I’m sitting out on the terrace of our hotel room in Madrid, and the weather couldn’t be any more perfect. It’s just past midnight, and I’m listening to Jonny Lang “Wander This World” and enjoying some much needed Amy time. It’s absolutely glorious.
There’s a building that’s lit up by streetlights in front of me, but it’s still gorgeous. There are four Amy-sized topiaries along the railing and the terrace itself is made out of tiles that look like they’re made out of clay pots J
As compared to our trip to Barcelona, the trip to Madrid was an absolute BREEZE. Enjoyable, even.
Steph and I decided to skip out on the Pedrera this morning so that we could sleep in for a bit. I needed it. We woke up a little before ten and headed down to the hotel breakfast, which was really nice, as always. I had two hard boiled eggs, peaches, yogurt, frosted flakes, OJ, and water. Dee-lish. Then I hopped in the shower and attempted to re-pack. I’ve decided that if I ever travel again, I’m only bringing a week’s worth of clothes, even if I’m staying somewhere for a month. It’s just such a pain in the ass to lug more than a month’s worth of clothes around Spain. And pack and re-pack it. Not my favorite thing in the world.
No matter, after we got all that done, we headed downstairs and vegged out in the lobby. It was glorious. I hopped on the puter for a bit, then just rested in the comfy chair. My idea of relaxation!
Forgot to mention seeing the “Alejandro” video while we were packing. Got it stuck in my head the rest of the day, and I have to listen to it now, too. Sheesh. Anywho, the Spanish MTV actually plays MUSIC VIDEOS!!! I couldn’t believe it. Another reason why Spain rocks.
We took a taxi from our hotel to the train station, and I couldn’t have asked for anything more. It was ten BILLION times better than the metro. It was easy and enjoyable…we actually got to see the city! The train ride was good, too. Lots of room and very clean. They showed Last Chance Harvey, but I decided to catch up on some blogs and just listen to music. Which, by the way, I’m obsessed with Hanson again. Just thought I’d throw that in there. Not like I never wasn’t, but I love, love, love listening to the This Time Around album. Good shit.
Took a taxi from the train station in Madrid to our hotel, as well, and again, I can’t overstate how damn thankful I was. The hotel is absolutely gorgeous, and we even have a little living room area, along with the gorgeous terrace I described. I think I may actually sleep out here tonight. As long as I don’t sustain any skeeter bites.
After we arrived at the hotel, I was ready to crash, but it was decided that we’d go pick up our Madrid cards, which are supposed to get us free into a bunch of museums and such.
It’s hotter than crap in Madrid, I must say. And we were walking around at 6 at night. Can’t imagine what tomorrow will bring.
We finally found the Office of Tourism where they would give us the cards we bought, then we tried to find dinner. Emphasis on “tried.” Finding somewhere to eat usually encompasses walking around for an hour or more, then returning to one of the first places we saw. Not how I operate. But what have you. I got spaghetti tonight, and I was craving it, so I can’t complain too much.
We walked back to the hotel around 11, and everyone left after they gathered their computers because they wanted to try and get WiFi at McDonald’s like the concierge suggested. Apparently, they didn’t have any luck. Which turned out to be luck for me because I couldn’t figure out how to turn the damned shower on. It was one of those fancy contraptions like Mom and Dad had in the Dominican, and as much as I pushed and twisted buttons, nothing happened. Eventually, Steph helped me out, and all was well.
Now, I’m here, and I must say almost more content than I have been this whole trip. Other than Hard Rock day J But it’s just such PERFECT weather out here, and I’m just writing and listening to Elton John and Billy Joel and the night sounds of the city.
I miss “me time.” Looking back, I really haven’t had any in the past month. It was always go-go-go. And maybe that was for the best because it didn’t give me a lot of time to sit and think about what was going on at home, what I’m missing in the States, WHO I’m missing in the States, etc.
I’m thinking about all that I’ve gained, learned, and how I’ve grown from this trip. It’s strange because I feel like it really has been a lot, but at the same time, I’m still the same person. I feel like it’s changed me, but it hasn’t. I don’t know if that makes any sense. It kind of does to me.
In a lot of ways, it was like being a little kid again. I remember how scared I used to be to call a store on the phone to ask what their hours were. I guess I figured I wouldn’t ask the right question or they would be mean or something. And in a lot of ways, that’s how I felt about speaking Spanish to native speakers. It’s intimidating. But after doing it so much and so often, it becomes second nature. I’ve caught myself multiple times after speaking to someone, and I don’t realize if I’ve spoken Spanish or English to them. Trippy.
The cool thing is, a vast majority of the time, if I approach someone and speak Spanish to them, they don’t try and speak English to me. I’ve heard that happens a lot in Barcelona and Madrid, but not so. So far, at least. I must just be THAT good J
Speaking of being full of myself, I’m actually the exact opposite. I almost shit myself when I found out that I was in the most advanced class in Oviedo. And it wasn’t a good type of shitting myself. It was a panic attack shitting myself. I don’t understand why I’m so hard on myself and doubt my abilities so incredibly much. Obviously, I know what I’m doing. I don’t know if it’s a defense mechanism or if it’s a way to protect myself from being disappointed. I’m not sure what the cause or why I do it, but I do, and looking back on it, it’s really frustrating.
I lived with a family that spoke NO English at all. That’s pretty cool in itself.
I learned a whole new city and got to see the coolest building in the whole world (the Gugg, of course).
I don’t know what type of world I was living in before, but I’ve realized that no one is going to look out for me but myself. Gotta look out for number one. At the same time, it’s really disheartening to see just how much people don’t give a shit. Just how unaccommodating and uncaring people are. Sometimes, it just baffles me. And really makes me miss my Momma.
I’ve figured out exactly what I want for my wedding, and I’d say that’s a pretty big deal in and of itself. I’ve decided that it’s about what I want to do because, after all, it is MY day (and Sean’s, too J ), and I want to get married on the beach. With as few people there as possible. And then honeymoon at the Hard Rock Hotel in the Dominican. But before the wedding, Sean and I are going to road trip to Florida…spend the night and possibly a day in Nashville and just have a grand ol’ time. It sounds like something we’d get a kick out of.
I don’t think I’m a hard person to get along with, but there are some things that get under my skin like nobody’s business. Namely, body odor and smoke, especially when it’s balls hot outside, indecisiveness, people who just aren’t agreeable, people who can’t go with the flow, how damn expensive any type of liquid is here, and how they put lemons in your Coke. No likey.
I’m afraid there’s going to be a lot of things I forget because they’ve somehow eluded my ability to remember every last detail or I’ve forgotten them by the time I sit down to write these blog posts. I’m afraid that the memories are going to fade, and all I’m going to have are these words on a page. I can read what happened, but it will be so far gone that I won’t be able to place myself back here. I won’t remember the smells or the feelings or all the little details.
I want desperately to keep in touch with the friends I’ve made, but I just know the type of person I am and how I lose track of people so easily. It really is a shame.
I can’t pinpoint every exact thing that I’ve taken from this trip. But I’ll be trying to for awhile, nonetheless.
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