Sept 9, 2019 – 2.49 pm Vienna time… Onboard the Rex 64 train.
We left the Airbnb that we were staying at by 11.45 am. Vienna has been voted as the most liveable city in the world for the second year in a row and it certainly is very liveable ! We pushed our luggage to the elevator that was on the ground level – got off one level below and we were already in the Central station (Hauptbahnhof). Took another lift to the next level and then a third elevator to reach the main hall from where the outstation trains leave.
Our train was at 2.30 pm. So we went to the OBB lounge as we had bought first class tickets to Munich. The lounge had enough things to eat -Madeleines, Bundt cake, fresh juice, ice tea, Melange (Cappuccino to the rest of the world) etc. We ate our fill and got out of the lounge at 1.30 pm. I went to check about the luggage storage facility that is on the -1 level. We can leave the luggage in storage for four days. Since we are in Budapest from the 27th to the 30th, we wanted to leave the bigger suitcase in storage. While we have luggage storage facility in Indian railway stations too with the cloak room facility, this is totally self service – we pay using coins, get a ticket and there is no one around to write out a slip or anything.
It was raining right through the night and in the morning as well. The skies are still overcast and its a bit chilly. Keshav told us that its 17 or 18 deg in Munich. We have our jackets on.
The train came to the platform at 2.20 pm. We waited till people got off and then we got in. The one thing they need to do in these trains is to display the seat numbers on each door like they do in India – ours was 71 and 72 but we got into the other end and had to push our luggage all the way. The door in the front was closer to 71 and 72. Wifi was not working at the lounge, but its on full speed in the train. I immediately got onto writing a blog :):).
Photo credit – Krishnan. Me writing this blog on Train number REX 64There is beautiful scenery going by and the ticket examiner just came by… Travel is so much fun. There are four ladies on the seats next to us and they are stealing looks at my saree :). Then at the lounge there was a young man who took a bottle of Coke and tried to put it into his bag and an old lady walked upto him and asked him to leave it. He actually wasted half the bottle. There would be no hunger in the world if only people who have access to food didn’t waste it….
Looking forward to be back in Vienna on the 21st. We like Vienna !
Great post 😊