Railway wonder

The people behind Britain's creaking railway network really should take a long look at Spain's system to see how it should be working.

We travelled from Madrid to Valencia today by rail - an experience for which the word impressive would be a major understatement.

First of all there are the stations. The Atocha in Madrid is more like an airport with its baggage control and check-in desks. When you are called to your train you glide down a moving walkway, greeted by the sight of sleek, space-age AVE trains.

The Atocha, of course, also has is wonderful interior garden. It really is a fabulous railway station.

Meanwhile, other stations on this high-speed line are stunning in their minimalist simplicity, as can be seen from the picture of Requena-Utiel.

Then there are the trains. This is not the first time we've used the AVE service, but we are still taken aback by the quality of the carriages.

Each of the comfortable seats has acres of leg room, its own foot rest and a litter bin. You can choose to watch a film on overhead screens, listening to the soundtrack on headphones supplied for free by Renfe.

I think most impressive feature of all on the Spanish service is the staggering speed the high-speed trains reach. An electronic sign in the carriage constantly updates you and the fastest I noted was just over 300km/h (187mph). It goes so fast that it occasionally has a similar ear-popping affect as when you land in a plane.

The journey from Madrid to Valencia is approximately 222 miles. It managed this in two hours - despite making two stops en route. Apparently, it can do the journey without stopping in one hour, 35 minutes. If my train from Bristol to Cheltenham went that fast, I'd be there in 15 minutes.

Not surprisingly, we arrived with plenty of time to explore the old part of Valencia - and it looks like we've discovered another fantastic Spanish city.

It is a mix of wonderful medieval medieval buildings, beautiful squares and back streets full of colour and character.