I’d finally secured for myself an unreserved seat with the big table, after a while searching through the electronic signs and smartly putting my jackets and water bottle down when I found a “prospective” seat.

My suitcase, which somehow became heavier than when we departed three days ago, had been successfully moved to an overhead rack near me thanks to the help of TWO kind gentlemen (one helping me take it down from the place I first put it, one helping me lift it up the place I finally settled down at – both men took initiative to help me even when I hadn’t looked around to ask for help).

The train had people but still many empty seats.

The restrooms, which I quickly checked as I searched for a seat, were nicer than my previous RGB train’s.

Everything felt more spacious and modern and clean.

My orange was refreshing.

I felt so lucky.

The train started rolling right on the planned minute, 12:47pm. When it rolled, a wave of relief washed over me. Phew, I made it nicely this time as well! Phew, life and luck treat me nicely this time as well!

The train moved very smoothly and quietly, and the green meadows of Germany started to appear in front of me. As I settled down, I started to realize how much content I was feeling about train traveling.

Choosing to travel by trains and not airplanes indeed had been feeling challenging, even after I had booked all the train tickets. It felt like being derived of a capability. The capability to do what most people do, the capability to choose the most convenient option, the capability to save the most time and sometimes even money...

Nonetheless, I was starting to feel – not just logically persuade myself anymore, but really feel – the great experiences that I’d had thanks to traveling by train rather than plane. Like this comfortable and spacious seat.

Like the ability to work on my laptop on such a smooth-moving ride, and to look up things on the internet using the good Wifi.

Like the slow hours to think, to let the fresh memories sink in, to journal, all the while standing up and stretching very often.