Sola en España

My trip started off with no flaws and new wonderful airplane friends. Don’t you just love that? Feeling energized and ready to go.

Five hours into my travels, time to kick-it U.S. Airlines style on the long flight out of Philly. Terminal A already prepping me to be completely surrounded by Spanish speakers. Uummm *biting lip and crossing fingers* Lets do this!

No sleep, no internet, (Thanks for the shotty pillow and lack of entertainment U.S. Airlines.) long flight. So many people have been there done that. I’ve had my fair share too, but this was something entirely different for me. Kind of gross, but in a cool way if that makes any sense. People already getting annoyed with my lack of Spanish ability. I swear I understood what the lady on the plane was asking me, she just had to give me un minuto to finish forming my response in my head!

After a long sleepless, Spanish study session flight… Madrid! Beautiful cloudy and rainy morning in España. Muy Bonita! Got my checked bag and exchanged some U.S. bills for more euros. I’d bought a money pouch to keep my bills safe under my shirt, making sure to heed my mom’s advice about pick-pockets. Started to think maybe she meant to keep an eye out for people who will steal your money right in front of your face. Screwed over at the one and only phone stand in the airport. $60 euros for a phone card that I’ll use once to call my advisor in Salamanca so they can pick me up. $40 euro cab ride to the bus station.

Taxi did not build my confidence either. “¿Cuál es su nombre?” I asked. “No Entiendo” was his response. Wait a second. I know, “no entiendo”. Heck, “I don’t understand” is the first damn thing I learned in Spanish. I tried different ways of asking and I know I was saying something at least close enough, but to no avail. We sat in silence for the entire 15-minute drive.

Bus station. Gross. Just like the lovely bus stations back home. Also finding that asking “Habla ingles” does not guarantee someone will say, “Why yes, of course I speak English.”

Somehow on my 20ish hours of no sleep I was still able to purchase the correct bus ticket, found some crap-tastic bus station food for my belly. Not the first meal I was expecting to welcome myself to Spain. Oh well, experiences, experiences.

Everyone I’ve encountered so far has been really pissy and impatient with me. Perhaps it’s the city attitude, or more likely it’s my perspective from my exhausted, cranky, stressed-out American eyes. Have yet to find a public bathroom with toilet paper available so I can blow my fricken nose. Yeah, I’m probably just cranky.

Sat by the platform and finally wrote in my paper journal after an 11-month hiatus. I have way too many hiatuses from that poor little thing.

20 minute sleep on the 2 hour bus ride. The scenery was lovely on the overcast morning. Everything looks and feels older and more interesting. I’m sure that’s just my mentality, but I’ll go with it. Even the cows in the beautiful pastures seem exotic. Cute wittle brown speckled cows nursing their cute wittle brown speckled baby cows.

Then, low and behold, like a beacon in the night, an English-speaking Spaniard! Relief! My advisor, Inma welcomed me with open-arms and European kisses on my cheeks.

To my Spanish mama’s house we went. A 20-minute walk from campus, tight and crowed cobblestone European streets. So cool to this foreigner, I’m sure quite the opposite to the Spaniards.

Pequita, my host-mom reminds me of someone, I’m just not sure who yet. She is very tiny and cute like my aunt Deb, hospitable from the get-go like Nathan’s mom and friendly like my mom… maybe that’s it. She just seems so familiar because she is like a bunch of different people that I love all rolled into one.

I took quite a bit of alone time to unpack and de-stress. Mi habitacion es muy pequeña pero very cute. (There is no word for ‘cute’ in Spanish. My love of an extensive vocabulary is going to suffer. Bonita can’t really mean pretty, beautiful, lovely AND cute can it!? Yes. Yes it can.)

Lunch with Paquita. Muy delicioso. Then siesta. Lord how I needed a siesta. Somehow I understood enough of what Paquita said to know we were planning to go for a walk together afterward. Well, my siesta basically turned into a full-night’s sleep. Slept too long, no time for a walk, but up in time for dinner (at 9pm!! Yeah, more on that later) then study, study, study. 

HUGE test in the morning.