Travelling to Morzine, France

You would think that saving a few hundred bucks and taking the trains across Europe on a Eurail Pass would be worth it. I may have to disagree, eventhough I spent the 100€ each on a 2 person sleeper car, just to be comfortable and sleep well. Both Jen and I thought that an overnight train would be a great way to get across France.

Itinerary
Train 1: Amsterdam to Basel SBB
Train 2: Basel SBB to Geneve
Tram: Geneve to Geneve Aux Vives
Train 3: Geneve Aux Vives to Annemasse
Train 4: Annemasse to Thonon (Planned)
Bus: Thonon to Morzine


Let's see, how did this go...
1. Got to Amsterdam Centraal with 1hr to departure. Left Jen in a restaurant to eat while I went to validate our Eurail Pass and find out what platform to depart. The line was long and I waited for about 35 minutes. Finally got back to the restaurant and Jen hadn't ordered, she was waiting for me, we rushed an order and the check and tried to choke down as much food and wit bier as we could in 15 minutes. We walk back downstairs, across the station, upstairs and wait by a train going to Munich, where we were confused. Then verified we were indeed going to the correct place if on correct, assigned car (detaches and retaches in night).

2. Funny steward told us that other American's angry that after 6000 miles of travel they get on a european train only to be served sierra valley Gallo wine. I drank mine and Jen's, then off to sleep. Should have had a dramamine with the wine because without fail I couldn't sleep deeply. So there I was in a bed rocking and rolling all night long only to get up, take some weird closet shower, eat my croissant and tea, then jump off the train after the police go running past me in the corridor.

From Morzine, France

3. Arrive in Basel on 2 hours of sleep and navigate an unfamiliar station. So tired, I don't really remember what it was like. All I remember is that we had to go up some stairs, read the board, orient to the tracks, down some stairs, on to another track and chuck the bags onto the other train, doors close and off we go.

4. Arrive in Geneve after a 2 hour scenic lake-side travel and get TOTALLY LOST. Now we were in deep. Everyone spoke french and I had no idea what anything read or what anyone said. We had 40 minutes to try to eat and traverse to Geneve Aux Vives. We could not find any signs or information on how to get there. Finally, Jen rose up and got her french on and got us oriented to the Tram Info desk and we found out: number 16 tram for 3€. It took us about 10 minutes to find the tram stop, after buying a croissant and a coffee in the station and listening to a french woman tell us she cried on 9/11 abruptly after telling Jen her french was horrible. We zig-zag across the front of the station and find the right tram stop. The tram was just about to go and we opened door... I immediately turned and ran to the ticket kiosk and well, in the time it took me to find the francs in my pocket the tram took off. So we waited. The next car came in like 5 minutes, whew.

From Morzine, France

5. Arrive at some forgotten train stop on some brick lined street after passing watch shop after clock shop and we are lost. No signs to the Gare (Train Station). Jen gets up guts and asks a french granny for directions. We pass down an old street and left round a corner... there is the station, so small, that driving a car I'd have missed it. We walk in, confused I realize that through a window I can see our train. With one minute to go, I walk in to an office, show a man our itinerary, he points vigorously at the train, runs to the door, and shoes us across the tracks speaking in tongues. We literally throw the bags on, put them in the rack, and before we had our coats off the train was on its way. I think it was 85 degrees F on that train, it was disgusting, fortunately, only 15 minutes to Annemasse.

6. Arrive in Annemass. We ask a conductor for directions/information on how to get to Thonon. Our original itinerary was to go to Cluses, but Florence discovered that buses ran only every 3 hours and we would miss the bus and have to wait in Cluses forever. So, we asked the conductor, how do we get to Thonon where a bus would be waiting. He said, Go to Track A, get on the back of the train, it will go one way and the front another. We were told to go to St Germain, well I didn't pull out a map and it sounded reasonable. Don't go to Evian he said. Fair enough, to track A we went. We were sitting there, I was wiping the dog shit off my boot and wheel of my suitcase and a train arrived. All the people waiting at track A had now gone to C where the train sat. I go and look at the screen and realized the track's changed. Jen can't run, so I go bolting off with both suitcases. I was swimming upstream on the stairs with all the arrivees congesting the entire area. I clobbered a couple people, yelled back at jen, and off we went to jump, one more time, onto a train. This time however, we got to the train, it started to move, eventhough conductors all outside, and with the train moving I chuck jens bag onto the car and I jump on with mine in hand and reach my other hand out to Jen. The train stopped. Jen get's on, we get seated and WAIT. Turns out they were just detaching the two halves, one to Evian the other to St Germain. It was hot on the train, I was sweaty, and now, just laughing at the whole thing. We proceed deep up a mountain valley and thinking we were going lakeside again, but rather somehow going up the other side, we were confused when it seemed Thonon was never going to arrive. Then we hear it, Cluses. Damn, we went the wrong way, got the wrong information, and should have been on the Evian train. haha.

7. Arrive in Cluses (Klooss). We walk immediately to the information booth. Jen talking about food and needing to sit. I just wanted to get our tickets and a time-table first. We met a man that spoke no english, sent us inside to buy our bus tickets. Inside we were sent outside to buy our bus tickets. As we step out the door, the bus was just backing up. In small marker print, at the bottom of a list, in the window, I read MORZINE. I go waving my arms and he stops the bus, pulls back into the parking spot, takes us onboard, sells us each a bus ticket and off we go, up the steep windy roads, Jen no food and nauseaus and me smiling at the volumes of snow on the trees as we ascend the mountain.

From Morzine, France

8. Arrive in Morzine. Niko was supposed to be waiting for us. We waited at the bus area next to the tourist office for almost an hour standing in the cold snow. Turns out he was waiting at the intra-resort bus stop and we were at the inter-city stop. Finally we come across him, he says, oh we will be at the house in a minute, then takes us to the ski-school and we, again, wait in the snow for another 15 minutes or so, this time in the shade. I was done at this point! Finally we make it back to the house. Starving and ready for a serious meal, we had bread and bread and bread and cheese and cheese and cheese. I was stoked, but later we would find out that Jen is not so good with the ripe cheese.

From Morzine, France

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And well... Yeah, it was worth it!
We agree that an overnight train is a great way to get across France.