On the train

I like trains. Even the old slam door commuter trains didn't put me off. I'm just an old romantic and I think Orient Express rather than standing room only, overheated or freezing carriages, uncomfortable seats and the detritus of empty coffee cups that were the usual stuff of my UK train experiences.

The other week when I caught the train from Madrid back to Cartagena we passed through Murcia station. Peering out of the window through the nightime double reflections I thought the station architecture and the bar looked interesting. I made a mental note to have a little excursion there one weekend. I bought the tickets online yesterday and made the trip today. A diesel multiple unit out and a carriage and loco set up on the way home. I travelled from and to Torre Pacheco which is an unremarkable little town just outside Cartagena.

When I bought the tickets I was quite surprised how many trains there were each day between Cartagena and Murcia and I was even more surprised today by the number of people on Torre Pacheco station and on the train. In Murcia the station was bustling with trains and people in and out all the time. I was wrong about the architecture and the bar though. Both were quite ordinary though the MZA initials - Madrid Zaragoza Alicante - on the front of the building made me think Celia Johnson, Trevor Howard and LMS.

Stepping out into Murcia was a bit of a shock too. I know Murcia city pretty well; I've been there tens of times. I even lodged there whilst I did a week's Spanish course. Nonetheless as I crossed the station forecourt I was taken by surprise. The traffic was heavy, taxis made those manoeuvres that only taxis can. There were bikes everywhere, human statues, beggars with dogs or hard luck stories scrawled on bits of card, people with funny haircuts and that sort of self styled fashion with mixed colours, lots of leather and layers of clothes. There were trams and some of the buses were bendy or six wheeled and sported banners displaying their environmental credentials as did the various municipal vehicles. In amongst the mix of shops and eateries were lots of those hopeful businesses in inappropriate premises specialising in muffins or kites or things you don't need now and never will. In short it looked like a modern, busy, thriving city.

I suppose it is. Seventh largest town in Spain and growing. There's a certain competitiveness between Cartagena and Murcia City. I like Cartagena, it's a nice town, and I don't want to be disloyal but it is just that - a town. Murcia felt big and busy and booming.