Hello, friend,
Happy New Year! How did you celebrate? I braved the crowds and had my first-ever, big-city NYE celebration down on the Champs-Élysées with roughly a million other hardy souls. It was an intense and beautiful shared experience, marked by feelings of awe, cold toes, and occasional crowd claustrophobia. I’m so glad I did it (even though I’m not sure I would do it again!). I hope you had a fun time, too, and that your year is off to a good start.
The brief sabbatical that I took for the book is officially over, and it feels great to dive headfirst back into journalism. First up on my story list for the year was an article about train travel in Europe that ran in the NYT late last week.
There’s so much to to say here: governments are investing in rail, startups are jumping in, and demand for train travel is soaring. Within the next year or two, you'll probably be able to take a direct overnight train from Barcelona to Amsterdam; from Paris to Venice; from Brussels to Bratislava. And there’s a lot more to look forward to otherwise — including the possibility of cheaper tickets through the Channel Tunnel.
The story has gotten plenty of attention from commenters and rail industry types (I don't think I’ve ever had so many LinkedIn requests in a single day!). I’d love to know what you think of it. (And here's an unlocked link for you.) I’m also eager to hear what else you'd like to know about trains in Europe — or travel in general. I’m always looking for tips on what I should report on next, so please do drop me a line.
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