Italy > On the way to Milan

Just before four in the afternoon, four travelers with fully packed backpacks stand at the bus stop. Boarding the bus, we—Ron, Monique, Sandra, and Ronald—begin the great trek across Europe. In Leiden, we board the first train of our route: the local train to Utrecht. Although many more trains will likely follow, we already have our first disagreement with fellow passengers before reaching Lammerschans station.

Italy - Breakfast in the park in front of the station

Our backpacks are on the seats. A gentleman with a small suitcase wants to sit there and, annoyed, says that we haven’t paid for two seats. We can’t really convince him that with an OV-pass and an Interrail pass, we are effectively paying for two seats. We let him win and place our backpacks on our laps. It turns out he has to get off in Alphen anyway. Arriving in Utrecht, I realize I’ve lost my wallet. I was just about to buy a snack at the station. Earlier that afternoon, I had finally taken out travel insurance, but it doesn’t cover loss of money. There’s over ƒ150 in it. Bad luck! The international train to Milan departs from Utrecht at 18:30. We have reserved seats, but even so, we first have to remove a few Italians from our seats. The train starts moving, and our Interrail vacation has officially begun. On the train, we play our first game of Hearts. The journey to Milan goes smoothly. At night, the four of us lie together in the compartment. The conductor only comes by around half past three. A few hours later, at 07:45, the train enters Milan.