On the first of June, a cloudy day that many would blame for seasonal depression, Fredrick walked toward the Oloron train station. He was excited for his journey as he was headed toward the beautiful Barcelona. After buying a train ticket to Pau, Fredrick sat and waited for the train; he had a positive disposition and 65.16€ in his pocket.
After a lovely little train ride he arrived at Pau, went to the ticket counter, and proceeded to buy a train ticket to Barcelona...or at least that is what he was going to do. The ticket to Barcelona was 65.90€, so Fredrick simply slipped his debit card out of his pocket to purchase the ticket. What horror, his card expired the day before! What was Fredrick to do?
Horrifying thoughts of being stranded in France with no money and no way to reach Barcelona circled through his colorful imagination. But Fredrick was not one to give up easily. He began to search the sidewalk for coins, hoping to find the remaining 74 cents. After no luck he began to ask other travelers for some change, still nothing. Finally he returned to the ticket counter, and after asking for a student discount (or even a senior discount) the woman at the counter offered to pay the remaining amount. What relief! He was off to Barcelona!
Upon arriving at barcelona with absolutely no money, and a still tender left knee, Fredrick walked from the train station to the Sun and Moon Youth Hostel. Of course, when he arrived he could not pay for his lodging, thoughts of homelessness in Barcelona weighed upon him. However, the man at the desk, who had been a little short with the costumers before, was incredibly gracious and allowed Fredrick to call the USA and get his parent's credit card number. Praise God! Fredrick would not need to be homeless for 4 days in Barcelona.
Yet, a problem still remained; Fredrick was in Barcelona, one of the most expensive cities in Spain, without any money and only enough food for one day. This was not an overly huge problem as the hostel served breakfast, but it was a great inconvenience.
I would love to tell you that everything turned out well, but I cannot, everything turned out incredibly well! On Sunday Fredrick met a wonderful women named Jenni from Indianapolis who saw him putting extra pieces of toasted bread into his bag at breakfast. They hung out for the day and then Jenny bought him a pita falafel for supper, it was amazing!
The next day an angel named Debi from London, who was promoting activities in Barcelona, had pity on Fredrick and gave him 2 euros. With this money and 13 extra cents he found he was able to eat a 1 euro meal at a bar on Monday night and buy 2 bananas, a baguette, and some cookies on Tuesday. Fredrick didn't eat well, but he ate.
Stupid little Fredrick was truly blessed to have met such kind people on his journey from France and during his time in Barcelona. On Wednesday his brither arrived and Fredrick felt like a king, able to eat well rounded meals and ride the metro. Fredrick was no longer in dire need and went on to enjoy an amazing week of hiking in Spanish national parks and haning out in San Sebastian with his brother before heading home to the United States.
Jenni: Friend and Giver of Falafel
1 Euro Meal Provided by Debi
Travels in Spanish National Parks
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