On Monday I received a Facebook message from Julie inviting a group of Auxiliares to the beach. We decided we were going to try La Manga. After talking to my roommates I decided I would just take a bus to Murcia and then a connecting bus to La Manga. I was told that it would be really easy and that I shouldn’t have any problems getting to the beach. I planned to take a bus at nine the next morning, in case I ran into any speed bumps along the way. Here’s an itinerary of my beach adventure:
8:45- Walk the two minute distance to the bus stop, leaving plenty of time to buy my ticket and get comfortable on the bus.
8:47- Arrive at bus station only to see that it is closed. Upon further perusal, I see that due to the holiday (Columbus Day comes a little later over here) I have to pay for my bus ticket in cash. Ok, no big deal, I sit on a bench and read while I wait for the bus.
9:08- Start to wonder why the bus station is still dead and walk back to the door where a few papers are posted. Read a sign that says buses don’t start running until 10:00 on holidays. Ok, also no big deal. This gives me time to go back to my apartment, grab my iPod and eat some cereal.
9:40- Walk back to the bus station.
10:05-Board the bus
11:00- Arrive in Murcia. I find the bus line that goes to La Manga and ask the girl for a ticket. She shakes her head and tells me that the only bus that goes to La Manga leaves at 5:00. Awesome. It was at this point that I was starting to feel a little discouraged. But I figured I could walk around Murcia and get to know the city a bit.
As I started to walk away from the bus stop, I made sure I knew what street the station was on, in case I got a little lost. I started moving in one direction, but there didn’t really seem to be much on that side, so I tried the other direction; still not much to look at. I approached a taxi driver. I had seen an Ikea and other stores on the way out of Murcia on that first night with Toni and Pepe, so I figured I could spend some time over there. I asked the taxi driver how much it would cost to go to Ikea. He mumbled something in Spanish to the effect of “I don’t know” so I decided not to go with him. At this point I was frustrated and a little out of sorts. I sat down on a bench and thought about my options. I could just go back on the next bus to Jumilla, defeated. I could take a taxi to Ikea. That idea brought up a lot of doubts; what if I can’t get back to the station; what if the taxi driver takes advantage of me and charges me a ridiculous amount, etc. But I decided that I had come too far to just go back home so I decided to go with option two. I figured it would be good to buy my bus ticket first, just so I would have it. There was a piece of paper next to the ticket booth that appeared to be a schedule and it said that there was a bus to Jumilla at 3:00. I got back up to the booth and asked the girl for a ticket on the 3:00 bus. She gave me a look as if to say, “stupid foreigner” and told me that there was a bus at 1:30 or 6:30. Where was she getting this information from?!? I couldn’t find a schedule anywhere!! Anyways, I didn’t want to stay in Murcia until 6:30 so I opted for the 1:30 ticket; which meant I didn’t feel that I had enough time for the Ikea trip. So I sat in the bus station from 11:30 to 1:30. And so, here we are, back on the couch in my apartment.
I was so mad at myself because I felt like fear got the best of me this time around. But at the same time, I was completely alone and Murcia is a lot bigger than Jumilla. I kept wishing that someone was with me to explore the town. So what I’ve learned from this little trip is that adventures are more fun with others. Even the most annoying problems don’t seem as bad when you have friends around (i.e. dragging heavy suitcases around the metro). Anyone up for a trip to Spain?
Thanks for reading!
~Arisha~
8:45- Walk the two minute distance to the bus stop, leaving plenty of time to buy my ticket and get comfortable on the bus.
8:47- Arrive at bus station only to see that it is closed. Upon further perusal, I see that due to the holiday (Columbus Day comes a little later over here) I have to pay for my bus ticket in cash. Ok, no big deal, I sit on a bench and read while I wait for the bus.
9:08- Start to wonder why the bus station is still dead and walk back to the door where a few papers are posted. Read a sign that says buses don’t start running until 10:00 on holidays. Ok, also no big deal. This gives me time to go back to my apartment, grab my iPod and eat some cereal.
9:40- Walk back to the bus station.
10:05-Board the bus
11:00- Arrive in Murcia. I find the bus line that goes to La Manga and ask the girl for a ticket. She shakes her head and tells me that the only bus that goes to La Manga leaves at 5:00. Awesome. It was at this point that I was starting to feel a little discouraged. But I figured I could walk around Murcia and get to know the city a bit.
As I started to walk away from the bus stop, I made sure I knew what street the station was on, in case I got a little lost. I started moving in one direction, but there didn’t really seem to be much on that side, so I tried the other direction; still not much to look at. I approached a taxi driver. I had seen an Ikea and other stores on the way out of Murcia on that first night with Toni and Pepe, so I figured I could spend some time over there. I asked the taxi driver how much it would cost to go to Ikea. He mumbled something in Spanish to the effect of “I don’t know” so I decided not to go with him. At this point I was frustrated and a little out of sorts. I sat down on a bench and thought about my options. I could just go back on the next bus to Jumilla, defeated. I could take a taxi to Ikea. That idea brought up a lot of doubts; what if I can’t get back to the station; what if the taxi driver takes advantage of me and charges me a ridiculous amount, etc. But I decided that I had come too far to just go back home so I decided to go with option two. I figured it would be good to buy my bus ticket first, just so I would have it. There was a piece of paper next to the ticket booth that appeared to be a schedule and it said that there was a bus to Jumilla at 3:00. I got back up to the booth and asked the girl for a ticket on the 3:00 bus. She gave me a look as if to say, “stupid foreigner” and told me that there was a bus at 1:30 or 6:30. Where was she getting this information from?!? I couldn’t find a schedule anywhere!! Anyways, I didn’t want to stay in Murcia until 6:30 so I opted for the 1:30 ticket; which meant I didn’t feel that I had enough time for the Ikea trip. So I sat in the bus station from 11:30 to 1:30. And so, here we are, back on the couch in my apartment.
I was so mad at myself because I felt like fear got the best of me this time around. But at the same time, I was completely alone and Murcia is a lot bigger than Jumilla. I kept wishing that someone was with me to explore the town. So what I’ve learned from this little trip is that adventures are more fun with others. Even the most annoying problems don’t seem as bad when you have friends around (i.e. dragging heavy suitcases around the metro). Anyone up for a trip to Spain?
Thanks for reading!
~Arisha~
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