Carnaval and the Medieval Fair

The past 48 hours have been some of the best here in Murcia! On Saturday night, some friends and I went to a city called Águilas for Carnaval - and it was an adventure, to say the very least. So, we left the apartment at 8:45 pm for the train, in costume. We got some looks, let me tell you. Keyla was dressed as a pirate and Kelsey and I had masquerade masks. When we got to the train station there were a ton of people there I saw some of the best costumes I've ever seen. Some popular ones were Black Swans (however, it was mostly men dressed in this costume, which was hilarious), the Mario Brothers, Lady Gaga, pirates, and cowboys. I also saw a guy who looked exactly like Justin Bieber, but I'm not sure if it was intentional or not.

I was really excited to ride the train! I've never travelled by train before and the only impressions I have of them are from the movies, so I was expecting it to be something like the train on Harry Potter or something... but it wasn't. My first train ride is not something that I would like to repeat. Ever. The cabins were all full, so people had to stand in the aisles and sit in the compartments that link the cars. I mean, it was fine for the first 30 minutes, but it was a 2 hour train ride, so my feet were exhausted.

So, we got to Águilas a little after midnight and started following the crowd of people toward the city center. Once there, we were met with people dancing on floats and vendors selling carnival food (no corndogs, though - sorry, Keely!) We met up with our friend Laura, who lives in Águilas, and she introduced us to some of her friends. Then we spent the rest of the night chatting and dancing. It was wonderful!

The train ride home at 6:45 was . . . less than ideal. The people literally stampede onto the train and take whatever seat is open. So, Bre and I ended up sitting on the floor in the cabin, but my feet were aching so bad that I didn’t really care, as long as I was sitting down. When we got back to Murcia at 8:45 I was completely dreading the walk back to my flat – the train station is on the edge of the city, and I live in the center. By that point my feet were going numb and I thought about just hailing a taxi. However, I sucked it up and practically crawled back home. I put the blinds down in my room and slept until about 3:30. My bed has never been so comfortable.

Also, there was a Medieval Fair in Murcia this weekend in the Jardín de Floridablanca. It was so cool! The whole central walkway was lined with vendors selling handmade jewelry, crafts, candles, lanterns, food – everything! I went for a few hours in the afternoon with my friend Bre and then came back in the evening with my roommate Keyla. 

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