Voy a Madrid

Hola a todos!
I made it to Madrid! But let's back up.

I said goodbye to the USA in Denver on Saturday, August 6th, 2016. Katie and the whole gang were nice enough to drop me off at DIA after our two day adventure in Colorado. That whirlwind included failed plans to skydive in Longmont, successful plans for Katie and I to get matching tattoos while Annita got a Hogwarts themed one, an Alaskan invasion of 49 (the Alaska themed bar near Katie and Annita's new home), and the general silliness that ensues any time we all get together. I was definitely excited but nervous to move out of the county, but the unintentional choice to spend the week and a half before I left visiting friends and family was incredibly comforting.

My flight left in the evening so I planned on sleeping overnight and arriving in London somewhat rested for my couple hour layover. This worked too well. After finishing the end of Deadpool (I had fallen asleep watching it on the way to Denver), I abused my stash of benadryl and next thing I know a proper looking British flight attendant was waking me up. The cabin was empty. Like I'm the last person on the plane, where did everyone go, kind of empty. The poor French woman I had trapped in her window seat was clearly annoyed but had been too polite to wake me up. Slightly frantic, I let her out and rounded up my things only to discover they had closed the doors in the hallway that led to the gate. I was locked out. Note to self: get off the plane on time so you don't have to embarrassingly ask the flight attendant to let you into the terminal.

London Heathrow customs was not nearly the nightmare I expected. On quick bus ride to my new terminal and a second round of security later, I was done. No paperwork. No questions about my destination. No hassle. I didn't even have to take my checked luggage anywhere; it was checked straight through. The only odd thing I noticed that was once I got to the terminal, I wasn't assigned a gate until 45 minutes before departure. Odd for someone who tends to over plan, but not an issue in the long run. Super confused about what time my body thought it was, I was that awkward girl sleeping on her luggage for most of my short stop in the UK. Hopefully next time I see London, I will be more awake.

My last flight was uneventful and I arrived in Madrid in the evening of Sunday August 7th. Again customs was not as bad as I expected and I breezed through without any issues. They didn't even question the homemade jam I had packed that Grammie and Pappa had sent me from Alaska.

Navigating the Metro with a full sized suitcase, roller carry on, full backpack, and a purse on the other hand was a pain. I purchased a tourist day pass for all of the public transportation and set out with relative confidence in my screen shots of the directions I had googled from the airport to my hotel. I did well until halfway through my trip I discovered that someone forgot to tell Google that several of the metro lines are under construction and out of order till November. I rerouted myself but without any internet connection on my phone, I'll admit, I struggled. For anyone who hasn't driven with me or (let's be honest) been anywhere with me, you should know I suck at directions. To put my skills in context, I once called a friend during my Junior year of college so she could tell me which street Walmart was on in Bozeman despite having been there at least 10 times. Skills? I think not.

I got close. Several kind souls pointed me in the right direction and one gentleman from Senegal explained with a combination of broken English and what little Spanish I understood that the station I wanted was closed. It took me nearly two hours to take a trip that should have taken 55 minutes but eventually I got out of the metro and to the approximate neighborhood of my hotel. New challenge: my directions walked me from a different station and I had no idea which direction the hotel was. After thirty minutes of lugging everything I own around the streets of Madrid, I claimed defeat and hailed a taxi. I was only about five blocks away but was on the wrong street entirely. My driver must have thought I was a complete idiot but it was worth the five euros just so I didn't have to drag my bags any farther.

Metro pass: 12.50 Euros.
Taxi for less than a mile trip: 5 Euros.
Finding your hotel after three hours of being lost while dragging three bags: Priceless.
(Also less than the 30 Euro taxi price. Success!)

And so I am in Madrid, Spain. So not to bog down Facebook with numerous updates about my life I decided to post things here instead. Current life plan is to be here for a year teaching English at a Spanish high school but more updates on that later.

Derek Walcott said, "I read; I travel; I become." I felt like that summed up a lot of what I want from the next year. I plan on doing other things (writing and teaching being the top of that list) but it felt like a good start and good title. So that's what this is: a start.

August 6th-7th 2016