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Hola Santi Cazorla!
Passing through VillarealLaura had to go to Barcelona on Friday to meet a friend so, I came on to Valencia. A few days earlier, she had helped me find a hostel online and make reservations. It was one of those "nest" hostels, but I got a room to myself. (Yay to no drunk college kids!) Now, this was how I planned my day to go:
- Wake up at 6:30 and get ready.
- Leave Laura's house early, go to bank, and take bus to train station.
- Be in Valencia by 10, hopefully.
- Drop luggage off at hostel.
- Find Mestalla and wait for players to come out after practice.
This is what happened:
I kept pressing the snooze button on my phone and overslept. By the time I left her house, it was probably after 8:30. I went to her bank, but they didn't take my kind of traveler's check. I had enough euros, so I went on my way. By the time I got to the train station and bought my ticket, it was 9:41 am. -_-; I rushed and caught the 9:50 train. Woo! (We passed by Villareal, by the way, and all I know is that
Santi Cazorla plays for the city's team so, I took a photo. haha . Man, those adorable Asturians!) I don't know what time I got to Valencia, but the train ride didn't feel that long. Maybe I was there at about 11? I took the cab to the hostel, but couldn't check in until 1. I left my bags in their bell closet (They don't have bell boys, but I don't know what else to call it).
Then, I was off to find the official Valencia CF shop because I figured they'd know where to get tickets. The night before, I figured out where it was and drew a line on my map from the hostel to the shop. It's sad how excited I was when I made it down the lane and turned the corner to see it staring at me. Seriously, I had to stop and think before I could decide whether to run across the street to take a photo of it or to just go in.
Yeah. Anyway, I went in and OOOH all the stuff they have! FOOD/COFFEE TRAYS. Are you kidding me? Honestly, if they had one of the entire team, I
Walking through Valencia
(& looking for the team shop) probably would have bought it. I just walked around taking photos because I'm cheap! I noticed that there's a floor below this one so, I went below. There was a girl screen printing shirts. I bought an alarm clock (I forgot to bring one, in case I have morning classes), a lighter (couldn't bring those on the plane), any issue of AMUNT that they had, a ticket to the game, and other stuff I can't even remember right now.
I went upstairs to pay and asked the guy some questions. When I struggled with my Spanish, he started speaking to me in English. (Makes things easier for the both of us, but I won't get much Spanish practice if this keeps happening.) I asked him if there was something with a photo of the entire team and he told me no. 😞 He came out from around the cash register and showed me some postcards/baseball card-type things. I was :/ and he said, "Oh! We have this." He zipped off and I followed. He went behind some desk and pulled out a team photo. I took it and he said it was free. Yay!
After this, I went
Walking through Valencia
(& looking for the team shop) back to the hostel to drop off my bags. I left again and started walking towards Mestalla (OR SO I THOUGHT). I should have left the hostel, turned right, and kept walking straight until I ran into Mestalla. Instead, I left the hostel, turned right, turned right at the first intersection and kept walking straight. After a while I realized I didn't know where I was. I found a lady and asked her where the stadium was. In spanish she gave me directions. I couldn't follow it all, but I knew enough to realize it was far and what direction to go in.
I went the way she told me to and realized where I was. After that, the walk to Mestalla was pretty quick. I saw people huddled around one of the entrances so, I walked over that way. As I got closer, I realized that they were huddled around David Albelda. asdohgas! I went over and he signed my team photo. He wasn't rude, but he seemed like he didn't want to deal with any of this.
Next came Joaquin, who was chipper. My hands started to shake a little and I was getting overexcited at
Walking through Valencia
(& looking for the team shop) the thought of Marchena coming through the door. (Oh, don't bother googling him. He's not attractive and I can not explain my interest.) I went over to some girl and asked her... something. (I can't even remember!) Through motions, she let me know that Marchena, Mata, & Villa had all left. apdsohg! :/ Well, I waited aroudn anyway.
Unai Emery (the coach) came out next and was nice, despite how the photos look. After that we waited around. Some kid eventually went over and asked someone something. Then, he walked around saying something in Spanish to everyone. It was something to the effect of "They're all gone. Silva is in Paterna." I already knew that Silva was training in Paterna that day, but I couldn't believe I missed EVERYONE. 😞 If I hadn't gotten lost, I would have made it in time for sure! (Where are Boots, backpack, and map when you need them?! Swiper, no swiping!)
After this, I went back to the hostel to check in. (I had a room with four beds to myself and I felt like that made me a spoiled American to them. :/) While checking in, I met an American girl
Steps into the Valencia CF shop
Yes, it's just stairs. Shut up! named Alethia (sp?). She was taking Spanish classes in Madrid, but decided to take a vacation in Valencia. The sister hostel to ours was having paella on their terrace so, we agreed to go together. I went up to my room, which was ugly, to be honest, and the lighting made no sense! 3 that were red, I think, and one white. It made it so hard to see in there and the red light made me feel like a prostitute.
Anyway, we met downstairs and one of the girls at the reception desk walked us and two other girls to the other hostel. We went upstairs for sangria and paella. The sangria was good, but I just wanted water! The paella was ok and I didn't even ask what the meat was. (I am leaning towards rabbit, though I really have no way of knowing.) I just don't know! It wasn't bad. Laura's mom's paella was just much,
much better. If she hadn't made me paella, I probably would have really loved the hostel's paella.
After that, we left early and walked around the city. We walked for ages and just made circles, but found our way
without really having to try. It was nice and it felt like I was learning the layout of the city. I'm happy that I found her because it made my "getting used to the city" time much more comfortable. I had thought that the bull ring was far from the hostel, but when we were walking I suddenly realized that we were near it. I was surprised! We went over to it because some women were selling things. Mostly touristy, but some really pretty stuff.
We walked some more before going back to the hostel. She wanted to change and I wanted to put up some things. We met a little later and took the bus to the beach. Lovely! When I decided to come to Valencia, I didn't even think of the beach. aosdhgsda! It's really pretty and the wind felt marvelous. I don't know how long we sat out there, but it was so peaceful and I felt rejuvenated. She was very talkative and I think happy to have found an fellow ethnic American. haha.
We were watching a family and they were too adorable. The dad was super affectionate with his son and they had
Ruben Baraja tray.
In the sale bin! Poor Baraja. the cutest dog. We were like, "That's the life. Going to the beach with your husband, dog, and naked baby." I said, "That's the new dream! Nevermind getting a Master's or anything else. The new dream is Spanish husband, naked baby, and dog on the beach."
In other words, Valencia is fantastic. I think that I will keep coming back. Start saving up because someone has to experience this with me.
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laura
non-member comment
i am happy to see that you're doing well. i need to call you but i don't want to call when you're in class or something or sleeping! i hope i can see you next weekend!