Chaos Creates Learning

May 21, 2023

    Chaotic Morning. We were supposed to take a train to Valencia at 8:45am. Because it is Sunday, there were no Taxis on the road so we had to Uber which hurt our time. The Uber kept trying to take short cuts for the sake of time but it actually ended up hurting our chances of making the train. There happened to be a marathon/race going on so all the roads were messed up. We missed our 8:45am train. Lessons learned: The Spanish culture does not get up early on Sundays, and the train station is more like an airport. You can’t just hop on the train with a ticket. It is large, and you have to go through security. I ended up buying a ticket for 9:40am, but after I bought the ticket I found out it was a different train station. No one speaks English, and everything was in Spanish. I started to panic, but a guy told me to take a short train to the other station. A worker who spoke a bit of English helped me get a ticket, and I was running to the train bound to P. Atoche. When I found and boarded the train, I had a 15 minute ride to the next station. I somehow got off at the right stop, and now I had to find the train station. I arrived at 9:27am to the stop, and was sprinting to get to make the train. Arriving at the checkout spot for my ticket, it would not scan. I had just bought the ticket, and this was the only way out. A lady who spoke no English saw I was in a panic, and tried to help. Eventually, she goes “conmigo.” I get in right behind her to go through the ticket activated glass door. As I run to the next stop, there is a long security line in my sight. Short on time, I cut through the line to quickly get my bag checked. I continue running to my train stop which was 8, and I made it on the train with 2 minutes to spare. None of my friends wanted to come on this train because it was a bit more expensive but it left the fastest, so I did this all alone. Right when I arrived, I met up with my classmates. Chaotic morning! I learned a lot today about the train system in Spain, and how to adapt and overcome unexpected situations!

The catamaran cruise I took in the Mediterranean Sea 
while in Valencia.

 

My beautiful pasta dish at the Beach Bar 
Restaurant. The shrimp on top is known as
a "prawn" in Spain.