From Madrid To London
As the hotel at Chamartin didn’t have a restaurant and there wasn’t any tea or coffee making facilities in the room, I went for an explore at about four and found the station opened at 04:30.
So as I didn’t have any soap or shampoo with me and my luxurious four-star hotel didn’t provide any, I went back to the station as soon as it opened, after a breakfast of an EatNakd bar.
As I was hungry, in the most strange of hotels, I decided that the best thing to do, was take a train to Barcelona, then a TGV to Paris, followed by a Eurostar home.
At least the train companies seem to have systems that men you can get a keenly priced ticket from a machine without an ego or communication problem.
I found out by a roundabout way, that contrary to my informant from Spanish Railways at the airport, there were no trains to Barcelona from Chamartin, but one left at 05:50 from Atocha.
So it was a taxi to Atocha station at a cost of twenty euros, which I could have done the previous night for nothing on my ticket from the airport. Talk about the airport information guy, being a Spaniard in the Works.
To add insult to injury, there were several hotels in the area of Atocha, one of which was a brand I trust!
I bought the ticket to Barcelona with ease for €59 and after going through a full airline style security check, I just made the AVE high speed train to Barcelona. It was a Siemens train and like it seems all of their products had been designed without litter bins, although it did have an ash tray. The latter was unneeded as the train was non-smoking. I did get a reasonable drink in the buffet, but of course nothing to eat was gluten-free.
The change of train at VBarcelona was pretty quick, but I did need to buy another ticket from the ticket office, rather than an intelligent machine. I also had to go through security again to get back on the platform, where I arrived to get the TGV Duplex to Paris. Just 25 mins after arriving at 08:55, I was on my way to Paris. There are four trains a day for Paris and I paid a full fare of €170. Seat61.com has a full description of the journey.
This railway line up the Spanish and French coasts to the Rhone valley, is one of the best train rides in Europe. I didn’t chose to be on the top deck of the train, but that is where I was allocated a seat.
The Pyrenees
This picture shows the snow-capped mountains just before Perpignan and this shows the Etang de Thau before Sete.
Etang de Thau
They don’t show in the picture, but there were lots of greater flamingoes in the lakes. I never realised that these birds were so common in France, until a holiday in the area in about 1975.
Once in Paris at 15:53, I didn’t hang about but just jumped on the RER at Gare de Lyon for Paris Nord and the Eurostar. An hour and twenty minutes after arriving in Paris, I was leaving.
I finally arrived in London at 18:30 or just thirteen hours forty minutes after leaving Madrid.
This journey will get quicker, as for quite a way along the south coast of France, the trains don’t run on high speed lines. I can’t find any references to the distances on the journey, although Madrid to Barcelona and Paris to London are given as 621 and 495 kilometres respectively. Map Crow gives the Barcelona to Paris distance at 831 kilometres. I know this isn’t accurate and is probably a bit short, but that gives a total of 1947 kilometres, so my journey was at an average speed of 142 kmh. This compares with an average speed of 200 and 220 kmh on the first and last legs from Madrid to Barcelona and Paris to London respectively.
If the centre section was capable of an end-to-end average of 200 kmh, then a time from Madrid to London of under ten hours should be possible, especially if it was one train all the way.
A Warm Welcome In Irun
Michael Portillo’s documentary on travelling by train from Bordeaux to Bilbao gave me the impression that finding your way from the French to Spanish railways systems is easy.
So I went into the station at Irun and asked if I could buy a ticket to France. I didn’t get an answer from the guy in the ticket office, but I heard him swear under his breath. Railwaymen the world over tend to be cherry souls, who are usually willing to help, but this oaf was by a long way the worst I had met. He made the staff at Osnabruck, when I was abandoned by Deutsche Bahn, seem to be some of the best customer service people, I’d ever encountered.
I then looked around for a helpful notice, that might say you took a taxi to the nearest French station and it would cost you so many euros. But there was nothing!
I had noticed taxis outside, but was reluctant to take one, as they would probably charge a British tourist a hundred euros to go a couple of kilometres.
In the end, I walked into the town and asaked a couple of teenage girls, if they could help a lost traveller. After all, I did hope that they had learned some English.
They had and told me to walk to the Metro station with the blue sign, from where I could get a train to Hendaya. I knew that I could get a train from Hendaye, as the French call it, to Biarritz.
A Virtually Deserted Station
Abando station in Bilbao is the main station fromn where the citry connects to the rest of Spain.
A Virtually Deserted Station
But it seems not very often and as my next destination was Hendaya, it wasn’t any use. So I would have to take a coach to Irun. But the coach would take under two hours, as opposed to an early morning roundabout route by train that would take over six.
It would appear that most of the trains, metros and trams are owned and controlled by the Basque regional government and it looks to me as an outside observer, that they don’t believe in connecting their part of Spain to the rest of the country or for that matter, France. It does seem though, that the whole area could benefit from better train links.
Bilbao’s Heritage Signs
I would assume that this is a sign, which gives information about Bilbao’s heritage.
I can make a guess at reading Spanish, although the only thing I can read here, is that it is about a convent from the seventeenth century.
But then if Bilbao wants to attract more visitors, it really must improve its maps and information.
I know it’s all very political, but how many foreign visitors to the area, can speak the local language?
The Itinerary For The Trip To Bilbao
I’ve now firmed up my trip to Bilbao and home.
Sunday, December 8th
I fly out on the easyJet flight, EZY3325, which leaves at 18:25.
I have booked into the Silken Gran Dominie by the Guggenheim Museum for two nights.
Monday, December 9th
Tuesday, December 10th
I travel by train to Hendaye from where I get a train to Biarritz.
Bilbao-Hendaye – 6:40 to 11:28, 9:15 to 13:51
I have booked the Radisson Blu for two nights.
Wednesday, December 11th
I shall find a very good restaurant on this day, as it will be six years since C died.
Thursday, December 12th
I travel by train to Bordeaux, where I’m booked into the Le Boutique Hotel for one night.
Friday, December 13th
I take the TGV to Paris and then the 20:13 Eurostar to London.
Off To Bilbao
I think, I might be flying off to Bilbao on Sunday. I’ve found a nice hotel by the Guggenheim Museum and then it will be home by train, staying nights in Biarritz, Bordeaux and possibly,Paris.
Spain Is Becoming No Place To Hide For Criminals
The BBC is reporting this morning about Operation Captura, which is leading to the arrest of British criminals hiding in Spain and other places.
There is also this report on Sky.
We are obviously getting success in finding and locking up some of the worst of the worst.
But also this story appears on the BBC. Here’s the first paragraph.
A man wanted in connection with the murder of his 21-year-old wife in Bradford is believed to have left the country, police have said.
It is reported that he’s probably hiding in Pakistan. I suppose that means, there is no chance he’ll be brought to justice.
We really must sort our relationship with that troubled state and especially, a minority of its citizens, who feel they can carry on, as they might in certain areas of their homeland.
Spanish Practices
Is Santander getting rattled, as it has just launched a loan sale?
i don’t need a loan and if I did, I wouldn’t go any any Spanish bank! Especially, with all the Spanish practices at Gibraltar.
Velez Malaga Sends Its Trams To Australia
The BBC World today, was dominated by this story, about how Velez Malaga was sending its trams to Australia, as it can’t afford them.
I do wonder who is footing the bill for all these Spanish practices?
The Anonymous Widower 