Looking for Superman

We had to get to Perpignan today, without a firm idea of exactly how we were going to do it. Our original plan was to cross from Spain to France through the Pyrenees using the Little Yellow Train but sadly found that it wasn't running during our visit. Using the standard aggregation sites (like trainline.com) doesn't give you any indication that there are two routes from Figueres. The only one that shows up in searches is the new fast route through the Perthus Tunnel, opened in 2009. The journey is extremely quick but also very expensive. We turned up at the old station and found regular local trains up the coast, booking a ticket to Cerbère, just over the border, for the princely sum of two euros each (using our Renfe Senior Cards!). We found out later that the French and Spanish gauges are different and it's necessary to change trains to continue into France. Port Bau, on the Spanish side, is a similarly small coastal town with a huge terminus station.

Before exploring Cerbère we tried to purchase tickets on to Perpignan, only to discover that there was a strike today. No trains were running. We were advised that there was a bus that we could pick up by the town hall. The town hall proved elusive, despite Cerbère being tiny, although not helped by the whole place being a construction site at the moment. We eventually only found it because we saw people waiting opposite. It was housed in an ordinary apartment building, signified by a couple of small flags. We were advised that we should ignore what little information there was displayed at the bus stop, which seemed to suggest just three buses a day and that we'd just missed one. After about twenty minutes a local bus turned up, but amidst great confusion the driver refused us entry, for reasons that we were never able to understand. After about an hour another bus turned up with an SNCF sticker on the front. It was the alternative bus service, with an amiable driver who didn't seem much fussed that we hadn't actually purchased a ticket. 

Apart from the bonus of getting from Figueres to Perpignan for a fiftieth of the cost that had been quoted online, we also got to see some lovely stretches of coast and some pretty little coastal towns, from a better perspective than we would have had from the train, although I'm sure that would have been spectacular too. We have pledged to return to ride this line from Perpignan and then return via the Little Yellow Train, when it's running.

I've gone to some length to describe our adventure today. I guess I wanted a record to remind myself of the joy of getting a little off the beaten track and trusting that things will work out. There's always a risk to not planning in advance, and it's possible to come distinctly unstuck, but there is so much fun in being open to whatever experience comes your way, and getting to know the people with whom you are joined in adversity, like the lovely Michelle from Texas, a digital nomad working and travelling through Spain and France and Italy. 

We arrived at Perpignan in good time to wander the beautiful old town, enjoying a final dose of warm sunshine and some more street photography. Again, there were so many pictures to choose from, but this was my favourite, perhaps for its timeless feel. It was a kind of timeless day.