20 hours

The past approximately 20 hours have been chaotic, but at least they have been linked by one common theme -- transportation adventures, with everyone else acting like it's all completely normal.  Here is the recap of the highlights in my journey to observe at the IRAM (Institut de Radioastronomie Millimétrique) 30 meter telescope.  The irony is that I will be using the telescope for a total of 20 hours over 3 days.

The adventure begins on board an Iberia plane, recently having taken off from Santiago, when it was announced that we would be arriving in Madrid at 8:00 am. Our itineraries said 7:00 am, and to complicate matters, the three others in my row and I had connecting flights at 8:00 am.  When one of the women (luckily the others spoke Spanish, and could vouch for me) asked the flight attendant how we would make our connection, his answer: "That will be difficult."  I told myself at that moment that there was no use in worrying for the entire duration of the 12 hour flight, and in the back of my mind I kept hoping that maybe the wind would carry us just 10% faster than expected.

Granada is in the Andalucia region of southern Spain.

We landed at 8:00 am, as announced, without one mention that we were later than the original itinerary.  Still holding out hope, I jogged through the Madrid airport, through immigration (luckily it was quick), and boarded the shuttle to the K terminal (the sign said it would take 18 minutes, but I kept optimistic).  All for nothing, because by the time I arrived at K, the flight wasn't even listed on the "Departures" screen.  Luckily, my half-marathon training had paid off when it counted the most, and I arrived near the front of the line at customer service.  Actually, it was very easy to switch to a later flight, I just passed my failed boarding pass across the counter, and without hardly a word, the Iberia employee gave me a new ticket for a later flight.

The problem was that my plan for transport to the telescope relied on the 8 am flight, to arrive in Granada at 9 am, and immediately take a van to the telescope (they had actually made special arrangements for me).  I found the words in Spanish to sheepishly say "I missed the flight", and I called the telescope to tell them I'd be later than expected.  From here, the adventure takes a turn for the better.  Beginning with the fact that people in Spain speak slowly and clearly, and I could actually communicate when it mattered the most. 

These bull cut-outs are seen all over the region.

I did arrive as per the revised schedule at 1 pm, took the transport to the observatory offices in downtown Granada, and from there a van about 1 hour to the Sierra Nevada ski area.  Slightly jealous of the skiers who will be enjoying their vacation during Semana Santa (Holy Week), but also realizing what an awesome experience it is to go to a telescope, I boarded the gondola (yes, everyone else was carrying skis, and I was carrying my luggage) which took me to the next ski station.  From there, I loaded myself and my luggage into a snow-cat, and we headed up the ski slopes to the telescope which perches on top of the hill.  That's right, next to a chair lift! 

Not my photo, but that's the telescope and our transportation.

The whole time, at every junction, the person accompanying me just waved me on to the next (progressively more strange) mode of transportation, as if (1) it was obvious that everyone rides a gondola to work sometimes, and (2) of course there's a gigantic 30 meter telescope sitting on the ski slopes.  And I went along with it, enjoying the ride, and looking forward to what will certainly be a unique Semana Santa.  It took 20 hours to arrive, who knows how many to return.  I hope the 20 hours of observations are perfect.