Getting There
Up, up, and away! Three flights and twenty-four hours later we finally made it. We were so fortunate not to have any delays or cancelled flights, and we arrived in Vigo exactly when we thought we would. Arriving in the Madrid airport we were incredibly confused. There was no indication of which terminal we were in, nor did we know where we were supposed to be going as our flight information had not yet been posted yet. Apparently they don't post that until an hour before take off! We had slept on the plane, but it was "plane sleep." The kind of sleep that happens when you are asleep but constantly waking up because you just can not get comfortable, so you never really get any rest. Ben had decided that I was in charge of communication as I was the one who had decided to spend 6 months in a country whose primary language was not English. Ok- fair. Dazed and confused I tried to decide which language to use when I finally found the courage to ask the closest airport employee where we needed to be going. I settled on English, which proved to be a mistake. We got enough directions to get around the corner, literally, where the next airport employee noticed how confused we really were. Finally we made it to immigration. The man checking our passports saw our visas and asked, "So, you're students. Studying Spanish?" Luckily Ben was paying attention and replied with a quick, "Sí!" We couldn't help but laugh when he replied, "See. Perfect already!" When we made it past immigration my first plan of action was to find coffee. We saw a Starbucks, but I wanted something that I hadn't had a million times before. So we found a cafe that looked promising. I was dying for a great big cup of iced coffee to turn me into a functioning human again. On the menu there were 3 options: cafe con leche, cafe con hielo, and espresso. "Cafe con hielo" literally means "coffee with ice" so, I went for it. I woke up enough to give my Spanish skills a go and I put in my request, "Me gustaría un cafe con hielo." I was feeling good and SO looking forward to that iced coffee. So much so that my mouth is watering now as I reflect on the experience. When I was handed a shot of espresso and a cup of ice you can imagine how disappointed I was. I guess I should have gone to Starbucks. But, I didn't want to waste so I dumped some sugar in and gulped it down. As it turns out this is going to be one of the hardest things for me to find in a local cafe! After deplaning in Vigo I waited with our carry-on bags while Ben so sweetly chased the bags down as they came off of the plane. I was looking down at my phone and updating the family on our safe arrival when somebody started talking to me...in English! We hadn't heard anybody speaking English since we landed in Madrid. "Hi. I just met your boyfriend and I'm also an ISEP student. I was supposed to get in yesterday, now my bag is lost, and my volunteer student couldn't pick me up today. Where are you guys going?" This is Libby. Of course I told her to join us and assured her that we would figure this out together. At this point all I could think was, wow am I glad I'm not alone! As we exited baggage claim we were met by our student volunteer Nicolás Fernández. He had a sign with our names on it an everything! He and his mom were so kind to pick us up at the airport, and luckily they had room for libby too. It was a tight squeeze with all of the luggage though. Turns out it was a good thing Libby didn't have her suitcase because it wouldn't have all fit. Sitting in the car we got to know Libby, and we were also able to follow some of the Spanish conversation taking place in the front between Nicolás and his mom. After Libby was dropped off at her hotel, I caught the tail end of a funny story. I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I wanted to practice my comprehension! Ben was enjoying the view of the town when I had joined in on the laughter with Nicolás and his mom. I explained to ben that his Nicolás was telling a story about a man walking 8 dogs- 4 on each side. Can you picture that?! I could. To our excitement we found out that Libby is staying just one minute away from us. We Made It After checking-in to B&B Hotel we laid down for a nap. I woke up after an hour mainly because I was absolutely starving. However, I also knew that if I slept any longer I wouldn't be able to get to sleep at a decent hour. Ben wasn't so keen on the idea of waking up, but we did it. We wandered 5 minutes down the street to Porto Santo. I prepared to use my Spanish again as we walked into the restaurant. Since I was in charge of communicating in Spanish I approached the bartended and gave it ago: "Cena para dos, por favor." To my dismay he told me the kitchen didn't open until 8pm and it was only 7:20pm. So, ben and I made our way to a table to figure out what we were going to do. We both wanted something cold to drink and it appeared that the only options were espresso and beer. After an encouraging pep talk from Ben, I put on my big girl shoes and made my way to the bar. Let me remind you that I have no idea how to get a bartender's attention let alone do it in Spanish. I stood by the bar a few minutes and pretended to be deeply considering the menu. Finally the bartender approached me and I said, "Me gustaría dos bebidas." I really wanted lemonade, or something of that nature, but I was still half asleep and too overwhelmed to try to communicate that I wanted something different than the two ver obvious choices. And if you know me at all you know that beer is absolutely not my first drink of choice- nor is hot espresso. That just goes to show how exhausted I really was. The bartender wanted to know which one I wanted. He pointed to one of the four beers on tap that also had at least a half a dozen bottled beers siting in front and I nodded yes. Sure- I have no idea how that's going to taste, but it's cold- I'll take it! For the next forty minutes Ben and I both discussed what we would do over the next three days and attempted to decipher the menu which was entirely in Spanish. When 8 o' clock rolled around I saddled up and asked the nearest waiter if we could order. He nodded, and I proceeded to ask questions about the menu. First, there were comprehension questions. Questions like "What does this word mean?" Then I had questions about the dishes. Unlike in the United States the menus here are super vague. For example, you would see meals listed as "Meat and Cheese" or "Fish." Naturally I asked questions about how the food was served and prepared. But, he couldn't understand why I wanted to know what kind of meat was served and what would be prepared with the cheese. He must have been amused by my efforts because he let me go on for about 5 minutes before he finally got us menus in English. I was so embarrassed because I thought he was annoyed! But Ben was ready with the positive reinforcement. We ended up ordering a burger with ham and cheese, and what we thought was going to be a cheese platter. Even with the English menu we had a hard time understanding what was on the menu. When the waiter came out with a 12 inch sandwich and a burger we were surprised to say the least! Both were on freshly made bread (delicious!) and the sandwich made for a good midnight snack. Our meal was delicious and incredibly cheap. I also learned not to have any expectations for my meals because I will probably be very wrong in understanding what is being served. That's ok though- I love surprises!
1 Comment
Gma Nan
1/21/2019 01:11:51 pm
I'm lovin it & you! I imagine Libby is thankful for having met you & Ben. Help one another, as I know you will. XOXO
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AuthorCoffee addict. Chocolate obsessed. I'm ready to explore. Archives
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