Antwerp

The plane arrived close to on time, but the immigration queue was very long. The new ETIAS requirements seem to be making the border check process somewhat longer than before. In addition to telling the border agent my business and when I was leaving, I had to provide a fingerprint scan. I really do not know what the purpose is, but hopefully it helps them track and prevent illegal immigration (although being Europe, I’m doubtful).

After we landed, I looked at how to get to the Automium and it turns out that it is closed so I had to change plans. I went down to the train station under the airport (gotta love European public transit infrastructure) and looked at the departure board. I saw there was a train to Antwerp, and after a quick search on Google Maps, it turns out the train only takes ~30 minutes, so I booked a ticket and got on.

The Antwerpen-Centraal station is a very ornate train station.

I decided to walk towards the river. There were some nice streets and architecture along the way.

However, the most prominent aspect of the skyline was the Cathedral, so I walked towards it. When I arrived, it was just before the Sunday morning mass. I forgot it was Sunday (I left home on Saturday, but of course there was a date change due to how long I was travelling). I attended the service, and couldn’t understand anything because it was in Dutch. They had an organist playing for the mass, and it was very beautiful.

After the service, I continued walking towards the Het Steen castle, and saw some other cool squares and buildings.

The Het Steen castle was underwhelming, but it was nice to get out of the cold for a few minutes.

By this time, it was lunchtime, so I went and had some ramen. Definitely not a Belgian delicacy, but it fit the weather. Then, I walked back to the train station to go back to the airport.

Security and getting to my gate at the airport was easy, and the flight was uneventful. Conveniently, the middle seat in my row was open (there were quite a few rows with this situation). I was relieved, as it meant that I would not end up with coffee spilled on me this flight. I slept through most of it.

Once I arrived in Vienna, I had to figure out what train to use to get to my hostel. The City Airport Train (CAT) was heavily advertised, so I knew that was probably not the best deal. I looked it up, and it’s a whole 10 EUR more expensive than the regional S7 train. So naturally I took the S7.

The next task was figuring out how to go watch the AFC Championship game. I found a bar that was showing the game. There were eight or so people who were watching the game. Obviously, the result sucked, but it was fun to be able to watch the game. At the same time as AFC game, there was a AC Milan game and there was a large group of around 20 fans watching the game. When Milan scored, one of the most boisterous ones led them in a cheer ending with the team anthem.

It was midnight when the game ended, so I went to the hostel to go to bed. I’m staying at Wombat’s City Hostel Vienna. The room I am in has eight beds, and is actually two levels. My locker is upstairs, and I took one of the beds up there as well. There is plenty of room, and there is an en-suite bathroom to the room. There is a common area and a bar, so I will have to check that out at some point.

I saw that there is a free walking tour from the hostel tomorrow at 10:30, so I think I’ll try to go to that.