5-minute listening: How living on German trains was the right track for this teen

3. Why does Stolley usually eat pizza and soup on trains?
A. because he does not need to pay for them
B. because they are easy to heat up
C. because they are his favourite foods
D. because he can get them at a cheaper price

4. Why might some of Stolley’s close friends be surprised that he decided to live on trains?
A. He had not travelled much on high-speed trains.
B. He never had a model railway.
C. He was not interested in trains when he was young.
D. all of the above

5. What did Stolley want to be trained as after completing secondary school?
A. train conductor
B. computer programmer
C. flight attendant
D. travel photographer

6. If you “dissuade” someone from doing something, you ...
A. encourage them to do it.
B. force them to do it.
C. persuade them not to do it.
D. inspire them to do it.

7. Why were the early days of living on a train difficult for Stolley?
A. He missed his family.
B. He could not afford to buy train tickets.
C. He got lost on the trains frequently.
D. He could not sleep comfortably at night.

8. What did Stolley sleep on before he upgraded his rail card?
A. an airbed
B. a sleeping bag
C. a yoga mat
D. a futon

9. What benefit from a first-class travel card is mentioned in the podcast?
A. priority boarding on all trains
B. more spacious carriages
C. free internet service
D. unlimited travel on any route

10. Based on your understanding of the podcast, how would Stolley describe the “rocking of the train”?
A. thrilling
B. unpleasant
C. soothing
D. distracting

11. Which of the following places has he not yet visited?
A. Salzburg
B. Frankfurt
C. Berlin
D. none of the above

12. Which word can replace “challenges” in the podcast?
A. objections
B. difficulties
C. demands
D. requirements

13. According to the podcast, why has Stolley had to sleep in airports at times?
A. because of bad weather
B. because he missed a connecting train
C. because train staff were on strike
D. because the trains were being fixed

14. Where did he meet his girlfriend?
A. at a rail station’s lounge
B. in a train cabin
C. inside a train’s dining area
D. in a train’s baggage area

15. How long does Stolley plan to continue living on trains?
A. another five months
B. one more year
C. at least three years
D. He is unsure.

1. C
2. D
3. A
4. D
5. B
6. C
7. D
8. A
9. B
10. C
11. D
12. B
13. C
14. A
15. D

Adapted from Agence France-Presse

Voice 1: Lasse Stolley was looking for a change in scenery after a planned apprenticeship fell through. So nearly two years ago, the teenager began living on German trains. The epic journey has taken the 17-year-old from a small community in Germany’s far north to the country’s southern borders and beyond.

Voice 2: Between August 2022 and June 2024, he travelled a staggering 650,000 kilometres. This is equal to going around the Earth over 15 times. He has sat on trains for more than 6,700 hours. According to Stolley, he enjoys the freedom of deciding every day where he wants to go. He travels with just a rucksack and lives mainly on pizza and soup. He gets these foods for free in the rail operator’s station lounges because he holds a train pass.

Voice 1: The teen seems an unlikely figure to have swapped the comfort of his family home for the rigours of life on the rails. He had little interest in trains growing up. He never owned a model railway. He had only travelled twice on Germany’s high-speed trains before deciding to live on them just after he turned 16.

Voice 2: But after finishing secondary school, a planned apprenticeship in computer programming fell through. Searching for what to do next, he stumbled across a documentary about someone who had lived on trains. After initially trying to dissuade him, his parents decided to support him. He bought a rail card that granted him unlimited travel on the network and set off from his home in Fockbek in the north. He first headed to Hamburg and then took a night train to Munich.

Voice 1: The early days were difficult. Stolley could not sleep at night because his rail card did not allow him to use night trains with beds. So he would return home frequently to see his family. But he soon got used to living on the trains. He bought an airbed for sleeping in the large baggage areas of high-speed trains at night.

Voice 2: After a year, he upgraded to a first-class travel card that cost about HK$50,000 a year. This allowed him access to more spacious carriages and lounges. Now, he no longer needs the airbed. He can sleep so comfortably while sitting in a train seat that he struggles in a regular bed because he misses the rocking of the train. Stolley even works while on the move, doing a part-time job programming apps.

Voice 1: He frequently travels to major cities, such as the capital Berlin or Frankfurt, which is Germany’s financial hub. He also visits smaller towns and travels through the Alps. He has been to Basel in Switzerland and Salzburg in Austria, which are the most southern places covered by his rail card.

Voice 2: But living on the German train network is not without challenges. Train staff have staged regular strikes as they pushed for better pay and conditions, paralysing the network. This meant that Stolley was forced to sleep in airports.

Voice 1: While life on Germany’s railways can sometimes be a headache, it can also have unexpected upsides – Stolley found romance during his travels, meeting his girlfriend at a rail station lounge. Stolley does not know how long he will continue living on trains, but until then, he is having a lot of fun and experiencing new things every day.