Finally arrived at Madrid today! It was uncharacteristically daylight when I arrived around 8PM but my goodness, the airport was just filled to the max with people either carrying their flags or wearing their own JMJ shirts. Volunteers in green can be seen in service booths and all those stuff. Had to speak a little Spanish for me to be understood and finally got directions to my temporary home for this coming week. The train station wasn't any different - too many people in groups!
Directions to Pio XII was to take Pink Line from the airport to Nuevos Minesterios, change to blue line and go to Plaza de Castilla. From there, I had to walk towards Avenida de Asturias, turn left at Calle Nardo then right to Calle Delfin. The school wasn't so obvious that I thought I might have been lost when this Filipina greeted me with a "Hola!" and when I said "hello" realized that I was also Filipina. She immediately realized I was a pilgrim and proceeded to help me with my stuff and led me to the school.
Calle Delfin (from Google Map). The school I stayed in is to the left
From there, I got my papers and kits sorted and later, formed a group with the early comers (including the Africans also housed in the school) to go to the place where our food brochures were being distributed. After that, we planned to grab a bite somewhere.
Later, these kind people at the distribution center encouraged us to eat at Hollywood (though I was looking forward to eating at a Spanish bar!) where the serving would be good. Considering the number we ordered (the Africans ordered for all of their group), we finished eating our dinner near midnight!
At Pio XII, I befriended a Filipina missionary who had been working in Myanmar for the last couple of years and a Chinese girl who had been staying in the Philippines for some time now. They became my sleeping bag mates.
With our African schoolmates and other guys we've met on the road on the eve of the JMJ Event
On our way to get our food brochures, we can see in almost all roads people greeting each other and sometimes even yelling in their excitement to see their fellow pilgrims. Others, like us, would stop for a while and have our pictures taken with the other groups. It was a really cool. I've never seen anything like it before!
P.S. Thanks Ate Becks for the picture! :)
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