last day in Barcelona

I made Tom and Youngja sleep in the living room so I could get up early to pack without bothering them. And I did just that. I sorted things into what I still definitely wanted and things that I could potentially live without. I packed the livewithouts into my smaller suitcase and headed for the post office.
I got a number and waited my turn. The woman who was to help me didn´t want to at all. I pointed to my suitcase and she understood I wanted to ship it and motioned that it needed a lock. Ok, well OR I could put the stuff in a box! I pointed to the boxes behind her. She came back with one that was clearly smaller than my suitcase. I motioned bigger, SEEING a bigger one behind her. She shook her head and said she didn´t speak English and that I should talk to someone else. I got another number and the woman avoided her desk. Another woman called my number and just looked at me. The other one had complained to her and she clearly didn´t want me either. She told me I had to go to window number 7. I waited on the man there to finish. If I didn´t know better, I´d think he was having a cup of coffee with the guy sending mail based on the amount of chatter going on. FINALLY it was my turn. He asked me my number suspiciously and I explained the situation. He handed me a giant flat box, a form, scissors and two pens, saying ¨this is your job.¨ Oh really? Am I wearing a post office name tag? He told me to go over there. Over WHERE?! I´ve never met less helpful postal employees. Some tears slipped up as I taped up my box. I just threw the whole suitcase in there. Whatever. I did the form wrong and waited for another coffee chat to finish to ask for another form. He told me I did it wrong. Yes, I KNOW that´s what I´m saying to YOU! He gave me a form, which I filled out and then waited on a third customer. Finally, we got my info into the computer and it came time to pay. Cash only. Ok, as if I haven´t already jumped enough hurdles, where is the nearest ATM? What kind of national service doesn´t take cards? What happened to Visa, it´s eveywhere you want to be? Apparently they mean except the post office. I paid and then the man decided to be friendly, saying adios and hasta luego in Spanish and smiling. Where was the customer service at the beginning?!
I rushed home. I threw my stuff into my suitcase. I hadn´t anticipated spending a full hour at the P.O.
I said goodbye to Alix and asked for my deposit back. I hugged Tom and Youngja, wishing I´d gotten a shower in.
I rushed off to Passeig de Gracia and realized on the stairs that it could be another station. Too late now! I got to the front of the ticket line 5 minutes before my train. Indeed, it was leaving from Sants Estacio. I´d have to wait until the next train at 230. I figured I´d just get dinner and go to bed and do Valencia sightseeing the next morning before catching a train to Granada.
I took the subway to the right station and got Pans for lunch. It´s basically a fastfood bocadilla place. They have almost exclusively baguette sandwhiches. They´re hot and fresh though. I spent a WHILE there and then went to the station. I tried to ask about the internet and no one could give me good directions so I went out and tried to find the internet in the rain, failed, and returned to the station.
You have to go through security check with baggage to get on the train. I found my car and a nice place on the rack for my luggage. It´s a THREE hour trip! Seems Spain could do better. They played Marlee and Me and I just kept thinking about little Megan. I´ve seen the movie before and KNEW Marlee and the movie end at about the same time. I just wished I could hold little Megan!!
The train got to Valencia. It´s a really neat old station (pics to follow). I found the information booth, but the woman there didn´t want to talk to me about a map. She sent me away to the TOURIST information center. Then I decided to look into the ticket situation for going to Granada. I waited and waited in the advanced tickets zone. Turns out the 11 whatever train was already sold out so I could wait until the NEXT day or take the overnight train, leaving at 00.50 TONIGHT. I agreed, thinking of my hotel reservation in Granada. I figured I´d have to forgo my night here. I think they´re going to charge me for it anyway, but if I showed up for a shower, I´d also get a late fee for not arriving when I said I would with the first train I´d planned on taking.
I thought, Ok, here are my 7 hours to spend in Valencia and hit the streets (after leaving my suitcase in a locker). I figured I´d see the old town instead of the seaside area that´s been built up with bars and restaurants. That´s where I was suppsoed to stay and I HAD been looking forward to checking it out tonight and seeing the old bit in the morning.
I wandered various neighborhoods, taking note of where I could eat. They have a big impressive church approximately every other block. Also, I found the famous market and the first bascilica. Inside, they were having mass and it was interesting to peer in a tiny window in a door for a bit. I wandered for almost 2 hours. I kept thinking I´d settle and eat, then wondered if they might have internet up THIS street or THAT one. I wanted to know my hostel´s policy and see what emails I´d received. I kept wandering. I found LOADS of interesting sights and shops but NO internet. Valencia, town of infinite historical sites and NO modern connections.
I had dinner at Wok to Walk, an Asian choose your own toppings sort of restaurant where they fry up your choice of stuff. It was pretty good. It´s a chain I´d eyed in Barcelona. I wanted paella but the place I picked refused to serve it to me, saying it was the wrong time. It´s Spanish dinnertime! I settled on the wok. I had white rice with beef, pineapple, brocolli and peanuts. Then I asked them if there was internet nearby. Oh yes, 2 doors down! HOW did I wander everywhere and miss that?
That´s where I am now, waiting for 4 hours for my train to depart. I will post more information on what I saw here and pictures when I get the chance, but that´s my day so far in a nutshell: FRUSTERATING!!