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Thus far it's been a bit of an adventure. Up at 6am yesterday. The train from St Pancras to Gard du Nord took about 3 hours. You wouldn't want to take the Paris Metro and then negotiate Montparnasse station if you were a disabled person, but that aside....
The TGV down to Irun was pleasant. The Trenhotel from Irun to Lisbon was delayed by over an hour, but then we had our baggage x-rayed and embarked on the overnight sleeper at 11.30pm. We arrived in Lisbon at 10.38am today and have to wait now for our connection to Faro at 1.20pm.
Met a few nice folk on the train. One, a Texan called Scott had just run with the bulls at Pamplona. Shades of Papa Hemingway. Apparently he has a blog at blogspot: scottstriptospain. I shall have to look it up. Another, a lass from North London, who had earlier in the week had a panic attack on an airplane, was taking the train to meet up with her family.
A couple of nice Canadian lasses also got in on the general conversation.
The people one meets travelling are rather fun; but the travelling itself is a bit of a pain.
We pick up our hired car at about 6-ish this evening. It's been a long couple of days, and I'm looking forward to lying by the pool for a bit when we get to our villa.
I hope summer is wonderful for you all.
Travelling by train from London to Faro in Portugal (first class, natch) costs an arm and a leg. We'll be going in July.
London St Pancras, to Paris. In Paris change from Gare du Nord to Montparnasse, and take the TGV to Irun on the Spanish border. Then take the overnight sleeper to Lisbon. Then a four-and-a-half hour train to Faro, where we hire a car.
It would cost us about £300-£400 to fly to Faro and back: less if we could book ahead (like around about now). It would also take about five to six hours each way including all of the mandatory searches and sniffs that Customs puts one through. This is costing us a tidy grand, and will take a day and a half each way to complete.
I booked the tickets today at Rail Europe on Regent Street, after a lunch with Fra. Will give SWMBO a cheque tonight covering my half. Let's see if it less stress-making than flying. Here's hoping.
London St Pancras, to Paris. In Paris change from Gare du Nord to Montparnasse, and take the TGV to Irun on the Spanish border. Then take the overnight sleeper to Lisbon. Then a four-and-a-half hour train to Faro, where we hire a car.
It would cost us about £300-£400 to fly to Faro and back: less if we could book ahead (like around about now). It would also take about five to six hours each way including all of the mandatory searches and sniffs that Customs puts one through. This is costing us a tidy grand, and will take a day and a half each way to complete.
I booked the tickets today at Rail Europe on Regent Street, after a lunch with Fra. Will give SWMBO a cheque tonight covering my half. Let's see if it less stress-making than flying. Here's hoping.
