This is what the drive was like until we went through a really long tunnel just before Asturias. Then it was like the bus got pushed into a cloud. It was completely white and foggy the rest of the ride to Oviedo.
A coolio bridge we drove across just before the fog.
AY. What a day. Today I’m traveling up to Oviedo to meet with the rest of the group, and to meet my host family! Yipes! It has been one hell of a day, too. Want to hear the story? I bet you do… Here goes.. And if you don’t want to hear the story, here’s a picture you can look at.
This morning my group was planning on leaving our place at 8:30 and taking the Metro to the bus station where we would be bussing to Oviedo. So I of course, didn’t leave myself enough time to finish packing and everything, and so was about 10 minutes late (Sam and Taylor, if you’re reading this that’s pretty good, right?) and got downstairs and out the door just as the last of the group was leaving, so I was feeling pretty rushed right away. We get down to the metro with our suitcases, no problems, buy our tickets, and get to the train as it literally pulls into the station. We then got off, dragged our suitcases up some stairs, through a couple hallways, and down another three flights of stairs to the other train that also pulled into the station as we got there. Phew. Made it, smooth sailing, right? WRONG. The bus station and the Metro station are connected and so we didn’t have any trouble finding it, but couldn’t find where our bus was. All of us had pre-bought our bus passes, and most had printed off the confirmation, but two others and myself had forgotten. The three of us then went to see if we could get paper tickets, but the (very uninterested and curt) woman said that she couldn’t find any history of our tickets. “Nececitas comprar otra. Lo siento.” You need to buy a new ticket, I’m sorry. We pulled out our computers, SURE that we had tickets, but had complications of one sort or another. We three decided to go down to the bus and see if they would just let us on. The other two made it on fine, he had their passport numbers, but for some reason my number was nowhere to be found. The bus was supposed to leave at 10:00 sharp and it was 10:07 so the bus driver was freaking out. The bus was full and there was nothing I could do. SO, I went upstairs, bought another bus ticket for 12:00, and here I am. Sitting on the bus, two hours away from Oviedo. Everything worked out in the end, it was just really insane for a solid two hours. I’ll still have time to get into the city, find the campus, and have about half an hour to spare. I only wish I rhad known I wasn’t going to make the 10 o’clock bus so that I didn’t have to leave in such a rush. But what’s done is done, and I’ve had a chance to sleep, and breathe now so I can think straight again.
The drive thus far has actually been fantastic. I was worried that it would just be a boring ride that I would sleep through (which wouldn’t be bad either…) but it has been GORGEOUS! I slept the first hour so I couldn’t tell you where we are right now if I tried, but I do know that it looks like I just stumbled into a fairytale. There are rolling green fields on either side of the road, bushes with bright yellow blossoms line the sides of the road, patches of purple, white, red and yellow wildflowers dot the fields, and there are orchards and vineyards scattered throughout the country. We’ve passed several small hilltop towns that are absolutely picture perfect, and on the outskirts of every single town, is a castle. A CASTLE! I’m probably way too excited that I’ve seen four real-life castles now but jeez, we don’t have those in the U.S.! The cathedrals that we can see from the bus are equally as stunning.
Something even better than the fairytale-esque landscape and castles though is that there are fields filled with windmills and solar panels. When I woke up and looked out the window, the first thing that I saw was a rolling hill lined with windmills (I tried to take a picture, but it was pretty far out…). Then about 20 minutes later, I looked out the other window and saw more solar panels than I think I have ever seen in my life. I really would like to know how much energy they generate, because there were just so many of them. In the U.S. right now I know there are debates about alternate energy usage, and one of the main arguments against it is that windmills and solar panels especially, change the landscape. And this is entirely true. Solar panels aren’t the most attractive things to look at, and they’re rather all consuming in a landscape setting. But knowing how great they are, and what a difference they’re making in the environment makes up for their less than beautiful appearance. The windmills on the other hand, I find absolutely captivating. I can’t explain it, and it probably (ok definitely) sounds ridiculous, but I could watch a windmill turn for hours. I find them strangely calming I guess you could say. I don’t know, I like them a lot, and I REALLY like that Spain is using so many of them.
From what I can see, I think that Spain is eligible for one of the most gorgeous places on the planet. I’m probably just naïve in saying that, but seriously. Fairytale. Welp, compy here is at about 25% so I’m going to say hasta luego and take in some more of the incredible sights and take pictures as I can. If I can’t take some now, I’ve got six weeks to take a million. ☺
I made it to Oviedo, and am posting this from my new home! Will write more later (including fotos!)
Adios!
**THIS POST IS NOT FOR CLASS**
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