30 x 3 – 5 - 20 x 20 - 10 x = Stuttgart

It was easy to arrive in Stuttgart, to pull up alongside our host Moritz on his bicycle, to have him unlock the door of his train carriage, the sun streaming in, and offer us the first of many beers. We crossed the tracks to his lovely home, a room set up especially for us with many mattresses and bedding, and dinner waiting: spezler, noodles traditional in these parts that he makes himself, with caramelized onions and a big salad: lecker, lecker, lecker.



It was harder to depart Stuttgart. It was Sunday afternoon, Moritz had slept one hour and now we had to get our gear our of his train carriage bar. There was a code. He scribbled 30 x 3 – 5 - 20 x 20 - 10 x and handed it to us. We found the padlock required 4 numerals. Had he created a riddle for us? We all tried to solve it. The night was only ending around us, people wandering around the old tracks and carriages and new trees, walking off the neighbouring rave dancefloor with dazed eyes, people eating pizza, the debris of the night all around.



Moritz’s bar, Anlage fur brennbare Flussigkeiten, or der Wagon, is an abandoned train carriage. All the people live or run their business their illegally. Mortitz has been there 11 years, bringing beautiful music to the good people of Stuttgart. Some people live there, others make art. Every year he’s thought this will be the one where they’re finally evicted. Recently, Stuttgart has decided to put the train station underground and do a big development where it is and over these disused tracks, so, despite big protests, this good thing may come to an end.



The train carriage was cosy and beautiful we played a good show to great people before sitting out on the deck with its view of the old tracks and the scrap metal, and dipping into the rave, a different style of dance music for every train carriage.



We slept a few hours and returned to der Wagon with the riddle code/equation. Giving up, Angus left for the house and returned and with the numbers 533. No luck. We marched back with purpose. I recalled the movies I’d seen, and shouted to Moritz. “We are Urbantramper. We are a band. Our instruments are locked in der Wagon. You know the code. What is the code?” Eventually, success! He awoke, for real this time, and we got the code and parted with good cheer.



Then the boys ran off excitedly to try it and I got lost trying to find the way back. I ran around abandoned train tracks screaming their names. Just because I go somewhere three times doesn’t mean I know how to get back. Eventually we were all happily reunited and we made it to Berlin by 10.30pm.