excerpts from Nov 3/4

Warning: all excerpts edited for content and embellished with afterthoughts.

11/3: random airport thoughts

1. white guys who eat at Panda Express with chopsticks -- little bit pretentious? Even the Asians are eating with forks.
2. Is pink camo so you can hide from Barbie?
3. Spent some quality time in L'Occitane and bought A her 21st birthday gift, Honey Harvest Body Balm.
4. backpack weighs 400# and is actually gaining the longer I carry it.

Have a terrible nervous stomach and am sick -- good I have a 5 hour wait. (In retrospect, not a great way to start the trip but felt like I had at least gotten that out of the way and in fact I wasn't sick the whole time I was in Spain, even with ice in my drinks, etc.)

11/4:

Sitting at the H10 Villa de la Reina waiting for my room to be ready. Stomach settled down in time for the flight which was uneventful except for one glitch in KC. The blonde at the Continental desk kept telling me I'd have to pick up my bag in Paris but with only 55 minutes layover I didn't think I'd have time to make my Madrid flight. I kept trying to question her and she was in a huff so T turned to me and said "Just talk to someone in Houston", referring to rebooking my Paris-Madrid leg so I'd have time to pick up my bag and recheck it. I guess she got offended because about 10 minutes later she stopped us in the terminal and said she'd checked my bag all the way though to Madrid "since we acted like she didn't know what she was doing". I didn't think she knew what she was doing but I never said so. We tried very hard to be polite and explain that we were concerned about the short layover -- she was having nothing to do with us. I figured my suitcase would end up in Venezuela but it was actually first off in Madrid.

Once I got to Madrid I thought I'd have to go through customs but there was nothing. I was even stopped by a police officer who just waved me on. What is up with this room? Trying to be patient. Drinking old Sprite and eating trail mix, want a shower and a nap and want to call A. It's 2 pm Spain time and 8 am my time ... 3 hours of sleep in the last 26 hours. Tengo mejor jet lag.