We were staying in Madrid with a girl I knew from Berkeley who was also studying abroad. We had some time to kill before she got home so we looked for food. Everything was closed (it was only 8 pm) so we had to resort to bar food. I had a common "bocadilla" which is basically scrambled eggs mixed with potatoes in a baguette. We then meet with my friend Sarah and her 2 roommates. Neither one spoke English so conversation was limited. They also had a small kitten, which I adored at first, however he wasn't neutered so I quickly realized how much of a shit-head he was.
On a side note, many of the animals we saw in Spain were not fixed because of the "machismo" or excessive masculine attitude. It is also ridiculously expensive to neuter pets.
The next day we see Templo de Debod, a rebuilt ancient Egyptian Temple.
We then decided to take an hour bus ride to Segovia, a small town known for its preserved Roman aqueducts. They were enormous and if you took stairs to the top you had a gorgeous view of the city, it's suburbs, and the landscape. We walked to the Segovia Cathedral, which was unlike any cathedral I had seen in Europe. It was built with Gothic architecture but was white in color. I think this just means that the stone is kept clean but nonetheless it fascinated me. It was also large not in the sense of tall but spread out and wide. We then saw the Alcazar of Segovia It's known especially for it's shape..like the bow of a ship.
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| countryside of Spain where bulls roam. reminds me of socal |
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| Segovia Cathedral |
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| Aqueducts |
The Alcázar was originally built as a fortress but has served as a royal palace, a state prison, a Royal Artillery College and a military academy. On a gastronomic level, Segovia is also known for "cochinillo", a slow roasted sucking pig eaten before siesta (nap) time. Fortunately we did not see any for the short time we were there. Siesta in Spain is around 2 and all of Segovia was deserted at this time. No one was on the streets and all the shops were closed down. We noticed similar trends later in Madrid. My friend who hosted us in Madrid said many shops don't even re-open after siesta (around 4). No wonder Spain is in an economic crisis when no one can shop! Since Segovia was dead we took the bus back to Madrid.
We walked through Park Retiro, which is apparently more lively in the summer with crowds and food stands. But it was deserted when we walked through and the most exciting thing that happened was we counted 15 feral cats.
We then went to one of the top museums in the world, the Prado. We were lucky because we went on a day it was free from 6-8 and arrived right around 6. It features one of the world's finest collections of European art, from the 12th century to the early 19th century, based on the former Spanish Royal Collection, and unquestionably the best single collection of Spanish art. For all you art experts, the large number of works include paintings from Velázquez, Francisco de Goya, Titian, Rubens and Bosch.
We walked through Park Retiro, which is apparently more lively in the summer with crowds and food stands. But it was deserted when we walked through and the most exciting thing that happened was we counted 15 feral cats.
We then went to one of the top museums in the world, the Prado. We were lucky because we went on a day it was free from 6-8 and arrived right around 6. It features one of the world's finest collections of European art, from the 12th century to the early 19th century, based on the former Spanish Royal Collection, and unquestionably the best single collection of Spanish art. For all you art experts, the large number of works include paintings from Velázquez, Francisco de Goya, Titian, Rubens and Bosch.
By this point of the day I was completely exhausted. We were trying to take advantage of the free 2 hours and see as much as we could, but my body ached and I was in need of some serious sleep. I could also only see so many pictures of the crucifixion and Jesus before I became dizzy.
The following day we spent more time in the city centers of Madrid. On the way to the Palace Real where the royal family lived, a girl came up to me and asked, "English"? She shoves a clipboard in my face and asks me to read a small passage. I quickly skim and it said something about her being deaf but having no healthcare and if I could sign a petition for healthcare. Right when I realized that they were probably pick-pocketers, a guy running by yells, "WATCH OUT THEY ARE GYPSIES!" The girl and the runner start yelling profanities at each other as Paz and I slip away. It was interesting because I know a good amount of sign language and a similar story happened in Paris, which I will tell in my Paris post.
Anyways we see the Palace Real just in time for some guards to come out and walk around with their horses. We then head to Plaza Mayor which had a big Christmas market. Not as quaint and cute as German markets..actually quite tacky. We then went to Puerta del Sol "Gate of the Sun" which is one of the best known and busiest places in Madrid. Basically lots of shops and restaurants. There are also a ton of immigrants that try to sell Louis Vuitton and other things from the black market. They have their merchandise laid out on a sheet so when the cops come they can just bundle the sheet and run.
Sarah took us around the city and showed us some cheap clothes shops. Madrid is a fairly cheap city compared to Barcelona or other places in Europe. Later that night we went to 100 Montaditos; every Wednesday is 1 Euro night. If you order a "bocadilla" with a half liter of beer its only 1 Euro! Then that night we went to Club Pacha. The night life in Madrid was so much better than in Barcelona. We were on the VIP list so got in for free. The music was great and I now have a good collection of Portuguese songs. One point in the night they passed out sombreros and free shots.
However this was when I really noticed the stereotype of the Spaniards and Italians (there happened to be many Italians there). It is a cultural thing for them to cat call, which I have experienced before in the states, but something I had not experienced before was actually being grabbed. I was never touched inappropriately, however if they think you are pretty they will get your attention by grabbing your arm, hand, or put their arm around your shoulder. MAKE NO EYE CONTACT or they will swoop. Also, DO NOT SMILE. I am a very smiley person and I was having a good time with Paz and Sarah but if I happened to look at someone while I was smiling they would immediately come and make a move.
They usually approached me with Spanish so it was easy for me to avoid many of them because of the language barrier. When they did speak a little English, I would just speak German. I had a good plan to avoid everyone :) (since I wasn't interested in anyone who came up to me). Poor Paz and Sarah had to deal with guys chasing me all night. One point we were completely surrounded by several guys who were all having "bro talk" on when they should make their move on me. These men love blondes and I was one of the few there, making me an easy target. Luckily I had friends who were good cock-blockers.
We dance the night away until 6 am and Sarah takes us to a whole-in-the-wall bakery. We have Spanish churros which are bigger than Mexican churros but without the cinnamon and sugar. They would be bland but the secret is to order the hot chocolate as well and dip the churro in the chocolate. The hot chocolate is just a melted chocolate bar...so rich, creamy, and ORGASMICALLY DELICIOUS. It was a great night to end our time in Madrid and overall in Spain.
More places I want to visit are of course Ibiza, but that was impossible to do because the whole island shuts down during the winter. On our flight to Vienna we had a layover on the island of Palma, which looked beautiful. Guess I will just have to make a trip back!
The following day we spent more time in the city centers of Madrid. On the way to the Palace Real where the royal family lived, a girl came up to me and asked, "English"? She shoves a clipboard in my face and asks me to read a small passage. I quickly skim and it said something about her being deaf but having no healthcare and if I could sign a petition for healthcare. Right when I realized that they were probably pick-pocketers, a guy running by yells, "WATCH OUT THEY ARE GYPSIES!" The girl and the runner start yelling profanities at each other as Paz and I slip away. It was interesting because I know a good amount of sign language and a similar story happened in Paris, which I will tell in my Paris post.
Anyways we see the Palace Real just in time for some guards to come out and walk around with their horses. We then head to Plaza Mayor which had a big Christmas market. Not as quaint and cute as German markets..actually quite tacky. We then went to Puerta del Sol "Gate of the Sun" which is one of the best known and busiest places in Madrid. Basically lots of shops and restaurants. There are also a ton of immigrants that try to sell Louis Vuitton and other things from the black market. They have their merchandise laid out on a sheet so when the cops come they can just bundle the sheet and run.
Sarah took us around the city and showed us some cheap clothes shops. Madrid is a fairly cheap city compared to Barcelona or other places in Europe. Later that night we went to 100 Montaditos; every Wednesday is 1 Euro night. If you order a "bocadilla" with a half liter of beer its only 1 Euro! Then that night we went to Club Pacha. The night life in Madrid was so much better than in Barcelona. We were on the VIP list so got in for free. The music was great and I now have a good collection of Portuguese songs. One point in the night they passed out sombreros and free shots.
However this was when I really noticed the stereotype of the Spaniards and Italians (there happened to be many Italians there). It is a cultural thing for them to cat call, which I have experienced before in the states, but something I had not experienced before was actually being grabbed. I was never touched inappropriately, however if they think you are pretty they will get your attention by grabbing your arm, hand, or put their arm around your shoulder. MAKE NO EYE CONTACT or they will swoop. Also, DO NOT SMILE. I am a very smiley person and I was having a good time with Paz and Sarah but if I happened to look at someone while I was smiling they would immediately come and make a move.
They usually approached me with Spanish so it was easy for me to avoid many of them because of the language barrier. When they did speak a little English, I would just speak German. I had a good plan to avoid everyone :) (since I wasn't interested in anyone who came up to me). Poor Paz and Sarah had to deal with guys chasing me all night. One point we were completely surrounded by several guys who were all having "bro talk" on when they should make their move on me. These men love blondes and I was one of the few there, making me an easy target. Luckily I had friends who were good cock-blockers.
We dance the night away until 6 am and Sarah takes us to a whole-in-the-wall bakery. We have Spanish churros which are bigger than Mexican churros but without the cinnamon and sugar. They would be bland but the secret is to order the hot chocolate as well and dip the churro in the chocolate. The hot chocolate is just a melted chocolate bar...so rich, creamy, and ORGASMICALLY DELICIOUS. It was a great night to end our time in Madrid and overall in Spain.
More places I want to visit are of course Ibiza, but that was impossible to do because the whole island shuts down during the winter. On our flight to Vienna we had a layover on the island of Palma, which looked beautiful. Guess I will just have to make a trip back!
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