Heading to Ålborg

After packing up my bag, I started the day with a bounce in my step and a song in my heart (and my mp3 player).  I checked out of the hotel and walked toward the train station...


...and got lost.



Not seriously lost, mind you.  I'd gotten to know my way around Århus fairly well, and was going in more or less the right direction - I just misjudged a street or two, and ended up inside a mall behind the station.  After sorting out those shenanigans, I found the platform I needed, scrawled the train information on my Eurail ticket, and boarded the next train to Ålborg.

E'rybody loves trains!

This train was much less crowded, and as the trip only took  a few hours, I was able to  retain an un-purchased seat for the duration.  I arrived in Ålborg at about noon, and set out from the train station towards...where was it again?

I knew about where it was, but I didn't know how to get there precisely.  For some strange reason, there's only one hostel in the third-largest city in Denmark, and it's located out past the furthest bus stop.  I wandered back and forth for a bit, wondering how best to accomplish getting out there.  Finally, I took a bus into the central bus depot to take a look at the big map and check my bearings.  From the central depot, I took route 13 out to as close to the hostel as I could.

My Eurail pass allowed me to ride these buses for free, because I had already used a pass-day to ride the train that day...OR SO I THOUGHT.

The bus driver made me get off at the end of the line, so I began trudging toward the ocean to follow it west.  At least that way, I could keep my bearings straight, and not overshoot the place.  After walking for about a half-hour, I finally found the location...about 500 yards from where I was first dropped off.  Oh well.

The rooms here are expensive, so I decided to only book two nights and leave after a day of seeing the city.  The rooms were so expensive, I was only left with 100 kr per day of spending money.  I began to consider my best options, as I was already quite hungry.  Then it hit me - Asian buffet!  I could pick up an all-you-can eat meal for just over 100 kr, eat for two days, and then pocket the remainder!  What could go wrong?

Well...a fair bit, actually.  I tried to catch a bus back in, and the driver had no clue why I was waiving my passport and a Eurail pass at her.  We discussed back and forth whether the pass was actually supposed to be for city busses or just local ones, and finally she said "I don't think so, but I don't care."  She drove me into the city, and we talked the whole way in about what I was doing there, where I had been, and where I was going.  As I got out, I thanked her, and decided not to rely on any more bus rides in Ålborg, just to be safe.

I expect this in Holstebro

Instead, I snatched a City Bike from a rack and rode around for a bit.  It's worth taking the time to point out that the bikes have been getting nicer and nicer with each city I've passed through.  The Copenhagen bikes were one-speed, back-pedal brake affairs.  Århus added a front brake and upgraded to 3 gears.  Ålborg has all of that, plus baskets and pedal-powered blinkers!  Swanky!

"How much do I hate thee?
Let me count the ways."

I stopped off at a Thai buffet, and made the mistake of ordering water.  I figured at a buffet they wouldn't charge for water.  Oh yes they would. 25 kr for water and only three ice cubes.  All told, though, the meal was tasty, but I left with only 40 kr in my pocket for food the next day.  Thankfully, food was the last thing I felt I would need ever again.

I rode my City Bike around for a while, then headed back to the hostel for some rest before my one day of exploration the next morning.