Long Time no Blog ¡Vive Madrid!

I knew this would happen. I´d go days (okay a week) without writing in my blog and it would cause me extreme guilt. But in all honesty, not too much had gone on last week until Friday. Around the dorm, more kids move in each week and as of last night the food is getting crappier and seemingly harder to come by. I decided that I´d cave and buy some snack food this week but we were so well fed in Madrid that I might use my culinary misfortune as a form of diet. Homework, on the other hand doesn't weigh me down so much. Usually there is something to read and small assignment to do in a workbook. I've had like 2 one-page writing assignments, but nothing has been too strenuous. Gives me time to work on my napping skills!

Okay, the moment you've all been waiting for: Details on Madrid and Toledo! First and foremost - I can hardly drive the 2 hours from GVSU back home, so 5 hours on a bus was wicked hell for me. We stopped at a rest stop halfway through so that was nice. When we arrived at the hotel, I was amazed. It wasn't anything out of this world from U.S. hotel standards but after living in the dorm for 3 weeks, I thought I was in heaven. It wasn't even the rooms that were so stellar (the showers were really nice, though!) but the food. I think I've made it obvious that the food at the dorm isn't anything to rave about, so when we arrived at the extensive buffet restaurant in the hotel....We all went a little crazy. Like mistreated orphans that had just escaped to an Old Country Buffet or something. It was all very good and I´m pretty sure any weight I´d lost from not eating in the dorms was regained in about 8 minutes on the first day. (And yes, we ate like that every meal!)

The first day (Friday) we went to Palacio Real. It was the residence of the kings/queens of Spain up until about 35 years ago. Now it´s just used for special events like coronations or to host important foreign diplomats. We had a guided tour from a very quiet robot lady, so I only caught a few important notes here and there. The rooms were all immaculate - from the dining hall that could seat 150 people to a room where the walls were covered in hand-embroidered cloth. Oh yeah, besides being friggin huge! there were 3 more floors under the palace that was used only by the servants AND their families. I can only imagine the staff it took to run that place. Whew! Of course we couldn't take pictures from the inside, so all I have to offer are pictures of the facade and the huge courtyard. I didn't care too much for the history lesson but it was absolutely impeccable. We went to one Cathedral of Madrid which was right next to the Palace. We were allowed to take pictures in that one! I was surprised at how colorful it was. Not just the typical grey I was expecting. I thought this one was great until they said that it wasn't too important and that the one in Toledo would blow our minds. (which it TOTALLY did)

From there we walked to the heart of Madrid. Along the way we saw some important landmarks and our accompanying professors pointed out the influence of Arabic and Jewish architecture. We went to la Plaza de la Villa, la Plaza Mayor y la Puerta del Sol. All the plaza-like hot spots with touristy shops and bars. We also saw 3 different people in Mickey Mouse costumes and a fat 66 year-old Spiderman. Darn....if only I had a picture of that.... There were those people who paint themselves up like statues and stay in one position for hours each day. That was cool. But slightly disturbing at times. I couldn't believe how still they were! Afterwards we had some free time to walk around and shop the city. The most overwhelming thing about Madrid was the amount of people everywhere! Constant crowds, and our guides kept telling us to watch our bags and be mindful of pickpockets. I don´t recall hearing about any robberies, but it was another shock from our peaceful little Bilbao.

Dinner Buffet at hotel... I salivate at the thought.

That night we were led to an Irish bar by some girls that were studying in Madrid and were good friends with another girl in our dorm from USC. We were staying at a hotel in the northern part of Madrid and taking the metro into the city was about 25 minutes. I´m used to the 7 minute ride into the ¨downtown¨ of Bilbao, so this was a little lengthy but worth it. It was a lot of fun - drinks, dancing, and friends. Afterwards we went to some club that they heard was good, but it ended up being a techno club for old people. Perhaps no, but it just seemed like everyone in there was over the age of 45 and primarily women. We now affectionately refer to it as the Cougar Den. The music was good though so we danced for a while and then called it quits. Got back around 3 or 4 and washed the city grime off me. Thank god I had a roommate who was a deep sleeper - she didn't feel well and didn't go out that night.

Final thoughts on the night: worth the lack of sleep.

Along with the morning, our blessed charter bus arrived to take us to Toledo. It was about an hour ride through the mountains. The scenery was unlike anything I've ever seen in the States or anywhere else. I've never seen the mountains out west, but I´d imagine that it has a similar breath-taking effect. We picked up our tour guide Magda (Madgalena) who told us about somethings (historical and present) while we rode on the bus. Our first quick pit stop was on the side of the road with the most gorgeous view of the city of Toledo. I took some really good panoramic shots with my camera (I´m really glad I discovered that function!) Our next stop was a metal smith's type place where they specialized in gold placing and steel. By gold placing I mean that a man would take a thread of pure gold over a pendant or pair of earrings and then tap it into the soft, black steel with a special tool. And by steel, I mean some friggin sweet swords. They were so beautiful and immaculate, but I didn't see anything I couldn't live without or that I´d care to gift. The rest of the Toledo tour included walking through the windy streets and ending up at the Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo. It is the most important cathedral in the entire Catholic world behind the one in Rome. In early Spain, Toledo (not Madrid) was the capital and I guess some serious stuff went down back in the day. It was super huge and gorgeous and all that fun old stuff. I once again can only offer exterior pictures.

We rode back after a decent lunch at a restaurant and at that time the city was kind of quiet. There was a fútbol match that day (Real Madrid beat Tenerife, 3-0) so if you weren't at the stadium (75,000 people were) then you were at a bar or in your house watching. Some shops were even closed! We caught the highlights later on some bootleg Spanish ESPN. We walked around the city a little bit more and did some shopping. We headed back early to rest because Saturday night held the most intense night excursion that I may ever have here in Spain.

After another dinner from heaven, I rested and prepared for Teatro Kapital. (Tay-a-tchro Kap-ee-tall) It´s a 7-story night club that has 3 different DJs, plenty of dance floors, and couple bars on every floor. We even sang karaoke! It was mostly techno, but they played some good American pop/hip-hop on one floor and lots of popular Spanish music. I think there were some weird 80s tunes like Eye of the Tiger and other weird stuff. On the very top floor there was a lounge - it looked like a swanky resort with couches everywhere, palm trees, fountains, 2 bars, and fabric draped from the ceiling and in columns everywhere. Oh and did I mention that there was a retractable roof so that we could gaze at the stars at 2am while we sipped $18 mojitos? (and by we, I mean everyone but me. I like mojitos, but not that much) The initial admission wasn't that pricey as far as huge night clubs go and we got some tickets from someone in the metro that got us 2 free drinks and a discounted rate.

There were people from all over the world there. Many from the states that were studying in Spain and a lot of international students. We arrived at about 1:30 which by some standards in Spain was early, and most people in our group left at 3ish. I was not one of those people. I left at 6am. Wait, wait...Here´s the logic: I paid enough to get into the club and I was having a great time. Instead of paying for a taxi home, just stay until the metro starts running the next morning and take that home. I had 4 more clicks on the metro card I had bought and so it all worked out for the 4 of us that stayed out. After the long metro ride and a shower that should have included sandpaper to get the grime off, it was 730am and wake up call was in about 20 minutes. I packed my stuff up (since it was Sunday morning and we were leaving) and then it was time for breakfast.

Final thoughts on the night: sooooooo worth the lack of sleep. (I guess I look pretty rough today after not sleeping all weekend and one of my professors said that I should take a serious siesta but that I´m young and should live it up!)

After breakfast I was still kicking like all I did the night before was play bingo. We went to a really great art museum - Museo Nacional del Prado. The permanent collection included Spanish, Italian, German, British, Flemish and french paintings from 1100-1850. I actually found it very interesting. Mostly because it included all of the best works from Goya including The Third of May, Saturn devouring his Child, and lots of his work from the his dark period. I had studied them freshman year in my Europe Honors class and loved it then. We also saw the best works from Rembrant, El Greco, Rubens and Velázquez.

We had about 90 minutes of free time. I didn't really want to go to another museum and I think it was closed anyway. (It was el Museo Reina Sofía which held Picasso´s greatest works including Guernica) So we went to Parque de Retiro. This is no ordinary park. Here is a stolen description: A huge urban park that features formal gardens, natural forests, a lake and a ¨crystal palace¨ and many beautiful sculptures and statues. Truth. There were a lot of people there enjoying the beautiful weather (one major upside to Madrid - it doesn't have Bilbao´s rain! But for every drop of rain they don´t get, they have an additional 3 people...), biking, walking, rollerblading - it was amazing. I probably would've needed a whole day to see the park but what I did see was amazing.

After this we went back to the hotel to have one final feast before returning. All of the dorm kids ate like there was no tomorrow. Because in a way, there wasn't - it would be like a bear eating it´s weight in fish, fruit and berries to prepare for hibernation during which it loses 50% of it´s weight. People were still amazed with my ability to stay awake (which at this point was 30+ hours) but I really was feeling okay. I couldn't sleep very well on the bus so last night I was out like a light!

Overall Madrid was very different from Bilbao but exciting, beautiful, and offered so much in its cultural richness. Just listening on the street, you hear a lot more English being spoken and in general there are so many more people: tourists and Madrileños (citizens of Madrid). It was a little too crowded for some people but I think I held it together pretty well. A lot of people liked Toledo better because it was more like our quiet Bilbao that received cheers once we arrived on the bus. The weather was PERFECT each day and I kind of liked the big city attributes: skyscrapers, extensive metro, lots of night life.

Madrid: Little sleep and a lot of food...I loved it.