So it had finished being NICE AND SUNNY for a while, and the clouds started coming out again. So at around 4:10 (class starts at 5), I put on my boots and the closest thing i have to a rain jacket, got my umbrella, and went to leave. I said goodbye to my host family and they were like TEN PRISA RACHEL HURRY HURRY IT'S GONNA GET BAD! Okay okay thanks thanks I have all my gear I'm all set adios! Hasta luego!
I get outside, and it's drizzling a bit.. I turn the corner, it starts raining harder. But I got my boots and there's no wind so my umbrella is working pretty well, I'm comfortable.
Then I get to la Plaza de Cuba. The wind picks up. My hair is all crazy in my hood and I can't see in front of me. All I'm thinking is THE BRIDGE IS GONNA BE A SHITSHOW. But also, I'm laughing. Because that's really all you can do here. I wasn't actually that upset because it was so hilarious how prepared I'd tried to be and how unprepared I actually was.
AND THEN COMES THE BRIDGE. BLAHBLABHLHAB WIND IS CRAZY BLOWING MY UMBRELLA EVERYWHERE. Even worse than the first time, I'm actually trying to hold it down. AND THEN. IT'S AS IF THE WATER GODS JUST POURED THEIR BUCKET DOWN ON ME. First, the wind was blowing towards the front of my body, so my entire front part of my jeans were soaked. Then, the wind DECIDED TO SWITCH DIRECTIONS, and all of a sudden my butt felt REALLY COLD AND WET. BECAUSE IT WAS COLD AND WET. And then my boots had a TINY LIL SPACE and of COURSE they filled up with water TO THE BRIM (that part is ... sort of an exaggeration and sort of not).
By this time, every person I pass (is having the same trouble I am) is looking at me with a EMPATHETIC SMILE like I KNOW THEM FEELZ BRO. And by this time I'm covering my mouth trying not to laugh because I don't wanna look too crazy. But people see me smiling anyway and that brightens their day JUST A TINY BIT before they are thrown into the MONSOON.
I get to the cross walk, and I feel my feet all SMUSHY in my boots. So I kinda look at them, kick around a bit. And then this man peeks out from under his umbrella and sees me doing this (still smiling) and my smile makes him INITIATE A CONVERSATION SO WE BOND ABOUT HOW MISERABLE THIS IS. He's like 'Buen día, no?' and I laugh, and then he said something about 'botas' = boots. ... I have no idea what he said .. maybe that they don't work, or maybe that I was smart to use them. But I was just like sí sí! And then the light changed. And we crossed.
And it was getting absolutely ridiculous by now. Like, it wasn't rain, it was a waterfall. People were standing under awnings, standing inside the metro, waiting for it to pass. So I'm like UGH I CANT TAKE IT and I go under the awning at La Sureña. I waited for about five minutes, and the storm calmed a little. But I had to get to class. So I kept walking.
I smiled at basically everyone I saw because I knew I looked ridiculous, like I'd taken a shower in my clothes, or jumped in the river or something. THIS ONE GROUP OF ADULTS LAUGHED AT ME AFTER I'D PASSED AND I WAS LIKE YOURE STUPID. Minus the last part but I didn't appreciate them laughing AT me after I'd smiled at them.
Then, I came up to this LAKE OF A PUDDLE, and I was deciding whether or not to just STORM RIGHT THROUGH because it's not like I could possibly get ANY WETTER. And I looked to my left and saw this man that I see a lot on the streets - he lost his legs somehow, and sits in his wheelchair asking for money.. but this time he was sitting inside an ice cream shop we always go to. And he saw me wavering at the puddle and smiled and said something.. probably about like.. yeah I have no idea what he said. But I felt like we bonded anyway and I smiled and decided that the next time I see him when it's not very rainy, I'll give him a few euros.
Anyway, everything is WET and blahlalhblabh I make it to CIEE. I wasn't going to stop there because I had to meet somewhere else for class, but I NEEDED A BREAK. I called Brett to ask if MAYBE CLASS HAD BEEN CANCELLED but it hadn't. So I walked all the way to la Macarena. And while I was walking, it stopped. And I looked extra ridiculous because it was no longer raining. And I was uncomfortable too :( And got lost a couple times.
BUT I MADE IT ON TIME. I told Fernando (my professor) - es como he saltado en un piscina! (It's like I jumped in a pool) and he's like ME TOO and all I could think was NO. YOU ARE NOT AS BAD AS THIS FERNANDO. Heh. But at least we bonded.
So much rain-bonding today, that's what I was getting at. Minus the fact that I was uncomfortable the entire time and I had to pee all the way until I got home, lots of rain-bonding. So that was nice.
On the way home after class, I stopped by a bench to sit down and empty my boots of the water. You would not BELIEVE how much water was in the first boot. Like, if you filled up two mugs of water, and spilled them out.. that's how much came out of my RAIN. BOOT. Which maybe doesn't sound like a lot, but IT'S A LOT TO BE IN A RAIN BOOT. We took a video of me emptying the other one, but it was anti-climactic. But you can see the puddle from the first boot. It's crazy. I'll upload it later.
I REALLY HOPE IT DOESNT RAIN IN MOROCCO. AT LEAST NOT THIS BAD. OR FOR THIS LONG. Also, midterm studying time. WAHHWAWHA
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