Not all who wander are lost... but some are.

So last Wednesday we didn't have school because of a holiday, so I went with two other auxiliares to a town called Segovia. (Sidenote: Mark Zuckerburg is a genius. I posted in the auxiliares facebook group, "Hey, does anyone want to go anywhere tomorrow?" and literally within an hour I had made plans. So thanks MZuck!) We met at the bus station around 11am and took the 1.5hr ride north to Segovia for about $10. Segovia is a town most famous for its Roman aqueduct...

...because the thing is huge! Down at the bottom you can see the military ceremony that was going on (I'm assuming that has to do with the holiday). From the aqueduct we wandered around the whole town. I had heard before that Segovia is home to the castle that inspired the castle from Beauty and the Beast, so I knew I wanted to see that. But before we found the castle, we found a cathedral that looks like a castle!

Pretty! But not a castle. So we kept wandering. All the little streets reminded me a lot of the ones in Assisi - just so little and cute! We eventually found the castle (which is actually a reconstruction because the first one burned down) but it cost money to get inside, so we just sat outside and looked at it for a while. 

Time well spent, I say. We wandered back another way by taking a road we hadn't taken yet, and found a little cafe to eat tapas at -- pan, chorizo, and tortilla de patatas. Lovely! After lunch we went back to the aqueduct and followed that up the other hill until it ended. It's amazing how humongous this thing is! From there we wandered around until we stumbled upon the bus station and figured it must be time to go back. Perfect! I got back home around 6:30 (I think) so it was a short little daytrip, but super cool!

Now, all this wandering nonsense I'm throwing at you. ¿Por qué? Well, they say, "Not all who wander are lost", yes? So, using my mathematical logic (thanks UofM), that must mean that there is at least one who wanders that is indeed lost. Yes?

Yes. And that one happened to be me last Thursday. It was my first day babysitting for a family who lives about a 10-minute walk from my piso. (Another sidenote: Why are all 6- and 7-year-olds so insanely good at Memory??) It's basically a straight shot down a main road. Super easy. Why bring a map with me? That would be silly and would unnecessarily take up space! So I left their piso (sans map), and began walking. I had my FBHW podcast going and was giggling (not discreetly, no doubt) to myself when I saw a Gucci store. A Gucci store? There is not a Gucci store by my piso. That's when I looked at the time and realized I had been walking for a good 20 minutes. Hmm. But in what direction? Lots of things passed through my mind: Did I pass my street? WTH, I'm not even on the right street! Baaahhh! Where am I??? Well, at least I'm by a Gucci and not some crackhouse. I usually feel like I have a generally good sense of direction, so this was a completely new emotion. Utter panic set in. I really had no idea where I was. And it was dark out. But, again, I wasn't by a crackhouse (I think), so it's all good.

If you don't know anything about Madrid, at least know that the metro system is super well-connected. Sometimes you'll find different metro stations with 3-4 blocks of each other. I, in fact have 2 stations both within 3 blocks of my piso. So. What's the obvious thing to do? Ask someone where the closest metro station is, of course! The first THREE people I asked were like, "I don't know, I never use the metro." Seriously??? Gaahh!! Gucci shoppers!!! Too fancy shmancy for the metro!! I finally found a guy who told me I was basically nowhere near any metro station at all, but he was kind enough to point me in the right direction. Annnnd I finally made it home, an hour later than I was shooting for. Oh well! But at least I wasn't abducted by those crazy Gucci shoppers.