On the day of my friend's departure, the sun rose beyond Soroba in a perfectly cloudless sky. It was quite cold, but far less so than elsewhere in Europe.
Just before midday, we walked to the train station of Oban for her train. Some impressions:
Yes, MB, that's you on the train there, beyond the reflections... :)Usually, just two carriages come into and go out of Oban three times a day. In the busy summer season, the train meeting the noontime ferry has four carriages. FirstScotrail have done much to tart up the outward appearance, but my friend arrived frozen to her bones, having had to shiver her way across icy highland hills in an unheated train! Unbelievable! Granted, the fares are lower than on Swiss trains, and the trains as such are quite comfortable, but to allow carriages to remain unheated in mid-winter is appalling. And it is shocking to find that this important railway connection still consists of mostly just one track, which slows down travel times and makes it hard to increase the number of trains running each day. Also, I have yet to see a single freight train coming into town -- I can see the track running along the hillside below Soroba...
However, let me end this post on a less than gripy note. Monday, 5 January, was simply beyond description, absolutely gorgeous. This is one of the views that met travellers coming off the train.
And this is another one, a few paces further out:
Oban marina and one of the mountains on Mull through the metalwork of a fishing boat in Oban harbour.Cheerioh!
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