My alarm clock goes off. No, it’s not morning. It’s 6:15 in the afternoon and I’ve been sitting at a table in my hostel, yes the hostel I got robbed in, reading my book for the last two hours. It’s amazing how traveling and having free time allows one to read. I’ve actually read very few books cover to cover but this one I am enjoying. However, I fold the page to mark my place and I put my book mark in it. It’s time for me to head to the train station! I take the elevator to the first floor and open my locker to pull all of my junk out. Why couldn’t the thief have stolen something heavy?!
I finish packing up my bag and realize that it is now 6:35 and I have to be at the bus station in 25 min. The bust station that is a 25 min walk! I’m so mad at myself! All I’ve been doing for the last four or so hours is a whole bunch of nothing! I could have read my book at the bus station but here I am ‘humping’ it out as if I am going to battle, while on a race with the clock. I end up running some of the way which ends up really hurting my knee so I have to continue doing it in intervals. By the time I make it to the bus station I am literally sopping wet with sweat. It isn’t dripping off of me, it is more like running off of me! Streams of sweat run down my face as I drop my back and wipe myself with my shirt. I feel really bad for whoever has to sit next to me.
Luckily I made it to the bus with a few minutes to spare so I stood drinking my water the rest of the time. I’ve had a bad habit of not staying hydrated and it has been affecting my performance on this trip.
The bus driver arrives and begins to collect tickets from the not so large crowd that has gathered to travel towards Andorra. I ask if I am in fact seat 13 as this is what I think it says on my ticket. He says hes so I climb on to the bus. I would have thought I was in heaven! The bus has AMAZING air conditioning which is just what I need right now! My seat, next to a young Asian looking girl who spends the majority of her time on the phone. That’s fine by me seeing that I am not looking to make friends right now. I put my headphones in and listen to Of Monsters and Men (which has become this summers favorite travel band for me), adjust my personal AC vent, and sit back and enjoy the ride!
The mountains here are amazing! I see a range to the left that looks like the Grand Tetons! It’s as if the Rocky Mountains and Utah got married and had a child! It’s a hybrid type of mountain range, or at least it is for me seeing that those are the mountains back home.
An hour and a half we pull into Berga, Spain. My stop! I am couchsurfing with a guy tonight who works on a pig farm. I figured getting out into the country side would be just the thing I needed after my experience in Barcelona. I give him a call and he says he’ll be over in 10 minutes. Not a problem at all. There’s not many people out, but then again it is Sunday. Evidently Sunday is a slow down in Spain. I get lost in the architecture and appearance of the town. Spain reminds me of what Mexico would look like if America owned it. The outside of the buildings isn’t much to look at and in some places they only take cash but they have the majority of the modern amenities.
Manel, my couchsurfing host pulls up in a small car and I am happy to see him! I kind of expected him to pull up in a large truck seeing that that is how farmers are in the US but I figured he’d have a small car since that’s is how the most of Europe is. I hate traveling alone and it’s nice to have a friend. I describe couchsurfing as “staying with a friend you haven’t met yet” and so far I haven’t had a negative experience. Manel is no different. He lives alone in a 3 bedroom house which is the upstairs of an old roman style barn. It’s a really cool situation and I can see the country side from out my very own personal window! We speaks more English than I do Spanish and we spend the rest of the evening talking and translating back in forth.
After we get to his house we begin to make plans for the next couple of days. He enjoys the outdoors and I can tell he is excited that I also am an outdoorsman. He asks if I want to see the river and even though I am extremely tired, seeing that I didn’t sleep the night before, I excitedly say yes.
The river is pretty amazing! Crystal clear water and an old roman bridge that crosses the river. Manel takes me to a monestary on the other side of the bridge and as we approach it we come across a bagpiper! Yes! I said that correctly! A bagpiper!! A girl is rocking out on the bagpipe when we get there!
After getting back home I take a shower, make my bed, and tell manel that I’m going to sleep. After looking at the map of where we are to climb I head off to bed. Spain is starting to grow a little on me now… even if I did get robbed!
Tagged: 2012, adventure, Around the world, Asia, ATW, backpacking, Berga, blisters, climbing, Conquering the world, Egypt, Europe, Ferrada, Fire side chat, flip flops, food, Hostel, ideas, Learn, Rich, richard v gilbert, Spain, stockholm, Student, tips, Travel
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