El Corte Ingles has nice hospital facilities...

I have been staying with my friend Lola for 3 days now and I am reminded how much I love Madrid. There is so much action everywhere, but let me tell you all, I maybe experienced too much exitement in one day yesterday afternoon.

I almost should not be sharing this in public due to my slight humiliation, but it does make a good story...

After eating a lengthy lunch, I decided to knock off a few chores and headed down to the Corte Ingles to purchase a new spanish movil. What I didn´t know is that now because of new laws you have to present your passport, which I had left at home, so alas, I headed back home, then came all the way out again to the Corte on Castellana.

El Corte Ingles is a huge shopping center that has everything from groceries, clothes, and as I found out yesterday, even a health clinic! Who woulda known!

So since I was still feeling a little off from jet-lag, I found myself standing by the cash register as a man was trying to type in my passport number into his computer, with which to my dismay he couldnt find EEUU under countries, and as I am getting a little impatient, I find myself losing my vision, and BAM before I know it I am on the ground at the Movistar counter in the middle of the mall. I had about 15 workers helping me, gave me sugar and water, and then 10 minutes flew by and I had about 3 of those same workers lead me to the health clinic on the 4th floor. And man, was it complete! The doctor checked me for everything, and I was fine, except for a scrap across my right eye lid. It could not be placed better, and looks faintly Indiana Jones-ish! I basically ran out of the store hoping that nobody would recognize me from my fainting act. I came home by bus, which was probably not the best idea, and with luck found Lola driving down the street and caught her just in time to hop in the car with her. While she was worried, we both agreed that it made a pretty good story!

In fact, this might beat my experience during my stay in Conil de la Frontera in ´06 when I burned my leg on my host brother´s vespa, which I turned into my Scripps College application essay! Man, I have tons of topics to write about now!

But enough with the fainting. Last night I had the fortune of meeting up with some friends, including a girl who I had met 2 years ago in Madrid while taking a Spanish course. We went out to a bar near Tirso de Molina that had a Japanese theme. I had no idea that suspenders were such a trend here! And nothing could make me laugh more than how much the club clients loved singing to Black Eyed Peas.

I leave for Sevilla on Tuesday with my friend Calida who also goes to Scripps, and I shall write more when I get there!