Vallendar, Germany: The Travel
Planes, Trains and Automobiles…is the name of a 1987 Thanksgiving comedy that I haven’t bothered watching. It’s also a good subtitle for the story of my time abroad in Germany. In January, I flew from BWI to Frankfurt International (with a brief layover at Keflavikík Airport in Reykjavic, Iceland). Frankfurt International is one of Vallendar’s closest two airports, the other smaller—and closer—one being Cologne/Bonn Airport. Frankfurt is by far the larger, heaving its sprawling mass over two labyrinthine terminals connected by a shuttle bus; or, for the adventurous, you can take the driverless SkyLine train which threads over the tarmac on stilts. My first few visits to Frankfurt International wowed me. The terminals are equipped with a variety of amenities, from egg-like relaxation pods with outlets for all your charging needs to fully outfitted gaming stations. However, the long and weary trek from Terminal 1 (where the local and regional trains stop) to the far reaches of Terminal 2 where the supreme budget airline Ryanair resides got really old really quick. And so Cologne/Bonn remains my preference of the two.
While flying was fun and sometimes fast, trains played an enormous role in my travels. From Frankfurt airport’s Fernbahnhof (the long-distance station across the street held up by Brutalist concrete supports), I took an Intercity Express (ICE) train to Koblenz, then switched trains at far flung platform 109 to the RE8 to Vallendar, one of many regional train lines with regular stops akin to our own DC metro system. ICE trains were sleek and fast, with comfortably-cushioned seats, bathrooms, and free Wifi. Not to be confused with Intercity (IC) trains which ran considerably slower, and had no Wifi. However, the ability to fly through the European countryside with snacks from one of the many train station food stands, knowing your destination lay waiting ahead of you, was most often an enjoyable experience regardless of the train type.
One thing to note: the cheaper the ticket, the more transfers you’ll make. In an iconically stressful budget adventure to Amsterdam with six of my newfound friends, we made a whopping five transfers from train to train. Using a combination of alarm-setting and interpersonal accountability, we were able to make all of our transfers, including the shortest one of two minutes. Hauling luggage complicates everything, but it was fun to run around with only our backpacks in tow.
Vallendar is only serviced by one bus: the Line 8 to Bendorf which took us into Koblenz for 3,90€ one-way. Most other larger German cities, however, will have a multitude of bus lines as well as robust tram systems. The combination of the two provides at least ten different options for getting from point A to point B. Coupled with the ever-updating digital signs particularly in Berlin and Munich, public transit makes for an exhilarating and efficient experience, as well as the ideal way for getting to know a brand new city.
