5 Tips for Surviving Train Travel in Italy
Written by Mallory October 10, 2016
Emma and me outside the Duomo right before we got to go inside!
Inside the Duomo in Milan. This is the copy of the Madonna which is now located inside where visitors can see her.
One of our professors recommended this area! We went there for dinner, but sadly we missed the twinkle lights that hang over the river!
Alex, Emma, Zach and me at a yummy American brunch restaurant called, California Bakery! Another great recommendation from one of our professors. Thanks Professor Caponi!
This past weekend we had the opportunity to get off campus for the first time on our own! After much contemplation, myself and three friends, Emma, Alex and Zach, decided to spend the weekend in Milan. We had no idea what we were getting ourselves into but we booked train tickets and an Airbnb and headed off on our first adventure.
We started off our travels on the right foot. We tried the bus system in Paderno for the first time and it worked like a charm. We arrived at the train station and made it to our platform with time to spare and had planned how we were going to deal with our layovers, the shortest being only four minutes! Now is when things got a little rough. Though our train was at the platform, it was locked and remained locked until five minutes before it was supposed to depart. Needless to say, we were all panicked but then felt relief when the doors finally opened. Our relief was short-lived because the trained failed to depart when it was scheduled to. We left about six minutes late and spent the twenty minute ride freaking out about missing our connection. Once we arrived at that station we ran off the train to find our next platform. Thankfully it was a small station and it was easy to navigate. Unfortunately our train wasn’t there. We looked at the departures board and found out the train was thirty minutes late. We were relieved and sat and took a little breather. Thirty minutes passed and still no train, so we went back to the board, now a fifty minute delay was in place. The panic started again because now we were going to be late to our next train. We all had a mini break down in the middle of the train station because we were all so stressed that we were going to miss a connection. Everyone always says you learn a lot about someone when you travel with them and I have to say I agree with this fully. All of our ugly sides were brought out. We were sassy and short with each other. Though this only lasted about five minutes, it was definitely something that brought us closer together. Looking back on it now, its also pretty funny! So the train finally arrived and we made it on time to the connections and ended up getting to Milan around 11:30PM, which was our scheduled time. I had no idea how we made it, but we did and that’s all that matters!
After experiencing this type of train travel, I wanted to share of list of things I had along with what I wish I would have had through out the five-ish hour trip to make the experience a little bit more pleasant.
1.Headphones. I usually don’t travel without them, but some people do. I definitely recommend bringing some because after being suck on a train for a long time its nice to some form of entertainment. Though we played Never Have I Ever, which is always fun, after a couple games it does get a bit much. Also listening to music is a great way to block out other peoples conversations and speaking from experience, other peoples conversations can be quite loud!
2. A book. This is something I wouldn’t have necessarily thought to bring. I can usually entertain myself on my phone but with the lack of WiFi and data, I thought it might be a good idea to have something to do. I brought a book my mom had packed for me and finished the entire thing on the train rides there and back. Also this is a great opportunity to get ahead on reading for classes!
3. Snacks and water. Unlike a plane, there is no beverage service, at least not on our train. We had eaten sandwiches from Tabacchi 2 before we left, but around 8:30PM I was getting a little hungry. Snacks also make almost any situation better so if you do end up with a delay, having something to munch on might make the time go by faster.
4. Your tickets! This one was really important for us because we had nine total for our round trip. Though they weren’t checked until the last train on the way home, it is important to remember to print them out and always have them accessible. You don’t want to be caught with out them because you never know when the conductor will come by and you definitely don’t want to have to pay a fine.
5. A good attitude. This one sounds a little silly, but it is important to be positive. It is so easy to get caught up in the situation when things aren’t going well and be really negative. But it is important to be flexible and know that in some way or another you will all get to your final destination.
This past weekend was full of craziness and some great memories. From touring the Duomo and walking around the Galleria to eating McDonalds at 2:00AM, it was such a fun experience (even though on the way there, we thought we wouldn’t make it). Who knew there was going to be a train strike? Definitely not us! I was so lucky to be able to travel with such good friends. I’m looking forward to more crazy adventures during this semester!
Blogger: Mallory, Furman University
