Influential books follow-up: Thomas Cook European Timetable in the present tense.

For today's column I added the Thomas Cook European Timetable to the listing of the (now) 32 books that have influenced me the most.

With a copy of the timetable in hand and a Eurailpass in pocket, it felt like just about anything was possible. Cracking the code of symbols and supplementary notes was a rite of passage. It cannot ever be the same asking a smart phone or Alexa to plan the journey rather than poring over the minutiae with train station cafe beer in hand.

As of this precise moment, European Rail Timetable is the publisher of the former Thomas Cook European Rail Timetable, resuming the print publication of the book in March of 2014 after a brief interruption when Thomas Cook Publishing stopped doing so in 2013.

These days there are monthly digital editions and bimonthly print editions. Wikipedia has the whole story; here's coverage of the guide's return in 2014.

The InterRail bible returns: European Rail Timetable is back in print, by Will Coldwell (The Guardian)

Six months after being closed by its publishers Thomas Cook, former employees of the European Rail Timetable have brought the definitive, 140-year-old train guide back into print

Running close to 600 pages and listing around 50,000 trains, the Thomas Cook European Rail Timetable was long considered the InterRailer's bible until it was discontinued in August 2013.

Now, thanks to the persistence of John Potter, one of its original staff members, the timetable has been relaunched as an independent guide after Thomas Cook agreed to hand over the rights to the publication.

The March edition of the timetable went back on sale last Tuesday and, in a testament to how much the timetable was missed by rail fans and travellers – it sold out just four days later.

For Potter, the response has been overwhelming: "We've had thousands of emails saying, 'We're so glad you're back!' One guy joked he had been taken off suicide watch, while another woman wrote in to say her husband was much happier now he had his monthly fix. Some people didn't even realise it had been stopped. I could write a book out of all the comments."

Five years later, it comes as absolutely no surprise to learn that the UK's privatized rail companies, which are facing unprecedented criticism for poor performance -- have pulled out of the Interrail and Eurail schemes.

“Either this shows the true Little Englander nature of the Tories, or how out of touch the rail companies are with the people. Or both. Either way it’s not good enough."

Maybe this too will revert. Diana's British, you know.

Riding the rails in Europe: "My return to Interrailing 30 years on."

1985, Greece.

I miss the clickety-clack, to be honest. Trains need to be trains, not airplanes.

Back on track: my return to Interrailing 30 years on (The Guardian)

Dixe Wills repeats his teenage Interrail odyssey, at a more leisurely pace this time, pausing to reflect on the unique opportunity the 31-country pass offers

Trains.

Dixe Wills did it 30 years ago with an Interrail pass (European users only). My first experience came 34 years ago with a Eurailpass.

I'd do it again, tomorrow. Actually, I'd do it again tomorrow assuming I could afford a month or two in Europe riding trains while indulging my twin vices of beer and local cuisine.

Two days here, three there; a nice ride in between, with a picnic basket and adult beverages.

And the occasional museum.

The nostalgia is killing me.

In Europe, a "cultural enrichment plan (that) could change young lives, and maybe even revive the heyday of the Interrail train pass."

Spring, 1985.

There would be a round-trip flight on the then-cheapest Icelandair from Chicago to Luxembourg, returning 88 days after departure. Ground transport would be a three-month Eurailpass. Convinced that it would be my sole and only trip to Europe, a kamikaze itinerary was planned, incorporating nights on trains sleeping in seats, and crashed on the decks of boats. I studied every available trick to skim cash and expand the duration of my experience.

Way back when, the Eurail Youthpass (2nd class only; a5 years of age and under) was the equivalent of the Interrail. The latter remains available only to residents of the participating European countries.

Those were the days, my friend.

The EU Is Giving Teens a Month of Free Train Travel Across Europe, by Feargus O'Sullivan (CityLab)

This summer, the European Commission is offering 18-year-old European residents a free Interrail ticket—a rail pass that permits travel across 30 European countries for a month. What’s more, they’re not just offering it to one or two teenagers. With a budget of €12 million for this year, the commission plans to fund trips for 20,000 to 30,000 young people, with the possibility of more passes in the years to come. Exact details of how to apply and who will be get an Interrail pass, worth up to €510 ($628), will be released in the next few months. But one thing is already clear: A large town’s worth of European 18-year-olds will be able to travel from Lapland to Lisbon by train this summer, and the price they will pay is precisely nothing.

Why fund a bunch of free trips? The intent is to broaden young participants’ horizons and hopefully instill some sense of Europe’s connections.

30 years ago today: An April interlude in Interlaken and the Swiss road to Vienna.

Jungfrau (13,642 feet)

Previously: 30 years ago today: (April) Swiss day trips to Geneva and Montreux.

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If the Swiss Alps were the primary reason for visiting Switzerland, then Interlaken was the ideal place to be for a brief mountain immersion.

Day 12 ... Monday, April 27
Lausanne → Interlaken. Balmer's. In town. "Big Chill"

Day 13 ... Tuesday, April 28
Interlaken. Grand rail tour. Suisse RR

Day 14 ... Wednesday, April 29
Interlaken → Zurich. Day only, overnight to Wien.

Once Interlaken made the Victorians swoon with mountain vistas from the chandelier-lit confines of grand hotels; today it makes daredevils scream with adrenaline-loaded activities. Straddling the glacier-fed Lakes Thun and Brienz and capped by the pearly white peaks of Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau, the town is the gateway to Switzerland's fabled Jungfrau region and the country's hottest adventure destination bar none. If the touristy town itself leaves you cold, the mountains on its doorstep will blow your mind, particularly if you’re abseiling waterfalls, thrashing white water or gliding soundlessly above 4000m summits.

Adventure destination? Not so much for me, but different strokes and all. I'd be perfectly happy with a beer, a sausage and some chocolate -- then as now.

The guidebooks were unanimous in their praise of Balmer's Herberge, which is going (and growing) strong three decades after my two-night stay in 1987. It was an affordable hostel in the Swiss context, and functioned almost as a traveler's community center. I loved it.

The weather both days in Interlaken was superb. On Monday, I walked around town sniffing for cheap food (fat chance), and ending with my first-ever viewing of The Big Chill, via the nightly feature video at Balmer's.

On Tuesday I can recall feeling fatigued, perhaps because of the higher elevation. I went to a grocery, loaded the day pack with snacks and beers, hiked to one of Interlaken's two train stations, and kept my Eurailpass in hand throughout a day spent sitting on various trains.

Just what I meant by "grand rail tour" is lost, as I don't recall exactly where I rode, only that it lasted much of the day. I'd get off, look at a schedule, and board another train. There always were mountains to look at, or a park bench with a view in a town where I had thirty minutes to wait.

These photos cover the Interlaken period. Apart from the Jungfrau (above), I've no clue what they show, but it was consistently beautiful.

On Wednesday I took the train to Zurich and indulged in what was becoming a routine ritual.

1. Stash baggage at the manned check or in a locker.
2. Purchase couchette reservations (cheap sleeps) for the overnight trip to (Vienna, in this case).
3. Wander the city until it was time to board the train.

One must see was the Cafe Odeon.

ODEON: A coffee house with a long history

The history of the Café ODEON reveals all the political and economic turmoil of the last nine decades. They were survived with more or less stability and are also mirror the various influences it went through. Here, politics were discussed and artistic movements found their cradle, people from most different nationalities, cultures and religions seeking refuge or distraction from every day life ...

... Amongst the famous musicians who were regular visitors of the ODEON, we have to mention Wilhelm Furtwängler, Franz Lehar, Arturo Toscanini and Alban Berg. Even scientists like Albert Einstein, who enjoyed discussing here with students from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, was one of the regulars. Benito Mussolini, then still a fiery anarchist, and Lenin, fully devoted to reading all the available newspapers, as well as Trotsky, are just a few representatives of the politicians who came in and out.

I couldn't afford to patronize the Odeon, but it was an homage, all the same. Lastly, a view of the Grossmünster church in 1987 ...

... and in 2014.

Next: Vienna.