Spain!

Blog Post

So I’m writing a blog. Never thought I’d do that. Also never thought I’d be a bicycle mechanic on the Mediterranean coast so there you go. So bear with my blogging ignorance. I once tried to keep a diary after reading a mountaineering book by an accomplished mountaineer…he kept a journal. I wrote in it twice. Perhaps it was because I didn’t have stories about nearly dying on the 14 tallest mountains in the world, and instead wrote about my run that day and how I don’t understand women. I feel like this could be more of a success because I’m not complaining to myself about girls and I’m doing more interesting things than running (like road biking! But more on that later).

I started planning this hiatus between undergrad and grad school about a semester in to my sophomore year. It started with plans to become a ski bum after I graduated, then a trip to spain was added when my cousin-in-law (cousin’s husband [partner-they aren’t married]) offered me a job working for him. And it’s all finally starting! Aww snap.

So I’ve been in Spain for 24 hours, and it took about that long to get here. It almost took longer to get here than that because I almost got sent back to the US at the UK border. In a rush the day before, I had forgotten my printed out itinerary. Since I had to change airports in London from Heathrow to Gatwick I had to go through customs, where with out some silly print out, I couldn’t prove that I was leaving the UK in 4 hours time for Spain. Since I look like I’m 13 and I had no stamps in my passport, the grumpy old man chalked it up to my lack of travel experience. This was not before he asked me every single question imaginable. I understand I was in the wrong and he had to make sure I wasn’t some low life trying to become an illegal in London or something, but did he really have to ask me what I intended to do with my musical instrument? No shit Sherlock (Sherlock is from Britain…Awesome joke, I know). But I finally made it through and got to Gatwick so I could spend 3 hours
waiting for my delayed flight in the hot crowded Duty free “mall” that is the main terminal.

Well I finally arrived. The Spanish customs agent didn’t even ask me why I was coming into Spain. That night after being up for 36+hours I went to a local restaurant bar where we ate awful pizza while watching the Spain-Germany Game. There weren’t too many people but enough and it was a really good time. There were grandmas and babies all partying along with the middle agers. IT was a great atmosphere. I’ve already started working in the bike shop. The shop is in a huge resort where a lot of Europeans summer. Its hard to work on my awful Spanish there, but it turns out my bicycle knowledge is quite needed. It’s going to be a busy two months. Hasta Luego.