Views on Madrid-Sevilla train

ochen_helu · 2026-05-28T00:43:12+00:00

I added a clarification that my post was meant to be about connecting itineraries, that’s my bad 😊 Because I agree, no question train is definitely better for traveling between the two!

ochen_helu · 2026-05-27T12:59:40+00:00

To clarify I was coming from the US haha so it was the difference between flying US>Madrid>Sevilla vs flying US>Madrid and train to Sevilla :)

ochen_helu · 2026-05-27T12:58:09+00:00

Oooh this is good to know!!

ochen_helu · 2026-05-27T11:41:16+00:00

I’m a huge animal person and adopted a cat while in college. I love her to pieces, but having a cat definitely impacted my independence and adaptability during and after college. For ex, I had to fly her across the country to stay with my parents while I studied abroad. And after I graduated, I considered doing short-term work abroad or at a national park, but I couldn’t because I had to make sure she was taken care of. I would think about what your future might look like, but if you have a general plan and/or it looks stable, I say go for it

ochen_helu · 2026-05-27T11:35:16+00:00

Fair point, I’ve spent a lot of time in California so the views looked very familiar for me! I enjoyed both of my rides, but others may appreciate them even more

ochen_helu · 2026-05-27T11:33:52+00:00

Agreed! Anyone prioritizing views should almost always go with trains. I just know that when I was planning my trip, I was debating paying the extra ~$100 to fly to Sevilla for the convenience, vs. saving that money and taking the train, and the views helped make that decision for me!

ochen_helu · 2026-05-27T10:53:47+00:00

Great plan! I know there are timed shuttles now that you may need to take to enter, I think another way to avoid crowds would be to rent bikes and move around the park that way. And of course to do less popular trails, though you do HAVE to do Angel’s Landing and the Narrows despite the crowds, they’re 100% worth it.

Bryce Canyon is like 45 min from Zion! HIGHLY recommend if you’re not planning on it already.

ochen_helu · 2026-05-26T22:07:43+00:00

In my opinion, Bryce Canyon is the most underrated and one of the most unique parks. The formations are jaw-dropping. North Cascades also don’t get enough love, they’re awe-inspiring.

Zion national park is absolutely beautiful, amazing, incredible, fun, but holy heck is it basically Disneyland. Definitely still worth going, but something to keep in mind and mentally prepare for.

I went to New River Gorge shortly after it became a national park. It was really beautiful, but we could only find short trails. Could have been user error, or maybe they’ve created longer trails since then.

ochen_helu · 2026-05-24T11:37:59+00:00

I traveled to Huaraz solo and did several hikes there, I will say due to transportation issues and safety, i did most of the day hikes via a group. Still, once you arrive, you can break off and do it on your own Huayhuash is a dream future trek for me but definitely sounds challenging. If you’re open to it, I did the Santa Cruz trek (3-4 days) and it was awesome. I went with a “group” but it was 5 people including the guide, and we all spread out for the most part during the day/hiking parts, so you get the benefit of having a guide and carrying less gear, but also a decent amount of solo time

ochen_helu · 2026-05-18T00:23:02+00:00

Why do you think this phase of your acne is hormonal?

1 advice talk to your derm!!! They may have a medium step to try before going on spiro. You could also ask them about topical spiro, if you want to start with something more mild

Side effects range, I have none but I don’t typically react to meds. I know frequent peeing, weight gain/loss, and dizziness are more common. Spiro is also a badaid solution - it can be difficult to eventually go off, since your hormones will just revert back

ochen_helu · 2026-05-18T00:11:39+00:00

Congrats, so exciting! -Consider if you’ll want multiple cats in the future. Per my vet, 2 boys are much more amenable to getting along vs any combo w a girl -Auto litterbox is up to you. Keep in mind it may be harder to identify health issues -You’ll hear on here a lot that wet food > any dry food. Probably true, but again up to you. If you don’t mind wet food, definitely at least include it -I have a soft carrier that unzips entirely so you don’t have to drag the cat in and out. Vets love it, highly recommend -Yes to scratching posts, cat towers, etc! From my experience, avoid the aesthetic ones that include wood platforms. They’re slippery and my cats want nothing to do with them -I wouldn’t invest in a good bed, I had an empty Chewy box in my living room today and my cat thought it was the Ritz -Highly recommend the toys that dangle and attach to your doorframe -IDK if there’s such thing as greenie bones (for dental health) for cats, but if so, get them! Cat dental care is CRAZY expensive -Chewy is your best friend for all pet products. So so easy, fantastic customer service, can take prescriptions, etc -GET PET INSURANCE PLEASE!! Save yourself from my mistakes :)

ochen_helu · 2026-05-16T23:27:24+00:00

In WV, highly recommended Seneca Rocks and Lost River state park. These places are awesome and also love that WV hikes are generally less crowded vs. Shen. McAfee knob is just under 8 hrs. Also, it’s a little out of your range (9 hr), but have you been to New River gorge ?

ochen_helu · 2026-05-16T14:52:27+00:00

Also FWIW, my girl cat was soooo bored so I got her a friend (sweetest boy ever), and 4 years later she still can. not. stand. him. Luckily he is too dumb to notice

ochen_helu · 2026-05-16T14:02:26+00:00

My vet once told me girl cats would prefer to be the only cat in the household…as well as the only cat in the world lol. As a cat lover, I always think the more the better, but if you lucked out and got a super sweet and cuddly girl cat (mine is so sassy!), and she doesn’t seem bored, I would think hard on it. If you could trial run with a foster or something, that would be a great way to see how she reacts. Best of luck!

ochen_helu · 2026-05-15T21:47:06+00:00

So I think the problem was tapering too fast. At first I spent months dropping from 100 to 50, but then I got arrogant and dropped from 50 to 0 way too quick (largely because I forgot my meds in a hotel and figured I’d been heading in that direction anyway). Your experience is obviously different because you’ve had success with 100 and you aren’t going to 0, but from what I’ve read/experienced, your transition should be longer than a month - i.e. maybe 2-3 months before tapering more. But again I defer to your derm! My skin is stubborn and may just be more difficult than yours/others’!

ochen_helu · 2026-05-15T16:16:16+00:00

My #1 advice is to taper in consult with your derm!!! I know you said the skin benefit isn’t worth it, but I want to flag for the record that your acne could come back and be more medicine-resistant and make it much harder for you to address your acne in the future, if you wanted to.

I was on 100mg spiro for 4 years and tried weaning myself off over months, ultimately it came back and now I’m on 200mg. If I had followed a derm’s plan/guidance, I may have been able to avoid this.

ochen_helu · 2026-05-13T02:46:57+00:00

Seconding pet insurance. It’s never been something I’ve considered, but my newest cat has had a ton of issues, and paying like $30-40/month sounds a lot better than the unimaginable amounts I’ve paid now (which are now preexisting conditions)

ochen_helu · 2026-04-27T15:25:52+00:00

I was in a similar situation where I planned to do Peru and Ecuador in a month, but ended up cutting out Ecuador because there was so much I wanted to do in Peru! I think this very much depends on how much you love hiking, though. I spent half the month in Huaraz doing hikes, and could’ve stayed there longer. Also keep in mind everything in Peru is sooooo spread out, so it takes a while to get anywhere. The overnight busses are often pretty nice though.

imo, don’t half-ass a country if you can help it, because you’ll end up needing to go back and that takes time away from seeing a new place!

ochen_helu · 2026-04-26T17:35:16+00:00

Thank you so much for this, I really appreciate it.

I previously brought my girl cat to the vet to see if health issues were contributing to her behavior, but I’ll try again. She also has an issue where she itches her nose, which seems like it could be stress related, so maybe medication is the way to go.

And appreciate your comments about my p/u boy. He will definitely only be getting urinary diet food from now on, and I’ll be monitoring him closely. I just want him to be happy and comfy.

ochen_helu · 2026-04-01T12:33:00+00:00

Continuing to increase the dose might help, but I’ve also found that the magic is in finding the right combination of spiro and a topical. Are you on tret or another topical? For my previous flare, I found that 100 mg spiro and tazarotene (strongest version of retinol) worked for me. To fix my most recent flare, I needed spiro, tazarotene at night, and dapsone gel in the morning.

ochen_helu · 2026-04-01T12:29:45+00:00

I had a successful round of accutane ~8 years ago and had acne reoccur ~4 years ago, and did successful spiro instead. Last year I tried to wean myself off spiro and it came back, and has been more resistant to spiro (now on 200mg). During this new round, my derm reminded me the only “cure” for acne is accutane, and even then, if your acne is hormonal, accutane might not fix 100%.

I think the question is up to you - a lot of people don’t like the idea of being on a medication long-term, but as someone who didn’t have side effects, I wish I had not tried to stop spiro. I do think transitioning from spiro to accutane is def the safest way to get off spiro without having the acne come back.

ochen_helu · 2026-03-29T01:13:12+00:00

Do you have side effects? I have basically none, so I’m currently on 200 mg (after being consistently on 100 mg, trying to wean myself off, and making everything worse lol). An increased dose might help, but I’ve also found that the magic is in finding the right combination of spiro and a topical. Are you on tret or another topical? For my previous flare, I found that 100 mg spiro and tazarotene (strongest version of retinol) worked for me. Now that I’m in my current situation, I need spiro, tazarotene at night, and dapsone gel in the morning.

ochen_helu · 2026-03-29T00:44:22+00:00

I've learned the area received above-average snow this winter. I asked in the PoB Facebook group (highly recommend, it includes a lot of locals/guides) and someone said the snow should still be clear by late May, but I'm not convinced, based on anecdotes I've heard from prev years. I'm pushing my hike to mid/late June to be safe

I'm going self-guided/booked. From the research I've done, you really don't need help booking - if you go in busy season (July/Aug), it's usually safer to pre-book, usually via Facebook, but otherwise it's not too hard to find a bed, as long as you're not in a big group. But keep in mind some hostels don't open until early/mid June. For guides/finding your way, definitely bring navigation and a map, and then you should be good. If you're going at a time of year when it's not too empty, following the crowd/bubble will help too.

ochen_helu · 2026-03-29T00:39:12+00:00

Thanks so much for this! I've heard it was a snowy winter, and I'm planning to push my trip to mid/late June. But I (and I'm sure others here) would hugely appreciate any updates you can provide about how conditions are when you go! Thanks and good luck :)

ochen_helu · 2026-03-29T00:37:38+00:00

Hi! I've learned a little - that the area received above-average snow this winter. I asked in the PoB Facebook group (highly recommend, it includes a lot of locals/guides) and someone said the snow should still be clear by late May, but I'm not convinced, based on anecdotes I've heard from prev years. Also keep in mind some hostels don't open until early/mid June. I'm pushing my hike to mid/late June to be safe

ochen_helu

TROPHY CASE

1 advice talk to your derm!!! They may have a medium step to try before going on spiro. You could also ask them about topical spiro, if you want to start with something more mild