Four Lessons I Learned While in MADRID
Some trips are pretty spontaneous and the trip to Madrid was one of those spontaneous trips. I wanted to celebrate Spring and “let my hair down.” I visited a friend from the States who lived in Spain and enjoyed every moment, besides the random stares. Here’s the 4 lesson I learned while in Madrid:
Put my phone down.
This lesson was a hard lesson. However, as I watch the residents of Madrid, I begin to realize that I was obsessive with my phone and they were not. So I conformed, somewhat. And it felt great. They were living. The culture of Spanish people is to truly converse with one another. They talked to one another face to face and didn’t rely on their phones during awkward moments. They lived in the moment. They have social media but they were not checking it constantly. They were truly interested in who I was, what state I was from and making me feel welcomed. I felt the love. A lot of the monumental moments during my trip was not televised or recorded because I decided to put my phone down. The memories will last a lifetime.
2. Live in the fantasy.
This is similar to number one, however slightly different. No one (besides my friend) knew me in Madrid. I could’ve been anyone I wanted to be and that’s the magical part about traveling. It felt even more magical in Madrid. I wore a pink wig (I’ll explain that story in a different post) my first day in Madrid and received unbearable amount of stares. But I was living in my own fantasy. I danced on bar tables, danced with Spanish men and flirted my way through dinner. I was living a fantasy and wanted them to experience a black American woman fantasy. At moments, I thought of how wrong of me to only display fantasy me. But then I remembered the words from a co-worker, live in your fantasy. So I did.
3. Know Basic Spanish
Six years of Spanish in middle school and high school came in handy while in Madrid. While most people speak some English, Spanish in the native language. It has always amazed me how quickly the Basic Spanish terms would come back to me when it was necessary. Terms such as these helped me to guide my way through Madrid:
Como esta?- How are you?
Donde' el bano?-Where's the bathroom?
Cuanto cuesta?- How much?
Habla Ingles?- Do you speak English?
Madrid taught me to sharpen my Spanish skills. As much as I comprehend Spanish language, I lack the confidence in speaking. I plan on taking Spanish courses to bring my confidence back in speaking the language.
4. Pack extra clothes in case your luggage is delayed.
I always heard horror stories of baggage being lost or delayed at airports. I fortunately never experienced in my travels. Until now. As I started packing for Madrid, I tried extremely hard to do a carry-on luggage so that I could avoid baggage fees. It worked. I was able to limit the amount of clothing I brought as well as the amount of shoes. I fit all of my clothes on my carry-on luggage. I was able to fit an extra pair of shoes and blanket in my personal bag. As I checked in the local airport, I was told that my luggage would have to be automatically checked with no extra charge. The plane could not accommodate anymore carry-on luggage. So I obliged. As I landed in Madrid 9 hours later, I was notified via email that my luggage had been delayed.
I was distraught. I NEEDED to change after the long flight and wanted to take a shower. I checked my personal bag and realized I did not pack in personal items such as soap, under garments and wash cloth in my personal bag. Fortunately, I was staying with a friend that was able to provide some of the personal items. The other personal items such as undergarments, I had to purchase from the stores. My bag arrived a day later, however the next time I take a trip I will remember to pack some personal items in my personal carry-on bag.
Overall, Madrid was AMAZING and I cannot wait to travel back and visit old friends and new. Get live updates as I travel through Europe this summer on my Instagram. Follow and be sure to send me a message with article suggestions.