# Lublin - Warszawa - Berlin - Itzehoe



## Barciur (Aug 20, 2013)

So my final trip of the summer... time for a trip report. Sorry to dissappoint, there won't be as many pictures as on my previous two, I'll instead try to fill it up with a bit more text and one video from aboard the German InterCity Express. 

So this time my destination was ITZEHOE, from where I went to WACKEN OPEN AIR. It's a heavy metal festival, in fact one of the biggest if not THE biggest heavy metal festivals in the world... so anyway, traditionally, we'll start with the itienary and tickets 







The train that took me to Warsaw was a REGIO train that changed into interREGIO to Warsaw from the eastern border of Poland. This was not how I usually went - so by PKP Intercity regular intercity trains. It's like if SEPTA extended one of their runs from Thorndale to New York City as competition to AMTRAK's Keystones. That's the best I can describe it.

My ticket - 5 PLN cheaper than PKP Intercity on the same route, and no required reservation and assigned seats. That's a plus.






Also, this time I was able to go to yet another station in Lublin - instead of starting off at Lublin main station, I went to North Lublin (Lublin Północny). That's closer to my grandma's house (where I lived for 3 months), but PKP Intercity trains don't go here, as they terminate in Lublin and don't go further.

The train approchaing the platform..






This is a modified modernized EMU EN57, it's one of the best trains Lublin's regional railways have got.

And inside it sort of looks like a bus.






And now at the Lublin main station.. letting us know when we depart.


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## Barciur (Aug 20, 2013)

Without delays, I got to Warsaw central station at 8:50.

This is the EN57 from Lublin at the platform in Warsaw. It will now go to Warsaw West station, where it will terminate and wait for couple of hours to return.






In the meantime, I decided to go looking for Subway where I ate a small sandwich. I went to the waiting room and spent about 30 minutes there just relaxing and napping, as I was very, very tired, and I had about 11 hours ahead of me.

This is my ticket. I bought it at Deutsche Bahn website, because I am travelling further by ICE to Hamburg and then by Regional Rail to Itzehoe. This ticket allows me to travel by EuroCity Berlin-Warszawa Express to Berlin, then by this ICE with a reservation to Hamburg, and then further by any kind of regional rail that I felt like.






Upon arrival at the platform, I saw this:






Too bad that the train didn't stop like it was supposed.. so everyone started rushing further forward. I took a picture on the way to my car.






And then we were on our way...






Inside the train looks like any other Express InterCity that Poland's PKP Intercity has. There are mostly cars with compartments and one that is regular airline-style seating. I usually prefer to travel in compartments in Poland, simply because they are unavailable in America, but sometimes there just isn't that much room and it is uncomfortable.

Neverthess, my compartment was full and we had some conversations with people, which is nice and having 6 people in one "room" can be good for conversation with fellow passengers, assuming fellow passengers want one and YOU want one. If you don't, those compartments are certainly not the best, as they don't offer as much privacy to an individual.


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## Barciur (Aug 20, 2013)

The train arrived in Berlin Hbf (Berlin main station) with a 25 minute delay. The station in Berlin is HUGE. There are trains on FOUR levels. So when you're walking through the middle hall, you see trains ABOVE YOU. It's kind of freaky, but it's really cool. It actually looks like a big mall, with escalators everywhere like that, and platforms are cool because they get a lot of light from above, they're not blocked off with restricted access like most stations have it in the US.

So, now on the ICE...






ICE is known to travel as fast as 300 km/h (185 MPH) on some lines, but not this one. This is not even an EMU, but an old locomotive carrying wagons with it. Nevertheless, it did go fairly fast - up to 250 km/h, so around 155 MPH.

Some views from the window aboard ICE











Now approaching Hamburg..











And - as promised, a short video as we are approaching Hamburg.


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## Barciur (Aug 20, 2013)

Now getting into Hamburg main station..











And now past Hamburg Hbf and going onwards to Hamburg Altona.






And this is how the inside of this car looked like.


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## Barciur (Aug 20, 2013)

Now arriving at Hamburg Altona.











And this is the car I travelled in..






And from there, I went to a regional train of Nord Ostee Bahn, but I was unable to take pictures, as there was a LOT of people travelling, mostly to the festival, but also other locations. The trip took an hour, it was very packed, so I just settled there and got to Itzehoe..

The trip took 13 hours and it's a big distance - 700 miles in 13 hours gives an average of 55 MPH, but keeping in mind that I had an hour of waiting time in Warsaw and then an hour in Berlin, it's 11 hours of travel time - so 64 MPH of average speed isn't half bad.

===========

Now for the return trip..

The last concert ended at 1 AM, I went back to my tent, got there at 2, packed up, sat around a little, and by 3 I was at the festival parking grounds, from where I took the bus to Itzehoe, where the train station is located. There I had a 5:20 departure - so 2 hours of idle sitting. I wasn't alone, though.






And at the platform.. this is taken from aboard the Regional Bahn to Elmshorn, where we will switch to Regio Express to Hamburg.


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## Barciur (Aug 20, 2013)

Getting off at Elmshorn, this is the platform going in the other direction.






And fellow metalheads awaiting the train..











Finally, after about 20 minutes, RE to Hamburg arrived. It was a Bombardier car, double decked. Didn't take very long to get to Hamburg Hbf. While there, I was now on my own, no more metalheads, no more dirt from the festival.. real world again  I went straight to the platform to catch the ICE to Leipzig via Berlin.

Once I got on and the conductor checked my ticket, I immediately fell asleep and woke up in Berlin. Mind you, I didn't sleep at all for 24 hours now, so it was difficult to travel.. but i had to change trains in Berlin to the Polish EuroCity BWE.

Upon getting off in Berlin, I went to Burger King to grab a bite and waited patiently for the BWE.

It finally arrived, carried by German locomotive Siemens' EU44.






And there my compartment was full once again, but 6 people is bareable. I mostly spent the trip asleep. I got off in Warsaw central station, went to Subway to grab a quick sandwich, went to a ticket machine to buy a ticket to Lublin and boarded there at 4 PM... so now 11 hours en route, having only slept in bits and pieces while on board of the trains.

The train to Lublin is an international Kiev Express, carrying 4 Ukrainian sleeping cars, but it is mostly used by Poles like a regular train from Warsaw to Lublin or to points east. It was jam packed, as tehre are only 3 Polish cars and plenty of passengers. No option to take any pictures, but you've seen pictures from this route already, so hopefully it's no big deal.. and if not, please see my other two trip reports from Poland.

And that's that for this summer, it's back to the Keystones for me now  hopefully next year plenty more of trip reports from Europe await. And if not next summer, then definitely the summer after.

Cheers for your attention and I hope you've enjoyed it! It's back to the Keystones for me now


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## Bob Dylan (Aug 21, 2013)

:hi: Another Great Trip with Great Pics! I'm envious!


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## Barciur (Aug 23, 2013)

Thanks! I can't afford AMTRAK longer trips so I've been doing the rounds in Europe  Some day it will come time for AMTRAK


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## Bob Dylan (Aug 23, 2013)

Barciur said:


> Thanks! I can't afford AMTRAK longer trips so I've been doing the rounds in Europe  Some day it will come time for AMTRAK


Consider using a Rail Pass and staying in Hostels while youre still Young and Healthy! Im Old and Poor and I still Travel this way, beats staying @ Home anyday! The NEC is Pricey compared to LD Trains, "Go West Young Man, Go West!"


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## Barciur (Sep 13, 2013)

jimhudson said:


> Barciur said:
> 
> 
> > Thanks! I can't afford AMTRAK longer trips so I've been doing the rounds in Europe  Some day it will come time for AMTRAK
> ...


I've looked into that and it seems that I could go visit all four corners of the US with a rail pass that's not all that expensive! Thanks for the suggestion.. I will certainly have to do this eventually


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## caravanman (Sep 17, 2013)

Nice report! I just took a short rail trip from UK to Amsterdam, Berlin, and Budapest by train to cheer myself up... having had to cancel my trip to Amtrak land. I stayed in the hostels in Amsterdam and Berlin, but used a nice cheap hotel in Budapest. I visited Krakow in Poland last of all, and although that was a bus journey, I enjoyed the impressive scenery along that route.

Happy travels!

Ed


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## Sealink (Sep 18, 2013)

Great trip report! I was mightily impressed with the German ICE trains.


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## jis (Sep 18, 2013)

Do the Warsaw - Berlin Hbf Expresses use the upper level or the lower level of Berlin Hbf these days? I understand they can use either and it depends on where they are going next. But I was not sure what they do for those that terminate at Hbf. Thanks.


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## Barciur (Sep 20, 2013)

jis said:


> Do the Warsaw - Berlin Hbf Expresses use the upper level or the lower level of Berlin Hbf these days? I understand they can use either and it depends on where they are going next. But I was not sure what they do for those that terminate at Hbf. Thanks.


It was the upper level when I used it, though I only used it twice, but it terminated at the upper level and it came to the upper level. It doesn't wait there, though, of course; it came from somewhere to start at Hbf.

Thanks for the nice words!


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