Munich is my Oyster

I have always loved airport departure boards. For me the teletext-scripts of flight destinations are an essential part of the travel experience. Written one after another, the cities on the display echo a travel magazine list of top 100 places to visit before you die: Paris, Berlin, Dubrovnik etc. The lines go on over a number of repeating pages, chronicling the airport’s daily traffic and all the potential adventures on offer. It makes me thrill.

Coming from the U.K., a country that is immensely proud of its island status, my exposure to international departure boards was limited to the airport. Of course, the UK has plenty of boats crossing the Channel but apart from an unfortunate, seasicky schooltrip to Calais an eon ago, I have had little other experience of ferry rides. This is why my move to Munich has been a treat in terms of travel.

Hackerbrücke is located just three tube stops from my flat and there, at Munich’s main bus terminal, is an international departure board displayed for anyone to see. There is no need to pack liquids into 100ml containers or take your shoes off for a security check in order to see this board. You can casually find out the next bus to Vienna before walking back to town to do your Christmas shopping. Or if you have the time or inclination, you could pay a few euros and take a bus to Austria and finish your shop there instead. The ease and accessibility of international travel is astounding.

For Philippe, having grown up in a mainland European city, this is par for the course. He is used to “nipping over to France” or taking a day trip to Milan. The English equivalent? An overpriced super off-peak ticket to Bognor. As such, I intend to make full use of these new traveling opportunities and have spent my weekends scouring outbound bus and train timetables from Munich and booking my holidays.

Last weekend, for example, I fufiled a childhood desire of mine and visited Salzburg, the city of Mozart’s birth and of more personal significance, where the Sound of Music was filmed. With only two hours travel, Philippe and I found ourselves whizzing past the stunning Bavarian Alps to arrive amongst the spires and hills of the beautiful city. Salzburg was marvellous, yes, but perhaps more incredible was the fact that it was so close it could quite easily have been a day trip.

This is a strange and exciting phenomenon for me. Visiting European cities has always been a major event for a British resident. As explained it usually involves a flight (often at an ungodly hour if traveling with Easyjet) and the whole rigmarole of passport control. Even a long weekend city break seems to be a big deal. But in Munich, which is already an extraordinary place to find myself situated in, I can visit the places from my departure board fantasies by booking a suspiciously cheap bus or train ticket. It is so convenient as to potentially become mundane.

That is a long way off for me though. My diary is full of arrows, orange lines squished between the working weeks as I cram in weekend travels to Berlin, Prague and Basel, these cities all less than five hours away from my home. It may be unrealistic or inadvisable to schedule so many trips in the space of a few months but it is a challenge I relish. It is also far more achievable from my current location in Munich as compared to Brighton, even considering Brighton’s proximity to Gatwick.

As I zigzag across the continent absorbing the sights and foods of cities I have long lusted over in the travel section of Waterstones, I think of Britain and the Brexit vote. In my reverie I picture a shift of the tectonic plates bringing England smack bang onto the side of mainland Europe, connecting it in a way physically similar to many of the other EU countries. I wonder whether that proximity and the ease of visiting neighbouring European countries would have any impact on the Brexit outlook and whether the people who voted leave would reconsider their decision when they see that France or Spain are actually no further than Bognor Regis and offer much better wines.

These are just musings on my part and of little use, I know. Regardless of what happens with Brexit, I am aware of the amazing opportunity that I currently have, living in Germany and being able to visit so many different, wonderful places by just hopping on a bus. There is no risk of this becoming mundane any time soon.