Last Day...

I´m about to go to bed for my last night in Spain. It feels like I have been here for a very long time. In a good way, I mean! Though I am exhausted. I´m like the Energizer bunny on vacations, which is why it is ideal that I still have a couple of days to recover once I get home.

I haven´t been seeking out the internet because it just interrupts my trip too much! Plus, I´m a little put off on all the college-age kids obsessively updating their myspace or facebook everywhere I go. But, well, here I am updating my blog, right? Sooooo.... I´ll be the kettle today.

Anyway. Even now, at the end of my trip - or perhaps even more now at the end of my trip, I feel that this place - Madrid, Toledo, Sevilla, Spain, whatever - is all fake. Like I´m in Disney Land, and all of these people will just go home to their ´real´ lives at the end of the day. Real lives that don´t involve amazing buildings, food, statues, paintings, etc. around every corner. It is hard to wrap my brain around the fact that this will all be going on once I leave. It has been great! I don´t know that I could have an every-day life like this, but I think I will definitely ´plan´ on coming back - after I hit all the other countries I have to see, of course.

I have done tons, and have taken more pictures than you can even imagine. Pick a number of how many you think is reasonable to have taken in 6 days. Then double it. I still probably took more than that. I´m of the ´more is better´ school, and hope that among the chaff, there will be a few really good pictures. I´ll cross my fingers, anyway. And I will post some of the more meaningful ones. Assuming I can get my dial-up internet at home to cooperate.

So, back to the people. I just went out to make my Good-bye Madrid Tour, hitting the major sights that are see-able in the dark. There are people out everywhere. Everywhere, everywhere. And it is everyone out. Old couples, families, babies, school-age kids, locals, tourists. Dogs. The only people who appear to be sleeping are the homeless people. And it is approaching midnight. On a Tuesday!

I had a fried squid ring sandwich for dinner tonight. (total non-sequiter, I just couldn´t forget to share that)

One of the points of the "Paseo" (which I do believe is technically earlier in the day) is just to walk around and be seen. Show off your "Sunday best" as it were. Or Tuesday best. And let me tell you, all those uncomfortable shoes that American women wear? Have nothing on the Spanish ladies. Goodness. The heels! On cobblestone! That, my friends, is dedication. I, myself, am wearing Teva flip-flops. And I have never ever ever in my life had so so SO many disparaging looks at my feet as I have had today. All day. Everywhere I´ve been. I don´t know why they are looking at my feet in the first place, but when they do? I get this pursed-lip, head-turn-away reaction. I can count at least 7 of these instances today - and those were just the ones I noticed. I´m trying to tell myself they were just fascinated that I was wearing sandals when the majority of the population is still bundled up for winter. But I really don´t think that´s the case. They just think I have poor taste in shoes. How sad! The foundations of my existence have been shattered! I totally need to go shoe shopping.

Ah well, to bed with me. I´m sharing the room with 9 other people. Three of them were also there last night, and came in at 3 am and were really, really loud, and turned the big light on. I need to get some sleep before that happens.

My flight tomorrow is at 1pm, thank goodness. Gives me all morning to get lost on the way there. Which, if this week has been any indication, I will. I´ve been lost a lot.