Dom’s train quest.2 : 2 homes, 1 European Union adventure – Part 5 – Last leg of journey and Summary

After I arrived, in the last part, I should take the tube to Harrow-on-the-hill and then train to Rickmansworth, and I could be there at home at 20.45 (based on real-time departure board). I count this as my official result. In reality, I decided to do a bit of shopping (and buy a gift for my wife to thanks her for allow me to do it ) and then go home. I was tired but happy.

It is a privilege to do this kind of amazing quests. I am grateful for this opportunity.

Before I made this trip, many people asked me why I like to travel so much on the train. What’s the point? For me, it is a hobby like collecting cards in Hearthstones, racing on the bike, do some church activities. I am aware that for you, the train is just the can or cage. For me, it is an amazing piece of engineering that allows me to experience things that were unthinkable a few years back. It allows me to move from one place to another and see places I always dream of seeing or just being there.
While you are stressed out about travel, I feel thrilled when I can drink coffee/beer, read a book/write something and enjoying the view from the window and enjoy a visual treat of natural beauty, stunning countryside landscape or an impressive masterpiece of humankind engineering.

I have made this trip in 15 hours and 48 minutes between Wroclaw and London + hour to get to Rickmansworth.

And few things to mention.

• The biggest surprise for me was how to clean carriage in PKP are and the fact that AC works and it works well. I got the opportunity to try two types of German high-speed trains, and the experience was quite the opposite. The first one was full of the little disappointments, and then on the second train, I had a great experience. The overall experience is quite good. Eurostar is still my favourite train to travel in Europe. I prefer Standard Premier class because of excellent service, a light meal with desserts, a small bottle of good wine and a comfortable seat. Tickets are sold for the affordable price if you buy them in advance. I hope HS2 will follow that Eurostar set in travel.
• I discovered that Belgium is a beautiful place and I should plan to go there with my family.
• I really enjoyed the restaurant carriage. One thing I should improve on my trip is to spend more time there, but this restaurant on DB trains was full almost all the time. It is a real shame that train companies in the UK like GWR getting rid off this kind of carriage and replace with shitty trolley service.

Below paragraph is political one so you may skip it if you have allergy to politics Brexit or European Union. It will as well the first and last political related statement.

This trip shows me one of the opportunities the European Union created for people. It is unfortunate that the United Kingdom will leave soon. It amazed me how seamless my trip through borders was. On the border between Poland and Germany, you can see remains of infrastructure that was needed for the border control that is abandoned in many places. It is staggering how super easy is now and how much more challenging it will be in the future between the UK and EU. It is astonishing for me that it was impossible for me to notice when I pass the border between Germany-Belgium and Belgium-France when you do that with 250km/h. It shows me again why we should take great care of the European Union to ensure we can work together and keep our national identity and peace.

As last time, I asked myself a few qustion.

Can I complete my trip? Yes, and I did it on time even they were minor hiccups on the one leg of the journey.

Can I survive the journey?  Yes, It was a pleasent experience. I had a lot of time to enjoy the views form the windows, enjoy some meal and drink great beer and wine.

Is the European railway is like British railways and plagued with signal failures, crew shortages and other shenanigan ?  Nope :). However, one thing that UK does better is a the customer service.

Thank you very much for read it and I hope you will have epic adventures on the train!

If you want read more about bonus part about Wroclaw Central Station and my booking ticket experience, check this blog post (should be there from August 2019). https://dominiksymonowicz.com/2019/06/09/doms-train-quest-2-2-homes-1-european-union-adventure-quest-synopsis/