My Spanish Mishap, Part 2 - Never Loose Faith

Tip #3: My mother has always told me never to put all my eggs in one basket.  Likewise, never keep all of your money in one spot just in case someone decides to steal from you.  For me, I kept my extra cash in my boot.  This would prove to be my salvation. 

After searching a 6 block radius in hopes of finding my discarded bag, I gave up.  Limping up to the top of La Rambles with blisters on my heels, I sat miserably on a bench and tried as I might to shut out everyone.  After a fantastic holiday, I was alone, lost, and miserable.  But in the wonderful workings of the world, my faith was restored.  A young man, a native to Barcelona, came to me and expressed concern about my present location.  He told me it was an unsafe place to be by myself that late at night.  I told him that I was just thinking and wanted to be left alone.  Unmoved by my apparent shortness, he suggested that if I felt uncomfortable, I could sit with him as he would move a few benches away.  I dismissed this act of kindness, but was glad for it within a short while.

A man who had been watching me from a distance for sometime had come to stand within a few feet of me behind my bench.  Frustrated, I took up the young man’s invitation.  After a little under an hour with this stranger, he had me laughing again.  He had restored my faith in Barcelona.  I could again see the city that I had come to love over the past few days.  I said goodbye and began my walk back the cheap hostel I’d been staying at.  I would have to beg for a cheap room for the night as my money was limited and I had no idea what the next day would bring.  The woman at the front desk of the hostel accommodation was very helpful and understanding.  She gave me the address for the Canadian consulate in Barcelona, directions to get there, and a quiet hostel room at a very cheap rate. 

I sat in the room that night after a very hot shower and thought about my next course of action.  If things were to go the way they had been, I would make it through the ordeal after all.  Tip #4: Have faith in those around you, even some who are complete strangers.  Even the one woman who was in the same room as me that night taught me that as bad as my place in the world seemed to be, there was someone else in a worse spot.  I thanked her for that lesson.

Author Amanda Sears

My Spanish Mishap Part 3