Ania Rok

@MrTimDunn Oh wow! And a full vegan menu too 😍

I’m off to Devon tonight; aboard one of the best-kept secrets of Britain’s railway: the 19:04 from Paddington. I am having dinner in the dining car, as we surf through the night along twin strips of steel. Speeding at 125 miles per hour, Sarah the chef somehow cooks in the kitchen for us lucky 16 and Aaron’s team deftly serves up soups (thanks to some fancy footwork, I’ve noticed) without a spill down the aisle. It’s a full house tonight; numbers have been steadily growing these last few years as more people discover this semi-secret weekday - (it runs at lunchtime too, as well as in the other direction, AND to/from Swansea) - attainable occasional luxury. We’ve just called at Taunton and I’m having my freebie coffee and mint. I’m enjoying the shared spectacle of once-strangers at tables swapping stories of travels, decisions which changed their lives, careers extraordinary and yet - as every conversation always turns in this carriages - finding commonality in a love of all things & places which lie out this way West. At Tiverton Parkway the ever-chatty Michelle clears away glasses, and visibly restrains herself from striking up chat… she’s just seen the time. Here, I am reminded of my last trip last year, riding aboard this incredible survivor of an age of romance which - and this carriage is proof - is not yet all gone. That day was a time when I was low; really, very low. Two kind friends swooped in and took me far, to see more friends down by the sea, and we came home that night on the evening diner. Some poor soul - troubled by something terrible - was in such a bad way that they had ventured on to a bridge up ahead, so we stopped at Tiverton whilst someone unseen did their magic and that night, likely saved a life. As we waited, some aboard and some on platform, others from standard joined the dining car on discovering that it’s a free upgrade if there’s space, and you’re buying a meal. As I stood in the evening sun, mulling over the meaning of life and how its ups all have downs but deciding that therefore all its downs must always have ups, one of our fellow diners (a much-loved actor of worthy great repute) was now, it transpired, desperate for a spliff. With wine glass now on the platform, she brought out her sweet-scented roll-up. But she *knew* that one cannot smoke upon a station, so in a move executed as elegantly as those she makes upon stage and screen, she lit up and leant over the railing - on one leg to ensure she was well over - into the car park. It’d never stand the test of a court of law but no judge could surely fail to be impressed. Good news soon came from Control of the line and person safe up ahead, and we all returned to the dining car in better spirits perhaps, than we had all been in whilst in our own separate little worlds. That journey back to London was full of chatter, joy and relief. I don’t flash cash - I have none to do it with, despite what some might presume of people who work “in the media” - but there is a romance to dinner in the diner and something very special about eating a proper meal on a train. Sometimes the quiet solitude of a table for one, saved up for and planned for, is the restaurant of my dreams and an escape away from London. Another time it can be a journey unexpectedly learning from others’ life experiences, or a safe haven to hide in having had a day of sad loss, or a place to celebrate something chuffing great with mates. Whatever the occasion, I’m grateful for the Great Western Railway Pullman Dining cars and the staff who work on them. At £38 for two courses and coffee, that often-first-class-from-standard upgrade, the chat, the solitude, the people and the smiles, to me it’s real worth is far more than that. The @gwrhelp dining cars remind me that life, and indeed our railways, really can be great.

@mbickhardt_ Oh ok so it's just come by & take a seat?

@missrok No fees, no registration!

The two-day program of our conference is now available at criticaltheoryinberlin.de/en/event/green… Download the PDF: criticaltheoryinberlin.de/wp-content/upl… Keynotes: @triofrancos & Brett Christophers Co-organzing with Cannelle Gignoux, Hans Rackwitz, @DeloziereG, @Cominsitu, @ueberdruss Day 1 & 2 ⬇️

@mbickhardt_ Looks great! Is there any registration for non-speakers?

Day 1

I'm deeply concerned about the recent push by 18 African nations to seek $5 billion for a new fossil fuel project lender. This is a critical moment for our continent. We are at the centre of the ongoing climate crisis. Africa cannot continue to be a platform where fossil fuel interests are advanced, while African communities suffer 🧵👇🏿 ft.com/content/4dee21…

@happy_golab @PKPIntercityPDP Też zdecydowanie team przedział i bardzo się cieszę, że nie znikają!

@PKPIntercityPDP A te wagony przedziałowe to po co? Jeszcze nie poznałem człowieka co wolałby jechać w przedziale

Właśnie podpisaliśmy umowę z H. Cegielski - Fabryka Pojazdów Szynowych umowę na 300 nowych wagonów. Kontrakt możemy zwiększyć do 450 wagonów. Wartość to 4 mld 239 mln zł brutto, a po rozszerzeniu 6 mld 358 mln zł brutto. Kupujemy wagony z przedziałami, bez przedziałów. Będą wagony restauracyjne, kuszetki, sypialne i do przewozu rowerów. Będą nawet przedziały do zabaw dla dzieci. Wyposażenie? Klimatyzacja, bezprzewodowy internet, indywidualne oświetlenie, ładowarki indukcyjne. Nasze pociągi będą mogły osiągać prędkość do 200 km/h na trasach krajowych i międzynarodowych, zapewniając Wam jeszcze szybsze i wygodniejsze podróże. Pierwsze nowe wagony wyjadą na tory już za dwa lata. Z niecierpliwością czekamy na ich wprowadzenie i jesteśmy pewni, że nowy standard wagonów będzie gwarancją, jeszcze lepszych podróży z PKP IC!

@germany_iam Yes! My top 5 also definitely includes this one, feels like a burst of happiness 😍

@anna_deparnay Thanks so much for all your efforts to support rail transport & European night train network 💚

ABSCHIED VOM EUROPAPARLAMENT 💚🌍 Liebe Grüne Freund*innen, Unterstützer*innen und alle, die mit mir auf dieser unglaublichen Reise waren. Nach sehr vielen Höhepunkten kam die Europawahl als Talfahrt. Neun grüne Mandate haben wir dabei verloren, auch mich hat es dabei aus dem Sitz geschleudert. Wir als Partei haben nun die Aufgabe und Chance, uns neu zu sortieren, und uns tiefgehende Fragen zu stellen. Wie gelingt es uns in turbulenten – gar beängstigenden – Zeiten den sozial-ökologischen Wandel als politischen Kompass zu behalten? Und wie können wir gleichzeitig den Weg zu einer verantwortungsvollen Gesellschaft kreativ, konstruktiv und offen miteinander definieren? Ich möchte jedem Wahlkämpfer, jeder Wahlkämpferin danken, die mit unermüdlichem Einsatz und Herzblut dabei waren. Euer Engagement und eure Leidenschaft sind die wahren Triebkräfte der Veränderung und der Demokratie! Ich bin auch zutiefst dankbar und geehrt, dass ich fünf Jahre lang in Europa den Wald, die Tiere und euch im Parlament vertreten durfte. Von der Förderung nachhaltiger Mobilität überall in der EU bis hin zu dem ersten europäischen Waldgesetz oder mehr Rechte für die Tiere – die Jahre im EU-Parlament waren eine Zeit bedeutender Projekte. Und sehr viel Arbeit. Ich gebe zu, dass ich gerade auch etwas Leichtigkeit empfinde, mich jetzt eine Zeitlang mehr um meine Familie, meinen Mann, mich selbst, unseren Garten und unserer Nachbarschaft zu kümmern. Und ich freue mich darauf, nach all der Pendelei nach Brüssel und nach Straßburg wieder mehr Zeit zu haben, vor Ort in Stuttgart und in der Region mit anzupacken, ganz konkret und lokal etwas zu bewegen. So wichtig und intensiv die Erfahrung in Brüssel für mich war - es war nur eine Etappe, die Reise geht weiter und sie bleibt aufregend. Ich trage all die Erfahrungen, Begegnungen und die erlernten Lektionen mit mir und werde weiterhin für die Werte kämpfen, die wir teilen. Lasst uns in Verbindung bleiben und weiterhin für ein grüneres, gerechteres Europa arbeiten. 🌟

Really enjoying the discussion between @graceblakeley & @PhilippaSigl, well done @DPZ_Berlin for making #fiscalrules hotter than football #PGS24 (live at progressive-governance.eu)

@MariaSkora @AK_Wisniewska @MalKopka @DominikaLasota1 @KaminskaJ Haha, to jest to słynne zdjęcie, które mnie ominęło… następnym razem!

Pozdrawia solidna kobieca 🇵🇱 reprezentacja na Progressive Governance Summit 2024 w Berlinie! #PGS24

If that was an electoral debate I know who would get my vote. So tired of people who speak as if they know all the answers, oblivious to reality #PGS24

Always good to listen to @DominikaLasota1: yes, we feel anxiety but mostly we feel enraged, same people who stand behind climate crisis & war #PGS24 #PeoplevsFossilFuels @RazomWeStand @fossiltreaty

Opening #PGS24 @Cluverc reminding us of importance of listening, humility & acknowledging failure as part of societal transformation work. Not an easy message, especially for German political class…

There’s also lots of talk about derisking #foreigninvestment and while it’s clear Ukraine needs investment now, it’s also worrying to hear the same “socializing risks, privatizing profits” narrative that continues to wreak havoc in communities all over the world

Impressed with the efforts of City of Vinnytsia to ensure #energysecurity in an extremely difficult Ukrainian context, local governments are best placed to accelerate energy transition. Thanks to @RazomWeStand & @e3g for hosting EU-Ukraine Energy Workshop

@NFrantzeskaki @UNIQLO_UK Pm 😊

@missrok @UNIQLO_UK I am staying in Berlin - do you fancy afternoon coffee?

New book, #marimekko sling from @UNIQLO_UK and quiet train ride so far .... Koln is the first stop!

Morning coffee almost in #Budapest as part of a beautiful Fagaras-Berlin ride, Brasov-Budapest night train definitely the highlight 🚞❤️ @_DiningCar #Europebytrain

.@ForumEnergii stale poszukuje talentów! Właśnie ogłosiliśmy rekrutację na stanowisko Ekspertki/Eksperta ds. sprawiedliwej transformacji oraz program stażowy dla studentów i studentek. Wszystkie informacje o ofertach są na naszej stronie 👇 Podajcie dalej! forum-energii.eu/kariera

Great news for Romania: the state won an international arbitration case against Canadian multinational Gabriel Resources, which wanted compensation after its plan to open the biggest European open cast gold mine at the now UNESCO heritage site Rosia Montana failed

@JKSteinberger @GhoshAmitav Same! Very important message and also so beautifully written

I keep telling people to read the Nutmeg's Curse by @GhoshAmitav . No book has shaped my thinking as much as this one. Read it now, otherwise there is no way to make sense of our present.