Me: “Steph, where are we?”
Lost seemed to be the theme of this journey as we were trying to make our way to a “relaxing surprise” -- but relaxing it was NOT! Let's start from the beginning, shall well? As I made my way to the meetup destination that my sister had texted to me (which was an hour-and-a-half ride) I was hoping to be met with the words:
“SPA DAY!”
Instead...
Steph: “Ok, Don’t be mad, but…”
Apparently my beautiful, well-intentioned sister directed us to the wrong stop and when asking for help from the police they informed her that where she wanted to be was an hour and a half-long walk from where we currently were, which was Casa de Campo and the nearest metro that could take us there was about a forty-five minute hike away from where we were as well. So, that means two one hour trips.
A deep breath, a hike and a "woosah" later we got to the metro, with me anticipating the surprise to come. However, five stops in, I felt a bit uneasy. Why? Well, seeing as though I’ve known my sister all of my 20-something-year life, I know the signs to look for when she is lost; Squinting of the eyes, a contemplative look, and of course, the most obvious sign, pulling out one's map!
Steph: “Ok. You’re really going to laugh when I say…”
Me: Stop right there... We’re going the wrong way again aren’t we?
Steph: “I promise once we get there you’re going to see these minor setbacks as small bumps in the road and laugh,” she states, enthusiastically.
...45 MINUTES LATER...
Steph: Alas! We’re here!
*Pulls up next in line to the ticket booth attendant,
Attendant: That’ll be $16. Enjoy the Teleferic!
The Teleferico is a cable car that travels above a river and park, providing views of the city including the Royal Palace in Madrid. The problem in the beginning is that we started from the wrong end of the ride which was on the other side of the city. However, it brings you back to the starting point. So, no biggie, we started off bumpy, but we were going to finish strong. Until...
Attendant:The ride is eight minutes. Enjoy!
That’s right ladies and gentleman, we traveled high and low for about two hours to ride an eight-minute attraction. Well, I must admit, when we finally got on, the views made me forget how long we had traveled to get here, so I guess it was all worth it. You can see most of the city and, what made it even better was that the sun was just setting -- It was a breathtaking view. When we arrived at the end of the Teleferico my sister didn't let the workers check her ticket, which would let them know that we were going to return. So I was a bit baffled.
Me: What are you doing? Aren't we going back?
Steph: Yea, so... the woman only offered a one way ticket because we were too late to buy a return ticket.
Me: (Deadpan Stare) You mean we're going to have to go back to the metro that will take an hour's walk to get to once we get off this eight-minute ride?
Steph:
And so, at the end of the ride, after the Teleferico workers informed us that they would NOT make exceptions for us to return, we ended up back in Casa de Campo with our non hiking shoe selves (Clarks&Converses), low-battery phones, and grumbling stomachs.
iPhone Siri: “Buena Suerte.”