Inter Rail 1984 Day 15

Sunday 16th September 1984

 Woke up at 8.00am about 15 minutes before the alarm was due to go off. Mooched around for a bit, then got dressed and went down to breakfast. Had my first cup of tea in 10 days. Still foreign type stuff but much better than the sludgy Turkish coffee being served.It was the usual continental breakfast job.

Back in the room and I had a go at repacking the rucksack in such a way as to fit the bottle of brandy in, plus the bottle of mustard plus all the clothes. It took a while. Then replanned our route home a little more. We are still going to Venice but are delaying our departure so we arrive in Milan later in order to travel to Zurich through the mountains in daylight. We are still planning on going to Monaco for the day.

Sauntered off to the station to try and reserve seats on the train. Suceeded in getting our tickets stamped but couldn't get reservations. We thought about having a swim in the sea but the enormous asbestos factory and the docks were in the way. Went to a cafe for a quick drink and to buy some fags for Jon. Decided to stay there for lunch. Ordered omelette and chips with salad. Whilst we were there the heavens literally opened, thunder and lightning struck and we found ourselves in a tidal cafe with the tide coming in as the gutters of the awning emptied into the restaurant. The whole meal cost £1.74 and we left after an hour an a half when the rain eventually stopped and the majority of the cafe was under 3cm of water.

We then sat on our balcony with the sun trying to make up its mind whether to come out or stay in. Tried twice to pay for our extra night but the people were either not there or just plain daft. Spent a wonderfully relaxed afternoon doing sod all as the weather was undecided and played cards (Pontoon, Snitch and German Whist) Went out for our evening meal about 7.00pm. The tidal cafe had dried out and had some other Interrailers in it but we decided to be adventorous and have a change. Found a very nice place to have a bottle of beer plus a mixed grill with chips and salad. Very simple and very delicious, served quickly and hot. Back at the hotel drank a bottle of "Italian Reisling" we bought in Romania whilst chilling on our balcony. Set our alarms for 7.15am in case we had any more porblems paying the bill Notes about the day

  1. Have decided that Yugoslavia looks healthier than Romania in all aspects - the people, shops and countryside. Food is simply prepared but is good and wholesome. The people are also much friendlier.
  2. All these Eastern European states expect the railway employees of small surburban stations or out of the way crossing points to stand to attention whenever a train passes by
  3. There are still a number of soldiers or army types to be seen but they are not crrying submachine guns or rifles.