En el primer

Departure

It was really hard to leave Canada. I’ve made so many friends, and got acquainted with the city so much that I felt I’ve only started to enjoy. But, going abroad and improving my Spanish are my dreams I’ve wanted to fulfill. So I must leave things behind for a year.

Thanks to Silang for driving me to the airport even though she was dead tired from all the overtime work for the past few days. When the car got close to the airport, I wanted to cry. When I unloaded the car and gave her a good-bye hug, I wanted to cry. As if I won’t see my friends ever more. But I didn’t. She wished me all the best, and I entered the terminal. I guess I just needed blessings and reassurance.

The line to check in was pretty fast, but I got charged for overweight luggage ($100 CD). ARGH. At first they wouldn’t let me check in because it was 34 kg (the limit is 32 kg), so I had to transfer some to my other luggage. Good grief. Now I’m concerned about my luggage when I come back. But I now have an idea of how to arrange my luggage when I return.

Anywaaaaaay, since my flight was until 22:00, I went to restaurant for dinner, while calling many friends on the phone about my departure. Some either didn’t know or forgot that I was going to Spain. There were some that I was so happy that I called them. Honestly, just talking to my friends and receiving blessings from them is such a reassuring feeling. Thanks to you all Luce-Yole, Karina, Jenn, Josh, Amy, Erika, Pacifica, and Silang. I apologize for others that I didn’t have the chance to give you guys a call because by that time the plane took off.

Flight

The flight to Madrid itself wasn’t too bad. But because it took off at night, so I was really tired. I tried sleeping but was so tempted by the free movies I’ve always wanted to watch (Wolverine, I Love You Man, Ice Age: Meltdown, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Star Trek … etc). I watched some of it but got tired and ended it early. I fell asleep while watching Ice Age: Meltdown, and woke up with drools around my mouth. Yea, it was definitely disgusting (and that’s a problem I have when I sleep upright), but thankfully there was no one sitting next to me, or else it would have been a great embarrassment!

When the plane flew over Spain I was so excited! It flew over Santiago de Compostela (Josh! Josh! Josh!) and other cities too. I felt most of Spain in that area was somewhat dry, because it didn’t have much forests or green vegetation. But the plane flew over some mountains, and it was gorgeous! And of course, Madrid too!

Arrival in España

The Madrid Airport was pretty nice, just a bit busy and somewhat unorganized. My concern was going through customs, because I was entering early as a tourist not with my student visa. When I got to the counter, honestly, it took like less than 2 seconds for the officer to stamp and take my immigration form. SWEET! I had to go through security again, take a shuttle bus to another terminal. It was HOTTTT when I exited the door for the shuttle. It reminded me of Taiwan a lot, just minus the humidity. The surrounding area was really dry, almost like a desert, which is something I’m not used to because I’ve lived in places with so much green space (Taiwan and Canada).

So I got to the second terminal, and checked the monitor to see which gate my flight was located. The departure time was there, but the gate was not listed. WTF. The flight was 15:40, and the time then was 12:00. So I went to the information desk at Spanair, and the representative was like, “Oh it’s too early to know but I’ll check. Hmm… nope, it’s too early. Just walk around and check the monitor frequently.” WTF. What kind of organization is this????? Whatever, I walked around duty free shops. It was fine. (The best duty free shop I’ve been to is Tokyo Narita Airport. The terminal itself was a mall). I bought an adaptor for my electronics.

Once it was time to board, I walked through the tunnel to a shuttle bus. HUH? I didn’t understand. The bus just drove us to the plane, and during the entire time I was wondering which plane was my flight. I really felt we were off for some concentration camp. So I got to the plane, which had SAS (Scandinavian Airlines) logo on it. WTF??? I wondered if the driver knew. I walked in and the seats had Spanair logo on it. Okay, that was really confusing. Weird. Anyway, the flight was short and fell asleep again.

VALENCIA BABY!

Getting the luggage was fast, and the taxi drive to the hostel was fast too! I experienced my language barrier when I was paying the driver. He was giving me change, but I didn’t know how to say, “I don’t need change, just keep it” in Spanish, LOL. (It was like 12.50 Euros, but since he was so nice and helpful I just gave him 20 Euros). I was like, “Es todo para usted (blah blah blah)” and he became a happy driver. Most of the roads in Valencia are one way, and there is a special lane for taxis and buses only, so my driver couldn’t drive me to the side of my hostel. With 4 things to carry, I ventured to cross the road when there was no traffic. But in the middle of the way my luggage fell, so I had to pick it up quickly before the cars came (and trust me there were a lot of pedestrians so it was utterly EMBARRASSING; that’s the first impression the locals have with me already, LOL).

The hostel was really nice and comfortable. I was sweating like no other by carrying my luggage around. So I went to take a shower, and went back to the room to sleep at 5 pm. I woke up around 8, and decided to go out for a walk and maybe food (I wasn’t that hungry because of so much food on the plane and stuff).

The city is ridiculously gorgeous. I love the narrow alleys; so romantic, comfortable, and mysterious at the same time. All the street lights in the small streets are built on buildings, not roads. And there’s one for like every 3 meters. Therefore, it was so bright! Almost as bright as it was during the day. There were so many old buildings, like cathedrals and medieval towers around the hostel, so it was nice! But it was still hot. I was sweating pretty badly after walking for 5 minutes. At least I know I’ll lose weight after living here for a year! I was looking for food, but there were so many selections and I didn’t know how to order in Spanish, so… I went for Starbucks instead which was 10 meters from the hostel. It’s sad I know. Starbucks was dead quiet. I was like one of the 3 customers.

I came back to take a shower, and I went to the shower room I was in earlier, and there was a girl in it and she said, “Um… sorry, the guy’s shower room is over there.” OMG. I felt so embarrassed that I used the girls shower room earlier without knowing it! Thank goodness there weren’t any girls in the room during that time. Plus, the door and sign was not facing me, so how the hell would I know? And thanks to living in co-ed dorms for like 2 years and sharing bathrooms with girls in the apartment during the summer, I just have the mentality that bathrooms are shared in accommodation areas.

The wireless was not working, so the front desk gave me an account that allowed me to access the internet on the computer for 1 hour (They charge you 1 Euro per hour for internet use on their computer, but since it was their fault that they didn’t have wireless, I got a deal…). Thanks for all the comments and likes on my Facebook status people! I’ll definitely keep you guys posted with photos and stuff. I chatted with Rowan, who apparently is moving to London!!! Now I have free accommodation when I go for London MUN!!! :D

I went to bed around 11:00, because I had an appointment at 10 with the university. However, I woke up at 5:00 am thanks to jet lag. I went to get water cause it is ridiculously dry in Spain. I tried to put myself to sleep by listening to iPod. I fell back to sleep again and woke up (DUN DUN DUN) at 10:40 am. OMG!!! I WAS IN A PANIC!!! I darted out to the university immediately. Even though I had a map, it was still confusing to get to the school. But I passed by the park and royal garden, which was so relaxing and marvellous! By the time I got to the university it was like, 11:30? But there was someone calling out, “Anyone named Oliver Shen?” WHEW. I apologized for being late, but she was very kind saying it’s fine cause the important thing was that I did come to the office after all. The appointment was quick and easy, but I forgot my passport………… so I had to go back to my hostel and return again.

Rather than going back the same route, I passed by my potential apartment! OMG IT WAS SO NICE!!! The area was nice, and it had security/front desk! I was unable to go in, but I saw the first floor lobby was handsomely furnished!!! Now I’m really excited to move in!

I got my passport and went back to the university. The office just had to photocopy my visa in case I lose it (which is very ………… possible since I throw things everywhere). I went to a Chinese restaurant for lunch, since I felt more comfortable with my own people, LOL. Now I’m here typing everything above, and off to have my own little siesta. I’ll probably explore the area again and beyond, and maybe just get something light for dinner. Tomorrow I must go to the student housing company for last details and move in some things.