Escape from France

I was too late for the Strasbourg-Stuttgart train so they refunded my ticket at Nancy. In the same way that people really struggle to understand why you'd catch the train rather than fly, people struggle with the idea that you might be happy taking the slower train. Whenever a ticket clerk tells me that the train I'd like to get on is fully reserved (I suspect they only have one interrail ticket per fast train – it's probably run by Richard Branson) they put a face on more appropriate to telling someone you've just run over their child. Or they'll tell you that it's just not possible to get to a certain place and then reluctantly admit that is might be possible with a different route (even if it's only ten minutes longer). We really have become obsessed with speed and convenience. This route is a lot more scenic. The next train to Strasbourg went right through to Basel and as it seemed the only way I was going to get out of the country (only the international trains go from France to Germany it seems) I took that option and am now on a little two carriage train rattling it's way to Lindau. The outskirts of Basel were pretty – lots of allotments and so many solar collectors and PV panels on the rooftops. It's blazing hot. The Bodensee is gorgeous and I'm envious of the swimmers dotting the shoreline. If I had time I'd catch a train down to Oberstdorf for old times sake and call past Immenstadt to see if they still serve Guinness to the bikers in the Feuervogel. I managed to grab some food from a supermarket next to Basel station (all I have eaten all day is a pain au chocolat and an apple tart, and the end of a packet of nasty crisps in my bag since the UK). I should have enough time for a beer at Lindau before another train to Munich which gets me in at 22:45 having missed day one of the conference and the dinner, hey ho. But at least I'll be there ready for tomorrow morning. I have a meet up with a chap called Eelco who I'm hoping is going to get involved with my thesis project (as in give me a load of free kit and some installation) so it's quite important that I come across as a serious researcher and not some smelly old tramp – fortunately I've saved back one outfit of half fresh clothes, the rest will have to get washed in a hotel sink tonight.
I'm thinking that I'll not go back through France.