HIT THE RAILS

Belmond Royal Scotsman

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The knowledge that someone else is in the driving seat and you don’t need to negotiate unfamiliar roads or read complex maps makes it easy to be lulled into a restful, soothing state on a train journey. The route’s planned, there’s no fear of taking a wrong turn or getting stuck in traffic, and there’s every likelihood you’ll reach your destination at the designated arrival time.

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There’s time for reflection and peaceful mindfulness, too. Even if you board a high-speed train in Paris en route to Barcelona, you still have more than six blissful hours to yourself. Time to let your body unwind and your mind empty of worries. With space to relax, few announcements to disturb the quiet and no fear of turbulence, you can close your eyes and focus on the rhythmic hum of the train on the tracks.

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But don’t keep your peepers shut for too long. On any train journey, the view outside your window is constantly changing. One minute you may be hurtling along a track through lush fields with snow-tipped mountains in the distance. The next you could be passing through a pretty rural village, watching local children play in the street (and waving at the train) or market traders hard at work. Then suddenly you’re in a bustling city center, passing landmarks and momentous buildings.

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Unlike motorways that bypass built-up areas, rail tracks are laid through villages, towns and cities, in the countryside, and by the coast, and are often the only transport across otherwise inaccessible mountains. With your nose close to the glass, you’re somehow given permission to observe other lives, and escape your own. It gives you time to daydream and to create scenarios for the people and places whose lives you glimpse and to wonder what life would be like if you lived in that farm, dined in that beach café, or cycled that river path.

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