Notices by Jon Worth (jon@gruene.social)

I do appreciate the no manspreading signs on the Istanbul Metro

Welcome to today's thread - 2025 #CrossBorderRail Finale Day 38 - 24 July - Dobrich - Poveljanovo - Karnobat - Dimitrovgrad, onto night train

Today's new borders:
Kapitan Andreevo 🇧🇬 - Kapikule 🇹🇷

Borders map, inc. borders re-crossed:
https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-all-the-borders_935041#15/41.7210/26.3452

Today's trains on the routes map:
https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-2025-finale_1163738#8/42.306/27.128

Good morning from Dobrich 🇧🇬

A little walk first

It’s both charming and- in that it’s so calm, no traffic. And bad, in that many buildings are ugly and the upkeep poor

The Euro is coming!

And I’d wondered why there were odd costumes in my hotel! Both #FolkloreWithoutBorders and #CrossBorderRail are staying here! 😀

I last crossed the Bulgaria-Turkey border in about 2003, and I am intrigued to see what (if anything!) has improved. Theoretically the infrastructure should not be too bad, but a border crossing in the middle of the night is never a great joy. The border is used more by freight than by passenger trains.

Here's today's #CrossBorderRail music track

Istanbul (Not Constantinople)
They Might Be Giants

This one is in for the title more than anything!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XlO39kCQ-8

#CrossBorderRail Finale Train 145 of 167
RE 28203
09:40 Dobrich - Poveljanovo 10:56
BDZ

Train type: Luhanskyj Teplowosobudiwnyj Sawod 07 diesel locomotive, 1 carriage (1 further carriages locked)
⛽️
🚲: ❓ (not officially allowed, but you'd manage)
🦽: ⛔️
🛜: ⛔️
🍽️: ⛔️
🧳: 😐 (ok once in, but hellish high and narrow steps to get in)️
🧽: ☹️ (not been cleaned properly in years)

🎫 Interrail: 🙂 (accepted, although the BDZ gadget could not scan the Interrail QR code)

RE 28203
09:40 Dobrich - Poveljanovo 10:56

Distance: 66.9km
Average speed: 53km/h

10 stops:
Donchevo
Botevo
Oborishte
General Kiselovo
Valchi dol
Suvorovo
Chernevo
Kipra
Devnja
Poveljanovo

This train, mapped: https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-2025-finale_1163738#11/43.3733/27.6845

#CrossBorderRail Finale Train 146 of 167
RE 30152
11:47 Poveljanovo - Karnobat 14:14
BDZ

Train type: Siemens Vectron locomotive, 3 carriages
⚡️ (25kV ac)
🚲: ❓ (not officially, but there would be enough space)
🦽: ⛔️
🛜: ⛔️
🍽️: ⛔️
🧳: 😐 (better than first train of the day, but still high steps up, but doors are at least wider, good once inside)️
🧽: ☹️ (toilets stink, windows are covered in grime)

🎫 Interrail: 🙂 (accepted, but BDZ employee got angry - she had no gadget to scan the QR code. I shrugged!)

RE 30152
11:47 Poveljanovo - Karnobat 14:14

Distance: 130.2km
Average speed: 53km/h

24 stops:
Razdelna
Trastikovo
Sindel
Junak
Nova Shipka
Velichkovo
Dalgopol
Borjana
Komunari
Asparuhovo
Struja
Trаnak
Dropla-spirka
Daskotna
Listec
Ljuljakovo
Zavet Sp.
Zavet
Vedrovo
Podvis
Klimash
Lozarevo
Valchin
Karnobat

This train, mapped: https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-2025-finale_1163738#10/42.9403/27.3690

Today is confirming my previous impression: both BDZ 🇧🇬 & CFR 🇷🇴 are starved of cash and investment, but damn the Bulgarians do a better job keeping the basics running better than the Romanians do!

BDZ station masters

My next train takes me to Dimitrovgrad 🇧🇬

Which like Dimitrovgrad 🇷🇸 AND Dimitrovgrad 🇷🇺 is named after Georgi Dimitrov, the first post WWII Bulgarian communist leader

In response to a point raised by @vorortanleiter about air conditioning of the ex-DB carriages bought by BDZ 🇧🇬

The carriages BDZ purchased from BDZ could accept head end power 1000V ac 16.7Hz and 50Hz, but the rest of BDZ’s fleet is 1500V 50Hz

So - as purchased - these carriages would have had no working aircon, so BDZ must have swapped out the transformers

(Edited: I had what the original standard was wrong)

#CrossBorderRail Finale Train 147 of 167
R 8612
15:36 Karnobat - Dimitrovgrad 18:23
BDZ

Train type: Siemens Vectron locomotive, 4 carriages
⚡️ (25kV ac)
🚲: ❓(no space foreseen but you’d likely make it work)
🦽: ⛔️ (no disabled accessible carriage)
🛜: ⛔️
🍽️: ⛔️
🧳: 🙂 (by standards of this region v good! Wide-ish steps, good space)
🧽: 😐 (even in a few months since sale DB to BDZ cleanliness slipping)

🎫 Interrail: 🙂 or 😐 (officially comp res, but at Karnobat they told me just get in!)

R 8612
15:36 Karnobat - Dimitrovgrad 18:23

Distance: 182.1km
Average speed: 65km/h

8 stops:
Straldzha
Zimnica
Jambol
Konjovo
Nova Zagora
Stara Zagora
Merichleri
Dimitrovgrad

This train, mapped: https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-2025-finale_1163738#10/42.4143/26.1701

Third time Dimitrovgrad on #CrossBorderRail

2x 🇧🇬
1x 🇷🇸
0x 🇷🇺 (obviously)

Today has been super smooth crossing eastern Bulgaria

So many lines here improved in the past decade, impressive to see

Now four hours here in Dimitrovgrad before my night train

A question about the hair of Bulgarian men

Why are shaved heads or super short hair so very popular here?

At this restaurant there’s a group of 7 men (pictured, badly). 2 heads are shaved. 3 have a couple of mm. 2 have 1cm max.

It’s similar in the rest of the restaurant.

This is the most weird sleeper compartment

It’s nice and roomy. There’s even a fridge. But this inefficient design makes the capacity super low