El Vuelo

 Planes are so cool. For real. They are huge! They hold at least 200 people. They are giant flying vehicles that glide through the clouds! Incredible!

  My first flight was from Atlanta to Charlotte. After my mom drove me to the Atlanta airport, we called the airline company to figure out some issues, and I went through TSA successfully, I found myself on an hour and a half flight to Charlotte. That was nothing. It went by super quick. I read a profound and amazing book, Lágrimas Valientes, and played a few games on my phone.

 Soon after I arrived in Charlotte, I found that my flight was delayed. Boo! But, it was only delayed by 10 minutes, so that's not bad. I got a sandwich from a nearby shop and waited...

 When I found my assigned seat on the plane, I saw a pillow in it. Not realizing that each person got one, I said in Spanish to the Hispanic man next to my seat, "Is this yours, sir?". "No, it is yours! It is so you can say goodnight!" I laughed and sat down.

 We ended up talking a lot! He said his name is Fernando and that he is from Colombia, but lives in the United States and is visiting friends in Spain. He gave me great advice as well as practice speaking Spanish! This was perfect! One of the things he said that I loved was, "In life, you just have to enjoy every moment." I need that in pretty writing for my phone lock screen.

 We soon got dinner on the plane. The flight attendants came around, asking, "Pasta or chicken?", and I got pasta along with a few sides. It was actually pretty good!  No, it wasn't amazing, but it wasn't horrible either.

 I tried to go to sleep later, but I couldn't get comfortable. I was jealous of Fernando's ability to fall asleep so easily. I really wanted the flight to end so I could go to sleep in a bed! I ended up listening to music from my Itunes and playing games on my phone. "Strings" by Shawn Mendes was one of the best.

 For breakfast, we all got a peach Chobani yogurt with granola and a lemon fig bar. Once we landed in Madrid, I got off the plane and headed for customs. I met a few girls standing in line who were also studying abroad! They were from North Carolina, Wyoming, and Colorado. The line for customs was so long, but it was neat to talk to them about where they are from and what they are excited about, being in Spain.

 After following many, many signs and going up and down many, many escalators, I found my luggage! I exited the airport, then, after searching among the crowd of people looking and waving to loved ones, I found my Resident Director.

 He helped me with my luggage and we took a taxi to Madrid, where my hotel is. We talked a lot on the way about Alabama football, how orientation will be, and el fútbol in Spain. He said I speak Spanish well. That made me feel really good because that has been one of my worries.

 I loved looking out the window as we rode through the busy streets of Madrid. The architecture of the buildings is so intricate and historic. It is so neat how beautiful it is, yet so many of the stores and businesses the building belongs to are ordinary.

 We got to the hotel and checked in. I got to my room to shower and take a nap before the orientation that would be in about 5 hours.

 When I got to my room, I sat on my bed and took a deep breath. Wow, I am in Madrid.

 Kthnxbai!