Primera Día

HOLA! Today was officially my first day in a country other than the one I was born in. It all started yesterday in the basement of the Smith residence. My alarm was set for 7:30, but nerves woke me/kept me up from 6 till then. I proceeded to get dressed, get in the car with Zach Arnett, Amanda Kasem, and the one and only Jenna Smith. We grabbed a much-hyped McDonald’s breakfast and headed out on the first leg of what turned out to be the longest travel day of my life. (Not necessarily catching me by surprise.) After getting lost a few times due to a mixture of Tom-Tom failures and human errors, we made it to the Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky Airport.
12:00 PM EST.
The next leg would commence after a very heartfelt and bittersweet farewell to Jenna and company. The weight limit for the checked baggage is 50 pounds. Enter my second dilemma. After taking some things out of my bag and making my carry-on a super carry-on, I was heading through the security check-point where I met one of my companions for the flight. Quick phone call to my mother and a couple of hours later we were boarding the first of two flights.
5:30 PM EST.
The connecting flight was in Washington D.C. on the biggest plane I think I have ever been on. (Corey, if you’re reading this, I’m sorry, but I don’t remember the number or make or model.) The six-hour flight was shortened by the personal entertainment center built into head of the seat in front of me, Dan Brown novels, FIFA 10 iPod App., and 3 failed attempts at sleeping.
6:57 AM Madrid Time
Our flight lands in Madrid. We go through customs, which allows me to say my first two Spanish words to a native Spaniard. (Those two words were,”hola” and,”gracias.”) After customs, my companions and I go to the terminal gate to wait for the other flight to come in. In the mean time, I get my first taste of freshly squeezed orange juice and being identified as an American in a foreign country. In line to buy said orange juice, everybody ahead of me was checked out in Español. As I approached the cash register, the teller was on the phone with what appeared to be a friend. As the items were scanned and the numbers popped up on the screen, he paused for a brief moment from his conversation to tell me, in perfect English,” Five Seventy-Five.” In hindsight, I guess I should have expected this; I was wearing a baseball cap and a zip-up hooded sweatshirt. If I wanted to look any more American than I already did, I could’ve draped the stars and stripes over my shoulders. Disappointment was my initial reaction, but this isolated event would provide no indication to the rest of the day.

11:30AM Madrid
After being at the airport for what felt like 10 eternities, the second flight group finally showed up and it was time to go Segovia. The bus ride gave me an opportunity to get a much needed power nap before I was to meet my Señora. I woke up to some fantastic things; the Roman Aqueducts, brilliant rolling hills, and several archaic buildings. We got out of “el autobus” and were greeted by several happy middle-aged women. These were our Señora’s. My heart was pounding when I met mine. I had no idea if I was supposed to strike up a conversation or something with her; the only thing that I was instructed to do was give her a hug, a kiss on each cheek, and a warm Spanish greeting. I did just that and was introduced to two of her friends. These two friends took me to her house. This was it, the experience I came for; being put into a car with two complete strangers that speak no English. Even though I was a little slow in the beginning, I was able to have a somewhat flowing conversation with the two.

2:00 PM Segovia
After a quick trip from the bus stop to la casa de Maricarmen, I took my first European shower. They like to conserve water here, so I was given a 5 minute limit. After that, we had almuerzo which was sopa verdura which contained rice, chorizo, beans, ham, carrots, among other things. It was delicious!!! After almuerzo it was time for what is sure to become my favorite part of the day; la siesta. Two hours later, my body thought that it was the night time, so for the next couple of hours, I was about as brain dead as I could be.
4:00 PM Segovia
We then trekked out to meet up with the rest of the group to do some sightseeing in Segovia. I took plenty of pictures and spoke plenty of Spanish with my new roommates, Alex “Alejandro” Clary and Nate Dale. Two people, of whom have helped me become ten times more confident in my Spanish speaking abilities, and I have only been here for one day. We went to Nate’s favorite bar for drinks and tapas; my first legally bought alcoholic beverage. After that, we returned to the house for la cena.
8:45 PM Segovia
Cena consists of chicken and a vegetable sauce; another huge hit! Our Señora is not only an excellent cook, but a brilliantly versed and talkative person that carries an certain undefined confidence with her wherever she goes. After one day with her and my roommates, I already know that this is going to be a very enjoyable stay, and I cannot wait for everything to start up again tomorrow. I have to go now though; I’m currently on 3 hours of sleep. ¡Hasta Mañana!