Nir is Far: Tobacco Smuggling on the Night Train from Belgrade to Sofia

After Belgrade, Serbia my next stop is Sofia, Bulgaria. I arrive at the train station 15 minutes before the night train to Sofia is due to leave. I buy a sleeper ticket and hop on the train. I attempt to enter the sleeper car, but a train employee communicates to me in sign language that I need to pay an extra 6 euros for the sleeper car. Note that I'm taking the train from Serbia to Bulgaria, neither of which use Euros. I only have a 50 euro note, and he signals he can't make change. Super. Since the train is about to leave, I don't have time to get the necessary 6 euros, so I decide to just take a normal seat. Luckily the train is almost empty and I find a 6 seat cabin to myself, which allows me to lie down and sleep.

As soon as I sit down, a man bursts into my cabin. He's visibly agitated. He explains that he's from Slovenia, and on the way to visit his father, but he needs to borrow 12 euros for some surprise fare. I believe him, but I'm not about to part with my 50 euro note which at this point is the last of my hard currency. I give him a few euros worth of Serbian dinars and wish him luck - I never see him again. Something tells me it was the real deal, and I feel guilty I couldn't do more. Especially because Slovenians are so awesome.

The cabin is really dirty, but is actually way better than the sleeper car, which looked a lot like a jail cell. It's dark at this point, and I'm a little shaken from my experience with the man from before. I look out of my cabin into the hallway, and see a creepy old lady staring into my cabin. After a while she leaves, only to return and stare again. CREEPY. It's 10pm so I decide to sleep, but there is no heating on the train, and it's FREEZING. I open my bag, and put on all the warm clothes I have, including two sweatshirts, three pairs of socks, and gloves. I text my CouchSurfing host in Bulgaria that I'll be seeing him soon and pass out.

I sleep for a few hours, and am woken up by a couple who sits in my cabin. When the Serbian police come to check our passports, the man notices my American passport and laughs "Americanski!" He and the police share a good laugh as I look on confused. As the police leave, the man hands the policeman a pack of cigarettes, which the policeman pockets.

I go back to sleep. Next thing I know, the man starts to pull the metal trash receptacle out of the wall of the cabin. This metal box is just under the window and about a foot from my sleeping face. Once he succeeds in removing it, he proceeds to stuff the empty space between the walls with cartons of cigarettes. At this point I decide it would be best to leave. Getting accused of smuggling cigarettes would be a bummer. I slowly pack up my sleeping bag and start to head out of the cabin. I send a friendly "ciao" to my cabin-mates and they return a flat "ciao" my way. I sneak into the next cabin. About 20 minutes later, customs comes by and asks if I have anything to declare. Pretty sure I know what the answer was to that question in the next cabin.