I planned so carefully. There were so many chances for things to go right. This is about what went wrong. OK, i should start off with the fact that it was all so very worthwhile, but getting here was the battle of a lifetime. Oh Air France, I will never ever fly with you again. You did not call me when you changed my flight to an hour later. Luckily I was checking email. You also did not make it clear that you would change both my flight from Boston as well as put me on a new and later flight from Paris to Madrid. Fine. I dealt with it. But when I get to Logan, and you tell me that my flight is further delayed because you cannot find a part for the airplane and you have to find this and fix it before I can fly... well that just doesn't instill a sense of confidence. 5:30 pm flight? No. 8 pm flight. You may have won me over with a good movie selection and a tasty meal and trying to ply me with much booze. But you then lost in a huge way when you get me to Paris at 9:05am for a 9:35am connection. Trying to be optimistic after we had to take shuttle buses to the terminal, I ran through 2 terminals only to miss the connection. Oh and customs people, thanks for that passport screening. Very thorough. Perhaps one might do more than take a nanosecond glance if they were concerned about security, but perhaps that's just the way things are done in Paris. JO, I cannot express to you how useful the cell phone is. I will be eternally grateful for that. Ok, so next flight ALSO shuttled to plane. Seriously, what is it with this airport?! Arrive in Madrid with 1/2 hour to get to train station. Bag comes around the carousel (win!) and I proceed right out the door. No customs necessary... wait, what? Great, now I panic and need to make sure i get cleared on this so I don't get put in some Spanish federal prison when I try to get back home. 5 tourism/info desks y la policia nacional later and I get the ok about the passport with a handy "No pasa nada." Taxi to train station (25 Euro is way too much for that) where I used my best Spanish to buy a train ticket AND recargar the cell phone with some Euros. The guy at the phone place was super helpful and met me halfway with some English. I should mention that the entire time I was in Madrid, the cell phone didn't work and I was unable to communicate any of what had been happening to Chris or Diana. Hello, anxiety attack? But super hombre at the cell place helped me fix it. So from here on out it gets really good. I had a really lovely train ride through the Spanish countryside, passing windmills (think modern, not Don Quixote), fields of sunflowers, Roman aquaducts, and the walled city of Avila, and just really great scenery in general. About 3 hours later I make it to Salamanca. Epic. Win.
Chris picks me up from the train station and we make it back to his residencia where I have about 10 min to wash up and get ready to go out. Of course that was totally worth it, but I felt like I was going to die at any second. Met lots of really cool people at the graduation reception in this ancient cloister. We then went to Bambu for canas (I'll get Chris to show me how to do the ~ thing later) which are draft beers and each one come with a pintxo (tapas)!!! This is how it should be done everywhere people! I had lots of different things including blood sausage on a baguette (not a fan) and this amazing grilled pork. As well as albondigas (meatballs) and housemade mini sausages with potatoes and peppers. Then off to la Plaza Mayor which is stunning and we walked around, and then kicked back and listened to the Tuna (sp.) a group of dudes who basically dress up like the Swiss Guard and play old school instruments and sing and drink cider and chain smoke. Awesome. We finished off the night at a local bar where more canas cost 2 Euros each.
Are you curious about the food? Los pintxos? Wait no longer...
This was a melon soup with slice of crispy ham.
And these were spoons of carmelized onions with a chunk of pork. Manchego cheese is fanned out in the background.
