Back to Wales

By the time I booked, the trains at reasonable times had sold out. I could get a ticket for the 7:10 from Amsterdam. That would have to do! 

My last activity would be my sister’s birthday, so it would make sense to sleep there. And one of her sons would leave that night for his student digs in Amsterdam anyway, so there was a bed free. I would need to get the 6:15 train, and it’s only just short of half an hour’s walk to the station. So I was just going to get up and sneak out of the house. I would have breakfast in the train or something.

It worked out that way! I didn’t sleep well, as is typical for someone who knows they have to get up exceptionally early, with unpleasant repercussions if that fails. I woke up even earlier than planned, and decided to just go. 

I had a coffee on the platform, and ate a sandwich. In Amsterdam I used a public water tap point for filling up my water bottles. And then I went on a wild goose chase. Eurostar says you should go to the UK terminal, which is on the south end of the station, whether you travel via Brussels or not. An information sign at the (then closed) terminal said that no, the Eurostar to Brussels leaves from platform 15a, on the north end of the station. Platform 15a said the train would leave from platform 8. Is this a practical joke or something.

The rather new UK terminal

Once I was at the right platform things became more straightforward. The train arrived on time, and wasn’t too busy. I got some work done in comfort, and got to Brussels on time. There I got through security and passport control without issues. I had cheese in my bag (oops, had forgot that isn’t allowed anymore) but they didn’t notice. And I didn’t have to prove my settled status. 

The train left some 10 minutes late. That still allowed for catching my connection in Euston. Easy! I also went to the loo and bought a newspaper. I could have done a lot more; the train from Euston ended up half an hour late. Annoying! But at least the train was comfortable. And the train terminated in Crewe rather than Chester. Altogether I had a 1 hour delay, bringing travel time to just over 12 hour. Not too bad, really! But I was really glad to be home again…