What's in the box? (See what you got)

As Luke said, tickets for the sleeper train from Sofia to Istanbul were all sold out when we got to the ticket office. So instead of waiting another day we decide to travel in what most locals consider the luxury option- coach.

Unlike Luke, I'm not a train enthusiast (he's keen to point out enthusiast, not spotter), but do like travelling by train, particularly for 10 hour journeys. For starters, I'm one of those people who gets car sick, (or coach sick) so I find it hard to read a book on a coach. I also like the freedom to walk about on a long journey, and enjoy the luxury of having access to a toilet over such a long period of time (and before anyone quotes the "these days coaches have all the mod cons like toilets on board and air conditioning" line, trust me - they don't in Bulgaria). There is also the obvious fact that on a train you can move carriages if you happened to be sat near someone who smells, talks to themselves or looks threatening. [Please note : I do none of these things. Luke]

But, having decided to try out the coach, we boarded our luxury vehicle at 8pm. The ticket vendor explained we would depart after the driver had eaten, as he was observing Ramazan and hadn't eaten all day having just driven from Istanbul. He ate his impressive spread on the coach, and I was commenting on the dedication and commitment this must take when Luke pointed out he was washing down his great feast with half a bottle of brandy. Is he such a dedicated Muslim?, you may ask. Is he going to be able to drive now?, I was certainly asking. Fear not, he was not driving back - he was in charge of passports, smoking a lot at stops and I think, though couldn't testify, smuggling.

So what was so much greater about the coach, that Eastern Europeans love so much?

1. They hand out free coffees and soft drinks, and you could help yourself to free bottles of water (remember what I said about toilet facilities).
2. You got to stop at a selection of bizarre shops at which you could buy cheap goods to take over the border. Such goods included bumper packs of Milka chocolate bars, a giant remote control tank, huge pink panda toys and a fake Disney Princess foldaway double blanket.
3. My favourite, there was Turkish television on live for the whole journey.

Sadly we only caught the end of the Turkish "Survivors", but we were just in time for the prime time Turkish “Deal Or No Deal?” or "Var Misin? Yok Musun?"

Deal or No Deal is the perfect show to watch if you don't speak the lingo, as it is pretty mind numbing in any language, and you really don't need to understand what anyone's saying to see what's going on. Whilst they still have the same organised  zaniness as the UK version, they take it more seriously than we do with lots table banging and even some poetry reading from one of the box holders. They also have the added bonus of not having to have the smug, Tory-bearded face of Edmunds on their show. They do however, manage to drag their show out for even longer -I know, I wouldn't have thought it possible -even longer, than the ridiculous hour it drags on for in the UK.

One episode lasted two and a half hours. Two and a half hours. That's longer than a football match, longer than a feature film, and surely longer than any sane person would want to watch another person opening a box. Next week paint drying for beginners...

Is this what you call luxury?!

I'm becoming more of a train enthusiast every day

(Posted by Louise)

Red, Red Wine

Our guidebook informed us that Cologne seems ridiculously proud to be home to Gemany's largest Cathedral, (bit like Bristol and their bridge) a huge blackened gothic building which dominates this mainly modern city. Visiting the Cathedral on Saturday it's not difficult to see why they are so proud. As big churches go, it's up there, covered in gargoyles, with two towers 157 metres tall, and some truly magnificent stained glass - it is simply awe inspiring.

The Cathedral isn't however, all that Cologne has to offer. We visited the Ludwig Museum, before which holds a vast collection of modern art courtsey of their titular patron. They currently have a fab Lichtenstein exhibition, along with their usual Picassos, Warhols and other masterpieces.We also used our student ISIC cards for the first time and got a tidy discount – which will be doubly amusing to anyone who actually knows us.

We left Cologne to go somewhere altogether more rural and off the beaten track. Obviously this being Germany, such places are easily reached on clean, efficient and regular public transport. Our chosen destination was a small village called Altenahr, in the Ahr valley, which has a lovely campsite by said river Ahr.

For anyone who thought it would all go wrong when we tried living in a tent, I've been massively impressed by how well we've not only managed this whole camping thing, but enjoyed it. Its fair to say, however, the Germans do camping big and better than us. Our little tent was dwarfed amongst campervans, caravans with plastic conservatories, and an array of  furniture and gazeebos, along with a selection of BMWs, Audi TTs and vintage Mercs. Everyone else had electricity, and many of them had sky dishes-and no they weren't all semi-permanent some of them packed up at the end of the weekend!

Altenahr feels German. A small picturesque village, with Germanic font used on every 'Weinhaus' and 'Biergarten', and a stall selling a selection on sausages. You can imagine our delight, then, when we were out eating “flammkuchen” and drinking the local “Rotwein” when an Oompha band errupted into song on the bank opposite.

Altenahr clearly does a good tourist trade with Germans, and a few Dutch, but English guests were clearly a bit of a novelty. Strange really then, that it reminded me of a small town English tourist destination. Pubs, little cafes, an America n line dancing themed bar, an old hotel where people over seventy do karaoke surrounded by lampshades, flower pots on every window sill, and chintz, chintz and more chintz from doilies to little statues of dogs.

We came to the Alt Valley for two reasons, for the countryside (perhaps even do some walking) and because it's one of Germany's few Red Wine areas. What better way to combine those two things then, than with the “Rotwienwanderweg”.

For anyone not familiar with German this is the Red Wine Hiker route, a 36 K trek through vine yards with wine bars and wine sellars all along the way. No we didn't walk the whole thing, but we did walk over 6 miles (mainly uphill) enjoying some spectacular views and a good few litres of German red wine.

And so finally, to answer the questions any decent person (red wine drinker) will now be asking... No its a lot better than Hock, but no it's not like Chianti. Germans take a different attitude to red wine, with sweet, medium and dry -dry being like  French red  and the sweetest being more like a Rose. We were surprised by all three. I think our favourite discovery of the day though was a sparkling sweet red called Do Secco.

And with the taste of Do Secco still tingling in our mouths we jumped on  yet another clean and efficent train to Boppard, in the Rhine Valley -home to Germany's best white wine.

Luke and Louise

(Posted by Louise)

Seven Nation Army

DSC01710, originally uploaded by Louise and Luke.

After our fantastic Trans Mongolian train trip, including the sumptuously wonderful final First Class leg from Mongolia to Beijing, the 'hard sleeper' trains in China took a bit of getting used to. Still, after telling ourselves that it could be worse and thanking several Gods that there was no livestock in our carriage, we hunkered down and actually ended up quite enjoying the 16 hour trip to Xi'an. The fact that we were travelling overnight probably helped a fair bit, too...

Xi'an itself is a fairly average city with way above average smog problem, even by Chinese standards. The centre has a decent array of shops, and an even more impressive range of beggars and vagrants jostling for your attention. There are some nifty things to do and see, though, with the Muslim Quarter providing some memorable sights, sounds and smells, a fantastic light and water show opposite the Small Goose Pagoda every night and a Bell Tower and Drum Tower that look suitably imposing. Top tip, though, is to jump on a bike and cycle the 17 kilometres (actually can't believe I'm typing this) along the high city wall that still encases old Xi'an. Great fun and great sights, made all the better if you manage to hire a bike with brakes, which is never a given in China. Fun when you get to see the fat Americans crashing, not so much fun when it happens to you...

The main reason for a visit to Xi'an, however, is for its close proximity to the famed Terracotta Army. An hour or so away by bus, they are truly spectacular. Though in varying states of repair thanks to age and Dynastic pillaging (and, one suspects, slightly shit Chinese excavation), they are a wonder to behold, not only fulfilling expectations but exceeding them. The locals refer to them as "the eighth Wonder of the World", and they could have a point. Take a look at the pics to see them in their full glory.

Next up, Shanghai.

Stay Warm,

Luke and Louise

(Posted by Luke)

Stranger in Moscow

Two posts in, and already the "using a song lyric for every post" plan starts to fall apart as we are reduced to post-Thriller Michael Jackson. Still, such is life. Louise will be posting the Moscow experience in full, along with the gory details of the first leg of our Trans Siberian train trip, when we arrive in Tomsk, something that will no doubt please Matt Greenough Esquire no end. Suffice to say, it's been a blast, albeit one that began at 7am at a train station festooned with aggressive beggars and pissed taxi drivers.

We'll "be doing the Kremlin" tomorrow (isn't that a phrase to make anyone that utters it sound like an utter tool?), before catching the 11.30pm train to Novosibirsk. We arrive at 1am two days later with nowhere to stay. With that in mind, let me say now that it's been a pleasure knowing you all, and I'd like Mr Tambourine Man played at the funeral. Having said that, our fellow travellers have reliably (i.e. after a few too many Russian beers) informed us that it's "not as bad as the guide books make out", so one of us might live to tell the tale. [Note to Mum - this is a joke.]

Anyway, to bed. As the amount of comma-related punctuation in this post suggests, I am slightly tired, and possibly half cut. Pics should be on Flickr soon, so get yourselves an account and start browsing.

Stay warm,

Luke and Louise

xxx

(Posted by Luke)