Into La Linea de la concepcion and the Bus estacion a brief wait and we're away, following the coast road that would take us through Marbella and Torremelinos to Málaga on our right the steady flow of holiday let's remind me why I'm bypassing this area, to the left and in front mountains the foothills of the Sierra Nevada!
At the first stop with bus filling up I'm joined in the adjacent seat by an American lady called Emilia once we realise a shared language it's like we're best mates, I think she's as relieved as me to be able to talk even tho she lives in Spain her Spanish is minimal relying upon her husband she said, a natural banter started each taking the Micky out of the others pronunciations of English with both laughing loudly we soon realised the bus driver was incredibly grouchy! Yep we nearly got kicked off!!!
We both got off at the malaga bus estacion and had a similar destination the railway and onward to Madrid my train was in two hours she got an early one and we parted company.....
a very good start to the days trip!
a very good start to the days trip!After the wait I'm away and the train soon is passing through hills of orange plantations and fields of distantly stretching olive trees,
getting into rougher ground there are snow capped peaks of the Sierra Nevada to the left and lower peaks tho still impressive to the right, regular tunnels take us under these peaks with unknown weights of minerals above.
getting into rougher ground there are snow capped peaks of the Sierra Nevada to the left and lower peaks tho still impressive to the right, regular tunnels take us under these peaks with unknown weights of minerals above.Through and into more Foothills the plains spread out in front occasionally passing small towns and villages where folk were tending to their own fields and large gardens with the growth of crops.... Presumably winter is time to grow food this far south before the heat of summer (up to 50°) kicks in and dries everything!
Tho global carbon dioxide may be changing things here, the north of Spain is called Green Spain but the taxi driver from yesterday's tour was saying how the southern country was becoming greener! Benefits of global climate change showing here.
The train enters Cordoba and I pass through for the second time, one day I'll stop!.
I'm on exactly the same route that I followed south to Seville , the other side of the train tho so I'm getting the other view, 
Catching this limestone tower.... Wish I could say where but I was lucky to just snap the pic!, into the Estacion Madrid Puerta de Atocha for an hour's wait before my train leaves which it of course does, my seat doesn't exactly have the best window! 
still I manage with views over the most arid land I've seen! The land is really rugged and your can see why religion here kept the villages linked there's nothing else to link between the tiny villages set in small flat valleys with miles of rugged mountain roads between them! 
you can see the village church here if you zoom in, it's the highest point of the village, no one, no matter what they did would miss this during their day to day activities , a focus for the locals, maintaining their beliefs no doubt with it's ever present authority.
Catching this limestone tower.... Wish I could say where but I was lucky to just snap the pic!, into the Estacion Madrid Puerta de Atocha for an hour's wait before my train leaves which it of course does, my seat doesn't exactly have the best window! still I manage with views over the most arid land I've seen! The land is really rugged and your can see why religion here kept the villages linked there's nothing else to link between the tiny villages set in small flat valleys with miles of rugged mountain roads between them! you can see the village church here if you zoom in, it's the highest point of the village, no one, no matter what they did would miss this during their day to day activities , a focus for the locals, maintaining their beliefs no doubt with it's ever present authority. With the sun setting over this to me strangely beautiful land 
the train enters Barcelona and I disembark and start the usual metropolitan challenge of figuring out the metro machine and getting the right card with zero knowledge of what I'm buying!
the train enters Barcelona and I disembark and start the usual metropolitan challenge of figuring out the metro machine and getting the right card with zero knowledge of what I'm buying! As ever figuring what each zone is seems to cover most of if not all of my needs here! Zone 1 it is.... And damn it's busy! You've seen pictures of Chinese people getting jammed into a metro? Same here!
With my usual tactic of wide open empty packets and across chest pack I feel secure from pickpockets even my backpack is secured with padlocks..... Perhaps too cautious perhaps not .... Either way I've yet to be robbed to an extent I care about!
exiting the metro exactly where I had intended about 200 meters from the hostel I ended my marathon 13 Hours travelling, love my allotted bed in the hostel! 
i woke a Frenchman laughing when I say it! Luckily a nice guy!
i woke a Frenchman laughing when I say it! Luckily a nice guy! Then food and drink were needed!
Black rice and seafood with a very Germanic beer to wash it down! Happy days! 
