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When I tell people what my job is they frequently say how lucky I am to get to travel so much. They cannot understand when I say you can have too much of a good thing. Well here is yesterdays travel story.

Went to the e-Compete meeting in Gut Gremmelin yesterday. Gut Gremmelin is a beautiful place - an old manor house converted into a training centre with facilities and food which many 5 star hotels would find it difficult to match.
The only problem is the location - it is in the middle on nowhere. Well not quite - but its just that every time I go there things seems to go wrong. It is a three and a half to five hour train journey (normally) from Bremen - depending on which train you catch, connections and the like.

Last time I went there I was doing well until I fell asleep 10 minutes before the station I was supposed to change at (only 10 minutes away from where I was being picked up by a shuttle provided by the centre) and ended up miles away in Rostock. I waited 40 minutes to go back down the line - and then got off at the wrong stop. Sign-posting can be a little tricky in that part of Germany (which my friend Lars insists on calling 'the zone'). Nevertheless i have to say the mess up was all my fault.

This time I prepared myself. I got all the print outs etc from DeutcheBahn's excellent web server (why can't the airlines produce something as good as this). Trouble was - when I got to my second change in a place called Bustrow, my destination (and where I was being picked up) - Lallendorf - was not on the destination board. talked to the helpful ticket person who told me the train I was on does not indeed stop in Lallendorf. Thankfully I found out in enough time to get off in Gustrow and ring the ever helpful Nicole in the Gut Gremlin office and get the shuttle diverted.

OK - caused a few laughs for the partners in the e-Compete project for whom my vain travel attempts are becoming a running joke.

Extended text for this entry:

So - left plenty of time to get back to Gustrow to pick up my return train - was there ten minutes ahead of time. The Gustrow train came in on time and went the ten minutes down the line to Bustrow where I had to change for a train to Hamburg (change again for Bremen - see what I mean - it is not such an easy journey). After five minutes wait a notice went up on the board saying the train was fifteen minutes late. After twenty minutes the station director comes round to tell the three of us waiting that the train will be at least an hour late as a heavy goods lorry is stuck on the track!. Went off in search of a pub - what else can you do? Nothing to be found - not as much as a wuerst or imbiss. And it was cold. But at last - an hour and ten minutes late the train pulls in. Now what with the cold - and having drunk several cups of pretty poor station coffee (but only 70 cents a cup - I needed a quick visit to the toilet. Somewhere in the back of my brain I here a persistent alarm noise but just dismiss it as one of those things happening on a difficult day. Exit the toilet to find the conductor shouting at me very loud and fast. My German is not the greatest and it took me a little time before I noticed he was hanging on for grim life to an open door as the train gathers speed.

Sort of sussed oiut what he was trying to tell me to do. So I dash into the carriage and get to pull the emergency break. WEow - that is something you always wantg to do but never get the chance. The train ground to a halt quickly depositing two bottles of beer over the peopel sitting in front.

Then of course everyone wants to know what the hell was going on. And now I was proud of myself - I managed to find enough (just) German to explain. And then I was number 1 hero - foreigner rushing decisively to save the day in big (well - medium) emergency. The conductor even bought me a pint - or rather directed the bar staff to give me one for free.

Ah well - fun day out. Still writing this on the train. Hope I get back to Bremen before closing time. But I think I'll stay away form Gut Gremmelin for a while.