Vienna to Maribor

I wanted to try the relatively new mini-cabins that Nightjet had introduced on some of its sleeper services. I have always struggled to sleep on any public transport and these 'pods' could allow me to travel longer distances quicker than staying in a hotel, if I could sleep on them.

Sorry about the poor quality of these photos. There are better ones online if you want to know more. Anyway, I did manage a few hours sleep. There was some noise from the adjacent cabins but I found the journey quite restful. The carriage attendant delivers a breakfast of rolls, butter, jam and a hot drink in the morning. We arrived into Vienna a few minutes late at around 9:30. From the Hauptbahnhof, I walked down Argentinierstrasse to Karlskirche.

Then it was past the opera house into Burggarten. The Hofburg backs onto these gardens.

There is a palm house on another side with the Albertina behind it.


Now it was time to head back to the station. The Argentinierstrasse is about a mile long, straight road with Kirche St. Elisabeth Zur Frohen Botschaft in the middle.


There is a drinking water tap outside the church and the road has two Spars along it. I was back at the Hauptbanhof in time for the 11:24 train.

 

The journey from there went through the Semmering ski area, where the skiers were busy, and onto to Graz, where I changed for the trip across the border into Slovenia.

In Maribor, it was damp and cold as I made my way to the Maribor B&B Hotel. The light was fading as I ventured out to have a look around the city. Eventually, I visited a bakery to pick a burek and some other pastry-based snack. I ended up eating them in my hotel bedroom before an early night with an early breakfast and skiing to come the next day.

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