Having been so positive yesterday about train stations being much more pleasant environments than airports, I have to concede that Barcelona-Sants did feel like an airport. Most of the airport elements were there; scanning machines multiple ticket checks, waiting in line here, then over there and so on. But… we did keep our luggage, the actual boarding of the train was totally relaxed and the train left precisely on time.
We were in Barcelona for just one evening so we didn’t get out of the station district. Not the most salubrious part of the city but we did find a fantastic Lebanese restaurant.
Which had the most amazing lights.
The food was great too with a relaxed jovial service. The best tabbouleh, Jane said, since she learned to make it from a Lebanese girl, in France, 50 years ago! A very enjoyable evening.
OK. We are just coming into Madrid now. They’ve just announced that there’s a person on the track so we expect to arrive 20 minutes late. But that should be alright as we have 3 hours to find Madrid-Chamartín station to pick up our train to Santiago. I’ll pick this up later…
Well, Madrid-Chamartín is in a bit of a state in the middle of renovations, we have a two hour wait – and no easy access visitor sites nearby…
Note the plaster falling off the wall (top right) and the partially functioning departure board. As trains scroll off the top of the right hand board they disappear into thin air instead of appearing on the left hand one. Very Harry Potter-esk…
We are now on the second leg of our journey today flying along at 186mph (298km/h) through the Spanish countryside. I’ve never travelled this fast on land…
So, we’ve arrived in Santiago de Compostela and walked straight to our hostel as night fell. We will drink in the magnificence of the place when we hopefully arrive back on foot in fifteen days time.
