Get your honeymoon on track
Sep 9th, 2007 by Katie
After 10 glorious days in sunny Spain we’re back! It was great to completely ‘desconectar’ (no internet, no computers) for a while…and it’s taking a bit of getting used to being plugged in again (that’s our excuse for not replying to any emails yet anyway!).
We decided for this holiday we’d go the low carbon route again but a bit further this time (last year was via Eurostar and TGV to the Loire Valley) and took the train all the way from Worthing in West Sussex to Girona in northeast Spain.
The tempting sleeper cabin option was rejected due to lack of funds so on the downside we did spend most of 2 days making the journey there and back but on the upside got to see some gorgeous countryside and coastal beauty spots as we sped along.
On the way down we broke our journey at Perpignan staying at a stylish B&B called ‘le crocodile rouge’.
Stylish did not mean snooty, I’m pleased to report, as our extremely friendly hosts invited us to share dessert with the family and then spend a pleasant evening chatting about this and that (chance to use my French!), including ethical weddings and responsible travel!
Travelling through France and Spain by train allowed us many opportunities as we sat by the window to pick out potential future holiday spots that we never would have seen had we gone by plane and it struck us what a wonderful honeymoon it would make - a couple of hours on the train then a few nights at the first destination that takes your fancy, then on to the next, checking in at different places on your return journey.
Before going to university, everyone was off interrailing around Europe for the summer, now air fares are so cheap it’s all about jetting around the world. Maybe your honeymoon could be a good time to think about reliving your youth and dusting off that interrail pass again for a break at a more leisurely pace!
If you’ve been on a great rail journey for your honeymoon we’d love to hear about it. Coming soon…we’ll have the Man in Seat 61’s honeymoon by rail tale for you, so watch this space!
Katie
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Hi
I’m one of your two green grooms! Just to say that we had a great honeymoon (and wedding before - the sun shone for the canoeing to church!) by train.
After the first 2 nights just outside Exeter (admitedely reached by car) we set off for the station using Exeter ecocar taxi company http://www.exeterecocars.co.uk and then travelled via First Great Western and Eurostar to Paris arriving around 8. A hour or two for a leisurely drink in the evening sunshine before the sleeper to Munich. Being the honeymoon we went 1st class which meant en-suite shower and toilet and a complimentary glass of sparkling wine as well as breakfast. After arriving at 9 we only had a 30 minute gap to our train to Salzburg and then a connecting bus to our hotel in the lake district (Salzkammergut) nearby.
A week later we travelled by train onto Zermatt in Switzerland and then back via 3 nights in Paris. All tickets sorted by Railbookers - who are highly recommended. Great fun!
Hi Katie - I know what you mean about the joys of unplugging from the internet/tv/mobile etc.
Folks might want to get into the unplug movement! Really just a way to get some insight, support and motivation for getting some headspace back. There can be safety issues too (that terrible case recently of a cyclist kiled by a woman driver texting). These habits can be so addictive can’t they. I know from late night, first hand experience on the internet.
More at http://52nightsunplugged.ning.com/ and http://authenticblogging.com/category/unplugbalance/
Why is a blogging enterprise encouraging people to unplug? We feel a moral imperative to encourage balance. And we teach what we most need to learn…