Segovia 2011: Arrival in Spain!

"They're here!" That is what goes through my head every year as I cross the street and head into the Barajas Airport in Madrid, Spain. This year our group is smaller than normal with 10 students but there are far more positives than negatives with fewer students. So what does the first day look like for them? LONG! Since Spain is 6 hours ahead of the US the flights typically leave at night so you arrive in the morning and, much like myself, many of the students were not able to sleep on the plane. A typical travel day looks like this: wake up at 8 or 9 Raleigh time, catch an early afternoon flight to another airport, fly 8 hours to Madrid, take a 70 minute bus ride to Segovia and then, "Surprise!" Your new family is there when you get off the bus so they can whisk you away to a home you have never seen before, feed you and put you to bed around 2:30 or 3:00. If you don't sleep on the plane you are typically awake for 24 hours straight! Luckily they are very resilient. What are some of the things we were seeing the first few days? Well here you go!