Renee and I left the states Friday the 14th from the Chicago airport. I was really lucky in that all of my stuff fit in my suitcase, my backpack, and my purse--none of it going over the weight or size limit (granted after arriving I've realized I've forgotten some stuff but oh well they have supermercados and el corte ingles--which has everything else you could possibly need). Once the stresses of making sure everything was good to go were gone, it was time to say bye to my parents and Josh. Once Renee and I arrived to the security line, there was this nice woman that started talking to me, distracting me from the fact that I was leaving my friends and family for over 4 months. Security, finding our gate, eating Starbucks (probably for the last time in the next 4 months- gah!), boarding our flights, and even our flying time all went perfectly. We had to wait a little extra time on our flight from Washington D.C. to Madrid, but we were on the ground so there was nothing to fret about.
During this flight in the middle of the night was when it all started to sink in more. I'm seriously not going to be with my friends and family for over 4 months. 4 freaking months! That's big! It's crazy! It's...going to be okay. I have no need to be nervous or scared. Even the months, weeks, and nights leading up to leaving, I never felt like I was doing something wrong. I never felt like I was jumping into something I wasn't ready for or something I was forcing myself into. I had always felt like it was time--I've gotten too comfortable in my life and so now it’s time to move on and be uncomfortable; it was time to take big leaps and grow. This was really confirming because I had always been afraid that I was doing this under my own accord and that God wasn't in my decision making, but after praying for confirmation that this was okay and that this yearning was from God, I began to relax and embrace more fully. I knew it was going to be a little rough, but I knew I was ready for this experience.
We arrived in Madrid, walked what felt like ten miles carrying 70 pounds worth of stuff to the Metro in the airport in order to get to the bus station. We arrived at the bus station just in enough time to catch the 1030 bus to Granada. While there we ran into 8 Central students which was a good sight to sore eyes and then say we'd see them in Granada.
I don’t remember much of the bus ride because I was exhausted already from traveling and then we were traveling 3:30am- 8:30am Iowa time. Therefore, I would wake up every hour, take in the scenery, and then fall back asleep. We did have a pit stop in this random town where I had a great experience with a vending machine. It was lunch time for the passengers so they all went to order. Since I was still half awake and not fully in Spanish mode, I didn’t trust myself ordering. I decided the vending machine looked harmless enough so I put my money in and picked one of the snacks that looked filling and Spanish. I will never know how those snacks tasted because it got stuck between the row and the glass. I didn’t think it appropriate to smack the machine so I admitted defeat to those snacks and tried for different cookie type snack. In midst of typing in the new number, I didn’t see it appear on the screen so I typed the first number again. The vending machine still remembered my first number, so I ended up pushing the numbers for gum. This gum tasted terrible! It tasted like strawberries dipped in tar. So my hunger was not quenched, I thirsted for water to get the taste out of my mouth, and my wallet now held 3 less euros. It was a great first experience.
Once we FINALLY arrived to Granada, we ate real food! There was even a nice man that was in line when I was that helped me order and told me some things in English so I was glad I didn’t have another vending machine experience. After Renee and I ate, we took a taxi to our hostel. Our hostel was called “That’s funky!” It was a really great hostel because the woman at the front desk spoke English, it had internet so I could let people know I had arrived safely, and the place looked nothing like I had seen in the scary movies!
After we had settled in, rested, and showered (best part of the day!), we found the meeting place for Sunday and talked to a couple other Central people. Afterwards, we found a nice Tapas bar to eat and drink a little. Finally, it was time for bed, and I was out almost instantly.
He explorado, soñado, y descubrió
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