June 12 Getting there is half the fun

So there is a saying that “getting there is half the fun” I can totally relate to this saying, but in a different context. For me, it would be more like “getting there only half of it was fun”.

Ryan dropped me off at the airport in Vancouver and my flight to Madrid through Munich was uneventful, I would even say it was kind of fun, I was looking forward to the days ahead. Next was an Uber to the train station to catch my fast train to Oviedo. That went just fine, but what transpires after is the part where it makes my getting their journey only half fun.

I arrived at the train station about 40 minutes before my train is scheduled to leave and what I walked into was about 1000 people waiting outside the train station platform all looking at the big screen on the arrivals and departures. Of course I don’t know any Spanish at all and was curious why there was so many people just waiting, after asking a few staff members who didn’t speak English one spoken enough that I understood there is an incident and there are no trains running right now. I received an alert on my phone with the same message and that I could proceed to a different station and I could take the local trains to my final destination.

The timing, had I caught my original fast train would’ve brought me into Oviedo by 10pm. I found some English speaking help and it was told to me that my train was not cancelled but will just be delayed by over three hours and my best option would be to wait here at the station for it. So I went and grabbed a bite to eat and waited and waited and waited. My train finally came into the platform and I boarded it five hours delayed, but still had a three hour ride where I could finally check into my hotel and get some rest.

after getting my key to my room at the hotel, I open the door and there was somebody sleeping in my bed, I think it’s scared me more than it scared the guy in the bed lol, back to the reception I go to tell him about it and he said no, that’s not possible and I said well he’s there and I’m here. Of course he gave me another room and by the time I settled down, it was 4 AM in the morning. My plan was to get up about 7 AM and start my Day 01 trek, even with little rest.

Yah, so only 1/2 the trip of getting there was fun!