So I left Granada prepared to make a great blog entry where I talked about how great the trip had been (and don't worry, I promise I'll still make that one) but instead I'm going to make a stressed out entry. I'll begin by saying that I am a total idiot. On my trip to Granada, I put my passport in a small inner pocket of my backpack so that I wouldn't have to worry about it being stolen out of my purse or lost like that, never considering the possibility that the entire backpack might go missing. I stored my backpack (minus my computer) under the bus for the ride back from Granada to Madrid. I did the same thing last time without a hitch and it didn't occur to me that this time might be different. There were two places where people got off the bus: Estación del Sur and Avenida de America (in that order). My stop was the second one. When I got off the bus, I looked under the bus for my backpack and saw one that looked like mine and started to grab for it when I realized I was mistaken-it wasn't mine but one in a similar style and different color. I looked around and asked the bus driver if he had seen my backpack and he pointed me to the same one I had just dismissed as not mine. I of course started to freak out, not knowing what to do and not having planned well for this eventuality. I reported it missing and asked the station to call the other station to ask if someone else had realized that they had taken the wrong backpack by mistake-of course no one had yet. So I've left my name, number, and address with the station in the hopes that the person will realize their mistake and report it. I guess we'll find out in a few days if anyone will and I'll let you all know. I'm not sure whether I feel optimistic about it or hopeless...I can't think that someone would have intentionally left THEIR backpack and taken mine, but at the same time the backpacks are different enough that I feel they should have noticed immediately and tried to correct it. In a few days, I'm going to have to begin the process of getting a new/temporary passport and thinking about replacing everything in that bag (I've already started a list) but I really hope it won't come to that.
Deseando por el mejor.
Katy