Train Conversations

Day 6

The day started with the obviously first thing to do. The iPhone 4 was unlocked so that we could use it while in Copenhagen (the phone had come with a prepaid number with a bit of value). The net was down, then came up again and then wend down again, so activation of the phone was turning out to be a bit of a challenge. So we used the time it took for the net to stabilize to pack our stuff.

Once the net was a bit stable, the iphone was activated and we proceeded for checkout. Naturally, now the iPhone was acquired, it needed a cover and a screen protector, so back we were to the Apple store for some iPhone cover shopping. Now we had a train journey to look forward to, heading to Stockholm, so we made a beeline for Central Station, stopping only briefly at the McD to get a lunch to go. We catch the 11:39am train (as we had planned) with connection at 12:37pm from Lund and the plan was to eat lunch in the train. That's when the plan went off the tracks.

The train stopped at Hyllie and then just stayed there for a while. At first, it sounded like a great thing for smokers as they could enjoy a couple of smokes on the platform, but later it was announced that the train was having electric problems and that there was no way forward. We had to get out of the station to catch a bus to Lund, an additional unwarranted expenses of SEK 24 per head just so bus #170 would take us thro the city streets of Hyllie, the expressway connecting Hyllie and Lund & finally Lund station. 

We got confirmed space for the train leaving at 1445. All thoughts of food had been lost due to the train mixup, so we stepped into the coffee shop across from the train station. After a wonderful coffee and a banana muffin, we made our way to the train which left at 1500...wow a delay of 15mins. On the platform, we met Catherine and struck up a tiny conversation, mainly about her being a local and we so unbelievably not local. When the train arrived, we ended up sitting in same space as Catherine, joined by another older lady. The lady was going on and on talking to Catherine, something about Beatrice Potter. I slept for a bit and then woke up to find Praveen in conversation with the two ladies. All of us had a nice conversation with the older lady giving me a few recommendations for books that are traditionally Swedish that I can carry back for my little princess. The scenery rushing by the window was gorgeous as we saw snowed out landscapes bathed in sunlight.

We reached Stockholm at 19:45pm, said our goodbyes, exchanged numbers with Catherine and then parted ways. Our first priority was to book seat reservations for the train to Narvik...since the whole trip had been planned around that part and it would be a shame if we came all this way to find out there were no seats for us on the train. We also bought the Stockholm metro tickets, called our hotel and figured out that we had to take Fruengen line and get out at Midsommerkransen (I called it the Mid-Summer-Nights-Dream) station. After we landed at our designated station, we still had to call the hotel as there were no signs. We were told to take a left out of station and then continue a long walk under two expressway flyovers to reach the hotel. This looked more like a B&B rather than a hotel and so obviously there was no one at the counter and we had to ring the bell. After we checked in, we figured out that the place had no food. Lucky we carrying some, but just to make sure, we bought chocolate bars and coke and then proceeded to the room. It's a small room with tiny beds, but when we're on a shoe string budget, you take what you get! 

A couple of shots of the Absolut left over from the earlier train journey to sooth the snooze button and we were at the end of a relatively unproductive day, the first since we got on the trip. Hoping for tomorrow to make up for today. 

Good night.