What a Spanish blackout taught me about crypto security

It was supposed to be a chill Monday.

Just me and my girlfriend flying from Copenhagen to visit family in Arroyo de la Miel on Costa del Sol.

Plane leaves at 8:15 PM. Easy.

Then Spain’s entire power grid went down. Literally.

Because of that, flights across Europe started to unravel, including ours. We boarded at 9:30 PM, delayed, but hopeful. We sat. And sat. And sat some more.

At 11:30 PM, the captain came on:

“Spain’s lost power again. We can’t take off.”

Great.

We were sent back to the terminal to get help. Only there was no staff. And our luggage? Trapped behind security.

After an hour of wandering, we finally found someone who could get us back in to get the luggage.

At 1:30 AM we were promised a hotel room and a new flight. That sounded hopeful... until we got to the hotel.

Massive line. No rooms left.
We waited two hours to be told to get comfortable in the lobby.

So that’s what we did: sat in the lobby until 5 AM. Then walked back to the airport and caught a 6:50 AM flight to Malaga.

One last punchline: our Bolt driver from the airport in Malaga called to say he had a flat tire — one minute away from us.

Now, what does any of this have to do with crypto?

Everything.

This entire trip was a chain of single points of failure.
Just like your seed phrase. If you don’t back it up properly.

That’s why I use the Trezor Model T with Shamir Backup.

Shamir lets you split your seed into multiple pieces. You can require 2 of 3, or 3 of 5 to recover your wallet.
Lose one? You're still good.
One got compromised? Also still good.
Get delayed, rerouted, stranded? No panic — you're not locked out of your crypto.

It’s next-level resilience.
And after this trip, I have a new appreciation for resilience.

👉 Check out the Trezor Model T + Shamir Backup

Because sometimes the whole damn country goes dark.
And when it does, you’ll want a backup.

Talk soon,
-Kris Valen