Day 24 - The long trip

Monday had come, and I would finally get all of my stuff in Munich. I was told that my father was bringing a large suitcase and a huge backpack. Finally I would have a pillow! And warm clothes!

So I had planned to meet Manuel at 12:30, so we could try the canteen. When I arrived to his hostel, he wasn't quite ready, so I headed to the station, to buy the tickets to Stuttgart, where I would meet my dad. As it turned out, the train we had seen on-line was an ICE train. A fast train. Which meant that a round trip would cost me 100 Euro. No way. So I asked for a cheaper train, and I got one. The fast train took 2 hours, while the regional train took 3, and I had to switch trains, but a regional ticket was "only" 44 Euro for a round trip. The problem was that i had to leave on hour earlier than expected, so no lunch at the canteen. A quick lunch at the station, and off I was. Or so I thought. I had to take a train to Ulm, and then from Ulm to Stuttgart. Simple enough, as Ulm was the final station of the first train. So we the train finally stopped, I looked up, and saw a sign that said TREUCHTLINGEN. Where the hell was I? What had gone wrong? How the hell did I got into the wrong train? Why didn't the guy that checked my ticket said anything? So I ran across the station, looking for someone that could help me. Managed to find a Info Point, where I was told that I had to take 3 more trains to reach Stuttgart, and I would arrive at 18:43 (instead of he original 16:56). Well, no point in crying over split milk, so I took the next train, and this time I triple checked the train. It was the right one. 20 minutes to Donauwörth, then switch trains to Aalen. Once there, switch again to Stuttgart, finally. So instead of 3 hours, it took me 5. I was tired of riding trains.

So when I finally met my dad in Stuttgart, he gave me the bags (1 large suitcase, 1 large backpack, 1 small backpack), I had dinner at the Burger King, and we triple checked our trains.

Got on the train (yes, the right one), and settled down. I had to pay attention, as to leave in Ulm this time. Said goodbye to my dad, and off I was to Munich. The train did its first stop, and there, another problem had arisen. The police stopped the train, and we had to wait for an hour, i don't know why. All the informations were given in German, and I just understood that there would be a delay caused by the police...so another lost connection, another wasted hour.

When I arrived at Ulm, I checked the next train to Munich. It was in half an hour, which meant I would arrive in Munich at 00:30, instead of the original 23:30. Well, thanks to the police. And, amazing as it seems, there were no problems in his final trip. I had the train almost all to myself.

In Munich, i decided to take a taxi. it would be easier to deal with all the luggage that way, and I really didn't want to go alone in the subway so heavily carried. 15 minutes and 20 Euro later I was finally home. it had been a tiring day. I talked with my mom, and started to unpack. I had some of my favourite cakes, a surprise from my mom, a large piece of ham and some tomato syrup, courtesy of my grandmother. Thanks! I fought for a while with the bed covers and the blankets, but I managed to place everything in the right place.I had a pillow, and some blankets. Nice. My room was starting to be mine, and not some empty space. Of to bed, as it was already 3 am.

Just a visual ilustration of my trip. Red is the programmed way, blue is the route I took. Notice that I had to travel back for a while.