22nd March 2006 - Day 156

I woke up at 0400 and started all the last minute preparations like packing in my toileteries. Things went on as planned and I was out by 0443, 2 minutes earlier than stipulated time.

I reached the tram station at 0502, 5 minutes earlier than the tram. There were only 3 people on the tram. Nobody seems to board the tram at the other Haltestelle.

When I reached the Hauptbahnhof and went to the platform, I realised I could have saved a Kebap over the train fare. And nobody checked my ticket for the entire trip from Karlsuruhe to Nürnberg. I slept for most part of the journey, only to wake up when the train stops.

Despite initial worries of missing a train connection, it did not happen as the connecting train came late.

There was enough time for me to walk around Nürnberg. I have quite a good impression of the plce. It's a pity that I did not visit this place last year during the Christmas period.

Late March. But it was still snowing.

As I did not want to eat biscuits for lunch, I bought a Kebap before heading back to the Nürnberg Hauptbahnhof. There was a good 10 minutes before the train arrives, so I started eating.

Then came the announcement that the train would be slightly late. An English couple couldn't figure out what it said, so I told them what it meant.

"I thought German trains were never late", said the lady.

Which makes me wonder where did German trains get that reputation from? Once, I waited 20 minutes for a train from Stuttgart to Karlsruhe.

The lady told me that she and her husband were supposed to cruise down from Köln to Vienna. But there was some ice and the captain told everyone onboard to take alternative forms of transport.

I am quite glad I did not stinge on the 1.50€ to make a seat reservation. The train was quite packed. For a 5 hour train ride, it only seem logical.

The old lady sitting opposite me asked me if I was going to Vienna. She needs help with a suitcase 3/4 the size of her.

The hostel was near the Wien Westbahnhof and was fairly easy to find. After I left all my stuffs there, I started walking towards the city centre.

Since I had no proper map of the area, I got quite lost as there were many lanes in the city centre. Maybe I am in Karlsruhe for too long, but seeing all the shopping streets made me excited.

No pictures taken as the sky was quite dark and cloudy. I did a brief overview of what's in town and took note of what places would interest me.

Just before heading back to the hostel, I went to some supermarket and found that things are more expensive here. For example, the single use camera costs 12,99€ here.

So, buy all the things you'll need before you visit Wien.