I Miss Walgreens

There are some things in Seville that I love and will definitely miss - the market with fresh produce, the bakery with freshly baked bread, the olive store, tapas everywhere, but one thing I miss about home that kind of surprised me is Walgreens. Who knew?

I'm still sniffling and I am not sure if this is a cold or allergies (I'm thinking a cold). Either way, it has me tired, feeling chilled sometimes and I'm trying to take it easy and not ride my bike too much. So yesterday I mostly just hung around (after going to the gym, buying more olives, etc.)

I finally heard back from this student travel agency that has a weekend trip to Morocco. It's not too expensive and we go to three places. I figure it will be a good introduction and not too much of a hassle for me as I will be accompanied from Seville and returned here when we're done. I went to Plaza Nueva yesterday to give them my credit card information and everything else they needed.

Last night after a marathon of Entourage on my computer, I suddenly got the idea to check Lonely Planet dot com and see if I could find a cheap hotel in Rome. Now that I knew for sure when I was going to Morocco, I figured I might try to get a few days in Rome if it were do-able.

It was. There are cheap flights from Seville, direct to Rome that take about two hours, and on the Lonely Planet website, I found a hotel that had rooms available that were in my budget. I'm not sure about the neighborhood, but it's close to the train station which will make it easy to get to when I arrive, and easy to get back to the airport when I leave. Getting around will be easy since there is a subway station nearby.

So, after much hassle with my stupid credit card, I finally got the hotel and flight booked. For some reason lately, if I make more than two purchases in one day, and especially if one of them is on the internet, my credit card company freezes my card. It was pretty late when I was making these bookings and I had two browsers open because I wanted to be sure both the room and the flight were available before I confirmed either. I finished the booking for my room and then went to book the flight, and it was rejected. It didn't say what the problem was. I tried again, same result. Again, same. Finally on the fourth attempt I was told to call VISA.

After several calls they finally told me I had to contact the airline because though the problem was initially that they put a hold on my account because of this "suspicious" activity (booking a hotel and flight) the problem now was the website of Vueling Airlines. It was after midnight and the office was closed. So I went to bed with the issue unresolved and had a very restless sleep.

In the morning I did finally get the reservation confirmed (after a few more calls to VISA for the same problem) and since my flight is next Wednesday at 7:25 a.m., it means I will need to get up earlier than usual and be at the airport at least an hour before. I need an alarm clock.

Today I went on a quest for an alarm clock and a Rome guide book. I got the guide book but had no luck finding an alarm clock. I walked down the pedestrian shopping street and found no stores that looked like they sold alarm clocks. I went to Corte Ingles, the big department store and they had none that I could find. I did find one in a little Chinese shop on Feria Street, but it looked so cheap I didn't trust it.

That was when I began missing Walgreens. I know in Walgreens I could find exactly the kind of alarm clock I need along with other travel necessities such as a money belt (Rick Steeves is insisting I carry a money belt).

This evening I went for a walk and passed another building of Corte Ingles that I didn't know existed. Turns out there is even another one that I think might have alarm clocks, but I have no idea where it is. I guess I'll have to do some sleuthing on the internet to see if I can find where this mysterious building might be.

So while I love going to all of these little shops that specialize in things like bread, olives, etc., I miss one-stop shopping too. Why didn't I stop at Walgreens before I left and pick up a small travel alarm clock?