...Uncharacteristically, the ICE arrives late, and, once boarded, is nearly packed with passengers. I still manage to find a seat for myself and one for my overstuffed backpack, efficient packing being far less easy than for my first big rail trip in 1992.
Much has changed in 15 years. Then I was freshly married; now, though happily smtten after a quadrillion online dates, I am a bachelor. Then, it was a 21 day first class Eurailpass, now, a 5-days-in-10 interrail pass in second, interrail being the cheaper version made available to those paying their taxes in pounds, francs and Euros.
...Snacking on viande de grisons-a form of salted, dried beef emanating from the centre of Switzerland. Hyperexpensive by the kilo, but relatively reasonable by the snack portion. Washed down with a can of Feldschlossen Ice, strangely the least insipid pilsner tasted in recent days.
...As for the soundtrack: Power of Gold by the recently departed Dan Fogelberg, whose dulcet tones have long formed the background for numerous romantic and emotional trials of mine. Fogelberg gives way to electronic tango music from Otros Aires, a trophy from my last big adventure, a trip last year of similar length to Argentina. This trip promises a head-on collision with two musical genres of similar stature: Balkan Brass Band and Turbofolk. I'll spare you the details until I can report them with an appropriately jaundiced ear.
...Transfer at Mannheim. Not exactly Judgement at Nuremberg. Indeed, the normalness of Germany is what I love about the place. And any evaluation of Germany as a society has to give mention to some real positives--electing great leaders (Adenauer, Brandt, Kohl and Merkel), serving as a bulwark for the West in the Cold War, welcoming at least 50,000 Soviet Jews.
Even with its current problems, today's Germany is a testimony to the redeeming power of Civilization, and to a large extent to the American contribution to its preservation.
...Something really civilized about Germany is the new model ICE train. Seats four to a row, but otherwise, comparable to the best first class seats I've seen--soft, with floating headpillows, footrests, and at-seat audio to give the MP3 player a rest. The older trains (which blew me away from Salzburg to Wurzburg in 92) retain their appeal, but the newer ones have an evolution in the detail area. Best are the full service dining/bar cars which have real coffee and even serve Rose Sekt, a sparkling wine with a nice color and acidity.
...Another transfer, this one at Munich. A night train consisting of sleeper cars, couchettes (carpeted planks which offer both a hard place to sleep...and a good reason to upgrade to the full sleeper) and old-school compartment seats for those whom horizontality was either unnecessary or unaffordable. Interestingly, the ten carriages were headed in different directions, with a big split in Salzburg I mercifully slept through despite leaving my melatonin in Delft. One car was going to Bucharest, one to Belgrade, three to Budapest and three to my destination, Zagreb.
...I called an audible, in gridiron parlance, to head straight for Zagreb rather than diverting to Ljubljana and Lake Bled. It was a no-brainer deciding after a full day and night of travel that I wanted the extra two hours of sleep to be gained by refraining from the detour. Slovenia will be there tomorrow, and if I exhaust Zagreb's charms by midnight tonight, I may yet choose to pay a visit to Croatia's northern neighbor.
...But Zagreb first. Croatia's advertising slogan is "the Mediterranean as it used to be.". But Zagreb being far from the beach, is best described as "Europe as it used to be.". Being just outside the clutches of the European Union, Zagreb possesses the kind of local colo(u)r that has long since disappeared from more westerly burgs. Local brands and independent shops predominate. Big electric signs advertising businesses impenetrable by the non-Slav are positioned on ornate Hapsburg-era blocks overlooking central squares. Trams are everywhere-indeed Zagreb may be the world's only city where tram cars outnumber residents.
Zagreb is very Prague-like aesthetically, though lacking in tourists and English speakers. Menus are heavy on pork and Italian food, so I indulged in my first pizza in many, many months--a tuna and olive number that was surprisingly good. Prices are cheaper than in the EU, but not by enough to make the trip pay for itself. As for the beer, am currently chewing away at a Tomislav, named after one of the nation's Equestrian heroes (as judged by the statue across from the train station).. It's dark, sweet and a bit hoppy, and has a respectable 7.5 richter scale ranking (otherwise known as alcohol by volume). Kind of like a German bock, with some earthy flavors-making it distinctive.
Croatia's beer scene is dominated by a battle between local brands like Tomislav and the ubiquitous Ojujsko and locally produced licensed Stella Artois, Heineken and Carlsberg/Tuborg brands, with the licensed brews commanding a price premium. I'll stick to the local stuff while I'm here...
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