Coach – SteveWhittythoughts1965

January 24, 2014January 24, 2014

Day 13, 20 September – The Longest Day

Waking up at 5am while holiday seems a hardship but it was necessary as my coach to Belgrade leaves an hour later. Back in the UK I am used to coach drivers wearing uniforms. The drivers on this coach looked like they had come from the film Taken.

I used the journey to catch up on some sleep. It was not spectacular, the highlight being the border crossing from Bosnia into Serbia. These were the first stamps in my current passport.

I arrived into Belgrade around lunchtime and I had no Serbian money and I could find a ATM. So I was going to have to find my way to the hostel by foot. Despite turning down the offer of a taxi, the driver was kind enough to point me in the right direction. The day was hot and I felt it while struggling with my backpack. Eventually I arrived at the hostel. I slept some more. It was a good opportunity as it was quiet.

When I awoke there was more life around. After doing some laundry and a shower I was feeling hungry. Fortunately others in the hostel were feeling the same. The hostel recommended a restaurant which was over the road. Serving typical Serbian fare I was sorted. However, they struggled to cope with the vegan in the group. She was happy to accept stuffed mushrooms. It is the tradition in Serbia to finish your meal off with a shot of Rakia. Expecting a small shot I was handed what looked like a small test tube with wings. I embarrassed myself by not being able to down it in one. It was only later that I was told I was drinking it correctly.

After the meal we headed over the road to a typical Belgrade bar which we were told to check out. This was very much a local hangout. It was lively as well as packed out. There was a great atmosphere with a band playing traditional folk songs. Everybody was getting ready for the night out. For me, the day had caught up with me. I needed my bed. (Must be my age.)

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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November 12, 2013November 12, 2013

Balkans Day 5, 12 September – Maybe I Should Say No More

Today I felt like a real traveller as I was leaving for Dubrovnik. I had enjoyed my time in Split and the hostel. I felt sad not being able to say goodbye to Josko. Having arrived at the coach station I was greeted by a scene of organised chaos. So many people looking to leave by coach. Got on my coach though was shocked to having to pay to put my luggage in the hold.

The journey itself started with no problems. However, by the afternoon the weather had turned. I could see the lightning hovering above the coach and soon after the heavens opened. I had not seen rain like this in a long while. It was that bad the local police closed the main road and the coach was diverted through a single track village. This delayed the coach. I arrived into Dubrovnik nearly two hours late. The journey though did have some highlights, namely the stunning views when the weather was good.

When I arrived into the hostel I think Neno the owner was a little annoyed with me arriving so late. However, he did not show it. The hostel itself was underground which meant it felt cool and it was only about 200 metres from the old town.

I went into the old town for a bite to eat. Back at the hostel I was enjoying the company of the the other travellers. We were listening to music and playing games. It was like the United Nations with America, Belgium, UK, Germany and Uruguay being represented. I was enjoying myself. This is why against my better judgement I was persuaded to go clubbing. It was an experience that ultimately left me cold. The night had started out alright. We were drinking in the Irish bars. I noticed that the menu in one bar was offering Chicken Nuggets. In a town full of restaurants they appeared not to be trying.

The night started to turn with the introduction of vodka. One of the party had smuggled in a bottle and proceeded to empty into our glasses. Fortunately someone brought some 7up to dilute the taste. We made our way to the nightclub. There one of the party (not me) seemed to lose control of themself. The atmosphere inside the club did not feel right. I was glad to leave.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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November 4, 2013November 4, 2013

Balkans Day 2, 9 September – My Feet Are Not Touching The Ground

The coach pulled into Victoria Coach Station at around 1am. It was only an hour and ten minutes late. Still meant that I had missed my connecting coach to Gatwick Airport. There was another coach due to leave at 1:30. The driver said there was plenty of room but I had to get my ticket changed first. This was done easy enough and soon I was on my way to the airport. As much as I tried to get some sleep I was feeling too excited to settle down.

Arriving into the airport gave me the first chance to relax. Maybe arriving an hour later was a blessing in disguise as I spent less time waiting around in Gatwick. After drinking a cup of coffee to help keep me awake I checked in my rucksack. Typically it was classed as oversized. Time to wait for a member of staff to come and take it off me. After getting through check-in I was fighting to keep myself awake while I waited to board the flight. It was 4:00 and the duty free shops were opening. What a time to start work.

The flight to Split went smoothly. I must admit to not being one of the world's greatest flyers. Flew by Easyjet and it was not too bad considering it was my first experience with them. After collecting my rucksack Josko from the Split Guesthouse was there to take me to the hostel. Talking to him gave me the impression that he seemed a decent person bad I was going to enjoy my stay at the hostel.

Upon arriving Josko went out of his way to introduce me to everybody in the hostel. After a quick shower and change of clothes I was ready to hit the town. Charles from Canada suggested that I could tag along with him, Pavel, Manfred and Jeanette. Manfred was going home later that day so we wandered into the old town.

It was busy as it was lunchtime so we decided to climb the Bell Tower of St. Domnius. A tight climb but once at the top you are rewarded with excellent views of the city and harbour. Walking along the waterfront with Manfred we were stopped by reporters from RTL. They asked Manfred for his thoughts on Split. I was waiting for my turn but alas they ignored me. Another bid for stardom thwarted.

One of the many splendid views of Split.

Walking back towards the hostel it was suggested that we should hire bicycles for the afternoon. Somehow I agreed it was a good idea. So I paid 40kn for four hours. I had forgotten that I had not ridden a bike in over ten years. Yes, it is true you never forget how to ride one. Good job we were going downhill and the roads were quiet. Soon we were at the beach. A large beer was called for. Maybe this was not the greatest idea as I had not eaten since 1am. I was surprised that I could keep control of the bike.

Manfred suffered a problem when the chain on his bike snapped. Manfred, Charles and Pavel were looking for a cliff to jump off. There were plenty of them, the problem was how to climb back up. Manfred took his bike back while the rest of us went to find somewhere to eat. Josko had recommended the Fife as a popular and cheap place to eat. I ordered a local variation of Bangers and Mash. It tastes excellent and it had been well earnt.

The afternoon had been great fun but it was soon time to return the bikes. One tip when hiring a bicycle, make sure you know your route back. We ended up having carry the bikes up a load of stairs.

Back at the hostel Josko treated everybody with a bottle of Absolute Vodka to share amongst us. Joined by a Australian and Welsh couple we were enjoying the vodka along with some beer. At 11pm it was decided we would venture into the old town to find some bars. It was a enjoyable night. The bars themselves were only a small room but the atmosphere was perfect. Even though I started to flag a little towards the end, it had been a great first day of my trip. Hopefully, the shape of things to come.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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October 14, 2013

Balkans Day 1, 8 September – I Leave Today, What Can Go Wrong Now.

After months of planning and counting down the days the day has finally arrived to leave. I think that everybody was starting to get sick of me talking about the trip. My team I suspect were glad to see the back of me for the next three weeks. The trip has been my only focus for 2013 and it may have cost me a few sleepless nights and lost nights out.

At 7:20pm I left for the bus to take me into Birmingham. My backpack weighed heavy but it felt good to have it on my back again. No problems with the bus and I was soon at Birmingham Central Coach Station. All I need now is the coach. It arrives but was told it had pulled into the wrong bay. So everybody waited for the coach to move bays. We were going to leave late.

Once loaded the coach eventually left station. At the first set of traffic lights the driver gets off the coach and starts to check the rear indicators. This is not a good sign. We carry on until the we reach the outskirts of Coventry. The driver stops the coach, the lights had gone. Now it was time to panic as I have a connecting coach to catch. If there was a problem why did the driver say something at Birmingham. Upon advice from the garage in Birmingham the driver reset the lights. Low and behold they start to work again. Off we move towards Coventry Bus Station. What else could go wrong now.

Coventry Bus Station was chaos. It looked like that too many passengers had been loaded in Birmingham. The gentleman who was travelling with his son quite rightly was angry and refused to leave the coach. I think the driver allowed somebody to travel who was booked on another service. Anyway good fortune arrived when a woman offered to leave the coach and get another service.

We left Coventry at 22:40 over an hour later than planned. At least the coach to Gatwick Airport runs every hour, so I should in with a chance of getting on a later service. We will have to wait for the next day.

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April 21, 2013April 21, 2013

The Next Trip – September 2013

You may have read in a earlier post that I had planned to visit the Balkans in September 2013. After much planning I am pleased to share my schedule with you.

Balkans 2013

Split 9 – 11 September

Dubrovnik 12 – 14 September

Mostar 15 – 16 September

Sarajevo 17 – 19 September

Belgrade 20 – 22 September

Ljubljana 23 – 25 September

Zagreb 26 – 28 September

There were plenty of places I wanted to visit. However, I did not want to get into the situation where I am forever on a train or coach. It was quality time I wanted to spend in these places.

I am looking forward to the trip and will be counting down the days until departure.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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April 6, 2013

When Things Do Not Go To Plan

During my travels I have been lucky not to experience many problems. Sure, there have been some narrow escapes but nothing that could have been catastrophic. This was until my last trip to Budapest. The scenario being I was going to return to Vienna by coach on Friday 12 March. Ticket had been booked for some time so there should not be any problem.

Reality however, proved to be different. Snow had fallen during the night and with the day being a national holiday in Hungary the police made the decision to close the roads in and out of Budapest. This meant my coach was cancelled. While a little shocked I was not unduly worried. I did not need to be in Vienna until Saturday for my coach back to London. My coach ticket was changed free of charge and I could book another night at the hostel. I saw this as a bonus.

Saturday came and the snow was thawing. Surely no problem. However, I was proved wrong. Without an explanation why all coaches to Vienna were cancelled. I was told my best bet would to take a train instead. The only problem I had, was where was the train station. Nobody at the coach seemed to know which I found to be odd. Eventually somebody told me which stop I should head for.

My heart was in my mouth as I was hoping I had enough money for a train ticket. Fortunately cost of rail travel on mainland Europe is a lot cheaper than the UK and I managed to board a train to Vienna and caught my coach back to London. For an hour though I was travelling by the seat of my pants. I was not in control of the situation. This was the first time something like this had happened to me. Though I suspect it will happen again on my travels.

So what will I learn from this situation:-

Do not lose your temper at the staff. They delivered the news and are not the cause of the problem.
Take 5 minutes to assess the situation and weigh up your options. They might be staring in front of your face.
Research your destination. Find out where all the transport hubs are located. The more options, the better chance you have finding a positive outcome.
Ensure you have access to emergency funds for this type of situation.
Chalk it down to experience. You have something to tell your family and friends about.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

March 31, 2013

Vienna & Budapest – Days 10 & 11

Well the day has arrived, it is time to go home. I worked out that I will be spending nearly 36 hours travelling before I arrived home. This is going to take a lot out of me. Spent my final morning in Budapest eating breakfast, shopping for supplies and chilling out making sure my gadgets were fully charged.

At around 12pm it was time to go. The sun was shining and I was expecting no problems travelling today. I made my way to the coach station. Once there I thought I better make sure that the coaches to Vienna were running today. To my horror they had all been cancelled and if I wanted to travel then I would have to make my way to the railway station. When I asked about where I could find the railway station the reply was they did not know. I stunned at the apparent lack of help towards my situation. Next, I asked at the information desk. Again, they appeared reluctant to help. Eventually they produced a metro map with the stop for the railway station marked out. I only hope that I had enough money for a ticket otherwise I would be stuck.

Getting to the railway station was easy enough I just had to find the ticket office. I was relieved to find out that I could purchase a ticket. Must remember not to judge other countries railways by the UK’s. A train was about to leave the station. I managed to board it and as I was storing my rucksack the train pulled out of Budapest. At last I was on the road and would be in Vienna with time to spare.

I arrived into Vienna Westbanhof Station later in the afternoon. The best thing for me was to make my way to the coach station and check to see if the coach to London was running. After initially scaring me the staff confirmed that my coach was running. I explained the situation with the coaches to Vienna and the kindly refunded half my coach fare. As I had plenty of time to spare before I left Vienna I caught the U-bahn to St. Stephen’s Cathedral for one last look. Took the time to enjoy a Bratwurst and take one last photo.

Final photo of St Stephen's Cathedral — Final photo of St Stephen’s Cathedral

Finally the time to leave Vienna had arrived and the coach pulled out of the station. My heart felt heavy and sad. To comfort myself I listened to some comedy on the i-pod and started to read up on the places I would be visiting in September. Always have something to look forward to.

The coach journey itself was unspectacular and I slept through a lot of it. I did arrive back into London almost an hour earlier than expected. Took the opportunity to have something hot to eat before boarding the coach back to Birmingham. I had forgotten that today was St. Patrick’s Day. As soon as I arrived back in Birmingham I was confronted with the sight of drunken people who were looking for a fight. During my trip I had not witnessed any anti-social behaviour. Was I glad to be home?

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

March 29, 2013

Vienna & Budapest – Day 9, 15 March 2013

It is time to leave Budapest today. Sadness is filling up my heart as it is the start of my journey home. I will spend a night in Vienna before I finally leave for home.

I checked out on time and thanked the hostel for a wonderful experience. This has been one of the best hostels I have stayed in. As I left I noticed that it had snowed during the night and left quite a covering. Today is also a national holiday in Hungary celebrating the 1848 revolution so everything seemed quite but there were plenty of flags flying about.

I arrived at the coach station and everything seemed alright. There were people waiting for their coach. There was also a reporter and camera crew from the local TV station. I was hoping that they might ask me for an interview. Sadly, my quest for stardom was thwarted.

I had began to wonder why there was no information about coaches to Vienna. So I went up to the ticket office and ask about the check-in times. It was there I was told that all coaches to Vienna had been cancelled for the day and I would need to make my way to the railway station. Taking this news in I was a little concerned on what I was going to do next. Being stuck in Budapest was not the worst situation to be in. After weighing up my options I decided it would be best to stay in Budapest for an extra day. After getting my ticket changed free of charge I went back to the hostel to see if I could book another night there. To my relief there was still room and at €10 it worked out cheaper than staying in Vienna.

After spending a couple of hours in the hostel I checked in. This was my opportunity to explore Buda which I missed out on the previous day. It was cold outside and being a public holiday there were not many people outside. Staying in the warm and drinking Pilinka was a better idea. I did get the chance to explore Buda. It just felt strange not seeing people about on a Friday afternoon. Normally, I would be working public holidays back home.

View of the Parliament Building from Buda.

I treated myself to a warming cup of coffee and a large slice of chocolate cake. From there I made my way back to the hostel. This was my chance to do some washing. It will save me from doing it when I got home. I spent the evening relaxing in the bar with a couple of beers before going to bed. Despite what happened today I considered it a plus. Staying in Budapest was a bonus as I had become rather fond of the city. Also the next two days were going to be spent on the road.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

March 10, 2013March 10, 2013

Vienna & Budapest – Day 2, 7 March 2013

I had managed to get some quality sleep. The neck rest my sister brought me for Christmas had come in useful. As dawn broke I could see the wonders of Austria. As the sun rose it shone on the snow on the mountains. It was beautiful. Sadly, I was not awake enough to think about taking photos.

The pulled into Vienna coach station just over an hour late. I was not bothered to be honest as I was just happy to arrive. The coach station in Vienna is not in the most fashionable part of the city. As I had been here before I knew where I was going so it was off to the U-bahn station. Took the train to my destination. When I arrived I ended up leaving the station at the wrong exit. The last thing I needed to be dong was wandering around like a lost soul. Suddenly I found my bearings and it was off to the hostel.

When I arrived at the hostel, the staff could not have been more helpful. While I could not check-in until 2pm they said I could have breakfast and relax in the lounge. It was too good an opportunity to turn down. It gave me a chance to catch up on answering some e-mails and re-charge the batteries.

At around midday I was starting to feel sleepy so I took the decision to go out for a walk. The weather was good with the sun shining so I made my way towards the station and towards Stephansplatz.

You might have been aware that I had purchased myself a new camera. There had been little opportunity to use it until now. I was snapping away like it was going out of fashion. I am not too sure how many of the photos will turn out right but I felt more confident with it. I will post the results in future posts. Promise you will not laugh. These photos were taken by the iPhone.

After three hours I knew that I needed to get back to the hostel so I could check-in and rest. Check-in went smoothly enough and soon I found my way to the room. As usual I always seem to get the top bunk. I must have it tattooed on my forehead. I did not mind as the bed felt comfortable so I should get some sleep. I hope that my snoring will not keep everybody awake.

After a quick nap I felt hungry but did not want to cook for myself. Nor did I want to go too far. After a quick walk I found myself a well known chicken outlet and that satisfied my hunger for the night. Finally I cashed my free drink voucher, looked at more emails before settling down for the night. Man, I needed my bed.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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March 9, 2013March 9, 2013

Vienna & Budapest – Day 1, 6 March 2013

Well the day has finally arrived, I am about to leave for my trip. Since Christmas this has been the only thing on my mind. I am so ready for it to begin. I managed to get some sleep the night before. It meant missing the Man. U and Real Madrid game but I was not that bothered. I heard that United had lost and Fergie was not happy. Nothing new there.

The taxi came and dropped me to the coach station. So far, so good. While I was waiting for my coach I could see the departure getting later and later. This was beginning to concern me. After all I had a connection to catch. After a few more minutes I asked the information desk if they knew what the problem was with the coach. I was told the coach was held up in traffic congestion. At 2am I found that hard to believe. Then the coach suddenly appeared.

The journey to London went smoothly enough. I had enough time before check-in to buy a sandwich. Again check-in was not a problem and soon we were on the road. While on the coach I sensed that something was not right but I could put my finger on it right away.

Soon the coach was going through France and Belgium then it hit me. The coach does not have any seat belts. I was amazed as surely it would not legal to be on the road without them, especially in the UK.

The rest of the day went smoothly enough. Apart from getting stuck in the traffic in Antwerp. I thought a one-way traffic system allowed traffic to run smoothly. The coach found itself stuck between two trams.

Anyway tomorrow I will be in Vienna so I should try and get some sleep.

Until the next post stay safe, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Steve

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