The dreaded day was upon us. The 8 hour train journey. Budapest to Ljubljana. The Citadella. This would need snacks, charged electronics and a lot of patience/activities to keep Mollie entertained.
We started early, and by early I mean actually early, as we got up at 5:30, so we could pack up our apartment in Budapest, clean up and get out. And by 7, that's what we were, up and away, early risers much! We then went into Tesco, for the aforementioned snacks. Bread, crisps and sparkling water in hand, we were then ready. We boarded the tube, first to Budapest Keleti, then to Budapest Deli, where it was surprisingly lacking in food, given its name. As we sat on the cold concrete, we watched the board, waiting for Ljubljana to come up. It didn't. We were confused, scared, unsure of how to act. Then we realised, they call it the Citadella line. Clearly we weren't the only confused people, soon other interrailers were asking us whether it was the right train. With a shrug of the shoulders, and a nonchalant 'eh we think so', we ended up telling half the station the potentially wrong train.
Luckily however, we were right, and when the platform was announced, we hopped on. Surprisingly, it was the busiest train yet, and people ended up standing. But not us. We were triumphant and had claimed seats early, gleefully watching on as people struggled to find space. However, soon our smiles would turn upside down. The air conditioning was weaker than an arthritic mole, and the windows were inoperable. The carriage was soon hotter than the saunas in Budapest. Everyone, and I mean everyone was huffing and puffing and sweating, and it was thoroughly unpleasant.
Step in Harvey, aka Mr Lifehack (okay maybe that's a step too far). I recalled another carriage, with open bike areas and open windows. I headed in that direction, praying I hadn't been hallucinating, like a man stranded in the desert seeing an oasis. Then, I was there. The windows were open, and like Roger, my head was out the window, lying in the cool breeze. Soon, others were discovering my hidey hole, and the carriage was full, but I didn't care, I was cool as a cucumber.
Eventually we arrived, and Ljubljana was a cool 24 degrees, which felt thoroughly wintery after Budapest, and it was weird being in a city only a little bigger than Bournemouth. We hopped on the bus to our guesthouse, and then headed to the disappointing BTC City. It promised the largest shopping centre in Eastern Europe, but it ended up being annoyingly concretey, and lacking in recognisable shops. #letdown.
Our final order of business was to visit the cute city centre for dinner. It truly is a lovely quaint place, with a beautiful river, and lots of pastel buildings. An amazing tapas dinner later, and we were heading back, hunger sated, and tired. We dropped into bed and collapsed to sleep. Day complete.
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