Hola from Spain. I had a great time in this country and wish I could have spent more time there. I used this background as Spain is a very alive and fiery place. Also, I chose not to go to a bullfight, as at then end, the bull is killed. Here are some more entries from my journal. August 24, 1998 I am now on a train leaving Lisbon, headed for Madrid. I wasn’t able to get the “hotel train” again (which is good, as it was expensive), so I have to go a different route. I am taking a train that heads towards Paris, but stops in Spain. I then have a two hour layover and then catch a two hour train to Madrid. The trip takes 11 hours (I will arrive at 8am). My plan, at this time, is to take the AVE (Spain’s high speed train) down to Seville, spend the day there, then catch a night train to Valencia. I want to spend the night in Valencia, as I want to go to a festival called La Tomatina in Bunol on Wednesday, and it is the most accessible place to spend the night. The reason I am detouring to Sevilla is because a Eurail pass holder can take the AVE for only 1200 pts ($1 = 150 pesetas), where as the regular fare is 8900pts. August 25, 1998 . It’s now 6pm. I am on the AVE headed back to Madrid. It was easier for me to go back to Madrid and then catch a trail down to Valencia than go from Sevilla to Valencia because of the way the trains are set up here. . The AVE is GREAT! It whisks along like the Eurostar did, and covers 471km in 2 ½ hours. There is also movie (George of the Jungle in Spanish), a choice of 4 radio stations, as well as a flight attendant (for lack of better words) that comes around with free snacks and pop. It has a very quiet and smooth ride, and, of course, is air conditioned. . Sevilla was fantastic!. Even thought I only was able to spend a few hour there, I loved it. The Cathedral is wonderful. It reminded me of Westminster Abby. There are a lot of there things to see. I did see some, but will definitely go back when I can spend more time. . August 30, 1998 I am writing this on a Renfe train (IC 182) leaving Spain. I have had a great time the last 5 days. Read on. On August 26, I took a morning commuter train from Valencia to Bunol for La Tomatina. La Tomatina is a yearly tomato fesitval (on the last Wednesday of every August) that has taken place in Bunol for over 50 years. Basically, it is the world's largest tomato fight. What happens is, at 10am, about 5 people get on a large stage and squirt everyone down with water, as the entire group chants the fight song for the Spanish football (soccer) team. At 11am, you here a loud bang. That signifies the official beginning of that part of the festival. There is a greased pole put up in the center of town, and at the top of it, there is a ham. People (and groups of people) try to climb up the pole, get the ham, and throw it down to the crowd. This took about 45 minutes. Then you hear another loud bang, and then you see a dump truck come down the road, with people in it, tossing tomaotosm\ into the street (and throwing them at you). Then, everybody starts throwing tomaotos at eachother. Then about every 5 minutes, another dump truck comes by, doing the same. I lost count, but I think there were a total of 6 dump trucks. The tomato fight goes on until 1pm, then you hear another loud bang, and it's over. Everybody is completely covered in tomato !!! Then, the locals come out with hoses and start hosing people, their buildings, and the streets off. After about 1 more hour, you cant even tell that there wa a big tomato fight here (at least by the streets). It is completely insne and I loved every minute of it! I would definitely do it again. ! So, I took the train back to Valencia, got my backpack from the locker, and, still covered with tomato, took the train out to Gandia. On the train, I met 3 lovely ladies from Toronto that were staying at the same guesthouse I was going to, which was right on the beach (Playa de Piles). I spent the next 3 days just hanging out at the beach and enjoying life. I met others also to hang out with I spent the next 4 days just having fun at the beach and enjoying life with friends. We had some excellent paella (a traditional Spanish dish with rice, chicken or fish), vegetables, etc it it, and we went to a nightclub that was right on the beach (but about a 45 minute walk) a few times. It was one of the best times I had on the entire trip. However, my train pass was still running out, with a few more days that I didnt want to waste, so off I go again.