A 23 Hour Excursion
It's funny logging into the blog in different countries, cuz whatever country I'm in, it switches to that language. And although I wasn't able to make it to Ukraine, I'm quite glad that I'm in Serbia because I really like trying to read Cyrillic. It's quite fun and cool. Anyways, that's not what this is about.
I got on the train in Istanbul to head to Beograd (Belgrade). I got on the train and was in a 3 person sleeper car since it was a long night's journey. I got on the train and soon after met my roommate which just so happens was an American. I hardly met any Americans at all in my two weeks in Turkey and now I'm in an overnight train with one. Basically just there were Japanese and British people. So I was quite excited and happy to hear some normal English once again. And he happened to be going to Beograd as well. We talked a lot and we became friends pretty quickly. The trip went quickly due to the fact that we were sleeping most of the time. We had to switch trains in Sofia, but we'd have about an hour and a half break, so I wasn't so worried about not having a ticket for the rest of the way there. It'd be cheaper this way anyways. Problem number one, though. The train was about an hour and a half late.
Here's where the story gets interesting. I wake my friend up telling him we're there. I gather my things and tell him that I'll go and check the ticket situation and he could just get all his stuff together and I'd see him in the station. I get off the train and there are these guys there asking if I'm going to Beograd. Yes, of course I am. HURRY HURRY HURRY. The train is about to leave. Five minutes. Hurry. Ok, I start to run with them. Wait! I don't have a ticket. I need to buy one. Wait, I have my friend in the train, I need to tell him. No time NO TIME. HURRY. We go buy a ticket, come with me. So we ran down into the station at breakneck speeds to the counter. I thought, well, my friend won't have time to get a ticket, so I'll just buy his ticket for him as well and he can get me back later. But wait! I don't have any Bulgarian money! And so they say, HURRY HURRY HURRY!! let's get money. I run to the machine and get the money out. The guy actually takes the money and we run back. I try to get the money, but this is a lost cause. We pay and get the tickets and then run run run to the train. Wait! Kolega, (my colleague), I tell them, I don't know where he is! NO TIME NO TIME!! GO GO GO GO. We run to the train. And I get on. They ask for money, but I've spent all that I got out. I think they probably got some money from my ticket anyways. And I got on the train.
Wait a second, I'm thinking. This had to be a scam somehow. What just happened. Am I even on the right train? I ask people, they say yes, this train goes to Beograd. I look confused and dazed a bit and just kinda try and figure out what I'm supposed to do. I'm looking for my friend, of whom I just bought a ticket for and he's no where in sight. No way he made the train (he didn't). And so I'm kicking myself for buying two tickets! Why did I buy a ticket for a guy I don't know and I knew wouldn't make the train. This was stupid. I was thinking more. Ok, I have my wallet, my passport. I wonder if these tickets are actually valid. Somehow I must have been scammed. In the end, yes, the tickets were valid, it was the right train. I did actually pay twice as much as I was supposed to pay I think, but to catch the only train out of Sofia to Belgrade that day, I was pleased to pay the extra. I was waiting on the train less than a minute when it started going. I decided, oh well, I just bought two tickets. I'm stupid. I'll just go sit down and enjoy my 10 hour train to Beograd.
I find a compartment and start reading. I guy comes in offering me pot and I decline. I can just picture this guy planting it on me and at the Serbian border me spending the rest of my days in a Serbian jail. It was funny though, I walked down the train a few minutes later, and he really was rolling it in his compartment. Nice guy, but I just went back to my compartment. Here's where the story gets interesting.... We're going for about an hour or moreso, and we get to the Serbian border. The police are knocking on my door every 10 seconds and stamping my passport. I'm sitting there in Dmitrovgrad, still reading and reading and then another cop knocks on my door. Great, awesome. I look up from my book and there's my friend, my roommate from the train from Istanbul!! What the hell? I look at him totally shocked and confused. He gets his stuff and joins me. I ask him what the hell happened. I thought he'd just get on the train the next day and hang out in Sofia.
He tells me that he got off the train and the same guys who got me, got him and told him the train had already left. He rushes with them to the street and they put him in a taxi. The taxi's job is to cut off the train. He drives him about an hour as fast as possible to the Bulgarian border to Dmitrovgrad where I am and pays a large taxi fee and gets off. But he doesn't have enough money for a ticket! What's he supposed to do now? He doesn't have a ticket. He gets on the train, is confused and dazed like I was and then he runs into me! What are the chances? Weird point of the day is here... he doesn't have a ticket, I BOUGHT HIM A TICKET ALREADY. He's floored I did it, yet happy. Now, we have two people and two tickets. And a ten hour trip without any food. What do you think would happen next? Well, we had to wait about five hours, but a guy joined us and he was a Serb and later we started talking and then he got out his bag which was FULL of all his mom's cooking. We had an absolutely amazing Baklava and the trip was definitely one for the books. That's all I got for now. Hope you enjoyed it.
I got on the train in Istanbul to head to Beograd (Belgrade). I got on the train and was in a 3 person sleeper car since it was a long night's journey. I got on the train and soon after met my roommate which just so happens was an American. I hardly met any Americans at all in my two weeks in Turkey and now I'm in an overnight train with one. Basically just there were Japanese and British people. So I was quite excited and happy to hear some normal English once again. And he happened to be going to Beograd as well. We talked a lot and we became friends pretty quickly. The trip went quickly due to the fact that we were sleeping most of the time. We had to switch trains in Sofia, but we'd have about an hour and a half break, so I wasn't so worried about not having a ticket for the rest of the way there. It'd be cheaper this way anyways. Problem number one, though. The train was about an hour and a half late.
Here's where the story gets interesting. I wake my friend up telling him we're there. I gather my things and tell him that I'll go and check the ticket situation and he could just get all his stuff together and I'd see him in the station. I get off the train and there are these guys there asking if I'm going to Beograd. Yes, of course I am. HURRY HURRY HURRY. The train is about to leave. Five minutes. Hurry. Ok, I start to run with them. Wait! I don't have a ticket. I need to buy one. Wait, I have my friend in the train, I need to tell him. No time NO TIME. HURRY. We go buy a ticket, come with me. So we ran down into the station at breakneck speeds to the counter. I thought, well, my friend won't have time to get a ticket, so I'll just buy his ticket for him as well and he can get me back later. But wait! I don't have any Bulgarian money! And so they say, HURRY HURRY HURRY!! let's get money. I run to the machine and get the money out. The guy actually takes the money and we run back. I try to get the money, but this is a lost cause. We pay and get the tickets and then run run run to the train. Wait! Kolega, (my colleague), I tell them, I don't know where he is! NO TIME NO TIME!! GO GO GO GO. We run to the train. And I get on. They ask for money, but I've spent all that I got out. I think they probably got some money from my ticket anyways. And I got on the train.
Wait a second, I'm thinking. This had to be a scam somehow. What just happened. Am I even on the right train? I ask people, they say yes, this train goes to Beograd. I look confused and dazed a bit and just kinda try and figure out what I'm supposed to do. I'm looking for my friend, of whom I just bought a ticket for and he's no where in sight. No way he made the train (he didn't). And so I'm kicking myself for buying two tickets! Why did I buy a ticket for a guy I don't know and I knew wouldn't make the train. This was stupid. I was thinking more. Ok, I have my wallet, my passport. I wonder if these tickets are actually valid. Somehow I must have been scammed. In the end, yes, the tickets were valid, it was the right train. I did actually pay twice as much as I was supposed to pay I think, but to catch the only train out of Sofia to Belgrade that day, I was pleased to pay the extra. I was waiting on the train less than a minute when it started going. I decided, oh well, I just bought two tickets. I'm stupid. I'll just go sit down and enjoy my 10 hour train to Beograd.
I find a compartment and start reading. I guy comes in offering me pot and I decline. I can just picture this guy planting it on me and at the Serbian border me spending the rest of my days in a Serbian jail. It was funny though, I walked down the train a few minutes later, and he really was rolling it in his compartment. Nice guy, but I just went back to my compartment. Here's where the story gets interesting.... We're going for about an hour or moreso, and we get to the Serbian border. The police are knocking on my door every 10 seconds and stamping my passport. I'm sitting there in Dmitrovgrad, still reading and reading and then another cop knocks on my door. Great, awesome. I look up from my book and there's my friend, my roommate from the train from Istanbul!! What the hell? I look at him totally shocked and confused. He gets his stuff and joins me. I ask him what the hell happened. I thought he'd just get on the train the next day and hang out in Sofia.
He tells me that he got off the train and the same guys who got me, got him and told him the train had already left. He rushes with them to the street and they put him in a taxi. The taxi's job is to cut off the train. He drives him about an hour as fast as possible to the Bulgarian border to Dmitrovgrad where I am and pays a large taxi fee and gets off. But he doesn't have enough money for a ticket! What's he supposed to do now? He doesn't have a ticket. He gets on the train, is confused and dazed like I was and then he runs into me! What are the chances? Weird point of the day is here... he doesn't have a ticket, I BOUGHT HIM A TICKET ALREADY. He's floored I did it, yet happy. Now, we have two people and two tickets. And a ten hour trip without any food. What do you think would happen next? Well, we had to wait about five hours, but a guy joined us and he was a Serb and later we started talking and then he got out his bag which was FULL of all his mom's cooking. We had an absolutely amazing Baklava and the trip was definitely one for the books. That's all I got for now. Hope you enjoyed it.
posted by Zach Barnes at 5:01 AM
1 Comments:
zach, this is the most amazing story yet. wow. and you tell it so well-- i was gripped with excitement until the end. glad your friend made it in the taxi... and glad you bought him a ticket! enjoy the rest of your trip back through europe. i'm off to Norway in 2 days. hasta luego, cuando regreso.
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