· Annie · Europe · 3 min read
Wandering Through Europe — A Month on the Rails
From the cobbled streets of Prague to the sun-drenched coasts of Cinque Terre, Europe in spring is something else. Here's how a month with just a backpack and a Eurail pass changed the way I see the world.
There’s something about rolling into a new city by train. The way the landscape shifts gradually — fields giving way to suburbs, suburbs tightening into trackside apartments, and then suddenly you’re there, stepping onto a platform in a place you’ve only ever seen on a map. I did that twenty-three times in thirty days.
Prague — The One That Started It All
Prague in early April is unfair. The cherry blossoms are out, the crowds haven’t arrived yet, and the beer is cheaper than water. I spent my first three days just walking — no map, no plan, just letting myself get lost in the maze of cobblestone streets.
The Charles Bridge at sunrise is worth every bit of the 5am alarm. No crowd, just the mist rolling off the Vltava and a street musician playing something melancholy on a cello. If I could bottle one moment from this trip, it’d be that one.
“Travel isn’t always about the places you see — it’s about the version of yourself that shows up in each one.”
Cinque Terre — Where the Trail Meets the Sea
The train from Milan hugs the coast for the last hour, and when you first see the pastel houses of Manarola clinging to the cliffs, it feels like arriving in a painting. I hiked the trail from Monterosso to Vernazza with a French girl I’d met on the hostel rooftop the night before. We didn’t speak the same language fluently, but we didn’t need to.
Note to self: the trail looks shorter on the map than it is. Bring water. Bring twice what you think you need.
Budapest — Thermal Baths and Ruin Bars
Budapest is the kind of city that doesn’t try to impress you — it just is. The Széchenyi Baths in the evening, steam rising off the water in the cold night air, chess games being played in the pools. The ruin bars in the Jewish Quarter, housed in abandoned buildings, each one a maze of rooms and courtyards filled with mismatched furniture and fairy lights.
The Practical Stuff
| City | Days | Favorite Thing | Best Meal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prague | 4 | Charles Bridge at dawn | Trdelník from a street cart |
| Vienna | 3 | Naschmarkt wandering | Sachertorte at Hotel Sacher |
| Budapest | 5 | Széchenyi Baths at dusk | Goulash at Kispiac Bisztró |
| Cinque Terre | 3 | Monterosso-Vernazza hike | Trofie al Pesto in Corniglia |
What I’d Do Differently
Packed half the clothes, twice the snacks. Booked more night trains (save on accommodation, wake up somewhere new). Spent less time on my phone and more time just sitting in cafés watching the world go by.
The month taught me that the best travel doesn’t come from a perfect itinerary. It comes from leaving room for the unexpected — the random conversation that turns into an invitation, the detour that becomes the highlight, the city you almost skipped that ends up being your favorite.
Europe in spring, man. If you get the chance, take it.
