railway Dog travel rules in the Baltic statesDogs and other pets travelling by train, bus and tram have different rules wherever we went in Europe. However it was generally not as problematic as it appears on paper.… Read more: Railway Dog travel rules in the Baltic states
- Sigulda and the Gauja River National Park, by trainOnly just over an hour on the train from Riga, the capital of Latvia, is Gauja National Park. It’s a combination of native forest and river. It’s fabulous and accessible… Read more: Sigulda and the Gauja River National Park, by train
- Train times in the Baltic States – distinguishing fact from fiction – and a dog’s perspective on alternative transportTrains in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia seem rather left off international rail apps, or even worse, have their trains listed incorrectly. Whether it’s Rail Europe, Rail Planner (Interrail/ Eurail) or… Read more: Train times in the Baltic States – distinguishing fact from fiction – and a dog’s perspective on alternative transport
- Cheating at bird watching – a beginner’s taleI’m new, this week, to birding. Railway Dog and I were hiking with some lovely people from Germany and their dogs in Nida, Lithuania, a few mornings ago. I’ve downloaded… Read more: Cheating at bird watching – a beginner’s tale
- What to pack for 3 months InterrailingThis morning in Riga, Latvia, I surprisingly had a weighing scales where I was staying. So I could weigh my pack. It is down to 15kg if I’m wearing my… Read more: What to pack for 3 months Interrailing
- First train in Latvia. There are only 2 trains a week from Liepaja, to the capital Riga, between these two different worldsI’m excited to be on the mythical Saturday morning train to Riga from Liepaja with Railway Dog. The only other train out of here is the Sunday evening one, except… Read more: First train in Latvia. There are only 2 trains a week from Liepaja, to the capital Riga, between these two different worlds
- Travelling between Lithuania and Latvia for a pining train loverSince 2020 there have been no trains running across the border between Latvia and Lithuania. Seat61 is the most likely place to update on this, but the situation may not… Read more: Travelling between Lithuania and Latvia for a pining train lover
- Klaipeda and Nida, the sandy West coast of LithuaniaWe arrived in Klaipeda close to midnight, thanks to the only train options there from Siauliai (or Vilnius or anywhere) being very early or very late. On the plus side,… Read more: Klaipeda and Nida, the sandy West coast of Lithuania
- Siauliai, Lithuania, for longer than anticipated – Interrail hiccupsA quick overnight stop in Siauliai turned into 26 hours. Instead of a lunchtime train to Klaipeda, there wasn’t one till 20:47. Thus I discovered that in Lithuania the train… Read more: Siauliai, Lithuania, for longer than anticipated – Interrail hiccups
- Into LithuaniaOnly one train a day goes to Lithuania from Poland, the only Interrail country to the south. But that’s actually good for here. In 2020 it was one a week.… Read more: Into Lithuania
- Seeing an elk in Elk, PolandAt the centre of Elk lakeside you can hire all kinds of boats. For 55zl (about 11€) I hired a kayak for 4 hours of pootling a fair few km… Read more: Seeing an elk in Elk, Poland
- Wot no Warsaw? Crossing the North of Poland Eastwards to ElkInterrailing can easily get dominated by cities, particularly capital cities. But it doesn’t have to be. Railway Dog much prefers greener locations, so we skipped Warsaw and headed to the… Read more: Wot no Warsaw? Crossing the North of Poland Eastwards to Elk
- International historic boat collection at the National Maritime Museum branch at Tczew, near GdanskWhere in the world has a top conservation lab for historic boats? Tczew (pronounced a bit like ‘chef’) is an easy train ride out from Gdansk on the main line… Read more: International historic boat collection at the National Maritime Museum branch at Tczew, near Gdansk
- Gdansk and Gdynia, a happy time with Railway Dog; much rebuilding done, more ruins stillFirst stop in Gdansk was a delicious vegan restaurant, Avocado. In Poland many eateries do not allow dogs inside, but wherever I go the vegan places are nearly always dog… Read more: Gdansk and Gdynia, a happy time with Railway Dog; much rebuilding done, more ruins still
- Krakow to Gdansk, via WarsawPoland feels so modern and clean after Hungary and Romania. This is true on this spanking clean train. The trains are actually used by many locals. This was my first… Read more: Krakow to Gdansk, via Warsaw
- Polish public transport, tickets and dogsThere are generally good bus and tram services in Polish towns and cities. Trains run fairly reliably between many of them. Krakow was the main place Railway Dog used local… Read more: Polish public transport, tickets and dogs
- Krakow with a dog, and Auschwitz withoutIn Poland dogs often aren’t allowed in restaurants and cafes. However, vegan and veggie places Worldwide are often pet friendly, and Krakow was no exception. Veganico loved him, and one… Read more: Krakow with a dog, and Auschwitz without
- Sleeping on a seat overnight from Budapest to KrakowThis was one of the times when travelling with a dog too big to put in a case was a problem. There are lovely sleeping cars from Budapest to Prague,… Read more: Sleeping on a seat overnight from Budapest to Krakow
- Cluj-Napoca, a little known gem of RomaniaWe chose Cluj-Napoca for our last overnight in Romania as it has a good train connections to Budapest and Vienna. There is a delightful sleeper train in which dogs can… Read more: Cluj-Napoca, a little known gem of Romania
- Romania with my cousin, and a hire carRomania is different to the rest of Europe, particularly in the South and Bucharest. Sighisoara is stunning, and the Torda Gorge gorgeous. We got rained out of Piatra Crailui National… Read more: Romania with my cousin, and a hire car
- Interrailing phone dependence: coping with phone loss, theft and breakdownPhone dependence while traveling is a recent yet pervasive phenomenon. Here I talk about when my phone died and when someone had their phone stolen while Interrailing, as well as… Read more: Interrailing phone dependence: coping with phone loss, theft and breakdown
- Romanian time warpTraveling to Romania is time travel. From many young people smoking cigarettes, to hay stooks, to human train signals, to 3 ticket inspectors per 5/6ths empty train, to cash only… Read more: Romanian time warp
- The intrepid Railway Dog goes to Romania, with some learning along the wayBudapest Kelati train station has a small number of long distance trains to Romania daily, to several main cities, particularly Timisoara, Arad and Cluj Napoca. Some go on as far… Read more: The intrepid Railway Dog goes to Romania, with some learning along the way
- Drop scones and pancakesEasy travel food, especially as you will often find flour and sometimes oil left behind by previous guests in a hostel or apartment kitchen with a hob. Even better if… Read more: Drop scones and pancakes
- Budapest underwhelms dog and humanFor a dog, the Pest side of the river Danube has few parks, dirty pavements, and many oblivious legs. (When we returned a week later we discovered Buda is much… Read more: Budapest underwhelms dog and human
- Bratislava to Budapest with a happy doggy hike stop-off on the wayWe took an early train to Budapest so we could get out in the incised meanders of the River Danube on the way there, for a hilly hike. The international… Read more: Bratislava to Budapest with a happy doggy hike stop-off on the way
- Railway Dog enjoys an overnight in BratislavaThe highlight of lovely Bratislava was a pancake shop, for both of us. Baspie was allowed on the high bench seat. He had a lovely view of cooking, which he… Read more: Railway Dog enjoys an overnight in Bratislava
- Austria to SlovakiaBaspie the railway dog was again tucked under a table in his Nestbedz. I had a ticket for him from a platform machine, and my Interrail ticket sorted on the… Read more: Austria to Slovakia
- Graz – a happy stopGraz was just a convenient inexpensive overnight stopping point near a train accessible hike. Yet it’s a nice place in its own right, full of flowers, pleasant people and strong… Read more: Graz – a happy stop
- Slovenia to Austria for a hikeGetting a taxi for an early train from Maribor sure was pleasant, with Baspie dog getting a few extra zzz in on my ankle. The second time on a train… Read more: Slovenia to Austria for a hike
- Railway dog explores Maribor, SloveniaInitially a bit disappointed with the small scale of the mountains and the towniness of the area, we headed up the bubble lift. Baspie was chill floating in it, his… Read more: Railway dog explores Maribor, Slovenia
- Croatia to SloveniaFrom Zagreb we wanted a bit of countryside. Maribor was in the vague direction of Romania, which we have a deadline to get to. Also it is supposed to be… Read more: Croatia to Slovenia
- A taste of ZagrebRecovery from the long bus journey to Zagreb required a nap and nibbles, so we only ventured from the Chill Out Hostel after dark. We bumped into the German tunnels… Read more: A taste of Zagreb
- Sibenik, Croatia, is a nice place to be a dog or humanAt the unpromising building site end of a branch train line you walk on into the ancient cobbled town of Sibenik. Sited in a sunken river valley invaded by the… Read more: Sibenik, Croatia, is a nice place to be a dog or human
- The long short train journey from Split to ŠibenikBy train it is a 1.5 hour journey from Split to Šibenik. However, after the first train, there was a daily scheduled 3.5 hours to wait in the one horse… Read more: The long short train journey from Split to Šibenik
- The Ancona to Split ferry across the AdriaticFrom Ancona on the East coast of Italy, ferries regularly sail to Croatia, Albania, Corfu and Greece. It’s population reflects that, and I was served lunch by a delightful Albanian… Read more: The Ancona to Split ferry across the Adriatic
- Cookies save the dayHours of tough bus replacement service today (Šibenik to Zagreb) were relieved by strawberry and ginger oat cookies. Baspie dog and human loved them. He was so good and patient,… Read more: Cookies save the day
- Railway Dog off to ParmaThis surprisingly was the InterCity train from La Spezia to Parma. It slowly squealed its way northeast away from the scrubland of the hilly Mediterranean coast to the huge flat… Read more: Railway Dog off to Parma
- Protesting in La SpeziaI met these lovely Italian teachers and elders one evening protesting about the military going into schools in Italy and drumming up support and recruits for war. There is apparently… Read more: Protesting in La Spezia
- Plants and towns of the Cinque TerreIn April the spring blooms were everywhere. The scent of Wisteria wafts around Levanto. On the trails there’s plentiful wild garlic, some thyme and oregano, and frequently rosemary is planted… Read more: Plants and towns of the Cinque Terre
- Hiking the Cinque Terre – by train is the only wayThe only way along the Cinque Terre coast between Levanto and La Spezia is by train. Even the tour groups have to go by rail. With an unlimited Interrail ticket,… Read more: Hiking the Cinque Terre – by train is the only way
- Railway dog travels from Lugano to LevantoBaspie loving our camping terrace
- Camp food in Lugano and a nighttime visitorThe cooker balanced on my book, food chopped on the base plastic of a shopping bag, matches from my mum’s collection, and dog starting off on his laid flat bed… Read more: Camp food in Lugano and a nighttime visitor
- A trip up Monte LemaA post hike snooze in the sun, waiting for the local train back to the campsite
- Koblenz to Lugano, a long day for a dogIt’s 660km from Koblenz to Lugano, and according to Google maps faster by train than car. Baspie was an angel surviving the 8 hours 10 minutes of train journey, plus… Read more: Koblenz to Lugano, a long day for a dog
- Joining scientists worldwide on Statues SundayBlindfolds on statues represent the willful failure of states to face the facts and listen to the science of the IPCC. Solutions exist to limit the climate crisis, but only… Read more: Joining scientists worldwide on Statues Sunday
- Marksburg castle, Rhine ValleyDog and I took the train to Braubach again, this time to go up one hill to look at the Marksburg from afar, then up another hill to explore this… Read more: Marksburg castle, Rhine Valley
- Short train ride, big hike, above the Rhine between Filsen and BraubachSaturday was dry. Yippee! So with the help of local trains and Komoot navigation app, we wiggled back along the hillside from Filsen. The week marked trail has occasional maps… Read more: Short train ride, big hike, above the Rhine between Filsen and Braubach
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Railway Dog 