a full recounting of my travels

In London, they told me graciously that my carry-on bag would not fit in the space. Dang. I had to check it, which is fine. It was actually ideal, because I couldn't lift it above my head and they didn't charge me for checking it.

While waiting for the plane, I met four other Americans who will be in this general area. Yay! (Side note: I can't even tell you how difficult it is to make complete English sentences right now. Me cuesta mucho.) We exchanged emails. Oh - PS in Barcelona, we had to leave security in order to check in to our next flight. Ridiculo. But, I did use my Spanish and it felt so good. Also on my flight to Barcelona, I sat next to a delightful British man. His daughter lives in Barcelona. We chatted the whole flight. I had a hard time understanding him sometimes, but it was still awesome. His understanding of American measurements was incredible. He correctly guessed my height (while I was sitting) and told me how many miles it was to various destinations in the UK. He also taught me how to pronounce "Worcestershire" correctly, which I have since forgotten. (grammar note: if I had written "to correctly pronounce" that would have been splitting an infinitive which is technically incorrect, though perfectly acceptable in most cases)

On my flight to Sevilla, I sat next to a sweet Spanish couple. I mostly slept (with my mouth open, ugh); but as we were flying into Sevilla, I was grinning like a Cheshire cat. They said "Eh bella, no?" (Beautiful isn't it?). I agreed and asked if they were from Sevilla. They said no, they were from a small town south of here. When they discovered I was going to be in Jerez, they got really pumped as it's only 12 km from their town: Puerto de Sta. Maria. When spoken, it sounds like Puerto dabrabla. I've heard it's only a brief summary of "pueblo" (small town) Spanish. For a fuller sample, watch this video. I'd be interested to hear what Spanish speakers think.

I attempted witty banter with the taxi driver. Perhaps I should refrase that. The taxi driver bantered wittily with me. I understood most of it!

When I got to Julie Ann's apt, she had forgotten that I was coming and was spending the night with a friend. Ah! Fortunately, her roommates took me in and we called her. I slept in her bed and slept well!