Adios Arizona

Adios Arizona

“See, it’s making it hard for me to breathe / When I get worked up with all these feelings” – The Rocket Summer (Goodbye Waves and Driveways)

It’s time to go. The flight leaves early this morning and I’m getting up early to finish final preparations. I’ve said goodbyes, I’ve packed and repacked my bag enough times to realize I’m a minor amateur, and I’m chuck full with enough nerves, stress, excitement that clouds are forming in my brain.

I’m glad to say that I am not traveling alone. My good friend, Chris Cronin, is able to join me. I remember a while ago when I first told him about my idea for an adventure. He was hanging out in my room and a bunch of us were watching some silly YouTube videos, relaxing in-between studying for a test. He shoots me this text three days later that says, “I can’t stop thinking about your trip. How do I join?”

We were able to make it work and honestly it will be nice to have Chris along- for company on an adventure and for safety when I start to overstep my bounds (and I will, at some point, start to overstep my bounds). I’ve asked Chris to make an “About” profile, so as soon as he puts one together it will be in the section next to mine.

Anyway, we’re flying into Madrid.  I took my MCAT test this past Thursday, so a lot of pressure is off there and I'm completely focused on making everything fit together like a classy puzzle. We’re waking up at 4am to finish printing tickets and important information and to copy data to our USB sticks. We want to make sure we have all our bases covered and since we will be flying for a sum of over twelve hours, it isn’t too big of an issue if we lose a little sleep to do it.

Sadly, we’ve yet to lock-in on a place to stay at Madrid. Finding a host on Couch Surfing has proved more difficult than expected and I’m really worried that we won’t be able to get someone for our first city. Working with people through CS is a big part of the trip, as it will be critical for understanding and getting hands-on interaction with culture- so hopefully something turns up.

Thanks for reading! Before voyaging I’ll try and throw another update in during our short layover in Charlotte. It isn’t certain, though, because I think we have to get out passports checked out. Not sure how that works- excited to find out though.

Best,

Sam