The grand tour. Day 22. Maybe I’ll go to Amsterdam…

29 Tuesday Sep 2026

03:15.

Fans of Joni Mitchell will get the reference here. Although I have to admit to being sorely tempted…

I’m currently kicking my heels in the vast and rather magnificent Frankfurt Haubtbahnhof where a simple change of trains has proved to be rather more complex as the curse of DB strikes again. I’m here to transfer from the train from Berlin (which was lovely) to the train to Zurich. I’ve no idea if that’s going to be lovely or not as it’s running 90 minutes late! Just as well I hadn’t booked any onward connections in Zurich then, although I do have a hotel room waiting for me in Tirano – if I can get there. DB have an interesting excuse for late running. The Brits would blame other operators or freight trains. In Germany long distance trains are late “due to delays abroad”.

Frankfurt station at 03:30 is still a busy place. Several foodstalls remain open to cater for the international travellers who seem to make up the majority of those here right now. Well, us and the handful of vagrants who make the place their sanctuary. The Amsterdam reference? That’s due to the OBB Nightjet service that’s pulled into the platform next to mine and left on time.

On the bright side, although the seasons change is reflected in the colours in the autumn leaves it’s still remarkably mild. Temperatures hit the mid 20s in Berlin today and I’m still wearing shorts now. Hopefully the weather in Switzerland and Italy will be the same.

Damn. That train direct from Frankfurt to Amsterdam is giving me ideas…

04:30.

We’re off! Some smart work saw a swift locomotive change (Frankfurt is a terminus). On this train it was just as well I reserved a seat as it’s packed. There’s only one first class coach but virtually every seat’s taken. I’ve a single seat which in which a young Japanese girl was stretched out across. Of course she apologised and moved as soon as I arrived. Looking around the coach is like seeing the flags of the united nations. So many different nationalities are represented here. The one thing that jars with me? I’m probably the oldest person in the coach…

08:00.

I managed to get some sleep on the train and now I’ve wojen up in a new country. Good morning Switzerland! Our first stop has been Basel, where 99% of the occupants of my coach decamped, leaving just 5 of us for the rest of the trip to Zurich.

My first impressions of Switzerland? The amount of railfreight is massive. But then so is their rail infrastructure. The other thing? Graffiti. For such a supposedly law-abiding country, it’s endemic. I have to say – if there’s one thing the UK does well compared to Europe it’s cleaning up grafitti.

11:30.

We eventually arrived into Zurich 55 late, which wasn’t too bad. I was in no rush anyway so I made the most of my time by taking pictures around the vast station and surrounds. Now I’m on the train to Chur and enjoying views like this.

The grand tour day 21. Bye, bye Berlin.

28 Monday Sep 2026

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10:18.

I had a lovely (if late) night with and old friend and colleague from my Siemens days. Ellen no longer works for Siemens Mobility which means we don’t get to see each other as often, so it was great to spend the evening catching up.

Adding to my interesting mix of hotels, last nights bed was in a homestay. I stayed with a lovely German chap of Lebanese birth who rents out the spacious spare room in his apartment in the Gesundbrunnen district. The area’s a multi-ethnic melting pot with a great mix of cafes and local restaurants with food to suit all tastes.

Now I’m packing up and heading to Berlin HbF to dump my suitcase before going for a wander. Back with pictures soon…

13:30.

Having made it to the Hauptbahnhof the first job was to leave my bag, which is easier said than done. Left luggage lockers of a decent size were at a premium. I enxed up going round and round for about 10 minutes until I found one that was free. It reminded me of motorists driving round a busy car park, hoping someone will leave! The other thing is the toilets, which take the pee in more ways than one. I’ve rarely seen a queue for a gents, but the HbF achieves it, mainly because they charge a €1.50 and the machine is so slow queues build up.

Bag dumped I headed back to Geshundbrunnen with the idea of getting pictures in the area. There’s an old WW2 flak tower which I wanted to visit, but as I was taking pictures at the station a Polish train came in that was heading across the border at Frankfurt (Oder). I stayed there during my last Innotrans in 2022. The train was only going to take an hour to cover the journey so I thought “why not?”. I quickly entered the trip details in my Interrail ticket app and there you go! I’m now paying a flying visit to Frankfurt!

This train has a buffet car and if the journey was longer I’d have been very tempted to have polished off a Polish lunch on board!

Today’s mix of travellers includes an American family (unusual) and a handful of medal wearing Poles on their way home from yesterday’s Berlin marathon.

15:30.

Well, that was fun! I was in Frankfurt (Oder) for little more than an hour but I discovered some interesting history – both railway and political, as well as getting some useful pictures. I also made sure the train I booked back to Berlin was another Polish service in order to eat in the buffet car, where I treated myself to a traditional Polish shoup with dark bread.

East German railways (DR) live on at Frankfurt (Oder) in the shape of these old Class 243 locomotives which still bear the livery and branding of the past.

Traditional Polish Rye soup. Made with bacon, boiled egg, white sausage, onion, garlic, horseradish and marjoram.

Just by the station is a fascinating memorial to staff who lived (and died) in railway service – no matter where borders changed.

23:45.

Having had a fantastic time in Berlin and a goodbye beer with Ellen in a biergarten by the Hauptbahnhof I’m now heading for Switzerland. I was worried that trains might be busy so I booked 1st class seats. I needen’t have worried. My coach is almost empty. Right now I’m on ICE699 which is bound for Munich, although I’ll be transferring to another service at Frankfurt. Only DB being DB have helpfully texted me to say my connection’s running 40 minutes late. Good job I didn’t book my onward trip from there, eh?

Still, I’m enjoying the luxury of an uncrowded 1st Class ICE. Let’s hope the next one’s the same, but now it’s time to get a couple of hours sleep.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 20. Back to Berlin…

27 Sunday Sep 2026

Posted by Paul Bigland in Germany, Photography, Railways, The Grand Tour, Travel

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Dresden, europe, Germany, History, Photography, Railways, The Grand Tour, Travel

with my time in Dresden being short I was up early in order to enjoy a lighting walking tour of the Alstadt (old town). With it being early – and a Sunday, Dresden was very quiet indeed – which made picture taking so much easier! The weather Gods has smiled upon me too as we had yet more blue skies. Dresden is another European city where the sheer size and scale of the buildings can’t fail to impress. What’s also impressive is the way the city has been restored after the terrible bombings it suffered at the hands of the British and Americans towards the end of World War 2, in February1945.

I’d loved to have stayed and explored more. Not just the city itself but also the expansive rail network. The city’s very much a hub for freight traffic which is interesting to see for a Briton brought up in a country that’s done its best to get freight off (not on) the railways.

The countryside around Dresden looks interesting too. There’s rolling hills and what look like vineyards, which is a refreshing change from the flatness of the areas of Scandinavia and Northern Europe that I’ve traversed on this trip so far. I’m looking forward to putting that right…

Now I’m back in Berlin for just over 24 hours before beginning the trek to Southern Europe through countryside that’s anything but flat!

Here’s a couple of pictures from today’s wanderings to whet your appetite.

The Fürstenzug is a mural made of porcelain tiles which depicts Saxon rulers throughout the ages.

This is the Frauenkirche, a Baroque church reconsecrated in 2005 after being destroyed in World War 2.

A DB class 232 pauses at Neustadt for a crew change. nicknamed ‘Ludmillas’ these engines were built by the Soviet Union in Ukraine from 1973-82.

More later…

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 19. Berlin to Dresden (and more).

26 Saturday Sep 2026

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I was sad to check out of my villa this morning. The place was such a peaceful retreat from the madness of Innotrans, and so peaceful. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who thought that. Last night I met a German couple who were staying there for the same reason as they were attending Innotrans too! He was a test train driver for Alstom, so we ended up having a good chat.

The weather’s reverted to type this morning with blanket sunshine and rising temperatures making it a great day to travel. Having left Werder (Havel) I made my way to Charlottenburg in style as I’m back using my 1st Class Interrail pass. Nipping across central Berlin on the S-Bahn to Ostkreuz I caught IC2175, a loco-hauled train bound for Dresden. It’s a quiet service in my coach, anyway. I’m sat upstairs in a double-deck vehicle with just a handful of other people for the 2 hour journey. We hardly belt along as there’s engineering work along the way. 125kph seems to be tops. But then I’m in no hurry…

12:45.

Here we are – and what a station!

UPDATE;

Sorry this blog ended so abruptly with my arrival in Dresden. That was because I ended up being incredibly busy and made the most of the weather. Having spent a couple of hours basking and taking photographs at the sunny Hauptbahnhof I caught a train back across the river Elbe to Neustadt, the nearest station to my hotel, where I finally managed to dump my suitcase and change into shorts and vest top which was far more appropriate for the weather. I’d no idea which of the seven differently themed rooms I was going to get where I was staying, so the space theme and circular bed were a surprise!

Heading back to Neustadt I followed up on the recommendation from a friend by catching a train to Radebeul Ost where there’s a delightful steam hauled narrow-gauge railway. I was too late to travel on the line as the service is sparse, but I was lucky to catch this loco in action.

I’d have liked to have explored more come the evening, but it had been a long day and a video catch-up with my wife Dawn was more important.

My first impressions of Dresden were very positive. I only wish I was staying longer, but I already know that I’ll be back. This flying visit was unscripted but it’s given me a useful taster of what’s on offer.

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 18. Innotrans wraps up.

25 Friday Sep 2026

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Today’s the last day of the Innotrans trade fair and I’m back on site for a few hours just to wrap up a few more internal shots of some of the trains. The weather’s overcast and we’ve had more rain overnight, so it’s been ideal conditions for such shots. Now i’m spending a bit of time in the media centre editing pics and planning the next part of my trip which will see me heading to Dresden for one night before returning to Berlin in order to spend an evening with a friend. the next day I’ll be travelling overnight to Zurich in Switzerland, my 10th country on this trip.

I’ll be blogging more later, but first I’ll leave you with a couple of those internal shots from this morning.

This is the most luxurious train of the show. Stadler’s Flirt Nordic Express EMU.

1st Class has some very luxurious reclining seats.

There’s a family coach which even has a Wendy house with slide!

In contrast, here’s details and the interior of CRRC’s commuter Vellink EMU.

1340.

Having done what I wanted to at Innotrans I left by midday. There were lots of things I never got to see (or photograph) but that’s just the way it is – the show’s so vast! Now I’m exploring railways in the ‘wild’ so to speak. First stop was Spandau, which has a great selection of Intercity, regional and local services passing through.

16;55.

I left Spandau on an ICE that took me over new lines to Berlin Hauptbahnhof. It was far quicker than relying on the S-Bahn. From the HbF I headed East to a favourite location of mine, Warschauer Straße. it’s a busy station on the S-bahn in the old East and terminus of the historic U1 line as well as a tram route. Oh, there’s also a Talgo train depot! I’ll add pictures as soon as I can. Now I’m abandoning Berlin before the rush hour ro head to Potsdam for a while to pick up some shopping and breakfast for the morrow. Werder (where I’m staying) is lovely, but shopping is limited to say the least.

Seen from the overbridge at Warschauer Straße, an S-bahn train passes another in the stabling sidings.

The dome of St. Nicholas Church in Potsdam this evening.

Potsdam still operates some of the the old Tatra (Czech built) trams which were a staple of the old Eastern bloc countries.

I’d liked to have explored Potsdam more as it looks to be a lovely city. It certainly has its place in history due to the famous World War 2 Potsdam conference, when Churchill, Stalin and Roosevelt carved out the future political shape of Europe. A situation that lasted for more than 40 years, until the fall of the Berlin wall.

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 17. Innotrans day 4.

24 Thursday Sep 2026

Posted by Paul Bigland in Berlin, Germany, Innotrans, Photography, Railways, Siemens, The Grand Tour, Travel

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Yesterday things didn’t quite go to plan due to the weather staying sunny all day. That and massive crowds of people meant that the idea of getting decent internal shots of some of the new trains for the Nordics, Austria and the UK went out of the window. I spent most of my time trawling the halls for interesting things to photograph instead.

Today’s different. we had rain overnight and the skies remain cloudy, so I’ve made a start at getting pictures. Innotrans will quieten down a lot today – as you can tell by the amount of suitcases left in the luggage area in the main foyer! This afternoon I’ll be heading out to Spandau for a couple of hours on a press trip with Siemens to have a look at an autonomous train they’re testing.

In the meantime, here’s a new selection of pictures from yesterday and today, including from an event this morning when Siemens handed over one of the new London Underground trains to Transport for London.

Michael Peter, CEO Siemens Mobility presents a momento made from the same material as the trains to Andy Lord, Commissioner of Transport for London.

Inside the new tube trains for the Piccadilly line.

Hyundai Rotem unveiled this striking new high speed train model.

Two new OBB Railjet trains were on show, one from Siemens and one from Stadler. This is the interior of the 200kph Stadler KISS

I’ll be adding more later…

21:45.

A small update as it’s been yet another very busy day. Thanks to Siemens a few of us got to ride on and learn about theur autonomus train project. It’s an interesting idea that’s been three years in development. It’s also worth a blog in its own right because it’s a complex project. Here’s the train out at Spandau. Observant eyes may notice that this is the Mireo that aas bult as a hydrogen powered train.

Now it’s days end and I’m kicking back at my villa in Werder. I’ll be back at Innotrans for the final day first thing tomorrow as I have a lot of interesting pictures to add, which include the excellent new train for Norway, which is being built by Stadler.

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 16. Innotrans day 3.

23 Wednesday Sep 2026

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I’m back at Innotrans this morning on a lovely crisp and sunny day. In fact, for some of what I want to do it’s just too sunny! I’ve been concentrating on outdoor shots and mooching around the vast number of halls here. But there’s some really exciting new train interiors to take a look at and photograph, but that’s best done on quieter days and when the sun isn’t streaming through the train windows. As the weather’s due to cloud up later today that’s what I hope to do. In the meantime, here’s a few more pictures form yesterday.

People flood off the S-Bahn at Messe Sud on their way into Innotrans. There will be more than 300,000 people attending over the course of the event.

As well as real trains there’s plenty of models too – like these 400kph Chinese bullet trains from CRRC.

The UK had its own pavilion here at Innotrans, but other British companies could be found elsewhere too – like Rosehill polymers from my own town of Halifax, West Yorkshire!

The world’s press and media are out in force at Innotrans. We have a base to work from in hall 6.3.

At the end of day 1 some company’s lay on a free bar and food for people attending the event. this is the bar at Fraauscher (part of Wabtec)

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 15. Innotrans day 2.

22 Tuesday Sep 2026

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Today Innotrans opens its doors to the world’s rail industry and the madness begins as 1000s of people flood in to look at what’s on offer. Enormous amounts of shoe leather will be expended over the next few days as people tramp the halls or view the outdoor exhibits. I’ll be blogging on and off throughout the day as I visit old friends and colleagues from various companies whilst catching up on new technologies.

Some of the stands here are huge (and expensive). Stadler’s is mid-range…

Dual power locomotives are much on show at the moment. Here’s CZ Loko’s ‘dual shunter 2000’ which rather puts the humble British Class 08 to shame…

14:25.

It’s only early afternoon and I’ve already banked 17,000 steps today! Here’s a few more pictures for your delectation.

Siemens have several stands here but their main one’s the size of a village!

Looking down on the main outdoor exhibit area.

I‘ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. day 14. Innotrans press opening, Berlin.

21 Monday Sep 2026

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11:50.

Hi ho, hi ho – it’s off to work I go…

Having been up early again I’m now at the enormous Innotrans rail trade fair, waiting for the official opening. I’ll be blogging throughout the day and will attach pictures as soon as I can…

A late exhibit? A Db bi-mode class 249 approaches Messe Berlin…

Dirk Hoffmann, the COO of Messe Berlin officially kicks off the event to the world’s media. A bit of an embarrassing event for the British as the UK’s Rail Industry Association (RIA) had sponsored a table, but no-one from RIA turned up!

14;30.

I’ve spent the past couple of hours getting a preview of some of the rolling stock on display outside in the yard. It’s been challenging due to the untypical Innotrans weather, which has treated us to high winds and stormy skies. Here’s a few pictures.

The only train on show that relates to the UK is this Piccadilly line tube train for London Underground. The majority of the fleet will be built in Goole, Yorkshire.

Stadler are exhibiting the world’s first narrow-gauge hydrogen powered train they’ve built for Sardinia.

Innotrans isn’t all about sexy passenger trains or heavy freight locomotives, Track machines like this one from Spitzke are an important part of the show.

This is the ‘Vellink’ from Chinese builder CRRC. Or the ‘goldfish bowl’ as I’ve christened it.

The site is organised chaos at the moment as an army of Carpenters, Electricians and others frantically work to compete the 1000s of stands ready for the event’s opening tomorrow at 10:00.

You’ll be able to find the full gallery of photos by following this link to my Innotrans gallery, which features the event going back as far as 2008.

18:45.

Having covered a lot of stuff during the press preview I called it a day and headed into town with the idea of visiting some old haunts around Alexanderplataz to have a beer before going home. it wasn’t to be. Alexanderplatz station is a building site. All the shops and bars are empty as DB rebuild the station and the main lines above, leaving the -Bahn ridiculously crowded. I was gutted as I have fond memories of the ‘Alkopole’ bar which was where a lot of us met up over the years, not to mention that Thai noodle bar which used to keep us fuelled. Admittedly, it’s early days, but I’m beginning to wonder if Berlin isn’t loosing some of its funky edge. but then I’ve been coming here for over 20 years so the place is bound to change, and not that every change is for the worse.

One thing I’ve been fascinated by is something I’ve seen in a couple of countries now. Places in supermarkets where you can get cash back for recycling bottles and cans. Many EU countries charge you a small deposit (around 10 cents). If you’re rich enough and can’t be arsed you discard your cans and bottles, which are then ‘Wombled’ by those less fortunate who convert them to cash. Its serves two purposes. It keeps the place tidy – unlike the UK, which is littered with litter – and it puts cash into the pockets of the less well off who need the money.

Recycling for cash at a Berlin supermarket

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 13. Warsaw to Berlin.

20 Sunday Sep 2026

Posted by Paul Bigland in europe, Germany, Innotrans, Photography, poland, Railways, The Grand Tour, Travel

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13:15.

My plan to blog throughout this trip fell at the first hurdle. Whilst I’m in 1st Class on the Polish run ‘Berlin – Warsaw express’ there’s no wifi on board. Well, unless you use the buffet and on this train laptops are banned from there! Admittedly, it is a little more swanky than the last PKP catering vehicle I was in where they were allowed. This one has padded seats but no places to perch that aren’t sit down tables for dining. Ah, well. I’ll do what I can on my phone. As I’d not had chance to try Polish food and this was my last chance I treated myself to the Pierogi (stuffed dumplings) which were really rather good.

Lots of seats for eating, but nowhere to perch if you’re just having something to drink.

I’m not staying on the express all the way to Berlin. I’m not in that much of a rush so I’m going to change a couple of times, first at Rzepin, then at Kostrzyn. This will allow me to sample a few different trains en-route to Berlin-Mahlsdorf. Not that it’s the end of the journey as I’m actually staying just outside Potsdam. When Innotrans is on Berlin hotel prices go through the roof but if you’re prepared to be flexible and travel a little you can get some far better deals.

Right now I’m two hours into the first train journey, which is fine, apart from the lack of wifi – and tables. I’m seated in an old-fashioned compartment. Well, the coach itself is very modern, it’s merely the seating layout. The UK did away with compartment stock donkeys years ago. But they’re still popular in Europe.

The trip’s traversed gently undulating farmland via a couple of main railway junctions. I’m beginning to miss hills, I haven’t seen any on this trip at all so far. The most popular crop I see out of the train windows seems to be maize. It’s everywhere, but I’m unsure if its grown for human consumption or as animal feed although to be honest – I haven’t seen that many farm animals.

15:30.

I abandoned my swish 1st Class train at a small station called Rzepin. The station may be quiet but it’s an important railway junction with wide fans of freight sidings and a locomotive depot full of shunting engines – the sort of thing that’s unheard of in the UK nowadays. The depot still retains a turntable and small roundhouse. This trip on a regional EMU to Kostrzyn takes a little over 30 mins. Even though it’s a quiet rural train stopping at all stations I had my Interrail ticket and passport checked. The passport check was to confirm the validity of my ticket.

16:25.

Phew! Made it…

My inbound stopper was late and with a tight connection I didn’t even have time to grab any pictures. Kostryzn station’s on two levels and the Berlin train goes from ‘upstairs’ but you have to go up and down a footbridge first!

16:50.

We’re now heading along a single track branch line towards Berlin, passing through semi-derelict stations, some with enormous defunct buildings that have outlived their usefulness, like Munchenburg. Others have history boards which remind me of the work community rail volunteers do back in the UK.

21:30.

Our trip into Berlin was greeted by black skies and a torrential rainstorm that lasted just a few minutes before the skies cleared back to blue. I wasn’t sad to leave the train as the air cobditioning had been struggling for most of the trip, making it a sweaty one. Due to engineering work on DB’s central corrider through Berlin from East to West I had to make the entire journey to Charlottenburg from Lichtenburg by S-bahn. Only then could I catch a ‘proper’ train for the last 35 minute trip to Werder, where I’m staying. I have six nights in an extremely nice villa – but there’s no wifi, so you’ll have to wait for pictures until tomorrow. Well, apart from this one!

I think I’ll have coffee on my private balcony in the morning. It’s through those curtained doors.

Tomorrow I’ll be at the Innotrans preview, but before I do I’ll flesh this blog out with a few more pictures. We’ll be finished early in the afternoon, so I’ll post pictures of what’s on show as soon as I can. The full show begins on Tuesday, which is when the madness starts…

Cheers,

Paul

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