After I wrote my last post on the sleeper, I had to change compartment, as it transpired when the ticket checker came round, that there were only 5 couchettes in the compartment, but 6 people.
I was redirected to another compartment, but the couchette in there was faulty, so after much discussion between the train staff (to the point I was worried I was going to end up in a seat or on the floor or something) was redirected to yet another couchette Its inhabitants were very nice about it, despite presumably not being thrilled about having even less space. There was a French couple, a Dutch guy and a cyclist who left about 5 am (which I totally slept through – I must have slept much more deeply than I realised.
I woke up not long before the Gottard Tunnel. Then it was further south through more lovely scenery and increasingly nice weather.
Had a somewhat disappointing breakfast I’d pre-ordered (14Euro), with instant coffee; I’ll definitely BYO if I do it again.
We were delayed for about 45 minutes just before the Italian border (where they changed the engine – I think some problem with this, as the lights in the compartment kept going on and off), and then another 15 as someone pulled the emergency cord at Como.
The cars are a mix of Swedish, Chechz and German, judging by the language on the warning stickers. All were a bit tired, but basically fine. On the whole it was a fun experience; I don’t want to be harsh on them as it’s only their second week running it, but the screw up with the beds was annoying, though the staff were as helpful as they could be. Impressive it’s selling out already. The age mix was much wider than I was expecting. I thought it’d be full of gap year students, but there was quite a mix of ages.
Milan
I met F as planned (albeit a bit late). It was a brief stop for lunch (pizza) in Milan (I’d been previously so wasn’t too bothered about seeing it again), then onto the train for Tirano (where we’re spending the night. We decided to stop en route at Varenna to enjoy the lake.
Varenna
We had a couple of hours in Varenna for a wander around the town/village. It’s a beautiful setting; there seemed to be almost a production line of people bringing their wedding outfits for a photo shoot. It was pretty busy; I suspect it’s even busier in summer.
Then it was time to get the train to Tirano, where we’re staying for the night. Lots of lovely scenery on the journey:
Back over the Alps tomorrow when we go over the Bernina pass