Madrid
I’m in Madrid, for the EAIE conference. My flight was at 7:40, so I set the alarm for 5, and being the nervous nelly that I am about having to get up super early, I couldn’t sleep well and finally got up at 3 am. My boss from DC, who is also attending this conference, just called and wants to meet for dinner today. Coffee, where are you? I was fading 2 hours ago already and now I’ve not only got to be socialable, I’ve also got to be professional this evening. Gonna be tough.
It’s been a while since I felt as out of sorts as I do here – guess there’s more egotistical American in me than I care to admit! I fully expected to have no language problems, it’s Europe! Of course they all speak English. Rude awakening, my dear! The hotel restaurant staff understand English about as well as I understand Spanish. Found that out when my “vegetarian” lunch included chicken ceasar salad. Gotta refresh my memory about some key words!
The little piece of Madrid I’ve seen near the hotel is nice. I went for a walk after lunch, but almost all the shops were close 2-5 pm. How quaint! 
After the lunch ordeal, I wasn’t much up to dealing with shopkeepers. As I passed a shoe store I overheard a young woman say “pyat”. Just figured there was a Spanish word that sounded like the Russian word for “five”. Nope! Those three lovely ladies were russkis all the way, and they were just dumbfounded that shops would close in the afternoon. I have to admit, I was kind of surprised too, but like any good devushka, they figured it was just meant for everybody else and proceeded to ring the door bell, expecting someone to come open the store for them. It was kinda cute, atually, in a weird sort of way. Put me right at ease with my new surroundings.