Madrid Spain

Madrid Spain
So when you arrive in a foreign country, it is amazing how...well foreign everything is. For us, when we get off the plane we are struck by the absence of big signs in our language telling us to WALK THIS WAY. So your first move is to try and figure out where it is you are supposed to go. You ask for help and it is amazing how little of your language people speak...its as if they put the most noncommunitive people in places that people like me need directions...wait it is the same in our country too...the people in gas stations do not know anything about our town, nor do they speak our language. Okay...so it really isn't different.

So we get off the plane and don't have a clue how we will get to our hotel. We have no idea where it is in relationship to the airport. So at a loss, we stumble to the Metro Counter of the subway system for Madrid. Now it is no surprise that the woman did not speak English, but we pointed to the address we wanted, she gave us a map, sold us two passes, and pointed us towards the station. After wandering around a bit, we made it on to the train...we think headed in the right direction, To our surprise, the names of the stations began to match the names on our map. We were going the right way. We even made a transfer from one train line to the other. Soon, we arrived at our destination, got off the train, and made it to our hotel. All was well and right with the world...we showered and tried to sleep...and tried to sleep...and tried to sleep.                                      
Turns out all we could do...is imagine ourselves speaking to people who don't speak our language...and wishing we had bought that copy of Language in a Box.