Back home again...in Spain!

Left my hotel in Rome at 4:30 a.m. yesterday. That was a bit of a trip. My travel agent set me up in a hotel "near the train station, so I could take the 8€ train to the airport"...but what she apparently didn't factor in was the fact that my plane left at 6:30...and there aren't any trains that early! No airport shuttle...a few unreliable, confusing, and dangerous night buses...so, I had to get a taxi. And how much does a taxi to the airport from downtown Rome cost at 4:30 a.m., you ask? Oh, only 60€!!! Holy crap. That's enough to rain on anybody's Roman Holiday, but I forked over the cash.

At least it was a REALLY nice taxi, and the driver was wearing a suit and really good-looking, a regular Mr. Italy. However, my flirting skills are non-existent at 4:30 a.m., and I was still bitter about the 60€, so he barely got a "buon giorno" from me.

So anyway...after a LONG layover in Brussels, and a challenging Metro ride to my lodging in Madrid, I barely had the energy to take a shower and say hi to my hosts (my former host mother's sister-in-law's sister...yeah, I'm confused, too).

However, I'd told Pedro (remember PEDRO?) that I'd give him a call when I got back to Madrid. It was so great to talk to him...but he's leaving for Valencia (the beach) tomorrow. (His little vacations wreak havoc on my love life.) Anyway, he told me he'd call tonight, and maybe we could go out...I'm trying not to get my hopes up, but I wouldn't mind one last date!

¡Hasta luego!