Checking some #AzadiRail stats :

- 8375 km by train
- 9 countries :
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- 🇷🇴 Romania
- 🇧🇬 Bulgaria
- 🇹🇷 Turkey
- :flag_krd: #Kurdistan
- 🇹🇷 Turkish Kurdistan
- 🇮🇶 Iraqi Kurdistan
- 🇸🇾 #Rojava
- 6 night trains
- :trans_mav: :hu_en: #KalmanImre
- :cfr: IRN #Muntenia
- :tcdd: #IstanbulSofiaEkspresi 2x
- :tcdd: #GüneyEkspresi
- :cfr: IRN #Dacia
- 6 #AzadiBus trips
- 🇹🇷 Malatya - :flag_krd: Amed / 🇹🇷 Diyarbakır night bus
- :flag_krd: Amed / 🇹🇷 Diyarbakır - :flag_krd: Hewlêr / 🇮🇶 Erbil day bus
- :flag_krd: Hewlêr / 🇮🇶 Erbil - :flag_krd: Zaxo / 🇮🇶 Zakho day bus
- :flag_krd: Zaxo / 🇮🇶 Erbil - :flag_krd: Êlih / 🇹🇷 Batman night bus
- 🇹🇷 Istanbul - 🇹🇷 Kapikule night bus
- 🇧🇬 Русе / Ruse - 🇷🇴 Bucuresti / Bucharest day bus
- 17 travel days in total
- 8 days outbound travels
- 10 different trains
- 7 days homebound travels
- 12 different trains

I hope you enjoyed reading my travel reports and maybe found it inspiring ! Your feedback and likes kept pushing me to go further even during the most miserable travel days 🥰 !

#JinJîyanAzadî - keep fighting for a free, open and democratic Kurdistan ✊ !

So far, #AzadiRail day & night #16, homebound day & night #6 : From 🇧🇬 #Русе / #Ruse to 🇷🇴 #București / #Bucharest by 🚌 mini bus #AzadiBus, afterwards a relaxed day in Bucuresti and now by :cfr: :kb_liege: #Dacia night train via 🇭🇺 #Budapest to 🇦🇹 #Wien / #Vienna 😴.

🚂:flag_krd:🇮🇶🇹🇷🇧🇬🇷🇴🇭🇺🇦🇹

After some waiting time due to construction work on the 🇧🇬🇷🇴 Friendship Bridge, my #AzadiBus reached 🇷🇴 #Giurgiu. The railway tracks on the bridge still look as misplaced as always, considering how there's only one #CrossBorderRail train pair per day, the probably even *are* misplaced. #AzadiRail

🚂:flag_krd:🇮🇶🇹🇷🇧🇬🇷🇴

#AzadiRail day #16, homebound day #6 : From 🇧🇬 #Русе / #Ruse, a small mini bus 🚌 will bring me to 🇷🇴 #Bucuresti. The bus is packed but the #AzadiBus trip will only take 2 hours.

Here we are : #AzadiBus to 🇹🇷 #Kapikule ready for departure. #AzadiRail

After that the :tcdd: YHT arrived one hour delayed in 🇹🇷 #Istanbul, I missed my booked bus as well. A quick rebooking and after tasty Pide for dinner, here I am, waiting for my #AzadiBus to 🇹🇷 #Kapikule to leave. So far, everything that could go wrong today went wrong. #AzadiRail

Next train for my #AzadiRail trip : the comfortable :tcdd: class HT80000 Velaro from 🇹🇷 #Ankara to 🇹🇷 #Istanbul.

I got the last available seat in the train, a luxury first class compartment seat, similar to the business class in first generation :railjet: trains.

This YHT comes from 🇹🇷 #Sivas, where I've been at around 2 a.m. in my #GüneyEkspresi . For the ne?t four hours, this means some relaxing time before boarding my #AzadiBus to 🇹🇷 #Kapikule tonight.

Anyways, Obilet for help : My alternative #AzadiRail plan is now to take some later :tcdd: YHT from 🇹🇷 #Ankara to 🇹🇷 #Istanbul, from there on take one more #AzadiBus to 🇹🇷 #Kapikule and hopefully catch my night train to 🇧🇬 #Софія / #Sofia there at 2 a.m. 🙄🫣.

What an asshole at the ticket check.

4.45 a.m., :flag_krd: #Êlih / 🇹🇷 Batman. My #AzadiBus destination for today. Delay of 6 hours. #AzadiRail

#AzadiBus 3.30 a.m., :flag_krd: Midyad / 🇹🇷 Midyat. Next stop : :flag_krd: #Êlih / 🇹🇷 Batman. I'm tired. #AzadiRail

1 a.m., first #AzadiBus rest at a highway rest area. I'm cold. #AzadiRail

After one more hours, I was now taken to *another* #AzadiBus. They say my bus won't stop in :flag_krd: #Êlih / 🇹🇷 Batman today so I should take that other one. It's not getting better, is it ?

Anyways, I'm now sitting in a bus and we're about to depart. ETA : 4 a.m. - heck, I'm tired. #AzadiRail

After one hour, we reached the :flag_krd: #IbrahimKhalil / 🇹🇷 #Habur border crossing. Yet another hour later waiting in front of the border crossing, we could enter it - once again featuring funny let's-walk-over-the-highway boarding. One hour later, we could get to the passport check. Yet another hour later, the :flag_krd: Iraqi Kurdistan administration was ready checking our #AzadiBus for smuggling goods (haha, good joke) and let us leave #Kurdistan. #AzadiRail

Anyways, now that I have internet, some pictures from the #AzadiBus trip :

The International Terminal of :flag_krd: #Dihok / #Duhok is a bit of a joke : there's a giant terminal with gates to the bus platforms but since going there would mean a détour, the busses in fact stop on the sideway of the highway close by.

Some minutes prior to departure, a taxi drives over and picks up all passengers (at the end we were 3) and drives them for the 2 km to the bus's actual stop.

With 3½ h delay, our bus arrived. It's a comfortable mainline bus and the landscape of mesopotamia was yet beautiful.

#AzadiRail

In 40 minutes, I'm supposed to arrive at my destination. In fact, my #AzadiBus has not even crossed the border into Turkey. So far 4 hours of border controls. #AzadiRail

#AzadiRail, 4 p.m. Still 0 other passengers at the terminal. Still supposedly 1 hour until the departure of my #AzadiBus.

#AzadiRail day 11 : Sadly vacation is ending soon so slowly time to get back to France. Homebound day 1 : My #AzadiBus from :flag_krd: #Dihok / #Duhok sadly was canceled. After asking each and every ticket counter in the International Bus Terminal, the conclusion seemed to be : not just my bus was canceled, but pretty every bus. Seemingly in at 5 p.m. there will be the next bus bringing me to :flag_krd: #Êlih / 🇹🇷 Batman. That means yet another boring day doing nothing and waiting at the bus terminal since that so far is the most comfortable spot I found in this weird city.

🚂🇫🇷🇩🇪🇦🇹🇭🇺🇷🇴🇧🇬🇦🇩🇹🇷:flag_krd:🇮🇶🇸🇾

#AzadiRail day 9 was : #AzadiBus with flaws from :flag_krd: #Hewlêr / #Erbil to :flag_krd: #Zaxo / #Zakho, a relaxed afternoon and travel preparations for tomorrow.

🚂🇫🇷🇩🇪🇦🇹🇭🇺🇷🇴🇧🇬🇦🇩🇹🇷:flag_krd:

After I learned my #AzadiBus is 5 hours late, I decided to look for another carrier. A friendly Turkish-Iraqi guy helped me figuring out the operator leaving next, so here I am with a new ticket to :flag_krd: #Zaxo / #Zakho for 25.000 IQD. #AzadiRail

Our #AzadiBus arrived with 4 hours delay in :flag_krd: #Hewlêr / #أربيل / #Erbil. The trip took 12:45 h in total. I'm just exhausted and flopping into my bed. #AzadiRail