Everything goes very smoothly this morning – I wake up just ahead of the alarm, the train from Bellgrove is on time and Avanti has not cancelled first class (as they did once before) so I get plenty of free coffee and a somewhat bland avocado bagel delivered to my seat for breakfast. By the time we reach Carlisle, the train announcer is apologising for the delay. Should be OK though – I’ve left plenty of time for the transfer in London 🤞
In the beautiful sunshine, everything looks lovely, and I seemed like a tourist before I even left Glasgow, carrying a large backpack as I gazed up at our lovely domes and cupolas on Buchanan Street. (Holidays are as much a state of mind as a change of location.)
After a nice risotto and a sub-par prosecco, we arrive in London 20 minutes late. I make my way briskly down to St Pancras, arriving at Eurostar departures just two minutes after the recommended time, only to find gates won’t open for another 20 minutes. I wander over to Kings Cross (just across the road) to get an iced coffee and then return to join what is possibly the longest queue in the known world, apart from at Alton Towers. Dealing with check-in and passport control requires a great deal of patience and a level of nonchalance bordering on apathy. Cold drinks help.
All smooth as silk on the Eurostar, except when I dropped my cutlery and kicked the man opposite but hey, this is me. A relatively quick change in Brussels, but we were on time so it was fine. The same couple that were near me on the Eurostar are now next to me on the ICE (fancy German train). They are heading for Scandinavia but also staying in Cologne tonight.
The short walk to my hotel didn’t seem to take me through the most salubrious streets in Cologne, but I got here without incident. You know what I’m like about my languages, so after coming unstuck on the ICE when I didn’t understand what was being asked about my food order, I was cheered by being able to order and pay for a snack in a wee shop completely in German. It’s not much, but it makes me happy.
Now I’m eating my snack (a croissant that would make French people tear out their hair) while finishing this post in my perfectly comfortable if characterless room. But I don’t ask for character in a hotel I chose because of its proximity to the station, I just ask for clean sheets and a shower that works. ✔️ to the first of those, and I expect the second will be fine, too. But first, sleep 😴
K C Murdarasi 
Alas my password is invalid and I can’t see a reset.
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