I was intrigued by the presence of this Czechoslovak State Railways couchette car parked in a siding at Helsingor on 20 August 1987. It was being used as a mobile hotel doing a tour of western Europe but I can only surmise that conditions must have been somewhat cramped. In those days citizens of Eastern European countries had severe restrictions placed on travel to the west, and could not access thre currency necessary to pay for hotels.

The handwritten itinerary posted in one of the windows of the CSD couchette car indicated that it had originated in Bratislava, now of course the capital of the Slovak Republic. The itinerary shows the various destinations and indicates the trains to which the car was attached on its journey through Europe

On my first visit to Denmark in 1983 I spotted this MY class diesel, 1012, at Ballerup on a local train. This class was built by Nohab in Sweden, with General Motors engines. Similar locos also operated in Luxemburg and Hungary and were great favourites with the traction fans

By 1987 most of the surviving MY class had been repainted in the new livery. This one is 1122 seen at Esbjerg on 1 October 1987

Looking very smart in its new outfit, MY class 1128 takes the afternoon sun at Koge, south of Kobenhavn, on 20 August 1987

The MZ class of diesels numbered 61 locos built by Nohab between 1967 and 1974 as successors to the MY type. They became redundant with the spread of electrification and the use of Inter-city multiple units. 1407 was backing on to its train at Arhus on 30 September 1987

A few moments later MZ class 1407 is under way under a brief cloud of exhaust fumes as it heads south in the evening sunlight at Arhus on 30 September 1987

Another Nohab MZ class 1444 at the north end of Arhus station on 30 September 1987

A slightly different angle on MZ 1444 at Arhus on 30 September 1987. These locos have been much sought after on the second hand market generated by the opening of access to the European rail network. Some have been reported as exported to Australia!

This view of the station at Korsor on 21 August 1987 was taken from the Store Belt ferry. I was travelling on a Lyntog unit from Kobenhavn to Esbjerg which in those days required the use of the train ferry. ME class 1517 is in the background to this shot

There were 37 locos of the ME class built by Henschel in 1980/81, and many of these were to be found operating out of Kobenhavn on main lines on the island of Sjaelland. 1529 pauses at Koge with a southbound express on 20 August 1987

West of Kobenhavn is the main line to Roskilde and the mainland which is 1987 was reached by train ferries. ME class 1534 pauses at Hoje Tastrup with a westbound express on 20 August 1987. In the background is the modernistic structure which was the transport interchange constructed very expensively at this location

Helsingor, which is the Elsinore in Shakespeare's Hamlet, lies at the far north of the island of Sjaelland directly opposite the Swedish city of Helsingborg. In the 1980s there were frequent connections by ferry many of which carried international trains. It is also the northern terminal of north-south inter city trains via Kobenhavn, and this view shows EA class 3005, one of DSB's first electric locos built in 1984 ready to depart with a southbound express on 20 August 1987

DSB shunter 374 propels some very distinctive Swedish rolling stock onto the ferry at Helsingor for the short crossing to Helsingborg

The limit of the Greater Kobenhavn county area to the south is at Koge, so my travel pass generously provided by our hosts HT did not permit me to travel any further. MH class diesel-hydraulic shunter was using a passing loop at this busy location on 20 August 1987

A closer view of ME class 406 at Koge on 20 August 1987. These locos were built by Frichs between 1960 and 1965

The DSB fleet included these MR class diesel hydraulic multiple units used on secondary lines in Jylland. 4078 was at Arhus on 30 September 1987

The famous MA class Lyntog units were used on services from Kobenhavn to Jylland via the Store Belt ferry. This is half unit 462 seen on arrival at Esbjerg on 21 August 1987

The Lyntog units ran coupled back to back out of Kobenhavn rather like a British HST with a power unit at each end. The formation included driving trailers. On arrival at Korsor the units were split and then driven onto the ferry where they were parked side by side. On arrival at Nyborg the units would be recoupled for the next stage as far as Fredericia where the train split again to different destinations. All this was achieved with minimum of fuss and the average traveller was barely aware of the processes involved in this fascinating operation. Although extremely confortable these units had limited facilities as meals and refreshments were available in the extensive catering facilities provided by the DSB run ferry service

By my own admission this is no classic shot, but the sudden appearance of this steam locomotive, DSB 826, at Arhus on a weekday, 30 September 1987 caught me completely unawares, and I was the wrong side of the low evening sun. I can only assume this may have been a positioning trip for a special to be run at the weekend