Mini Interrail From Paris, to Amsterdam, to Berlin

by Elizabeth Ahronson, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

After being home in England for the Christmas period, my friends and I decided to organise a mini-interrail to three cities on our way back to Prague for the summer term. We decided to explore Paris, Amsterdam, and Berlin. This was very exciting for all of us as this would be each of our first times in these iconic European cities.

Our venture started as we each travelled from our home cities to London, where we would get an overnight coach to Paris. Luckily, we were all able to get some sleep on the nine-hour coach, which set our trip off to a good start. After waking up in Paris, we made our way to our hostel on the metro, where we caught our first glimpse of the extraordinary Eiffel tower. Although exhausted from our travels, we got ready for the day and made our way towards the centre to try some French cuisine before venturing towards the Eiffel Tower. On our first day we wandered around the city exploring the city’s quintessentially French architecture and shops, getting a feel for the city.

On our second day in Paris, we visited the Arch de Triumph, Les Champs Elysee, the Louvre, and the Notre Dame. Whilst in the Louvre, we were lucky enough to see the Mona Lisa from the closest point possible as there was no queue that day. In the evening, we returned to the Eiffel tower to experience its glistening night lights. This was one of my favourite parts of our trip.

The next morning it was time to head to Amsterdam in the Netherlands. We arrived in Amsterdam in the evening and after leaving our backpacks in the hostel, wandered out to the centre to explore the city. What first struck me was the overwhelming buzz of the city at night. Our next day was filled with exploring the city centre and visiting the famous cannels. We also went to an electronic music museum experience called Our House which was interesting as we learnt about Amsterdam’s devoted dedication to electronic music.  

A memorable aspect of travelling to Amsterdam was the friends we made from all over the world in our hostel. We met a woman travelling on her own from Australia, along with some friends she had made from her previous travels that happened to be staying in our hostel. We ended up spending most evenings with our new friends and have stayed in touch since.

Our final stop on our interrail was to Berlin in Germany, which was extraordinary. On the day we arrived, we went up the Berliner Fernsehturm, at sunset. This provided the most incredible viewpoint, and we were able to see the entire city as the sun was setting, and then all its night lights as the sun disappeared. Our next days were filled with visiting the Holocaust memorials and the Berlin wall and its incredible art. Berlin was also a stop where we met some fellow travellers who we ended up staying in touch with and even came to visit us when we were back in Prague.

This unforgettable mini-interrail made my friends and I feel incredibly lucky to be living in Prague and in turn, have all these opportunities to experiences such memorable places.