More on Train Stations

Starbucks inside the Copenhagen Train Station

 2015

I promised, a bit ago, to post more on train stations, from our travels.  These places just are so fascinating and we've gotten enjoyment hanging out here, waiting for our train.  We usually go early to scope out the track we will be wanting when boarding out specific train.  Once you learn how to read the schedule boards, and, you ticket, it's easy.  Sometimes just takes a bit of investigation. 

Once, when we docked in Venus, we got off the boat to scope out where to catch a bus, the day ahead, and, it paid off, big time.  We thought we would head to the train station and check out the bus schedule, just to find out that the bus didn't leave from the train station, but, from a place about a mile in the other direction from the dock.  Since we were checking on this early, there was no panic, we just jumped on a "People Mover" and headed to where we were directed for the bus pickup.  If it had been the day we were actually leaving, it would have missed the bus to Vienna.  The next day, we disembarked the ship, and headed back to the People Mover, and on to the bus station.  There we waited with other tourists, and were confident we were in the right place.  Even had others asking us if this is where you catch the bus to Vienna.  Yay!

Now, that was not a story about catching the train, we have done similar "scouting missions" for catching a train as well.

Not only are train stations the location for catching a train, they can be great shopping and eating experiences.  You'll find great gift shops (for when you're needing that gift for family and friends back home), food shops, eating and drinking establishments, and coffee shops!

I'm telling you now, of our newest challenge and that will be:  Tokoyo Train Station!  Yikes!  Double Yikes!  If you have any tips, let us know.  When we get to Tokyo, in about 5 weeks, we'll have a day to scope out the train station.  We are taking the, for lack of the proper term, the Bullet Train, to Kyoto, for a three day stay, and then back again to Tokyo.

Here are a few photos of train stations we've been to.

Gare Du Nord, Paris (I didn't take this one)

Copenhagen train station

Inside Copenhagen Train Station, I was interested in the architecture here.

Starbucks, Copenhagen Train Station

Hundreds and Hundreds of Bikes outside the Copenhagen Train Station

Munich Central Train Station

Paddington Station, London

Interlaken, Switzerland

Washington, DC, Subway

Victoria Station, London

Switzerland, on the way to Top of Europe (Jungfraujoch)

I have this labeled as Victoria Train Station, but, it's been a while since we've been there, so, not 100% sure.

                   

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Travel Tips for My Online Store: Sagewood Bag Company

In pursuing  our love of travel, we have opened our online store, selling items we love, and items we think will help you have a better, safer trip.

Travel tips for our online customers:

1. Purchase our "Packing Light and Safe Travels" booklet available here: www.sagewoodbagcompany.com
2. Keep your suitcase light, and you money and valuables close to your body.  

                Money belt, neck stash
                Lockable bags, including you purse
                Zippered pockets on you shirt
                Carry only your days cash in that zippered pocket or you lockable bag.

        3.  Pack light:

Packing cubes available in our store: www.sagewoodbagcompany.com

Paper Maps vs Your Cell

Somewhere in England

Anyone recognize this bus stop?

 

Last night we were having dinner with friends and these friends travel a lot, more than us.  They do travel with their college age kids, and, their son gave them a great tip!

Ever try dealing with finding your way with a paper map?  We have, all the time.  The tip is, (now this won't be news to young people, they do it all the time) take a photo of the paper map, or, the map on the wall of the train station, or, any other location, and carry it around with you.  The nice thing for we folks, (that means we aren't young anymore) is that you can magnify the map, making a smaller section easier to read.

I can't wait to try it.

See that bus schedule behind me in the photo?  I'll take a photo of that the next time, also.

Trains and Train Stations of places we've visited in Europe.

Think this is confusing?  Like most things, it's not if you know what to look for.  Ill explain later.

 

 

 

 

I met a couple, the other day, who were just starting to plan their first European trip.  They had a bit of reservation, I got excited, remembering our early trips, and now,  knowing what to lies ahead.

One of the first things I remembered were the train stations and train rides.  In Europe you can get anywhere, in a timely fashion by using the train.  We have never rented a car, while there.  Just used their exceptional transportation system of trains and buses, to get around.

So, back in 2003, we had our first train station experience.  Victoria Station, London, England:

It was our very first trip to anywhere in Europe, 2003.  We had jet lag, and Ray got sick and I had a migraine.  We wanted to know how we were going to get around London, and then, how we were going to get to other parts of England.  This was the station we came into from the airport and it was near to our hotel.

I think we just went and walked around, explored, to get the feel, and stood and looked at the train schedules.  As I remember it, the experience was a bit overwhelming and intriguing.  We kept going back.

Luckily, Ray reads a lot of tour books, before we start out on a trip and we knew about the TI booths.  Tourist Information.  Depending on where your are in Europe, these people can be a great help.  (So, don't be concerned about the "depending on where you are".  Sometimes there is still the language barrier that can hinder you communication.  Most people do speak English).

So, we went to the TI booth and started asking questions.  They directed us to the ticket agents who sold us a ticket, and, interrupted  the "Ticket Language".  We were able to get to the correct train, the correct car, and the correct seat.  Seats are assigned, for the most part.

One of our daunting experiences was the number of trains on the large number of tracks, in a large train station.  From what I can tell from my reading, there are 19 platforms, and that's just for the trains.  London Victoria is also a hub for the "Underground" or the "Tube", which is the subway.

Not only are the European train stations a place to get a train ticket, and, meet you train, but, a lot of the bigger stations have, shops, restaurants, coffee places and even grocery stores.  they are a great place to explore and People Watch.

 
 Label this photo:  "Getting around Victoria Station"

More, next time on other train stations we've vistied.
 

I'm a brand new blogger, so, I will start with the Preface to the travel guide my husband and I recently wrote:

 Preface to "A Travel Guide to Packing Light and Safe Travels" by Ray and Carrie Carpenter.

My husband , Ray, and I are both retired and have found the love of travel.  We started traveling before retirement and about the same time, we started our business, selling travel gear.  Our travel agent (yes we use a travel agent) invited us to set up a small travel store inside his travel agency, and the fun began.

So far, we've done 5 cruises with land trips on either end of the cruises.  We figure that if we've gone that far to get on a ship, we might as well spend time in the countries we start and end in.

Besides the cruises, we've done a number of land tour's of Europe, including, Great Britain.  These "tours" have been mostly on our own, without going with a group, and using our travel agent to help us plan the trips. 

Because we have a travel goods store, we've had the opportunity to experiment with many different kinds of luggage and travel gear.  We think we've found the most durable luggage, and the safest, anti-theft bags available.  We not only use this gear, but, we sell it to our customers with the greatest of confidence.  (No complaints, so far!)

More about our gear later.

As of this latest writing, we are planning a cruise from Japan to Australia.  We'll spend 8 nights in Japan, before we get ont he ship, and 5 nights in Sidney, Australia, after the cruise.  Let's see if I can follow my own best advice on packing light on this longer trip, as I did for shorter trips.

Now the fun begins!