I must admit I was kind of bummed about not being able to go to Valencia because I had no puppy sitter. As you all know, I have been going back and forth about this puppy thing. I am pretty sure I want to keep himñ it just takes patience, but I can work out the travel issue easily next time. Anyway, I decided to look on the positive side; I have a whole year here to travel, Chulo is only 3 months; and Valencia is only a bus ride away. I set out to make the most of my day. I wanted to continue my exploration of Madrid in order to discover how walkable things are from my house. I had an idea about where a cute pet store was nearby, and I knew there were many other cool things in the neighborhood. I put Chulo's leash on so he could take a 5 minute walk in. He can only go so far still, and he is scared of everything. So he walked slowly for about 10 minutes down the street, with people stopping to pet him every two seconds. I put him back in my purse and walked down the main street I live off of for about 15 minutes. I passed many bars, restaurants, fountains, etc. I came to Calle Bilbao and headed straight down. There were many things on this street that caught my eyeñ first, the shoe store! I tried on shoes and talked to the girls in the store while they played with Chulo. I had been looking for some comfortable heels and flats, so I didn´t hold back and bought two pairs; on sale of course! Content with my purchases, I headed to the pet store for Chulo. To no surprise the store was closed for ciesta, to re-open at 5. I was left with an hour and a half to explore the area, but all there was in sight was store, after store, afeter store; leaving me with only one option...shop!
I had tried my very best to restrain myself from shopping before. I had done well up until this very moment. There were so many different colors and fabrics and unique designs, and things that I just could not resist. Spanish people are generally very fashion forward people, so I was anxious to join the club! I felt like a kid in a candy store! I literally took a long pause outside of each window to ponder upon how each fashion would befit me. This was great!! I went into almost every store, just browsing. People are so nice here, I talked to everyone. Chulo of course got much attention as well. I only bought things from 3 more stores, before I decided it was time to re-activate my self-control. My favorite store was Friday's Project. Great finds! All of these things were on the same long street, about 15/20 minutes from my house! I also spotted some good eats along the way as well. As I reached the end of the street, I saw a huge fountain, many beautiful large buildings, and a few streets that opened right up to the centro! Perfect!
I finally made my way back to the pet store, my original destination, to find some good for Chulo. He is too young for many things, and doesn't like toys yet. So I just bought some snacks and pee pee pads for him. Many bags in hand, and Chulo in the other, I headed back home. I relaxed a bit, but soon it was time for running practice at 7. I usually don't run on Fridays (MWF are optional), but I felt it was necessary after missing a few days. I met up with my team and we set off to a new destination for me; Casa de Campo. Because it was Friday, there were only 6 of us training. We chatted about Spain as we ran, and they gave me a mini history lesson, and some more must see/eat places. As we began our trek, I knew this run would be different. It was literally in the campo (countryside). There was just open air and trees, and silence. It was actually kind of creepy, like a horror movie almost. I ignored the eerie scenery, and continued my conversation. Before I knew it we were done, and Jose Miguel was insisting that we go for drinks....what a surprise.
As I said before, you cannot actually say no when Spaniards invite you for drinks, so off I went. Also, Spaniards are very routine/traditional, so naturally we went to the same bar as the week before. My friends recommended I have a red wine, Ribiera del Duero, and it was great! One glass a day does the body good! I think I will stick to that regimen. We talked about traveling and we decided we will try to make a team trip soon; to Jose Miguel's pueblo outside of Madrid, and to London hopefully! Once again, I had lost track of time and forgot I was supposed to meet some friends in my program later. The plan was actually to go to some random lesbian bar, just for kicks and grins. I got home around 10:45, cooked, ate, and fell into the couch. I was beat, and there would be no Lesbian bar for me that night......
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