I convinced Helen that we could splurge a little bit on accomodations. After all, we´d stayed in several youth hostels and even a university dorm to circumvent the rising cost of tourism in Spain. What we got was a four star hotel in Toledo for 69 euro a night! It´s outside of the Casco Antiguo, but it´s INCREDIBLE. Gorgeous. Just like the city of Toledo.
Believed to have been founded by Hercules, the city has an ancient wall brimming with people, tourists, convents, narrow crooked streets and delicious marzipan stands. I was a good niña and had only one today! I was just so enchanted by the city´s sights and the lack of marked streets. Ali, if you studied here, well done! I even caved and let Helen talk me into taking one of those organized tours, led by a woman who studies the archaeological remains of the old city, so she was able to show us places where water basins and roman ruins were. We took it as night was falling, so seeing the city light up was priceless. Spain, even on the meseta, is a beautiful country full of beautiful people.
I realized on Wednesday night just how happy I was with my decision to move here. As it gets closer to the day when I´m starting my job, I´ve been thinking more about how things are going to change. I´ll be able to pop into a bar to just have a copa with friends or grab some gambas without committing to a full meal. I can walk everywhere. I´ll be speaking Spanish and have new friends who are native. It´s a wonderful feeling. As I walked home from a meeting with the Madrid Cafe Abroad team, I was so elated that I took off my headphones and just listened to the sounds on the streets – traffic, old ladies squawking with one another, amorous teens, live music from jazz cafes. I´m so lucky.