In Manchán's Europe By Train, Manchán Mangan embraces the ethos of slow travel, taking the time to get to know people and places, and experiencing local customs and traditions.
In episode two, continuing on from where the first leg of his journey ended in the Netherlands, Manchán departed Amsterdam Centraal station for Berlin. From Germany, he continued to Prague where he caught an overnight sleeper train. He crossed Slovakia while he slept and arrived in Budapest to conclude the second leg of his journey. You can plan your own journey via Interrail.
Travel Emissions
If Manchán had completed the route from Amsterdam to Budapest by air and car, he would have emitted 326kg of CO2. Going by train, he only emitted 46kg.
Activities in Berlin
There is no better time to challenge our preconceptions around food, as climate change and global supply chain issues force us to explore options that were heretofore unimaginable. Enter Mikrokosmos, the first restaurant in Germany to have edible insects on its daily menu. Regarded by many as the 'food of the future', insects are infinitely more sustainable than burgers and chicken nuggets, and Nicole Sartirani, owner of Mikrokosmos, is keen to prove that critters and creepy crawlies can be delicious.
Storytelling tour of the East Side Gallery & Kreuzberg
With a fascinating personal history (his aunt was 'Red Nobility' in the Communist East Germany) and an encyclopaedic knowledge of his hometown, Berliner Dennis Behnke is ideally placed to take visitors on storytelling tours around his beloved city. Dennis’ tours take on subjects as varied as the Third Reich, the GDR, the Jewish Experience, landmarks of the city, gay history and activism, Berlin’s independent squatting movement, and the counterculture district of Kreuzberg.
Tempelhofer Feld is a former airfield that has become the epicentre of after-work gatherings in Berlin, as well as the home of its jam skating scene. Beginners keen to learn more about the skating style that mixes dance, gymnastics, and rollerskating, can take lessons with the friendly crew at Jam Skate Berlin.
Activities in Budapest
Budapest is famed for its baths, the thermal waters of which range from 21 to 78 degrees Celcius and are said to have medical benefits. Although Budapest is home to over a dozen of these baths, Széchenyi Bath is perhaps the most renowned and architecturally stunning. It also lays claim to being the largest medicinal bath in Europe. With a staggering 18 pools and 10 steam rooms, both inside and outside areas, and daily chess games in the waters, there's something for every visitor to enjoy.
Teqball Game in Budapest City Park
50% ping pong, 50% soccer, and 100% great craic, Teqball was invented in Hungary in 2012, and is now the world's fastest growing sport. Why not give it a go at one of the free to use teqball tables in Budapest City Park, where locals and visitors alike can enjoy an oasis of greenery in the heart of the city?
Located in the suburbs of the city, Gyermekvasútas train line is one of the longest and fastest of its kind in the world – and it's operated by children. Gyermekvasútas Otthon is a relic from the Soviet days, when railway lines run by children were commonplace. The line itself is under the stewardship of the Hungarian National Railway Company, and the children working here, aged between 10 and 14, must attend school most of the time, while working on the train line two days a month as a reward for good grades.
Activities in Prague
The city of Prague has an abundance of organic fruit and herbs – all of which can be picked for free. Tourists keen for a slice of the action should look to Na Ovoce, a local organisation that maps the best spots for picking fresh fruit in the city. Once the fruit has been secured, use it to bake a local delicacy, such as cherry bublanina, best enjoyed as part of a picnic lunch with panoramic views from Petrin Hill.
Manchán's Europe by Train airs Sundays at 6.30pm on RTÉ One.
