Madrid and more Life Experience

Some friends and I took a very spontaneous trip to Madrid this weekend, and the city is huge! It reminded me of New York and was a lot more Americanized than any other Spanish city I've been to. We ended up eating lunch at TGI Fridays because after 3 weeks of traditional Spanish food, we needed a burger. That is probably the last time I'll have American food while in Europe, though, because it did not sit right in my stomach. We went to two different discotecas (clubs) this weekend, and they made me conclude that men here are way more persistent than most men in the States. I'm learning how to adapt to the Spanish lifestyle of staying out until 6am, but I can already tell I'm going to need to sleep for at least a week when I get back home! While we were there we also went to the Museo Reina Sofia, which housed a lot of Picasso and Dali. This is a picture of me in the Plaza Mayor, which is where they used to have bull fights in Madrid.

I have to say, I am continuing to notice how much I'm learning and growing from this trip. One reason I wanted to come to Spain alone was that I wanted to become more independent. I know I've always been a relatively independent person, but there are some things that terrify me to do alone. Here is a list of adventures I've conquered in the past three weeks:

1. Planes- I have traveled alone a few times, but only direct flights and within the United States. The idea of taking three separate planes to multiple European countries freaked me out, but now that I made it here I know I can make it home.
2. Busses- I managed to figure out the Spanish coach bus system, even though nobody at the bus station spoke English. Arriving in Madrid successfully was such a satisfying feeling.
3. Metros!- The subway or metro has always intimidated me because it's so confusing and big, no matter what city you're in. However, knowing that I could navigate the metro in Madrid- in Spanish- makes me comfortable taking such transportation in America. The worst part of this experience was when we were running behind for our bus back to Granada and we took the metro to the bus station. Of course the metro broke down mid journey, and we sat trapped in the dark just praying it would start so we could make our bus. We managed to make our bus just in time, but the experience was crazy.
4. Taxis- The hard part about taxis for me is pretending like I know the city so the driver doesn't rip me off. The girls I traveled with this weekend don't know much Spanish, so they left me to figure all of this out, and I succeeded. Confidence is key.
5. Making decisions without my parents- Usually when I purchase anything major, like a plane ticket, I call my parents and ask for advice or if it's a good idea. Calling home whenever I want to do anything here would be really expensive and unreasonable, so I've been making decisions all on me. I decided to drop a class and take a new one, which is definitely something I'd normally ask my dad for advice on. I've purchased at least 5 plane tickets, without consulting my parents at all. I overheard a girl today in class saying she wants to book her plane tickets for Spring Break, but needs to talk to her parents first and ask them what to do. It was a good feeling to know that I planned my whole Spring Break trip without even telling my parents.
6. Credit card problems- Along the same lines as making decisions without my parents, I've also had to deal with my credit card problems without parental advice. Some travel companies don't take American credit cards online, so I've had to call a lot of companies to convince them to use my credit card. Calling companies always scared me, but doing it in a foreign language is even more intense. Figuring that out was a big accomplishment for me. My credit card company also decided to freeze my credit card, and I had to deal with that on my own as well. When I first got here, I had the constant urge to call my parents and ask them for help, but after just 3 weeks I've lost the need to ask them as many questions.
7. Sense of direction- I used to always get lost. No matter what. Living in a foreign city where you can't call anyone and ask them to look up your location on Mapquest has definitely forced me to develop a sense of direction. Now I can pretty much find my way back from anywhere in Granada, and I had the same experience in Sevilla and Madrid. I've also learned to ask for directions when I need to. Strangers can be nicer than I thought!

That list is just the tip of the iceberg of life lessons. I already feel more like an adult than I did before. Independence here I come!