Going Solo

What's the point in a blog if you can't whinge a little?

Getting pulled back into reality land isn't always pleasant. After a too-good-to-be true week in Barcelona at my dream hostel, I say goodbye to my wonderful travel companion and board the bus to Valencia. The ride is uneventful and I arrive, as usual, late. My hostel has instructed me to walk out the exit of the station and board bus number 8, which will take me to Placa de la Reina - this does not happen(at least, not the Placa de la Reina bit; I walked just fine).

Phrase book in hand I tell the driver where I want to go. He responds with a nod and says something I don't understand but presume it means he will let me know when I need to exit the bus. I take a seat right near him so he can direct me.

After a while I begin to wonder if I'm even on the right bus as it wasn't supposed to be a long journey and just as I'm about to ask him again, he points to another traveller to get off; she asks him something and she tells me in English that I should have got departed four stops ago. How I envy multilingual people. I'm given instructions to walk in a straight line, which proves impossible owing to large buildings and curving streets. After numerous, useless conversations with Spaniards, I finally see a newspaper stall and decide it must have a map: it does and I get another instruction to walk in a straight line. I do and once again, the streets hinder me.

But I must have found the hostel as I'm using the Internet, you think. This is true; I do find the hostel one horrible hour later. Nothing else to report except I'm sharing my tiny four-bed room with two guys who snore - I know this as they managed to fall asleep while I was unpacking my bags. I'm sitting in the freezing kitchen, drinking soup and wishing myself back in Barcelona, which is where I will be next Saturday at 2.30, probably 2.45 if the bus is behaving normally.

So I have to keep myself entertained for 5 days - that shouldn't be so hard, right? I'm in Europe, aren't I? Stop complaining, Mad!!

I shall keep you posted on Valencia; no doubt I will find something to occupy my time here. I really do wish one of you was with me - if only so someone else could suffer in that horrible room. Thank god for ear plugs, right?

xxxx