This book is a travelogue about the cities of northern Spain. I travelled to Pamplona, Burgos, San Sebastian, Valladolid, Segovia, Leon, Gijon, Oviedo, Santiago de Compostela, Pontevedra, A Coruna, and Vigo on board the fast, modern trains of the Spanish railways. I describe the history of these places along with the sights seen plus some food and drink options available to all. The cities range from the familiar such as Pamplona with its bull running and Leon with its world-famous cathedral to those not so well-known cities such as Pontevedra with its pedestrianised centre and A Coruna where I saw the world’s oldest lighthouse. There are extra stories about two pilgrimages of my own — to see the modern architecture of Santiago Calatrava in Valencia and to watch Lionel Messi play football in Barcelona.
