RETIREMENT & LIFESTYLE PLANNING      Baby boomers need to plan their transition into retirement for  Financial Security     Active Health Management  Emotional Wellbeing  Maximum Self Esteem ISSUE - 27 - Autumn 2006/2007

Stranger danger

You never know who you'll meet on a train, says Kaye Fallick , which is but one of the attractions of this highly civilized way to travel.

The dilemma

There are as many Europes as there are Africas and Americas. Sophisticated Europe, ancient Europe, high-tech Europe, cross-cultural Europe – it's impossible for a travellerto experience them all, even during a sojourn that stretches for a year or more. This difficulty is compounded for Australian travellers whose domicile is so far away; they are usually on the strictest of timetables and the slimmest of budgets.

Dilemma solved!

There is, however, one solution capable of delivering the best of the many Europes, easily and enjoyably, and cost and time effectively. This solution is also one of the most romantic ways to travel – by rail. In his novel The Memory of Running , author Ron McLarty describes American railway stations as museums with newspapers. The same might be said about European train stations – but they have coffee – GREAT coffee – and so much more!

Train travellers in Europe are virtually guaranteed a heavy dose of history before they even depart. But don't plan to arrive at your station, be it London's Waterloo, Rome's Termini , or the Gare du Nord in Paris, with too little time before departure. While waiting time in airport departure lounges is a punishment to be avoided at all costs, extra time in European train stations is an experience to be savoured. Promise yourself that you'll enjoy the full European rail adventure and arrive an hour or two early, allowing sufficient time to browse the bookshops, enjoy a light repast, buy a foreign language newspaper and inhale the heady cosmopolitan atmosphere. And if you're fortunate enough to be travelling first class, perhaps you'll even meet some of your fellow travellers whilst enjoying the hospitality in the lounge.

There is another great advantage of these fabulous train ‘museums' – with the rare exceptions of newer stations such as Avignon – they are situated slap bang in the centre of town. So when you arrive at your destination, as long as you've remembered to pack sparingly in a suitcase with wheels, you can languidly arise from your seat, adjust your attire, reclaim your bag, and saunter slowly through the terminus, exiting past upmarket boutiques, intriguing restaurants and tiny cafés en route to your preferred accommodation.

Traditionally, central European train stations were located adjacent to red light districts (or vice versa), so one needed to be careful when enthusiastically booking a remarkably inexpensive hotel, or risk hearing the squeals and grunts of horizontal dancing from the room next door: far too distracting for a good night's sleep for a tired traveller. Nowadays you are far more likely to find a discreet and elegant four-star boutique hotel, often featuring a minimal bar and well-appointed lobby. Advances in locomotive technology also mean that the speed and comfort of modern European trains allow the traveller to experience many different cities and cultures in a very, very short period of time indeed.

Hello, stranger

And one last advantage of ‘training'? If travel is indeed about the journey and not the destination, and the journey is always about the people you meet, then where better to meet a local than in the relaxed environment of your carriage, on the next stool in the bar, or in the adjacent seat in the restaurant car?

Consider the following timetable for time-pressed Aussie adventurers:

Day 1 Paris – Lausanne, Switzerland (TGV, travel time three hours)
Day 2 Lausanne – Panoramic train in Swiss Alps, then via Montreux to Bern, World Heritage City, returning to Lausanne
Day 3 Lausanne – Geneva – Montpellier, South of France (TGV)
Day 4 Montpellier – Barcelona, Spain (Talgo)
Day 5 Barcelona – Madrid (Alvia)
Day 6 Madrid – Toledo – Madrid (AVE)
Evening Day 6 Madrid – Paris (Elipsos overnight train with dinner and breakfast)

This whirlwind trip has seen you depart France mid-afternoon; dine in Lausanne; enjoy cheese, chocolate and Swiss efficiency; bask in the sun of Southern France and the ancient culture of the trading city of Montpellier; and experience the night life and tapas of Barcelona and Madrid, the architecture of Gaudi and the paintings of El Greco, before heading north into the night, to awaken in Paris, City of Light, ready for your next adventure.

---

More

Kaye Fallick travelled to Europe as a guest of Railplus and Emirates Airlines.

Web www.railplus.com.au or
Ph 1300 555 083

Web www.emirates.com.au or
Ph 1300 303 777

The Magazine  Links Page  Home Page  Subscribe now  Retirement Planning  Contacts

Departments  Finance  Issues  Activities  Travel  Health  Business  Property Web YL

Inspired by our articles in Changing Lives and want to change yours? Click here to visit www.getanewlife.com.au to read more about the book and visit some useful resources

	Web www.yourlifechoices.com.au

Your Life, Your Retirement. PO Box 1150N Armadale North Victoria 3143 Australia
Phone: 613 9824 6901   -   Fax: 613 9824 6362
Email: publisher@yourlifechoices.com.au


  IS PUBLISHED BY
Copyright Retirement Publishing Pty Ltd 2001 -- ISSN 1031-6620 ACN 088 049 218
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED No parts of this publication may be printed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the permission in writing from the publishers, with the exception of short extracts for review purposes.

PUBLISHERS NOTE While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information given in the publication, the publishers do not, in any way accept liability for inaccuracies or for loss of any kind, whether caused through editorial matter or in the form of claims made in advertisements.
Your Retirement is published by Retirement Publishing Pty. Ltd.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER No person should rely on contents of this publication or website without first obtaining advice from a qualified professional person. This publication is sold on the terms and understanding that (1) the publisher, authors, consultants and editors are not responsible for the results of any actions taken on the basis of information in this publication, nor for any omission from this publication; and (2) the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal accounting, professional or other advice or services. The publisher and the authors, consultants and editors expressly disclaim all and any liability and responsibility to any person, whether a purchaser or reader of this publication or not, in respect of anything, and of the consequences of anything done or omitted to be done by any such person in reliance, whether wholly or partially, upon the whole of any part of the contents of this publication. Without limiting the generality of the above no publisher, author, consultant or editor shall have any responsibility for any act or omission of any author, consultant or editor.