#also my internet was back once i stopped my hotspot a classic

[yangjeongin]

hyun.ear's holiday

[kyleisme14]

My trip to Area 51 - unedited

On Facebook, a kid from Bakersfield created an event. He uses his page, perfectly named, shitposting because my life is in shambles and makes 'storm area 51, they can't stop us all' and seemingly overnight a million people said that they would be attending. I did attend. Shitposting because my life is in shambles is inadvertent the most zeitgeist worthy name for this page. Shitposting is when you share terrible content that you know is bad just to get a reaction. You are sharing a low effort joke for the sense of connection from others.  Because my life is in shambles, this anonymous statement of personal vulnerability, I shall try and make a low effort attempt at connection. This is what our age is all about. We are doomed to be as connected and as isolated as possible. This had a chance of being a real life meme where we'd be isolated no longer.

The page became an immediate stronghold for memes. It adopted other internet jokes like Karens asking to see managers, Kyle's drinking monster energy drink for invincibility, and Naruto runners being faster than bullets, as ways of infiltrating the base. And also generated new ones about what people would find inside Area 51 like the 10th doctor to recommend a toothpaste or where my girlfriend wants to go for dinner or how we'd sneak in with a minivan but escape with a space ship. The killer meme was how once we 'free them aliens' we'd keep them as lovers and bang them so hard that we 'clapped them cheeks'. This was the low effort comedy that this meme page generated.

Was it a joke or would people actually go? At first I did not know why I needed to go to area 51, and everybody seemed to ask me. I failed to recruit any friends to join me on the quest, 7 hours driving to the infamous base. Most thought I was crazy for going. My brother told me to be safe. My sister thought I was joking, and called to counter my bluff. Whenever somebody said they couldn't go, I pittied them because I was sure they were going to miss something incredible and life affirming. I was excited because I had no idea what was going to go down, and nobody in the whole world did. I stopped at the army surplus. I thought we'd either see a humanitarian crisis like fyre fest or a government crackdown. Don't forget, 2 million people clicked GOING online, so even if 1% came that'd be 10,000 people to a town with a population of  1000. The airforce released a warning about 'raiding' active military bases being a bad idea and the use of deadly force being a possibility. Lincoln County, one of nevadas sleepiest, had to call in enough police to potentially break up a neo-woodstock.

I always wanted to go to area 51 since I first learned about aliens as a kid. When I asked the big question of are we alone in the universe? If there was an answer, if somebody had the evidence, if it was anywhere, it was stored at area 51.  UFO's and little green men were hiding somewhere in Nevada... at least according to pop mythology. In grade school I would check out the same book over and over from the library, about aliens and the search for exterterestrial life and the scientists who were looking at the stars. There was a spooky section about times aliens might have visited early humans based on cave paintings and statues. And then the next page was all about area 51, where the government did secret expirements on alien artifacts and maybe had a specimen. So I've been captivated since at least then. Area 51 represents a big secret. A mystery! And somebody powerful, a general or established congress person, knows and is keeping the answers from us. So as an anti-establishment, meme and alien lover, I was fascinated with this 'movement,' that would of 'raid the base'. I wanted to go and find out how many people like me were out there! Turns out I wasn't completely alone! But... for the ignorant... What is Area 51? I could never believe people weren't following the biggest BREAKING news of our lives. But for those out of the loop, Area 51 is an infamous hotspot for UFO lovers. It has a rich history in alien folklore. But here is the factual history: Nevada is almost all federal land. and it was used back in the day for nuclear testing. an original tourist attraction to Las Vegas was watching nuclear testing in the distance...

Some airforce commanders were flying around dropping bombs when they spied a dried lakebed next to a mountain, Groom Lake. They landed on it and found it to be a perfectly flat natural runway. Excellent for testing expiremental aircraft. The facility became known as  Area 51. And was where the airforce and Lockheed Corp developed the U-2 stealth bomber. They brought the best and brightest scientists and engineers to develop new aeronautics and weaponry for the US military. At the height of the Cold War, any foreign technology that was aquired would be brought to Area 51 to be tested and backwards-engineered. You can imagine Chinese reactors and Russian jets being taken apart and used by the best tinkerer's and best test pilots. People at the highest levels of classified access. Because if you are one of the folks who are handling stolen foreign items, you are so classified that your spouse isn't supposed to know what you do all day. Yes honey, I was testing out the Ruskies new fighter plane! They don't even know we have it! These were experts in aeronautics and weapons science who could decipher technology even if the instructions were in another language... so perhaps if the US government were to encounter any other 'foreign technology' of an unknown origin, maybe they'd  send it to Area 51 to be backwards engineered? That's the set up, those are the facts, the rest is conjecture and tinfoil hats stuff. Like unexplained phenomena,  military released sightings that definitely aren't weather baloons and general mysticism. Do you believe in aliens or not?

If you believe that it's more likely that our government would keep aliens a secret than releasing that information to the public... welcome to the club! If not, do some reading. As I drove across the desert, down lonesome roads and through one horse towns, I realized what I was doing. I was driving into the middle of nowhere, likely to stand around doing nothing... and boy was I excited. My plan was to go and maybe film something and if that didn't work out I'd put on an alien costume and hold a sign. I figured that there'd be a bunch of cameras and I could use it to collectively protest all sorts of wrongs in the world. One of the initial reacitons to the playful event was, 'hey there are more imporant places to raid! why not raid the border detention centers, why not congress, why not the oil companies?' To which I say, hell yes... but that's not shitposting. That's being earnest and noble. This was about being ironic and part of a joke. This was about chasing an internet meme into the ground and disecting it until all that was left was the human connection. I had a sign and costume and figured that even if nobody showed up at least news organizations would be covering it.  The sign I held said, Peace on earth ain't coming from outer space, and I really believe that. We shouldn't expect peace to come from somewhere else in the universe, it has to start right here at home, inside each of us. I wanted to get that message out. The day of the event, due to classic internet decentralization, people debated whether the raid meet up (located at the Area 51 gate) should be at 3am on friday morning or 3am on saturday morning. Most people kind of agreed to just gather sporadically between those two times. I monitored a live stream late on thursday to confirm that millions of people weren't gathering to make American History. Instead, about 30 people gathered for that 3am moment. I only missed a photo-op. I awoke on friday morning and drove towards my destiny. There were two events scheduled. One hosted by the facebook Shitposting kid who decided to use his 15 minutes of fame to organize a rave in the desert at the local Little Ale'inn, a motel close to the gate. The other was set up by a filmmaker who made a movie about Area 51 at the Alien Research Center. Both locales are alien themed tchotchke paradises designed to sell the eager UFO tourist any manner of t-shirt, shot glass or Alien doll. These spots have a fun feel and would be desert trinket spots selling only desert sage and gems if not for the boon of being next to an infamous mystery base.

The dueling events were both hoping to capitalize on the rush of people to the desert for the raid. Alienstock, as shitpost called it, was going to be a kumbaya style gathering. But everybody thought it was an alibi for shitpost incase anybody got in actual trouble at the gate and roped him in. Shitpost from bakersfield ended up not even going to his own event out of fear. Also the county sued him for the cost of preparing for a potential fiasco. The Alien Research Center event was going to have famous Alien Community folks speak and some high end music performances. But as I drove down the dusty route 375, known as Exterterestrial Highway, I saw very few people on the roads. Lots and lots of cops. It became obvious that the whole county and the organizers of these events had been preparingor at least 30,000 people. They had nearly 200 port-a-potties. Which makes  sense, if 1% of the people who claimed they were coming online came! The reality was that maybe only 1% of 1% showed up to these sleepy nevada towns on the edge of a fabled military base. The imediate reality of the events was that they were extremely underattended, but that was also a blessing. it made everything a little bit more intimate and accessible. I pulled into the dusty parking lot of the Little Ale'inn to find a rag tag DIY music festival set up. People were essentially tailgating on the side of the road. It was a scene and it was dusty. All sorts of folks were jovially milling about, some in alien themed costume, many with cameras. Many folks with booze, despite the morning. I pulled out a camera and tried interviewing people, but found that everybody I talked to had the exact same talking points. Do you believe in aliens? Duh. Why are you here? Free them Aliens. Do you really think they are in the base? Yes, but maybe now they've been moved. What did you think would happen if we charged? We'd all get killed or arrested. Nobody seemed to have really believed in the facebook post's idea of 'they can't stop us all.' Most people were sure that, especially with the meager turn out, the military and police could stop us all. Everybody just wanted to see what would happen, expecting anywhere from fyre festival 2.0 to a bloodbath to nothing. Everybody had listened to the same Joe Rogan podcast, where he'd interviewed Bob Lazar who claims to have worked at the base. That podcast was the bible of this gathering and  was what had inspired Shitpost to shitpost.

It was special that everybody was a believer. That's rare that strangers are all on the same wavelength. Nobody seemed to have any doubts that the government knew about aliens and weren't telling the public. And it was agreed that UFO's had been tested and stored at the base. Everybody I ended up meeting seemed pretty prepared. They had plenty of water and booze and camping supplies, so the idea that a humanitarian crisis was going to occur dissapated completely and reminded me of a group outting to the desert. Most important was that everybody at the event seemed to be in on the joke. They might believe in aliens but had no plans of raiding the base in actuality. Aliens might exist but the might of the US government is way more certain. The police presence alone was insane, but they merely hinted at the military might behind the base's perimeter. The police actually became quite friendly once they realized it wasn't going to be a boodbath. But the silent and hooded guards behind the gate remained terrifying with big guns and big dogs. There was definitely the threat of violence if you crossed. But we all joked that maybe if a million more people showed up we'd actually start Naruto running passed the guards.

After a while of milling around quasi-interviewing people I decided there were enough people with cameras that I should just put on my alien costume and go to the gate and get in front of the camera. I was taken to the gate by some friends I'd made while trying to get interviews. Evan and Kevin were two dudes I became super weirdly close on the day of the Raid. Each of us had come by ourselves from far away, San Francisco, Boston and Los Angeles, with a vague intention of documenting it in some way. I had a vision of either a mini doc or article, Evan was a photographer and who took some insanely beautiful photos (featured here).

Kevin was a video creation guru who just wanted to make as much instagram content as possible. Kevin was by far the most successful, he's got that showman's knack to always get on camera with insanely high energy. There were a lot of cameras and each one he'd run up to and start lecturing about how the governemnt needed to release the secret documents! It was a great bit especially with his Boston Townie accent turned all the way up.

Evan explained how he was drawn to the site by a mysterious desire to see what would happen.  He expressed it best as, 'this is like a reddit safe post.' People will find safes while remodeling or cleaning a house and say, 'hey reddit, look i found a safe, i'm going to open it and see what's inside!' Then people get excited trying to guess what marvelous jackpot could be in that old dusty safe. They wait desperately for the original poster to share an update. More often than not the poster never returns and people are left waiting for nothing.

Once and a while there will be an updated post to show what was found inside and sometime's it's a haul of trinkets and dubloons and rare items that were saved throughout time to be found by some noble internet user. but then most of the time it's like, wow a roll of coins from 1953! "so yeah i felt obligated to go and find out what was in the safe and share it with reddit even if there actually was nothing inside. reddit deserves to know.' evan said. Because sometimes those posts are just as important, the safe find coming back to say, 'hey we cracked the safe, but turns out there was nothing in it! here's a picture of an empty safe."

So I was beginning to realize that I was standing inside an empty safe. But wow, all of these people had also come to be here and that was something special. It's not often that we get to organically be around likeminded strangers that all have such clear and imediate shared experience. Here we all were, because of a a meme, just to see what would happen. The gathering had a magical quality because we were an internet joke that had left the cyber space and entered the meat space. It was a silly idea that was reaching a physical end point.

I stood around the gate for a good while, we chatted with everybody, shook hands with the police guarding the gate, exchanged instagram handles and shared jokes we'd heard on the internet. You could tell people were really cutting loose. Most people spent most of their time on their computers it seemed. Hey, me too. We shouted 'clap them cheeks' and 'let them out.' We were all in on the joke. There were still mainly cameras and I got interviewed and photographed by dozens including history channels ancient aliens and the nytimes and countless youtubers and instagramers. It all kind of culminated when Kevin and Evan were getting cold and saying we should leave, I heard a distant 'clap them cheeks' chant and booty shuffling down the lonesome road to the infamous Area 51 gate was Riley Reid! Pornhub's number 1 star. She's somebody I have searched for all my life, on google. She did a strip tease and pretended to rush the gate. She was an internet hero in the flesh, and she was in on the joke too! A perfect metaphor, eh?

The next morning, hungover from the excitement and extrovertism of the day before I was sitting in a diner scouring news websites for mentions of the raid and looking for photos of myself. Behind me I heard some locals discussing, a gravelly voice said, "usually this town has 1 car every 10 minutes. this weekend we've got like 1 car every minute!" The townsfolk seemed to have had the wildest weekend of their lives. Me too. I managed to get into a few articles in my green alien suit.  A USA Today affiliate newspaper even printed a whole write up about me and my sign. On the way back, realizing I expected nothing, and found little more than nothing, I was completely satisfied. I had held my sign for peace and found a version of it, internet strangers, weirdos from all over had gathered peacefully to celebrate an idea. A silly and anti authoritarian conspiracy idea, but an idea none the less. I decided the reason I was drove all this way through beautiful american desert land, was because it's something I would have thought was cool as an 11 year old. A mission to see aliens and the people who wanted to meet them. Radical.

[vinzesmonologue]

Breeze of Baguio

Honestly, Baguio is one of my fond place I wanted to go with. I am very fascinated with her beauty that I'd only seen on the internet, tabloids, and watched on Television which I looked forward to go with which having a chance to see the wonders and of course, to feel within my skin their notorious and very popular cold weather is quite complicated in many aspect: Time, energy and money.

This trip was actually unplanned. When my former team mate asked me if I want to go and hang out with him there, I’d never hold back to say 'yes' cause damn! I wanted and dreaming it for a very long time. It may sound silly and childish to some but I ecstatically accept the offer cause why not? If you think you deserve some getaway, why bother to give it to yourself? I accept the offer despite of making an excruciating decision of going on to this trip without filing a vacation leave, but somehow its worth of risk. I think using only your off-days is not enough, you should allot at least one vacation if you want to explore and experience the Baguio moment for long time. I regret not to prolong my stay because it hypes, cliff-hang and trigger my drive to crave with more trips and exploration but the good thing is making things unplanned and let the time nicking to create abstract on how should be ended was wonderful and extra fun at the same time. I know, in ahead, I will have a chance to roam there with a plenty time. Maybe I will include Sagada as well.

From Cubao terminal 11:40 pm of friday, we bought our tickets pricing Php. 485 ($9.35) for trip to baguio with stopover but you can avail their one way trip or deluxe package with bathroom in the bus which cost a little bit expensive. We arrived in our transient house at almost 5:00 am in the morning, which is not our arrival time making our stay-in fee cost with addition because we check in very early but its not that heavy if you add a little, if you want to really save big, arrived on what the owner expect you to check in. Moreover, the price of transient varies, in our case we come up with Php. 700 ($13.49) per head (1Night stay) (The extension of hour excluded) but I hear some transients offers only ranging Php. 400 (7.71$) per head (1Night). If you good in bargaining, and no contact there to stay lot of strangers within the vicinity of Baguio terminal once you arrive will offer you wide range of their promos.

The Trip

This is tiring yet fun quick side-trip. My friend toured me with some of their basic landmarks and I'm happy with the outcomes, we may not have chance to visit some of their very commend highlight destination due to time constrain, I'm still happy to step on the grounds of their popular landmarks my friend and that also the one brought me there can't hold back to spill his sentiments about some spot in the city which underwent a drastic change making it little underwhelming and he can't help to compare how it should look like before than now. I can't blame him but that's how the process of progression work which make it a little different, and the idea of maintaining the grace and nostalgia of old looks is complex. This sudden shift of change makes it a little 'nah' in some but I’m not mad at all and this trip actually not went bad, fascination and my awe to have here still dominate. Despite of not given a chance to went on most hotspot attraction due to time constraint, Baguio still satisfies me. If you just want a little break like this just to cleanse your mind with some positivity and stressed out yourself with pressure of the world, probably this place and little time given is 'must to go' action plan. This is quick and penny saving trip. 🤗

One of the factors to enjoy Baguio if you have plans to go there is to pick a perfect place to stay in. My friend is very good on choosing a perfect transient which is convenient with cheap price. If chose a place near the vicinity of some attractions you have a easy access to their popular places making it more walk-in friendly but if you want to experience deluxe lifestyle while staying here, hotel accommodation is widely accessible. In our case, with simple needs and demand, transient is a great choice. Squad getaway is also perfect with transient option which make it a lot cheaper than less than two people.

Burnham Park is like a usual classic park we grown with and usually go to place to have some fitness routines or meet somebody but for me, this place has a extra-special characteristic which make it a little different with typical park I already went in. Its already given that city parks created to have perfect blast of fun or to have a family get together and picnic with your friends, but what astonished me is how this park maintain her solemnity despite of busy atmosphere. Parks usually annoys me when it became crowded; full of PDA's and loud noises. But here? I don't know, it's relaxing, maybe the cold weather here added up the factor of calmness. Is there any scientific explanation about it or it is just me being appreciative and naive about the place? But what matters? This place is perfect to begin your mood.

Mines View Park is also fun. The overview of city below and their fuzzy haze gives it a little charm of enchantment. Some local residence there use the opportunity of goers having a shot to take some photographs to promote their local and traditional brands such as clothing and snacks. Do I get exaggerated when I see it like I get gaga and insane when I saw the place? Honestly, no but it's good and her beauty is understatement. Perfect place to begin your over the top view selfies.

(I will edit this soon and include the photo once its sent to me)

Baguio Botanical Garden the place is instagram friendly and if you are nature lover, maybe you will get in love. But I don't see any astonishing there except with the cave close for public.

The second thing you have to look after is the Church Bell. I had much fun there. I saw some kids doing some basic traditional Chinese martial arts. Though they still considered as novice in the practice, I see their dedication to learn the discipline of that kind of exhibition. Now I’m prepping myself to stretch some muscle so I could go along with them, kidding!

And oh! The Mansion which is known as summer residence of Philippine President wayback. So far, the gate is more accessible for the public viewing and good place to shot some angle with their wide mountain like landscape. 

Baguio is also know for mysteries infrastructure involve in America War. The infamous Laperal House which is ‘allegedly’ haunted by their former residence which many known Local TV shows already featured it and some of their claims that the place has a level of paranormal activity which is not totally validated despite of some clear and unexplained footage. 

The Diplomat Hotel is also one of those 'haunted' place for Paranormal geeks. This place allegedly haunted where this 'ghost nun' caught on camera by one of the goers doing a montage of her travels.

There's a lot of places to go in Baguio and lot of them is very promising. If I had a perfect chance to go back, I'll definitely redocument that on this blog and here's are some things I'd missed and maybe you should try when you stop by there:

The good sheppered goodies and their infamous ube jams! Which unfortunately I haven't chance to avail due to Yam supply scarcity and the effect of climate change. Sad.

The strawberry picking in La Trinidad which is fun according to some hearsays.

The Night Market with great deals and perfect time to buy our ultimate OOTD with affordable prices.

...and the list goes on, if you have anything to add just comment below.

And that's it. Hope you enjoy reading, see you guys on next entry.

[fadingfartconnoisseur]

Travel in Spain by Train: A City-Hopping Rail Adventure

I’m a self-confessed train geek and avid city explorer, and these two passions are perfectly combined in Europe where I recently added train travel in Spain to the list. My most recent rail adventure meant traversing four cities in four days in a whirlwind tour of Tarragona, Zaragoza, Madrid and Seville via Spain’s high-speed Renfe AVE service.

Why Travel Spain by Train?

While Spain’s transport infrastructure overall is well established, it is the second country in the world with the most amount of high-speed tracks after Japan.

A relatively small country, that means you can see a lot more of Spain easily, cheaply and quickly, in comparison to long bus journeys or multiple fight routes.

Renfe is Spain’s nationalised railway network, which operates the regular city-to-city, and inner city regional train services, as well as the high-speed AVE (Alta Velocidad Española which means ‘Spanish High Speed’), which can reach speeds of up to 350 km per hour!

Having spent a month traveling around Japan on a similar adventure, it brought back memories of the bullet trains – the ease and comfort, the unforgettable whoosh as the trains passed the station and the excitement of arriving in a new city in a matter of a few short hours.

See below on how you can win a pair of Renfe Rail Passes for the AVE high-speed trains.

Spain City-Hopping – What Will You Choose?

With over 2,000 stations and 2,270 kilometres of railways, travelling around Spain by train means being presented with a lot of choice where you can mix countryside with cities and coastlines. With Madrid and Barcelona being connected by a two and a half hour journey, these two cities form the major hubs from which to use as start or end points. However, with plenty of other cities being home to airports with great connections, you can literally take your pick from any corner of Spain.

Aside from my Tarragona-Zaragoza-Madrid-Seville itinerary as one suggested route, here are some others to get you started, as shown on the website where you can check the schedules.

City One: Tarragona

Flying into Reus airport, it was a short 20-minute drive to the centre of Tarragona. A northeastern coastal city full of ancient Roman ruins from its days of a colony known as Tarraco, Tarragona is a great historical hotspot from which to start an overlanding adventure.

A new city built on top of an ancient city; the beauty here is in exploring its many layers and losing yourself in its golden structures.

The highlights can be seen in a day, as Tarragona is a compact city. Not only can you wander the amphitheatre (one of the seven in the country preserved and open to the public), but also a cathedral now stands on the site of the former Roman temple, where we climbed the spiral staircases for a panoramic view of the city as it stands today.

Then there’s the Roman Circus, which was once used to hold grand horse and chariot races. Parts of the spectator archways still remain, while the Tarragona of today was built on top of what was once the racing circuit.

City Two: Zaragoza

Tarragona to Zaragoza is a mere 1 hour and 30 minutes journey on the train, landing you right in capital of the Aragon region in northeastern Spain, nestled between Madrid and Barcelona.

One of its defining features is the stunning Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar – a Roman Catholic Church right in the heart of the Plaza del Pilar (the largest of all in Spain), providing the best views over the multi-domed dreamscape.

Another is the Ajafería Palace – the 11th century medieval Islamic which today remains one of the most beautiful of all the sights in the city as well as the seat of the regional parliament.

Wander beyond the opulent centre of Zaragoza and you will soon see an interesting contrast in its abundance of street art. The ASALTO Festival is an annual urban regeneration drive, bringing an artistic new life to a different neighbourhood, whether it is run down or simply forgotten. More than just a political message, murals here are for the greater social good, and in the home of Goya (with a dedicated museum of his works to boot), it’s no wonder that art plays a central role in the city’s persona.

Ultra-modern architecture adds to the multi-layers of artistry here, which you can see showcased at the Zaragoza Expo Zone, constructed in 2008. The stark white Alma del Ebro sculpture (The Soul of the Ebro) was one of my favourites. It was made especially for this International Exhibition by Spanish sculptor Jaume Plensa and stands proud outside of the jagged lines of Congress Palace.

City Three: Madrid

Zaragoza to Madrid was a 90-minute journey too, so you can jump on a morning train and still have the full day to explore. I’m a huge city enthusiast so being able to include Spain’s capital on my whirlwind trip was a bonus.

Madrid is pretty and gritty in equal measure, with classical architecture and an avenue of art museums, mixed with street art and edgy neighbourhoods. This contrast, and being able to map out distinctive neighbourhoods, makes for my perfect combo of sights and vibes when exploring a big capital!

One of the best things to do in Madrid, apart from lose yourself in its multiple sub cultures of neighbourhoods and buzzing tapas bar culture (especially on the weekend when the streets are alive) is to whizz around in SEAT 600 pocket-rockets with 600 Tour Madrid. It’s a fun and nostalgic way to sightsee, with locals cheering you on as you drive past and with each car equipped with a Walkie Talkie so you can feel extra retro and cool as you are feed some cool facts and highlights.

City Four: Seville

In just three hours you can find yourself in Seville, whose name immediately conjures up a romantic vibe. From bustling Madrid to the charming, flamenco dancing famed Seville, this may be a city you may instantly fall in love with where colourful, artistic streets contrast with the delicate, classical architecture of the open squares and boulevards.

The Cathedral is a city centrepiece as is the ridiculously beautiful Plaza de España is a plaza in the Parque de María Luisa. A mix of Moorish and Renaissance designs, this 1928 masterpiece is a symbol of the city known for its grandeur of tiled fountains, opulent bridges and lush gardens filled with palms and orange trees.

If you have time, dedicate at least half a day to exploring the vast landscapes and dazzling detail of the stunning Mudéjar architecture of the Real Alcázar of Seville, whose origins began as a royal palace, built in the 14th century by Muslim Kings. The huge grounds are worthy of a full day of exploration, despite the intense crowds it can draw. From archways and courtyards, to exquisite gardens that have been used as film sets including those of Lawrence of Arabia to Game to Thrones, it hard not to lose yourself in its romantic beauty of the oldest royal palace still in use in Europe. Such beauty is exactly what defines the city of Seville.

Like other major Spanish cities, Seville is not without its modern architectural additions. Occupying one of Seville’s squares, the city’s Metropol Parasol (more affectionately known as ‘the mushrooms’) is the largest wooden structure in Europe. Designed by German architect, Jürgen Mayer, it has been the subject of much controversy since its completion in 2011.

Love it or hate it, it is now a firm feature of the Seville skyline, whose curling walkways up to 26 metres high provide a new panoramic view of the city.

How to Book a Renfe AVE Train Ticket in Spain

You can book tickets via the Renfe website in English here, and specific high-speed network tickets here. You can pay by Visa, Mastercard and even Paypal.

The AVE trains have nine classes if you count the overnight trains with sleeper/bed options. I travelled on each of my journeys with a ‘Turista’ (2nd class) ticket, with seats that are spacious, comfortable and great value for money.

If you are looking to book a multi-stop trip, consider getting a ‘Spain Pass’. This means you can travel using just one ticket for the AVE and other long distance trains. You must reserve a seat before every trip, as limited space is assigned for Spain Pass holders.

Tips for Travelling in Spain by Train

Book your ticket in advance. Fares are known to typically rise closer to the date of travel, especially at peak times. Some ticket can be booked up to three months before the date of travel.

Print your ticket. You need to show a printed ticket ready for scanning before you board.

Arrive at the station at least 30 minutes before your train departs. This is because there is a security check, with scanners for your bags and the ticket check before you can enter the platform. Plus it gives you a chance to grab coffee and snacks (there is also a dining car on the train).

Most stations are in the centre of the major cities, although often it can be a 15-minute bus or taxi journey just outside of it. Research beforehand to give yourself time to plan your journey into the city and likewise, time to get to the station when departing.

There’s internet and electrical plug sockets on all the trains, which means you can be productive. However, don’t forget to look out the window as you pass through the changing landscapes of Spain!

WIN – Two Renfe Rail Passes and Travel Spain by Train!

Do you want to travel around Spain by train and create your own city-hopping adventure? For your chance to win two RENFE passes, simply enter below, answering the following question:

Which cities did I visit on my #SpainbyTrain trip?

Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia

Tarragona, Zaragoza, Madrid, Seville

Málaga, Granada, Seville

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Spain by Train – Get your tickets here.

This trip was in partnership with the Spanish National Tourism Board as part of their #SpainbyTrain campaign. However, all geeky train opinions remain my own. 

The post Travel in Spain by Train: A City-Hopping Rail Adventure appeared first on Borders Of Adventure.

via Travel Blogs http://ift.tt/2Au7KVi