Tag: TrainBeer

Transylvania Halloween Hash 2025

Transylvania Halloween Hash 2025

Published on 26 October 2025

The alcohol already properly taken care of, it was time to do something about that running problem of ours! So there was a proper Transylvania Halloween Hash trail on Saturday, and a hangover trail on Sunday, to recover from the Halloween party in between.

On those hash weekends I usually don’t pick the most extreme and long trail, aptly called the Ball-Breaker Trail. However, this weekend there were two options to choose from, and I considered the short one too short. We were told the Ball-Breaker Trail “includes extreme increases and decreases in elevation, and is only advised for the hashers looking to run, sweat, and cry…” Well, I didn’t cry, but I certainly felt those more than 600 meters of elevation gain, and was full of bloody scratches. And boy, were my knees happy I brought some poles! This was my first trail that came with a beer warning, by the way…

Chalk talk and blessing of the hares for the Transylvania Halloween Hash Trail

After dinner we had the Transylvania Halloween Hash Party, once again with Hop Hooligans on draught!

On Sunday there was a short Hangover Trail, after which the weekend was officially brought to an end with a Closing Circle.

👣 Transylvania Halloween Hash Hangover Trail

Since many of us needed to get back to Braşov, mismanagement had kindly arranged a bus, to take us to the station.

While most had to catch a train to Bucharest just an hour later, mine was over two hours later, so I dropped of my bag, and headed into town.

Back to Braşov on a bus full of rather tired hashers

Some coffee at Meron—I hadn’t had decent coffee since Friday—and some last Romanian beers at The Beer Corner — and one to go, to drink on the train.

Then it was time to head back to Braşov station to pick up my bag, and catch the Dacia Express to Wien Hbf. No issues this time either, and it seems I won the en-suite lottery! There are only a few rooms with shower and toilet on this train, and it is impossible to select when booking: one just has to wait and see… I lucked out this time, so I will be able to start my day in Wien clean and fresh!

Along the Limes

Along the Limes

Published on 21 October 2025

Starting the day with a visit to the ruins of Aquincum, the Roman border settlement and origin of Budapest, and ending it on the Ister train, which is the Latin name for the Danube, part of the northern border of the Roman empire. It was a very Roman border themed day!

Check-out day usually means breakfast in the hotel, to save precious packing time.

Once that was done, I discovered the suburban rail network to get to Aquincumi Múzeum & Archaeological Park. Apparently there a two hour trail that takes you to even more remains, but I stuck to the main park and the nearby amphitheater this time. The park could use some TLC, but it was a nice discovery nevertheless.

Back in the centre of Budapest, I resumed my mission: eat Hungarian specialties! there is one that I found out about when I first planned my trip in 2020, and it sounded so tasty, I actually looked up a recipe and I’ve made it myself quite often: rakott krumpli. So yeah, I actually never tasted the original, until today! And GRUMPY didn’t just serve that dish, but also sweet Túrógombóc for desert.

After that late lunch I had just enough time to visit Tamp & Pull, one of the oldest specialty coffee bars in Budapest, and Constellation, a taproom and restaurant for both Gravity—whose brewery I visited on the second day—and Brew Your Mind.

By then it was really time to get ready for my train. Since every train trip is better with a nice beer, I stopped by at Beerselection to get one, but it had slipped my mind that this beer shop had some beers on draught as well. It would have been rude to not try some, wouldn’t it?

After picking up my bag at the hotel, I headed to the Budapest Keleti business lounge, to charge my phone a bit—you never know if the power on the train is working—and eat a bit, although I hadn’t quite digested my large, late lunch yet.

Time to find out if I have better luck with this Romanian sleeper than I had with my Hungarian one! Turns out I had: the one and only sleeper car was present and functional—running water and electricity present—and I think this is the roomiest room I ever had on a train.

On my way to Bucureşti Nord!

The IC/IRN 473 Ister from Budapest Keleti to Bucureşti Nord

La Cabra Coffee, Kraftpaule, and Kálmán Imre

La Cabra Coffee, Kraftpaule, and Kálmán Imre

Published on 18 October 2025

It all started with a post-it note left at the 2024 BMPH3 Xmas Party: “Come to Transylvania OCT 25”. Well, it is October 2025 now, so I’m heading to Romania for a hashing event… It is quite a trek, though, so I’ll be making some stops along the way. First destination: Budapest!

Like most of my international trips, this one too started in Brussels Midi train station, to board the ICE 15 to Frankfurt am Main. It was one of the newer models: very comfortable, and everything seemed to work. Even ordering food to my seat, which I did for lunch: a Frikadellenbrötchen mit Senf and a bottle of Apfelschorle. It’s a German train, after all!

I had hoped to have plenty of time to enjoy a coffee, but with the ICE 15’s arrival ten minutes late—Deutsche Bahn, so not unexpected—I kind of had to drink my La Cabra espresso Italian style! Just my luck that the barista at eins zwei was a particular loquacious one—albeit very nice and informative—so I really had to leg it to get back to the station in time. I did catch my train—the ICE 117 this time—and continued to Stuttgart!

Luggage lockers in Stuttgart Hbf: only coins, and you get a real key!

In Stuttgart I definitely had enough time to sit down and properly enjoy my coffee at Jules Coffee Roastery. I actually had enough time for beer and dinner! For that beer I went to Kraftpaule. You might remember them as the organisers of Craft Beer Festival Stuttgart, which I visited in 2024.

For dinner I had the Halbes Hähnchen and potato salad at Biergarten im Schlossgarten.

Since I wanted to enjoy some more beers on the train, I went to Die Bierothek to stock up.

And then… The EuroNight 50237 Kálmán Imre to Budapest Keleti was perfectly on time, but the sleeper car was suspiciously dark, and the doors stayed closed. And indeed, the MÁV staff informed me it was out of service, and I would be spending the night in a (shared) couchette instead…Luckily the only other occupants were a quiet French couple, using the top berths, so I still kind of had the bottom part of the couchette to myself. Oh well, time for those train beers, and an attempt to get some sleep after that. Good night!

Warszawa & Berlin – Day 0

Published on 11 October 2023

On the European Sleeper!

Just a day after European Sleeper announced it will soon continue to their originally announced destination Prague, I find myself on one of their trains to Berlin.

European Sleeper: route Brussels - Berlin

After a slightly confusing boarding experience—carriage 1 was not at the front where it should be—I settled in my room for the night.

Stewardess—yes, that is how they call themselves on the European Sleeper!—Caroline then explained to me how everything worked, prepared my bed already—since I don’t really need three seats for just myself anyway—and brought me my welcome drink, a European Sleeper Weizen.

Of course I brought some more beers and snacks for the rest of the journey myself! For entertainment, I had downloaded some films and series on my iPad, since the current sleeper service doesn’t offer any WiFi.

Arrival in Berlin tomorrow will be quite early—shortly after six —so Caroline will bring me my breakfast and tea around that time, as soon as I open my room door. I’ll add photos of that in the morning!

Breakfast!

Wien, Bayern & Berlin Reise – 0

Published on 24 September 2022

ÖBB Nightjet Brussels – Wien

For the first time ever, I can take a sleeper train right right from my home town of Brussels! This ÖBB Nightjet is taking me all the way to Austria’s capital Wien, in one easy ride.

Map of NightJet route from Brussel to Vienna

I just missed out on being able to book a Deluxe room with en suite, but the toilet at the end of the carriage is clean so far, and after arrival I can go straight to the hotel for my morning shower.

Contrary to the sleeper trains I’ve used so far, the Nightjet is in day mode at departure—so normal seats and a roomy table—and the beds are only made later on. That means I could comfortably have my Too Good To Go dinner first, and a couple of train beers while watching some Netflix. I had to bring my own cooler bag with ice packs though, since fridges aren’t really common on trains in this part of the world…

It’s about time to turn in, if I want to get up early enough for breakfast, of which I will add the photos to this blog post once I have them.

Goodnight!

Addendum:

Breakfast!