Thalys: Time to reserve your seat...
Thursday, August 26, 2010 Publié par Eric Tenin
... And when I say reserve your seat, it's really reserve the actual seat, not the sitting! Explanation: Thalys is the name they gave to the TGV (bullet train) that goes from Paris to the north of Europe (Brussels, Cologne, Amsterdam...). These trains have been running for quite some time now and that is why the SNCF (the French train company) is renewing them at the moment. And instead of dumping the seats, they... sell them on ebay! Check it, it's even in English. I must say I'm tempted to buy one...
August 26, 2010 12:34:00 AM GMT+02:00
But Eric, why buy a chair when you can buy the poubelle de salle?
August 26, 2010 12:49:00 AM GMT+02:00
LOL ET SUZY!!
Incredible operation by Thalys. To buy a seat is not so tempting than to buy a sitting to Amsterdam or Cologne (why not? or even Bruxelles).
Maybe afterwards, I'd be interested in buying the seat ;)
August 26, 2010 12:52:00 AM GMT+02:00
what a great idea for UNICEF!
& those seats look pretty comfy too.
August 26, 2010 1:31:00 AM GMT+02:00
Now that would be a fun souvenir... and a great way to recycle, too.
August 26, 2010 2:22:00 AM GMT+02:00
Don't toss it, sell it—brilliant! I think you should definitely get one, Eric. It looks pretty comfy too.
August 26, 2010 2:26:00 AM GMT+02:00
Eric, what costs more, buying a seat for reuse in your home, or buying a ticket to, say, Amsterdam? I hope you'll get one if you really like them. You have a good design eye.
-Kim
August 26, 2010 3:13:00 AM GMT+02:00
I bought a chair from the Covent Garden Opera when they renovated the theater, and when I got it back home in America, I found it was broken. Cavet emptor.
August 26, 2010 3:37:00 AM GMT+02:00
August 26, 2010 3:43:00 AM GMT+02:00
You really had me. I was like, “Huh?” up until the last sentence of the caption. Good play on words!
I would suggest not drinking the water at the terminal station. It has a peculiar odor and just way too expensive as you can see here.
August 26, 2010 6:12:00 AM GMT+02:00
350 euros, 550 euros, small change for those Paris guys. Hey, Eric and Michael, buy a few of these and bring them to the next PDP picnic! Won't that make great photos? M. PDP dans le siege de Thalys a le quai. (In bad French.)
Priceless.
August 26, 2010 6:47:00 AM GMT+02:00
Yes it would Jeff! I could just see the king on his throne! I love this idea and that the proceeds go to UNICEF.
August 26, 2010 7:57:00 AM GMT+02:00
We recently bought roundtrip tickets Amsterdam-Paris-Amsterdam. Should have bought them early on-line when a roundtrip cost only 72 euro. When we arrived five months later in NL, the same trip cost 200 euros! Lesson learned.
August 26, 2010 9:13:00 AM GMT+02:00
help!!!!...the seats are soooo 80's in design and colour...good for an advertising agency office or hyper active kid's room....
August 26, 2010 11:20:00 AM GMT+02:00
That's funny! It reminds me of a site I just found which specialises in old railway sleepers - apparently there's a thriving industry for them over in the UK, for putting in the garden to prop up plants, benches, shelves - maybe you could fit an old train seat into the corner of the garden for whenever you feel like journeying in your mind a bit... whatever next?
August 26, 2010 3:38:00 PM GMT+02:00
@Martin. I agree, they would be perfect in an ad agency.
August 26, 2010 4:13:00 PM GMT+02:00
What a great idea! I love the thought of bringing home something that you love or has great memories for you. And selling them to benefit a charity is even nicer.
August 26, 2010 11:52:00 PM GMT+02:00
Yes, this is a great idea. This can be fun for an ad agency, you are right! And Christie, I love reading what you wrote too :"Bringing home something you love". I love bringing home something I love.
I'm amazed to think of the possibility of "6 departures" per day to Koln. Have no idea of what Koln looks like and why the Thalys offer includes this city which is (except a very possible mistake from me) far less known or far less touristic than Bruxelles or Amsterdam.
I love traveling by train when the distance is short. Much more safe for the planet than traveling by plane, btw! But that is not the main reason that could explain my liking for train travels. Actually I love looking by the window when the train is running. It helps me to feel serene during the trip period and a while after. I also read very well in a train. Seeing your google position, I guess that may be you took a train to go there. Hope everything is fine.
August 27, 2010 12:03:00 AM GMT+02:00
Maybe I'll understand that one day, If I ask?