A 09.10 departure means there's a bit of time between waking up and having to catch the train. No need to have breakfast - that's planned for later - so tram riding it is and the reward is this classic Tatra.

There's still plenty of time to inspect the station. The East German built class 143s are still going strong.

EC171 starts from Berlin Hbf at 06.56 and is formed of Czech stock including a restaurant car. The axis is Hamburg - Berlin - Dresden - Praha - Bratislava - Budapest although only one train in each direction does the whole run. These trains can be rammed in the summer with tourists heading for Praha but the loading in mid-January is light. The run from Dresden is smashing. Sit on the left for views of the Elbe valley best enjoyed from the restaurant car.

EC171 arrives in Praha at 11.36 and connects in to EC279 at 11.44 for Budapest allowing a few minutes to photograph the restaurant car. I've no idea why this isn't a through service.

EC279 not only has a restaurant car but at seat dining in first class. By the time we're close to Budapest, it's been dark for some time and the passengers have thinned out.