The Great Circular European Railway Challenge

[Donbacsi]

"I will be dressing/packing for comfort, personal hygiene and light weight"
Which will it be? Or will be be on alternate days?

 

[Mark_Lester]

Sorry I spoke now! I'll wear whatever you choose for offical photos -it won't matter as I will be wearing the false beard, dark glasses and carrying a white stick. However I don't plan to be wearing the GCERC uniform on other occasions unless it is under something else - so I can jump into a phone kiosk, strip off and put my shreddies on over my tights [second thoughts if I'm using disposables that might not be too clever]. I mean how am I going to cop off with some Eastern beauty dressed like someone on a day out with his special school?

Seriously though I will be dressing/packing for comfort, personal hygiene and light weight and thats non-negotiable.

the pic is work in progress,i'll get some 30s poster art, it will mean multiple colours.

Also - I didn't spot a reference to the size of our party. That will really freak some of the doomsayers.

yes, so dont mention it.

google pingo doce and clck on the translate, it's open 9am-9pm every day, I think


i think just doing tram 28, cascais, belem, ajuda, elevador do bica is easily doable, after that it's an exercise in clocking off the other 4 elevadors, and we might all be sick of the whole palaver by that point.

 

[Glenmutchkin]

Do we need a rethink in Prague?

Drinks no bar on this train

Prague A Czech bar has replaced waiters and waitresses – with a model railway.
The Vytopna Restaurant in Prague has installed a huge £500,000 model railway. The 400 metres miniature railway runs around the restaurant, and through every table. The restaurant owners are passionate about traditional railways.
The railway tracks pass through tunnels, over drawbridges, they run through sculptured rock formations and woods, by ponds, and even pull into stations.
The train delivers drinks from the bar to customer's tables and has proved popular with punters. The empty glasses can be put onto the train again and they are taken back into the kitchen.
The 1,300ft rail system features tiny tunnels, towns and forests.

http://www.pragueexperience.com/places.asp?PlaceID=1395

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrpwF47D15w

 

[Donbacsi]

I have never found a drink bar, sushi bar, or any other kind of eating and/or drinking establishment in the world that had one of the model train delivery systems that didn't go over the top in "cheesyness".

 

[Glenmutchkin]

You don't think I was being serious do you?

 

[Donbacsi]

Well...you ARE from Scotland! For all I know, the latests, hippests, coolest, trendiest haggis delivery system in the cities to the north could be one of those corny little trains.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
"google pingo doce" The translation comes back as "pingo doce". Is this a public school inside joke?

 

[Glenmutchkin]

Well...you ARE from Scotland! For all I know, the latests, hippests, coolest, trendiest haggis delivery system in the cities to the north could be one of those corny little trains.

A good haggis should never be allowed to travel by train. It ruins the flavour. The very best ones are marched to their intended point of consumption, allowed a last cigarette and then boiled alive.

 

[Donbacsi]

"A good haggis"..."The very best ones". I rest my case. Perhaps it is time you retired from all comments regarding good taste?

 

[Mark_Lester]

we're going to have our tea on th'ill, there's a place near the black ox which is vast.
but the sketch at the moment has us in the old town square for 10:00 to see the clock, then we make our way back to the station (which I am now being told on VT has working lockers), and need a second drinking opportunity. We're not going to beat u ceherno vola for pub perfection, so ultra-cheese with G-gauge train set could be perfect, and is ideally located.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
i told our lisbon doomsayer, who has lectured me for a second time now, about the "full horror" of the trip, so I expect a pretty weighty volume of work from him now.

 

[Glenmutchkin]

"A good haggis"..."The very best ones". I rest my case. Perhaps it is time you retired from all comments regarding good taste?

This from a man who is an active proponent of ring-stinging Hellfire sausages. I can only assume that you have been fed battery farmed haggis in the past. I strongly recommend McSween's of Edinburgh. I'm sure that a reputable bootlegger could get you one.

need a second drinking opportunity. We're not going to beat u ceherno vola for pub perfection, so ultra-cheese with G-gauge train set could be perfect, and is ideally located.

We better have the name and address written down so we can remember after a couple in t'Ox.

i told our lisbon doomsayer, who has lectured me for a second time now, about the "full horror" of the trip, so I expect a pretty weighty volume of work from him now.

VT = Very Timid. I wonder about the chances of turning up unannounced at a Lisbon resto on a Sunday afternoon with a party of 12+. On the other hand pre-booking would commit us to some kind of Schlieffen Plan.

I see on Bookface that the definite number has increased by 1. Are we getting close to Full House?

 

[mickpop]

Well...you ARE from Scotland! For all I know, the latests, hippests, coolest, trendiest haggis delivery system in the cities to the north could be one of those corny little trains.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
"google pingo doce" The translation comes back as "pingo doce". Is this a public school inside joke?

Don - as it's Burns Night, don't be fooled by all Glenmutchkin's Scottish nonsense. As I recall he is actually a Yorkshireman, presumably exiled from his homeland because he was not boring enough.

If you are to participate in this adventure I think you need a little primer on British regional stereotypes. Yorkshiremen know everything about everything and will, without invitation, relate that knowledge at length and very slowly [see also 'Geoffrey Boycott', 'William Haigh']. Scotsmen may well know everything about everything but you will never know as they are unintelligable, possibly through drink. Mark is, as I recall, a 'Manc'- a strange Northern tribe many of whom worship an obscure Scottish knight. I, on the other hand, am a 'Scouser' from Liverpool, of partly Welsh descent,and one should leave no valuables unattended in my presence. Scousers and Mancs hate each other but both hate Yorkshiremen. Welshmen are liable to burst into song at the least provocation and make sheep very nervous.

I hope this helps show that we don't all live in a London smog and speak like Dick Van Dyke.

 

[Mark_Lester]

This from a man who is an active proponent of ring-stinging Hellfire sausages. I can only assume that you have been fed battery farmed haggis in the past. I strongly recommend McSween's of Edinburgh. I'm sure that a reputable bootlegger could get you one.


We better have the name and address written down so we can remember after a couple in t'Ox.



VT = Very Timid. I wonder about the chances of turning up unannounced at a Lisbon resto on a Sunday afternoon with a party of 12+. On the other hand pre-booking would commit us to some kind of Schlieffen Plan.

I see on Bookface that the definite number has increased by 1. Are we getting close to Full House?

so on facebook we have 2 missing, mick who isnt on full stop, and johnny who is on but doesnt ever go there
we also have at last 2 who wont make it, anil and andy (they want to feel like they are going or something, so as mates I'll let them hang around like losers if they want)
there's then bella who says she's def, she did india so we should take her seriously
tsveta is either a bulgarian lawyer or tv producer, anyway, both of those (lillia is the other, she's the lawyer I think) really want to do it but are both power gals with kids ffs, so prob wont make it but would be great if they did.

and jason is about to be a first time dad at the ripe old age of 50 this year, and he still thinks he's coming on this, ha ha ha.

everyone else in "attending" is for real and serious. so that makes 11 provisionally definites I think,

mike in the may be's might come for the scando loop, lance may come, he got as far as going may be, claudia prob wont as she's in states, likewise ks, all the others are biz mates of stoy, statistically you'd think at least one of those will make it.

I dont know what the limit is, and if we need one, we just need to know what the number will actually be. it's obvious that much of the tram stuff is going to have to be staggered, so a time critical thing like the childrens in budapest is going to take longer, or at least be scheduled to. we will inevitably have to split up into groups. anyone who is too soft to work on their own will have to take a buddy and handcuff themselves to them.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Don - as it's Burns Night, don't be fooled by all Glenmutchkin's Scottish nonsense. As I recall he is actually a Yorkshireman, presumably exiled from his homeland because he was not boring enough.

If you are to participate in this adventure I think you need a little primer on British regional stereotypes. Yorkshiremen know everything about everything and will, without invitation, relate that knowledge at length and very slowly [see also 'Geoffrey Boycott', 'William Haigh']. Scotsmen may well know everything about everything but you will never know as they are unintelligable, possibly through drink. Mark is, as I recall, a 'Manc'- a strange Northern tribe many of whom worship an obscure Scottish knight. I, on the other hand, am a 'Scouser' from Liverpool, of partly Welsh descent,and one should leave no valuables unattended in my presence. Scousers and Mancs hate each other but both hate Yorkshiremen. Welshmen are liable to burst into song at the least provocation and make sheep very nervous.

I hope this helps show that we don't all live in a London smog and speak like Dick Van Dyke.

I resume you saw Don say "I like English accents, except cockney and anything north of oxford". we'd need 2 layers of interpreters, one for him to understand you two, and the pair of you to fill that guy in on what I'm saying

 

[Glenmutchkin]

'William Haigh'].

At least we can spell.

I'm up here doing missionary work. It's the only position I could get.

 

[Mark_Lester]

At least we can spell.

I'm up here doing missionary work. It's the only position I could get.

i really need the dancing banana for that.

 

[Glenmutchkin]

i really need the dancing banana for that.

That sounds dangerously like a euphemism.

The basic site technologies appear to be the same to a technophobe like me. I did try to copy and paste the dancing elephant but it didn't work. How about we start a thread campaigning for better smilies?

 

[Donbacsi]

How about a campaign to ban all smileys?

 

[Glenmutchkin]

Don - You're getting grumpy. It must be bedtime.

Here are a few examples of the sort of thing but there are some even better ones elsewhere on India Mike.

Ah. Now what happened to that link?

http://www.indiamike.com/india/misc.php?do=getsmilies&editorid=vB_Editor_001

 

[Mark_Lester]

That sounds dangerously like a euphemism.

The basic site technologies appear to be the same to a technophobe like me. I did try to copy and paste the dancing elephant but it didn't work. How about we start a thread campaigning for better smilies?

well, frankly I'm just glad we havent been told to clear off yet

 

[Glenmutchkin]

I suspect that everybody else has just blocked the thread. There has been a startling lack of comment/suggestions/heckling from the community at large.

 

[Donbacsi]

We have devolved to a discussion on emoticons?
Bedtime? I am the American Vampire...no sleep for this boy. Not a good thing to have on the train as when you awake to find your pork pies have been nicked, you won't know whether to blame the American or the Welshman.

 

[Glenmutchkin]

Not a good thing to have on the train as when you awake to find your pork pies have been nicked, you won't know whether to blame the American or the Welshman.

No, no. You mean the Scouser. Welshmen only bother live sheep.

 

[Donbacsi]

Clarification of a misquote:
you saw Don say "I like English accents, except cockney and anything north of oxford".
Actually it was something like, "I can tap dance my way through southern accents, but find Smithfield incomprehensible." I was once admitted (past armed guards) to a black tie dinner at Grey's Inn and actually seated at a place reserved for "Sir Robert". As my name is not Robert I beat a hasty retreat to Inner Temple for the correct banquet.

 

[Glenmutchkin]

Mark - The "moustache" design for the t-shirt as posted on the GCERC website is an absolute stinker. I will be joining Mick in wearing false beard etc if that gets selected.

I can't get pingo doce to translate either.

 

[Mark_Lester]

Mark - The "moustache" design for the t-shirt as posted on the GCERC website is an absolute stinker. I will be joining Mick in wearing false beard etc if that gets selected.

I can't get pingo doce to translate either.

I only put the moustache thing in cos that's what pete came up with, I told him it was crap.

try this
http://translate.google.com/transla...ent=ubuntu&hs=mwf&channel=fs&gl=uk&prmd=imvns
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I only put the moustache thing in cos that's what pete came up with, I told him it was crap.

try this
http://translate.google.com/transla...ent=ubuntu&hs=mwf&channel=fs&gl=uk&prmd=imvns

I just had a closer look at this, they have a shop at Cais do Sodré which claims to open at 07h30, but not sure if that's sunday, sounds unlikely.
We only desperately need them later in the day, I'm sure we can get something for breakfast.

there's a great "Valco, serves you right!" advert here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aENV2Wky00

 

[Donbacsi]

Pingo doce should read "google it, THEN translate the page you find, scroll down the box on the left to take away." There you will find the ever tempting bowl of white rice with a couple of bits of duck sausage.
This brings up the question about the techies on board. Can they find sites for all the tight connection food/drink/sight stops and order ahead while in transit? Then your 12-15duck sausage bowls would be waiting as soon as you hit the platform. This should leave plenty of time to find the local drink that is the antidote to the duck sausage.

 

[Mark_Lester]

Pingo doce should read "google it, THEN translate the page you find, scroll down the box on the left to take away." There you will find the ever tempting bowl of white rice with a couple of bits of duck sausage.
This brings up the question about the techies on board. Can they find sites for all the tight connection food/drink/sight stops and order ahead while in transit? Then your 12-15duck sausage bowls would be waiting as soon as you hit the platform. This should leave plenty of time to find the local drink that is the antidote to the duck sausage.

these take aways look very dubious, mind you, I guess everyone is going to be totally hacked off with bread cheese and cold meats after 2 weeks at it.
We are going to need some bottles of plonk and something for the evening sleeper, so the one at apolonia will be the target. As cais do sodre is in the morning we just need breakfast supplements, juices and pastries.

The more I go through this the more it's obvious that we're going to have to split up into groups of no more than 4 or 5 for many of these. Once that group is ready to move on then that's what they should do, and then they can have got out of the way at the next tram change. if we try and do it en masse it's going to to turn ugly.

Tram 28 by all accounts is a nightmare to get on once those nasty tourist people have turned up. I'll try and find out where the best spot is to get on it after 10am, but right now I'm expecting to be able to do it at 8 in the morning and that's really going to be it.

the main place in Lisbon is obviously Belem anyway. Anyone who is running late on the way out to cascais can just dump that and get off at Alges. if they are that late then they obviously werent straining at the leash on arrival at 07:40 for another day on the trams anyway.

one major factor in our favour of course will be communications, everyone who isnt experienced in this kind of lunacy (which is most of my mates) will certainly have a phone, and they can just call or text the rest of us and if they seem totally lost we can just help them find their way back to the station.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---


Regarding as possible dining option


this place was recommended by out man on VT, it's just about half way between the two stations
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restau...Restaurante_Rio_Coura-Lisbon_Estremadura.html

of course we've got this conundrum about booking a place and thus committing. But we can phone them from Belem if we are on target.

I'd prefer somewhere a lot closer to apolonia though, this is still a bus ride away. We could then just roll out of the restaurant, hit the supermarket, pick up the bags and get on the train. Sea food is certainly the way to go I think. It cooks quick and is doubtless superb in Lisbon.

 

[Glenmutchkin]

Regarding as possible dining option this place was recommended by out man on VT, it's just about half way between the two stations
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restau...Restaurante_Rio_Coura-Lisbon_Estremadura.html

Looks OK. Their specialty appears to be upsetting Italians if the reviews are anything to go by.

 

[Donbacsi]

The Italians get cheesed off at Portugal, Croatia, Spain and any other place that serves fresh, unpolluted sea food with a reasonably priced bottle of plonk.

 

[Mark_Lester]

well, if they are going to actually cook it to order, there's a bloke in the background with a chef's outfit, then the fall back solution is to do this
http://vimeo.com/9290678
the logistics of the large group are going to make it so difficult.
Ah, yes, they cook the fish to order so it's an option. From what I can gather they are the waitrose of portugal.


we get group sit down hot meals at other times

Narvik with this flight is now a 7:30 arrival

Berlin might be too late for the beer garden lager+potatoes and sausages routine, but we might be able to sort something

Prague works fine for that place near black ox

Istanbul wont be a problem, (we still have to do some proper work on that, we've got as far as the metropolis hostel who never replied to me, and knowing we should get the boat across the rover to the eastbound station)

Sofia, I'll be expecting something proper

Ljubljana if we get in early

Madrid tapas

and we can sort something in Paris out surely in the Montmarte region, even if it's really bar food.

 

[Glenmutchkin]

Don - Apropos your post about English Tan leather seating.
I was telling Lady Glenmutchkin about this and she confided that in her salad days nylons were available in two shades - American Tan and Bisto.
I quote. "American Tan was a hideous orange".

Narvik with this flight is now a 7:30 arrival

Have you found somebody who owns up to flying this route?

Berlin might be too late for the beer garden lager+potatoes and sausages routine, but we might be able to sort something

There's bound to be a Bratty van somewhere. We won't starve.

Ljubljana if we get in early

Maybe worth exploring later dining options on Very Timid