On my way to Granada

Going to Granada

I left halfway through the wrap up session of the AICPA Leadership Workshop. The workshop has been very amazing and informative. I wonder how I was selected to be 1 of the 100 students across the nation to attend the workshop but I’m glad I did.

May 31, Saturday

11am: Mom, Dad, and Nico are outside the Wyndham Peachtree Conference Center waiting for me. I went out to meet them. I changed into my travelling clothes and we were off to go to the ATL airport – a 30 minute drive. On our way, we drive through a Chik-Fil-A to buy some sandwiches for lunch.

12noon: We park the car. I take out my luggage and finalize how I packed everything. I had one carryon, my purse. I had one big suitcase where I put in a smaller one so for when I go back in case I have more stuff to carry home, I have an extra suitcase dedicated for that. So off we go to check-in. I was over by 5 pounds so I had to stuff in some stuff on my carryon. As we were heading to security, I went to buy some Euros. As we were there lining up, a whole group of Army people (platoon? Idk) walked through. I assume they just arrived from their tour. It was so touching because everyone in that big arena stood up and started clapping. I was fighting back tears. Hehe. :P

1:30: I go through security. I find my gate and find two of the girls I’ve met at the workshop. I literally blab away 1 hour away. One of the girls, Mary, was Cambodian-American and spoke Khmer. The other was actually a lady, Shahida, and she was from Bangladesh. Anyway, I ended up talking to them the whole time and didn’t even realize that our flight was delayed. We were supposed to be boarding at 2:10pm and fly out at 2:40pm. We started boarding at 2:40pm. I thought we would have been ok in reference to my connecting flight from Philadelphia to Madrid. So…

5:40pm: We are taxiing down in PHL.

5:45pm: We’re at the gate and people start getting out of the plane. (Originally, I was supposed to have a 1.5 hour layover). My flight from Philly to Madrid leaves at 6:10pm. At this time, I realize that I had to make a run for it. I dash out of the gate, hastily ask for the general direction of my next gate and start taking off. I arrived in Gate C13 from ATL and had to get to Gate A25 for Madrid.

6:05pm: After running for probably about a mile with a laptop in my backpack and my rolling carryon, I made it to my gate. They had announced the second final call (which doesn’t make sense coz it’s supposed to be the final :P ) Anyway, while running, there was also this other girl running and we looked like we were racing. LOL. She was holding on to her backpack because one of the bigger pockets was wide open and I suppose she didn’t really have time to close it. So I told her to stop for a quick sec and I’ll close it up for her. So we stopped very briefly and I closed her bag. She took off and I told her to tell them that I was coming. So anyway, when I arrived at the gate, she comes running back out, frantically saying that she dropped her laptop on her way. I was very confused coz I was pretty sure I saw her Macbook on the big pocket that I closed for her. The gate lady checked my boarding pass and passport and when I got to my seat, there were things on my seat. So I ask around. Then the other people said that there was a girl but she ran back out to get her laptop. LOL. So I look at her bag, and figured out what a dummy I was to not have told her that it was in the bigger pocket. So I run up to the flight attendant up at the entrance and told them. Long story short, they got to her and told her and we definitely were seated right next to each other. She’s also studying in Madrid and she also didn’t know what she was getting herself into as was I. Anyway…

6:30pm: The plane took off. I was awake the whole time and I couldn’t sleep or didn’t want to sleep. :P Juno was on the OnDemand thing and so was The Kite Runner. So I ended up watching those but didn’t finish The Kite Runner. It’s not a very long flight. It really is only 6 hours but the time change is +6hours.

June 1

7:43am: We arrive in Madrid. I get my luggage and start going out. By this time, everything still feels so surreal to me. I couldn’t believe I was really in Spain. So I start going, just rolling. I knew I had to get on a bus to Estacion de Avenida de America but wasn’t quite sure which buses or whatever.

8:15am: I overhear three ladies speaking in Bisaya. I approach them and start speaking Bisaya to them. I asked them if they are familiar with the place and they said yes. They recommended going through the Metro to the Estacion America. It sounded like a good idea to me so off I went only to find out that the Metro (subway) was like half a mile from the arrival gates inside the airport. Diosmio. By this time, I already have my big suitcase, my rolling carryon, and my backpack and purse – about 70 pounds.

8:40am: I’ve bought my ticket and made my way down the lift o ascensor only to find out that I went down the wrong one. So, I lug everything back up and go down the right ones. I can’t count how many lifts and trains I got into coz I had to stop at Avenida de America and change into Circulo 6 to Alvaro Mendez – Estacion Sur where the bus station was.

10am: I arrive at Estacion Sur. I couldn’t believe I was lugging my stuff around for 2 hours! Just to go to a bus station probably 8 miles (guesstimate) from the airport! I bought a ticket to Granada.

10:30am: The bus for Granada arrives. Everyone packs their stuff inside. I mistakenly sat on someone else’s seat. I didn’t know it was on the ticket. LOL.

10:40am: The bus gets going. Fifteen minutes into the ride, I go into a coma. Seriously.

4:30pm: I arrive at the Granada bus station. I’m barely making it. I call Veronica (the director of the Granada program). She says I can go straight to my host family. I called my host family to tell them that I was coming – an interesting conversation.

4:45pm: 5 euros later, my host mom greeted me downstairs. I was showed the place where I will be living for the next 6 weeks.

My host mom is very warm, nice, and accommodating. Paco is her husband and all he does is sit in front of the TV and chainsmoke (I think. :P) Very nice guy though. My house is simple. My room is too. I have a dresser, a desk, a nightstand, and a bed. Nothing fancy but nothing terrible so can’t complain. By this time, I was dying – sort of – I just travelled for 24 hours! I was ready for a powernap.

5pm: My host mom tells me to nap and that we were gonna go to the Centra de Lenguas Modernas (CLM – where we take classes) so that tomorrow I can walk myself.

7:30pm: We walk through the streets of Granada all the way to CLM. It’s a good hike – about 15 minutes. Then she invited me for ice cream. No one turns down ice cream. Duh. I tried Tutti Frutti. I asked Maricar, her neighbor who walked with us, which one she recommends and that was her favorite.

8:30pm: We make it back home. I finish unpacking. I think somewhere in here I simply sat on my bed for like 30 minutes thinking about stuff and why and how I was here. =P

9:30pm: I eat dinner by myself. Paco and Ma. Luz left for a bit. I had paella. Then I took a shower which was so refreshing!

I went back to my room and I was so disoriented – not in a bad way though. I watched Next (Nicolas Cage) in my laptop and I was lost in my own little world for like 15 minutes. It felt so great! Until I got sleepy and had to snap back.

11pm: I went to bed. Have to be back at CLM at 9am to meet Veronica and take our placement exam.

Buenas Noches.