the beginning

After months of waiting...I'm finally in España! I've already met people at every location I’ve stopped in (both plane rides, the airport, the hostel and both cities) and had some great conversations. I met a girl from the same program as me as well so I'm planning on visiting her when I start traveling! I'm off to a good start.

Last night was my first night in Spain. I arrived around 9 or 10pm and I had just spent about 12 hours flying + a few hours of layover time so I was a little bit out of it. After getting off the plane in Malaga I had to take a bus to the hostel. Finding the bus station and getting on the bus was easy, the difficult part was trying to figure out which stop to get off at and where to go after. There were a couple guys on the bus (one from the states and the other from Denmark) who were also looking for a hostel so we all walked in circles together trying to find the one I had reservations at. I was lucky they were there because one of them helped me with my bags (which totaled at least 70lbs!). To say the least, it took a little while and definitely looked like typically dumb Americans. Once we finally found the hostel it was booked so the guys had to find another one so I'm so glad I booked mine the day before.
I got to meet my roommates and hang out for a little bit but I was tired and went to bed around midnight. My roommates were French (2 girls) and Australian (1 girl). It was really interesting trying to communicate with the French girls because one spoke some English and they both spoke a little Spanish- Spanglish was definitely involved every time we spoke. My other roommate from Australia had been traveling for a while and still has a few more months left so we’ll see if we meet up again. Before I left Malaga this morning my Australian roommate and I walked through the market briefly to grab a few things but I do plan to go back and explore more thoroughly when I’m not carrying 70lbs of stuff! Lol

This morning I took a bus from a stop near the hostel to the bus/train station. From there it was only another bus ride (similar buses to Greyhound) for about 1.5 hrs to Lucena. I ditched my other plans and decided I would just go to Lucena find a hostel. Luckily the town is small and I found a hostel no problem. This place is really nice too since it costs the same as the last one I stayed in except I have a room to myself, a TV, my own bathroom & shower and AC- which is MUCH needed here, at least until I acclimate from the cold Seattle weather ;) It’s been a busy day every after I arrived…I’ve already looked at 2 apartments, ate a bocadillo (sandwich) and purchases Spanish toiletries. Tomorrow won’t disappoint either since I have a few errands to run including extending my VISA and maybe looking at another apartment. Keep checking me out here & I will make sure to keep you updated.