As a new viewer, I have to say that I really appreciate your patient, calm, and respectful demeanour. Other travel youtubers are not so gentlemanly!

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Thanks so much, really appreciate it (and your views!)

They think it’s all over…. It Chisinău

@shug3481

Жыл бұрын

😂

@billymcl63

Жыл бұрын

😂😂😂

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Beautiful!

@TriciaBute

Жыл бұрын

Oh dear. 🙈

Respect to the railway workers and your patience!

A video like this is simply not complete without Moldova's 2022 Eurovision entry included somewhere. "Join the train! Be our guest! Chisinau to Bucharest!"

@mungbean09

Жыл бұрын

Hey ho, let's go! 😂

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

I wish KZread would let me include a clip in the video, totally love it!

@shakostarsun

10 ай бұрын

Folklore and Rock N Roll, Chisinau to Bucharest!

@shakostarsun

10 ай бұрын

I saw them live at Ia Mania in 22.

Once again you show the oddities of travel unlike any TV equivalent.

@RichardFelstead1949

Жыл бұрын

I agree 100%.I posted similar myslef.

@johnmc3862

Жыл бұрын

What’s ‘TV’ lol?

@Charlizzie

Жыл бұрын

That Eurovision song?

The piles of clothes on sheets on the ground outside the station brought home just how poor people are there😢. Reminded me strongly of Paddy’s Market in Glasgow where we had to shop when I was growing up there many years ago.

The best travelogues on the Internet. Love watching Steve's travels!

The most remarkable thing to me - in what was a remarkable journey - is that the station is such a fantastically presented building but which seems to have virtually no use! Love the video.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

So true Nick!

You really suffer for your art, Steve! It’s refreshing to see a travelogue where the emphasis is on the journey and not about being on an ego trip. Don’t ever change 👍

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Thanks so much Billy!

Absolute classic. That is surely one of those bucket list train journeys you have to take if you are a train enthousiast. Can't help thinking that getting everybody onto another train might be a bit easier than physically changing the bogies!!! What an adventure though, as you said you got the full experience. You are living the dream m8.👍😁

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Cheers Michael! So glad this kind of authentic experience is still available!

@francescadp

Жыл бұрын

I thought the same, would have been easier to provide another train at the Moldavian border.

@batonnetdecannelle

4 ай бұрын

And maybe changing the schedule to make this train change happen at, say, 7 AM rather than 4 AM?

That was a crazy, crazy ride Steve - but utterly brilliant! Hope your journey back was just as memorable 👍

@Xantec

Жыл бұрын

wander how many beer glasses have fell through the gap between the sleeper and dining cars?

“…and make it even heavier” 😂🤣😅 love your content!

Amazing old school technology. I always wondered how they did that. A beautiful train as well. I loved the vintage style of your compartment. Great video. Keep up the good work.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Elizabeth!

Steve, I don't think you go purposely out of your way to find Europe's strangest journeys, but you do find them anyway. Thanks for sharing. Imagine if the GWR remained as broad gauge and services from Scotland to the South West needed to stop for hours to swap the bogies 😂

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Oh I'm so glad I found this one Howard! :)

@Ragnar8504

Жыл бұрын

They might have gone for something like the Spanish. Their trains have adjustable bogies and the gauge change takes less than a minute I think. The train just goes really slowly for a bit and then it's off again.

Think I prefer a later arrival but not a 3am call, and we complain about a bus replacement service, love the train set and the train station. Thanks for showing us this special journey, glad you can deal with scammers. Take care

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Totally agree thanks John!

Like others said, very nice person, showing respect and tell it like it is. Well deserved sub. All the best from a Romanian living in Sydney.

It's an amazing experience, isn't it. I travelled by train from Oostende to Minsk in 1970s and experienced the gauge change in Brest, along with the Soviet border controls of course. We were asked if we wanted to change money. I didn't and so stayed on the train. Otherwise I would have missed all the excitement!

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Superb mate!

I’ve decided to watch your travel vids in chronological order , and it’s great to see how your confidence and style has evolved over the past few years . Keep growing keep travelling . Your followers will keep watching 👏👏👏

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

That's really nice to say, thank you!

Steve, I think your channel is so underrated! Love your effort to travel far and beyond 😊

@Digitall3

Жыл бұрын

Who underrates his channel?

@allanmorton6022

Жыл бұрын

@@Digitall3 not me, I think he's great and has taken us to many places we would never go ourselves including all forms of transport!

@narabdela

Жыл бұрын

Underrated by whom? Do you understand what the word means? Your comment makes no sense.

@paulhollis8879

Жыл бұрын

I think Adriana has it right. Steve is literally underrated at 55K followers. It deserves to be at 550K.

@fredemny3304

Жыл бұрын

@@Digitall3 Nobody. It's just one of these silly 'underrated' comments that are polluting KZread at the moment.

Your blog today leaves me speechless….the architecture, especially those carved pillars and little courtyard areas at the church in Bucharest, is stunning! So much history there. The whole idea of the bogie change is fascinating to me - never realized it was a possibility. I don’t know how you’re smiling and functioning with two overnight train rides, including interrupted sleep. 😵‍💫 You’re a travel hero!

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Haha thanks Gabriele! I have no idea how I stay awake either, just running on adrenaline I think :D

Totally insane Steve, lifting the train while you are supposed to be sleeping🤣Chisinau station was incredible indeed, shame about the lack of trains but maybe its a seasonal thing? Cool video mate👍

@andrei19238

Жыл бұрын

chisnau has very little train service because they have no money everyone uses busses

@barvdw

Жыл бұрын

@@andrei19238 yes, I believe CFM even went bankrupt a year or so ago? We're lucky this train is running at all! It's even better than the last few years, as this train is now daily, up until a few months ago, it was only 2-3 times a week. This area really is on my bucket list.

@isthatrubble

3 ай бұрын

I guess they figure everyone will be awake anyway because of the passport check....

The video of you walking between the carriages bought back childhood memories of me doing the same on the old trains between Invercargill and Dunedin.... just as terrifying 😂 And there the similarities end... ha ha. Fantastic video 📹

@blj007

Жыл бұрын

used to do that as well,the old man worked for the NZ railways so we only travelled by train

@kelleywoods5244

Жыл бұрын

@@blj007 our train would stop at Clinton where there would be a mad dash to the refreshment room (no buffet cars then) for a 15 minute break to buy a cup of tea and a pie. Passengers would take the pie etc back on the train for the rest of the journey, and the naughty ones would throw their New Zealand Railway cups and saucers out of the window when they were finished 😄 The discarded NZR crockery is now a collecters item, the cups etc were very thick and heavy.... no doubt in the hopes that the would survive they impact from being thrown from a moving train onto the tracks below 😅.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

I certainly felt like a child :)

I don't know what's better in this video... Visiting my country (Romania), the fantastic old school train, your great accent or the fact that you're a Mentour Pilot fan as well... (I've also visited Moldova twice).

@emanuelneiconi

Жыл бұрын

@Alex Macedonian In Chișinău și la un sat în afara orașului. Sincer să fiu, nu îmi amintesc numele. Aveam cam 15-16 ani și am mers cu un prieten să ducem niște ajutoare la oameni pe care i-am întâlnit la o biserică. Drumul de la Timișoara a fost lung, schimbarea roților la graniță a fost un eveniment interesant și vizita a fost bună. Chiar și acum îmi aduc aminte ce zgomot făceau garniturile de tren în Chișinău când le manevrau și se "întindeau" cuplele între vagoane - venea zgomotul de la îndepărtare și ajungea la noi.

Very interesting video, Steve. Usually travel shows on TV just show the "good" bits but you've shown warts and all. Love it. This area would have been behind the Iron Curtain .Greetings from Australia.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Thanks so much Richard!

Nice inclusion of @Mentourpilot !🤩 13:49

That trip was mind boggling what with the gauge change and all. It's not a journey that I would make but thanks for taking us along. Looking forward to your next adventure.

Bogie changing !!!!!!!!!! it's just incredible !!!

The best traintravel guy on KZread. I have to see moore of this. But I would not go myself on that train😎

Ah! I loved this. That's how I remember the trains being in Eastern Europe 20 years ago, slow, rattly and dark. I'll have to do this run myself at some point.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Aye it's so good to know experiences like this still exist!

@kevhynaleks2631

Жыл бұрын

Czechia, Poland and Hungary now don't have this trains - but they are Central Europe. This train to Moldova is a time travel back, but Moldova is pure Eastern Europe, as Romania also between Central and East...

Wow Bucharest has arcades Cardiff style!!!

I had a month's work in Bucharest some years ago, and it is indeed a crazy place. Stayed in a hotel where I had an inch long cockroach in my bedside table (happily a dead one!) that was never removed by the cleaner. It was next door to fairly decent Irish pub, I remember, and that August it must have been 30C. Loads of outdoor tables to eat and drink at in the evening, enjoying the scenery - mostly stunningly beautful Romanian girls wearing very little and with a quite evident underwear shortage. Extraordinary place.

That station is BEAUTIFUL!

That’s crazy ride indeed. But I believed that it would be an unforgettable experience 😄

Looks like you had a relaxing night mate 😂 like stepping back in time on that train. Thanks for sharing the experience Steve. Look forward to the return leg 👍

I absolutely agree with you - I would have LOVED that train ride; particularly getting to be in the compartment they needed for the change-over work!

@steve-marsh

3 ай бұрын

It was good for the video anyway :D

A beautiful, dark train ride. Moving between cars is a bit scary, but the train compartment is well furnished.

Absolutely astonishing that they change bogeys. Great video Steve ! 🙂

Brilliant stuff Steve, what a crazy trip, like time travel! I went to the Czech Republic in the early 90s, before it was taken over by drunken Brits on stag parties, and the whole country was fascinating. There is something otherworldly about eastern Europe, that train was fantastic :)

@evabalga6133

Жыл бұрын

Dark and depressing. Makes me glad I don’t travel anymore.

@kevhynaleks2631

Жыл бұрын

Czechia not Eastern Europe my friend, and Hungary also. They are Central Europe Romania is South-Eastern Europe and Moldova is the real Eastern Europe... You just see and feel the difference immediately.

@lightanddreamsphotography7140

Жыл бұрын

@@kevhynaleks2631 No offence meant, I was using the description in terms of the Cold War period rather than geographically

@Ragnar8504

Жыл бұрын

@@lightanddreamsphotography7140 The Iron Curtain is still deeply ingrained in many people's minds. The Ukrainian border is closer to where I am right now than the western parts of my own country, yet Ukraine feels to us as if it was on a different continent. Slovakia and Hungary are less than an hour by train and they feel far away (by now you can probably guess where I am).

I'm happy to find a fellow traveler who enjoys the entire voyage! And to answer your question, yes I would, absolutely!

So there is hope yet! This is the first reasonably comfortable sleeping compartment that I have seen on a train for a long time. Modern berths look more like supermarket disabled loos to me.

😮 What an experience Steve! Surely it's got to be easier to get all the passengers to change to a different train at the border? I mean what difference does it make compared to getting everyone out of bed for an hour and a half to complete all that faff! Bizarre...

@valuetraveler2026

Жыл бұрын

normally there would be a switch in trains but Moldova is Moldova I guess. Romania is very chilled - you have a lot of freedom to fk up if you want to

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

I was thinking the same!

What a fantastic looking train and cabin Steve.. Stepping back in time. Hats off to the train crews.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

So true mate, and to think they need to do that twice a day!

Very 1960s James Bond stuff!!

Very true about sleeper trains! They get you where you want to go, first thing in the morning... and ready for some sleep! Great video, nonetheless! I definitely want to take that train.

This is how you sort the "westerners" from the "easterners" - I bet my dad who grew up during the soviet union occupation could have slept through that whole border gauge change ordeal! 😂

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Haha love this!

@zianeshkasparen4358

Жыл бұрын

My Dad is from the Caribbean and I bet you he would have slept through it all too. 🙄 We had an eartquake about 20 years ago hit us and shake us good for some seconds, 45 ish seconds. He slept through it aaaall. Things were falling, we were shaking and we fell and screamed, chairs toppled over, and all the rest you can imagine. He woke up looooong after it was over stating that he felt weirdly strange. He did not even knooow we wete hit by an earthquake. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

@ihavegreeneyes14

Жыл бұрын

@@zianeshkasparen4358 Hahahahaha, amazing!

I just got back from a two week cruise in the Mediterranean and saw some amazing and inspiring places (please go to Kotor in Croatia...one of the most scenically beautiful places I have ever seen). I sure don't travel to these older less visited places like you do. Some of the cities ,(as in this video) make me sad...the people there look so care worn...truly made me appreciate my own circumstances...which isn't a bad thing is it? But I love old and historic...and that train sure fit the bill.. beautiful.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Hope you had a lovely time Yvonne and I have heard often how amazing Croatia is, somewhere I NEED to get to soon!

What a train of character! THat's real travelling--thank you.

That train journey was something else! A hole in the floor of your room to raise the train What strange experiences you have on your travels!

Wow! I wasn't expecting them to do the change of gauge by lifting the carriages bodily off the old bogies and rolling new ones in! I was expecting a variable-gauge system, where they unlock something on the bogies, drive the train slowly through a special section of track, and lock the bogies again.

@2Dylandog

7 ай бұрын

Me too; that's how they used to do it on trains between Paris and Madrid.

I love that you were watching Mentour Pilot!!! 😂 He’s fantastic!

Fantastic. Thank you

That train. Wowzers. Like you teleported to the past! We love how you always find something positive to say, no matter. As always, really enjoyed this one. We're counting down to our return to Scotland in September and are doing some new-to-us things, thanks to your channel. :)

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Superb! Thanks and enjoy planning the trip :)

Great video. I was on a train to Chisinau back in 1994 from Kiev..same kind of train! I would love to go back and enjoy the experience again. Before the war the station served more trains like to kiev and Odessa. Hope peace will come again soon cause Moldovans are suffering a lot from it.

My thoughts: I've never met anyone who wanted to go to Moldova. I experienced the bogie change when I went from London/Hook of Holland to Moscow, as we moved from Poland to Russia. We had to all get off the train then. Your dinner looked excellent. And the station in Moldova is outstanding. Your videos continue to both entertain and fascinate.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Cheers Barry!

That was a wonderful ground-level look at Bucharest and the train to Chisinau, I really enjoyed tagging along. Thanks so much.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Cheers for joining me!

What a different world - Steve love how you take us to places no one else would dare

Steve, you get the same problem with the gauge change between Poland and Belarus! Strangely enough they use similar sleeping cars (all ex-RZD from Russia).

Bucharest looks like an interesting city. Your train ride was epic, like going back in time. Loved it!

@andrei19238

Жыл бұрын

you can visit..

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

I left Romania with great memories after meeting some wonderful people and seeing incredible places (a video to come on this) It is a shame though for the train station to be such a poor welcome to a fantastic country, glad it will be refurbished!

@CalinFR

Жыл бұрын

@@mihaelafilipescu5818 ești din București?

@zoeo7732

Жыл бұрын

@@mihaelafilipescu5818 ,de ce suntam primii care ne vorbim tara de rau?Bucurestiul e foarte curat comparativ cu multe capitale mari europene,e plin de istorie ,de arta si oameni frumosi! Cand mai veniti pe acasa ,veniti cu sufletul deschis.

Its a great ride, done this a couple of time. Gara De Nord is definitely full of characters! This train is a time capsule of the communist era, nothing has changed. I loved that though. I also did this ride the first time in winter and you may not have seen it in Spring, but each carriage still has coal burning heaters called 'soba' at each end and the conductor opens up and stokes the stoves with coal regularly and man it gets warm!...very effective. Even though its slow, a lot of it is during the bogey and wheel changes which is super interesting. Its nostalgic, its rustic, and that's what is great about travel. 👍👍

Loving your train journeys taking us to places we will probably never go. Laughed all the way through this one .

What a interesting journey Steve. Love that train looks like something that came out of the 30's. Question why do rain tracks to the station always have to be the ugliest part of the city lol imagine if they went through the nice parts. Thanks for a great video as always. Happy Easter

If you think it is crazy from Bucharest to Chisinau.... Wait untill you get to the Chisinau to Bucharest part! It will all be.... Folklore and Rock and Roll! 😂

Thank you very much for sharing this great video. It is an awesome train journey to Moldova and keep safe, Steve. Looking forward to watching more of your adventures in Eastern Europe.

That changeover of gauge in the middle of the night was crazy, and Chisinau station is a beauty. 👍

Now that seems like a proper good old sleeper journey, after watching this I feel like I will have to add it to my bucket list. Is it not possible to collect the tickets from Chisinau? Also was it hard to communicate in English in Moldova and Romania? More about the fun fact, last year's Moldovan eurovision entry was not only filmed in the train but the whole song was about the train, which had a bit of political meaning hinting at a possible unification with Romania as some Moldovans think they might be the next Ukraine

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Fran! Communication in Moldova was a bit tricky, I used the little Russian I have to get by. I bought my tickets on the Romanian website, hence the ticket collection in Bucharest only. I wasn't brave enough to navigate the Moldovan website :)

Went on this train trip in 1996 to watch Moldova v England in a World Cup qualifier for France 98. Don't think much on the train has changed but we were 4 to a cabin, and the change of train wheels took 4-5 hours at the border so things have improved now it seems. We were sold wine in old plastic bottles and there were about 20 English all together on board and will always be remembered as another great trip going unofficially and without England travel club membership We couldn't stomach the same journey back so 4 of us got a taxi back to Bucharest, 7 - 8 hours trip, costing about 100 us dollars. The driver only fell asleep at the wheel once. Next was Tiblisi, Georgia. We flew to Atlanya, then Trabzon and coach from there to Tiblisi. 37 of us travelling unofficially - Loaded magazine did an article on us; Georgian Mildred. Great days

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Superb mate! Haha the taxi sounds dodgier than the train :D

You're taking us to places most of us will never go, Steve! That was some journey, mind you. That station in Chisinau! Just a wee bit quiet just now, but it must have been a busy place in times gone by. Thanks for the ride!

the meal looked great but all that hassle changing gauges at the border, no thank you!

@alal2192

Жыл бұрын

Its cause of holland and austria😂

You make Alan Wicker look a complete amateur

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Haha cheers Robin!

Thank you of course for another fine video-well done too!

Great and informative video. Thank you!

Come home, Steve. I’m afraid you’ve wandered into a Cold War spy movie!

@bernicebest

Жыл бұрын

😂🤣😂🤣

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

And Agent Steve is loving it :)

Absolute classic Steve. Well done once again. Looking forward to the follow up.

Looks great Steve , I really enjoyed the video . Keep up the great work. Look forward to seeing the next video 👍👍😀😀

Totally nuts and brilliant at the same time. That journey was something else and how great to see modernity has not yet invaded everywhere.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

So true!

Love your inquisitiveness and ability to rough out these train journeys. I really loved the old-fashioned train journey.

You should have went to the railway museum in the "Gara De Nord" station. That is one of the best places in that area to spend 1-2 hours before your train arrives.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Oh I wish I'd known!!!

I love the music to go with the different parts of your video.....Thank you Steve for another really cool time !

Another great video. The work you do and the stuff you put up with to bring these videos to us is really greatly appreciated. Please be careful and don't fall off a train going from car to car. And yes, that dinner looked yummy. Thanks again for all the work that you do to bring these to us. Say hi to Alicja for me. Be well, stay safe, be careful of those trains, love from Texas.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Thanks so much Kate!!!

What an amazing ( and clean ) railway station !

What a superb train journey. Be fascinating to do it in daylight too. Great video

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

So true! Would love to go back and do just that!

Steve, that has to be one of your craziest adventures yet! Great to see you going to such places.

wow now that train was impressive . well done Steve , i love your adventures .

Bravo Steve! Epic train trip! You stepped back in time by perhaps 50 years!!

Thanks for the great review. We are doing the same trip in June, we are under no illusions that it is not the most comfortable of journeys but are very much looking forward to it. We have checked out many vlogs on this trip and this is the best by far. We also travelled on the night train from Brasov to Budapest a few years back and loved it.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Have a fantastic time! Just be ready to catch up on some sleep afterwards :)

Wow, just wow. I don't know how I missed this vid before now but what an adventure. The decor and fittings on the train, the architecture in the station. It's like a different world from the modern day and just reeks of nostalgia. I have a hankering for simpler times, maybe when life was easy and without responsibilities during my childhood and that vid pushed every one of those buttons. A cooked meal and a beer for five Euros! On a train in any western country you probably wouldn't get the beer for that.

@steve-marsh

10 ай бұрын

One of the best and most gladly received meals I've ever had on the move! :)

Love your spirit of adventure and taking us places I may never get to see

Enjoying the journey seeing places I have never seen. Moldova at first glance looks like you have stepped back in time. Eager to see the next video 🤗

Amazing! I've always wondered what the gauge change was like. And Chisinau train station! Who knew!

Steve, Found your videos by accident several weeks ago. I've been addicted since then, not only because of your witty and charming comments, but also due to the places you visit that most people couldn't find on a map (Chisinau, Ardnamurchan Lighthouse, Ludza (?!), etc.). Keep on traveling, I'll be following every trip. Guillermo - Miami, USA.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Hey Guillermo! Thanks so much for watching the videos! Really appreciate your comments :)

I've just found your channel recently and I like your style. A simple Travelogue by train without the techy stuff I know nothing about and through the old Eastern Bloc countries which fascinate me too. Bon voyage.

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Welcome aboard! Thank you!

Have expected Borat to put in an appearance.

Steve relaxing to Mentour Pilot :) Anyhoo, I wish the UK could "celebrate" rail travel like this.

Did this journey in October. Was great fun, went with 3 friends. Think we were in the same compartment. 2 rooms between 3. Lots of fun!

That train journey had me in stitches Steve, all other cabins fast asleep whilst you are on the nightshift with the rail engineers haha.

You used to be able to film the Leningrad overnight train in Berlin Lichtenburg station. It had identical coaches to yours, but in green and still with the old Soviet hammer and sickle emblem on them. On one memorable occasion, I was chased off by the elderly train conductor, who called me (in passable German) a Facist photographer'!

Now that's a train journey!, more of an adventure, I LOVED it.

I don't think I could have done that journey, Steve, so hats off! Fair play to the workers, must be a tough job! The station at the end was stunning😍

@steve-marsh

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Sheila!

Love quirky things like this! Fab vlog, thank you 🙏

Hi Steve I have actually seen the bogies switched over on trains before.... And it happened in the middle of the night. Pretty sure it was from Benjamin Bald a couple of years ago 😅. Crazy that they have to do it, and it's even crazier that the poor passengers are woken up to do it. ! But such fun, too. Looking forward to the next vlog