Spain
Part 5
They Picked the Wrong Blond and Other Crazy Stories...
Part 5
They Picked the Wrong Blond and Other Crazy Stories...
FYI: Again, slow connection, pictures later...
Hola mi amigos y amigas. We're now in Barcelona and this place TOTALLY ROCKS!! We're staying at the Hotel Husa Oriente on La Ramblas. But before I go on, I MUST relay todays adventures. Lew and Carin, you'll dig this one...
Off we were at 11AM to the train station. Should we take a taxi or the metro? Well, we did downsize and eliminated one small backpack due to creative packing. (We actually packed the extra one full of dirty clothes and things we weren't using and put it in a locker at the station in Madrid knowing that we were coming back through there at the end of our journey.) Since we had already paid for 10 metro rides, why not take it? We'd downsized, upgraded our Barcelona train ride to Preferred Seating and didn't want to puss out. Wow, these packs are a lil' heavier than before. Ow! "Yes, I'll have an espresso and 4 Motrin. Gracias." Jack has been SUCH an AWESOME traveler and today we was just pooped and tired of lugging his Spiderman backpack. Can't blame the kid. After all, he is only four. Mama took the load for him.
Under ground we went and got several "Oh PLEASE don't go in my car" looks from the other passengers. Sorry kids, gonna hafta squeeze. Rode the first train 2 stops then connected at Bilbao, riding for another 6 stops till our destination. Finally, we were at Atocho. Just a short walk across the street, down the ramp, and into the land of humidity. But wait, a lady on one of the trains was yelling something at us. "Pardon", was all I could come up with. Found out later that she was telling us to stay on the train as the next stop was ACTUALLY AT the station instead of just before. Thank you, kind stranger, for trying to help. I'm sorry I didn't bone up on my Spanish more before we left. Turns out we even went out the wrong side of the station, ended up crossing several intersections before getting there. Rolling with sweat, backs aching, and now I was carrying Jack's pack, too. Damn. Crossing the final intersection he kept crying out, "I'm tired of walking! I'm tired of walking!" Dude, I'll trade places with you, no problem!
Made it! Found where the lockers were then proceeded inside to sit down, unload and maybe grab some grub. Terry left to put the extra backpack into a locker and was not more than a minute away when I spotted the first guy...
I had my back to the main entrance and saw a short Mexican, not Spaniard, looking dude, shifty eyes, pretending to be occupied with a machine that was against the wall to my right. He kept looking my way, at me, over my head, at me, rinse, repeat. Somethin' was brewin'. Then I heard the plink of the car keys to my left. I whipped my head around to see another Mexican dude pointing to something on the ground. "Are these yours?" I quickly looked down, saw the keys, and knew I was being set up. The keys were the distraction, the shifty guy was the grabber. I looked to my right again at a VERY nervous partner-in-crime. You fucking thieves. I immediately stood up and yelled, "NO YOU DON'T!" and ran to stand behind Jack's chair and our stuff. The key guy then said something like "Oh, these must be my keys" and walked off, followed by the shifty lookout/grab-and-runner. I couldn't believe it! The Mama Bear in me lept into action, ready to beat the shit out of anyone wanting to fuck with my family and our stuff. They picked the wrong blond - they had NO idea who they were messin' with. Fists were tight and ready to give blows. I was, and still am, enraged. The girl next to me saw it and asked, "Were they trying to take your stuff?" The girl behind the counter also came around looking very concerned. We were all shocked.
After they left, I stood watch and was able to spot at least 2 other dudes casing travelers and their gear. Unfuckingbelievable. Yet, it wasn't. There were plenty of other people with their head firmly planted. Thank god I took care of that after the first day. I didn't bother to call Terry on his cell as it wouldn't have done any good. But you know as soon as I saw him my mouth was goin', arms were flallin' and the story poured out like water. He sat with an all-too-quiet calm taking it all in. We were both ready to throw blows. Calm down. Breath deep. Don't let it ruin the day - just turn it into a really wild story. So there you go...
The train ride to Barcelona was beautiful. Six hours of countryside, riding through mountains and along the coastline. Golden. The dude next to Terry turned out to be from Berkeley. Small world! He was traveling around Europe for a month. Nice. Wish we could do the same - maybe some day. Got to Barcelona a little after 6PM, made sure all bags were tightened down and zippers out of sight. We were nervous but didn't let on to each other until later. The last experience at the train station made us nervous and unsure. But Barcelona has, so far, proved us wrong. Our taxi driver was an elderly man who spoke no English but understood my poor Spanish. Off we went into unknown once again. The streets were packed!! Take S.F. traffic with N.Y. mentality and you've got a recipe for mass congestion. Again, scooters and motorcycles everywhere, not caring about the bus behind them or the taxi cutting in front. Crazy and fun to watch. We turned onto one of the most vibrant streets I've seen in a long time. La Ramblas, for those who've never been, is a blend of vendors, performers, locals, tourists, restaurants and just a whole lotta people watchin'. Perfect. Imagine Vegas in Spanish. Jack was so pooped he fell asleep on the ride over. Couldn't fall asleep on a 6 hour train ride, but managed to doze off in all the chaos. Pulled up to the hotel and the kindly ol' taxi driver helped with the bags. No, we've got it, but thank you for helping. We dragged our broken (not Brokeback!) bodies to the front desk, waiting for the unfriendly man behind the desk to shoo us to our room. Not only was the guy more than friendly, he upgraded our room (no charge) and spoke perfect English, no attitude, no chip. Rock on, Cesar! Up we went and off went the gear. Now for some grub.
We cleaned up, put on another layer of deoderant, some cologne/perfume to cover any lingering odors and ventured into the circus. We found a great little outdoor cafe with a grand view of the "show". Sat down and immediately ordered two VERY LARGE beers. I swear they were the size of a pony keg! Perfecto. We ordered up some paella, a cheese pizza for Jack and chatted about our day, keeping a close eye on the crowd. Man, I LOOOOOVVVE to people watch! And the crowd didn't disappoint. Trannies, punkers, normals, "I've been in the tanning bed too long" chicks, babies - you name it, it was on the menu. Priceless. We thoroughly enjoyed our meals and left with full bellies and a nice little buzz. Up to the room and off to bed. Well, off to the blog.
I hope all are well and planning your adventure/s. Doesn't have to be Spain or Europe or anywhere far. Just try something new. Jump in with both feet knowing you'll swim just fine. Hell, you made it this far in life, right? Come on in, the water's perfect...
Off we were at 11AM to the train station. Should we take a taxi or the metro? Well, we did downsize and eliminated one small backpack due to creative packing. (We actually packed the extra one full of dirty clothes and things we weren't using and put it in a locker at the station in Madrid knowing that we were coming back through there at the end of our journey.) Since we had already paid for 10 metro rides, why not take it? We'd downsized, upgraded our Barcelona train ride to Preferred Seating and didn't want to puss out. Wow, these packs are a lil' heavier than before. Ow! "Yes, I'll have an espresso and 4 Motrin. Gracias." Jack has been SUCH an AWESOME traveler and today we was just pooped and tired of lugging his Spiderman backpack. Can't blame the kid. After all, he is only four. Mama took the load for him.
Under ground we went and got several "Oh PLEASE don't go in my car" looks from the other passengers. Sorry kids, gonna hafta squeeze. Rode the first train 2 stops then connected at Bilbao, riding for another 6 stops till our destination. Finally, we were at Atocho. Just a short walk across the street, down the ramp, and into the land of humidity. But wait, a lady on one of the trains was yelling something at us. "Pardon", was all I could come up with. Found out later that she was telling us to stay on the train as the next stop was ACTUALLY AT the station instead of just before. Thank you, kind stranger, for trying to help. I'm sorry I didn't bone up on my Spanish more before we left. Turns out we even went out the wrong side of the station, ended up crossing several intersections before getting there. Rolling with sweat, backs aching, and now I was carrying Jack's pack, too. Damn. Crossing the final intersection he kept crying out, "I'm tired of walking! I'm tired of walking!" Dude, I'll trade places with you, no problem!
Made it! Found where the lockers were then proceeded inside to sit down, unload and maybe grab some grub. Terry left to put the extra backpack into a locker and was not more than a minute away when I spotted the first guy...
I had my back to the main entrance and saw a short Mexican, not Spaniard, looking dude, shifty eyes, pretending to be occupied with a machine that was against the wall to my right. He kept looking my way, at me, over my head, at me, rinse, repeat. Somethin' was brewin'. Then I heard the plink of the car keys to my left. I whipped my head around to see another Mexican dude pointing to something on the ground. "Are these yours?" I quickly looked down, saw the keys, and knew I was being set up. The keys were the distraction, the shifty guy was the grabber. I looked to my right again at a VERY nervous partner-in-crime. You fucking thieves. I immediately stood up and yelled, "NO YOU DON'T!" and ran to stand behind Jack's chair and our stuff. The key guy then said something like "Oh, these must be my keys" and walked off, followed by the shifty lookout/grab-and-runner. I couldn't believe it! The Mama Bear in me lept into action, ready to beat the shit out of anyone wanting to fuck with my family and our stuff. They picked the wrong blond - they had NO idea who they were messin' with. Fists were tight and ready to give blows. I was, and still am, enraged. The girl next to me saw it and asked, "Were they trying to take your stuff?" The girl behind the counter also came around looking very concerned. We were all shocked.
After they left, I stood watch and was able to spot at least 2 other dudes casing travelers and their gear. Unfuckingbelievable. Yet, it wasn't. There were plenty of other people with their head firmly planted. Thank god I took care of that after the first day. I didn't bother to call Terry on his cell as it wouldn't have done any good. But you know as soon as I saw him my mouth was goin', arms were flallin' and the story poured out like water. He sat with an all-too-quiet calm taking it all in. We were both ready to throw blows. Calm down. Breath deep. Don't let it ruin the day - just turn it into a really wild story. So there you go...
The train ride to Barcelona was beautiful. Six hours of countryside, riding through mountains and along the coastline. Golden. The dude next to Terry turned out to be from Berkeley. Small world! He was traveling around Europe for a month. Nice. Wish we could do the same - maybe some day. Got to Barcelona a little after 6PM, made sure all bags were tightened down and zippers out of sight. We were nervous but didn't let on to each other until later. The last experience at the train station made us nervous and unsure. But Barcelona has, so far, proved us wrong. Our taxi driver was an elderly man who spoke no English but understood my poor Spanish. Off we went into unknown once again. The streets were packed!! Take S.F. traffic with N.Y. mentality and you've got a recipe for mass congestion. Again, scooters and motorcycles everywhere, not caring about the bus behind them or the taxi cutting in front. Crazy and fun to watch. We turned onto one of the most vibrant streets I've seen in a long time. La Ramblas, for those who've never been, is a blend of vendors, performers, locals, tourists, restaurants and just a whole lotta people watchin'. Perfect. Imagine Vegas in Spanish. Jack was so pooped he fell asleep on the ride over. Couldn't fall asleep on a 6 hour train ride, but managed to doze off in all the chaos. Pulled up to the hotel and the kindly ol' taxi driver helped with the bags. No, we've got it, but thank you for helping. We dragged our broken (not Brokeback!) bodies to the front desk, waiting for the unfriendly man behind the desk to shoo us to our room. Not only was the guy more than friendly, he upgraded our room (no charge) and spoke perfect English, no attitude, no chip. Rock on, Cesar! Up we went and off went the gear. Now for some grub.
We cleaned up, put on another layer of deoderant, some cologne/perfume to cover any lingering odors and ventured into the circus. We found a great little outdoor cafe with a grand view of the "show". Sat down and immediately ordered two VERY LARGE beers. I swear they were the size of a pony keg! Perfecto. We ordered up some paella, a cheese pizza for Jack and chatted about our day, keeping a close eye on the crowd. Man, I LOOOOOVVVE to people watch! And the crowd didn't disappoint. Trannies, punkers, normals, "I've been in the tanning bed too long" chicks, babies - you name it, it was on the menu. Priceless. We thoroughly enjoyed our meals and left with full bellies and a nice little buzz. Up to the room and off to bed. Well, off to the blog.
I hope all are well and planning your adventure/s. Doesn't have to be Spain or Europe or anywhere far. Just try something new. Jump in with both feet knowing you'll swim just fine. Hell, you made it this far in life, right? Come on in, the water's perfect...
posted by Adventure Chik at 11:16 AM
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