“Llamame cuando llegues.Hasta la semana que viene!”Call me when you get there.See you next week!A smile budding on my face, I waved goodbye to my Spanish host mother and stepped up to the security line. I walked down to the platform, moving away from dependence on others for the first time.When the train rolled smoothly to a stop in front of me, I attempted to haul my actually very heavy baggage up the steps. Suitcase in arms, I oomph-ed my way up onto the train, despite concerned glances by passers by , and with one last look at the small, waving figure of my host mom, I entered.
I settled into my seat and looked around at my fellow passengers, hearing a voice come over the intercom: “Zaragoza.Zaragoza.Proxima parada: Madrid.”Zaragoza.Zaragoza.Next stop: Madrid.Suddenly it hit me that I was just another passenger boarding at just another stop.No one was interested in where I was going, how I was getting there or if I had enough assistance.A grin spread over my face.“This is how it’s done.This is what traveling alone means,” I realized, and with said realization I relaxed into my seat, took one last look around at my cabin of others doing it how it was done, and closed my eyes.I was on an overnight train and I was relying entirely on myself. Any problem – missing my stop, having my bag stolen – would be on me and I would be responsible for fixing it.
I awoke with a jolt at the call of “Jerez de la Frontera,” terrified that I’d missed my station and had ended up in another region of Spain.“One more stop to go,” I said to myself, fully awake.As the train rumbled slowly out of the Jerez station, I looked around at the palm trees and the ocean, a far cry from the cold, arid land surrounding Zaragoza.The train cruised into the Cádiz station, and on came the voice: “Cádiz.Cádiz.Última parada.”Last stop.I gathered my things, clunked off of the train with my heavy suitcase in hand.I wasn’t quite sure where my friend’s apartment was, nor whether he’d answer his phone, but confidence coursed through me, for I was doing this on my own.“Alright, let’s do this.”