Madrid!

I'm in Alicia withdrawal. Well, anything withdrawal really since I've been sick for a week, but I miss having her here. She came up before we went to Madrid and we had a lot of fun running around Leiden and Amsterdam and watching NCIS on a blowup mattress before the trip. It's been strange being back in Leiden because I hadn't been able to get out of bed from a stomach flu and an infection until yesterday when I went to my friend Zach's soccer game and out shopping. I have a lot of catching up on work to do, but it was worth it missing school.





Madrid was unlike anywhere I've ever been. Alicia and I went about a week ago to the city of the Madrilenos. It was beautiful, colorful, alive. I loved it. We stayed close to the center of the city at Las Musas hostel off of the Tirso de Molina metro stop that I would definitely recommend. It had a lot to offer and we met a lot of great people from all over the world.



Since we got there in the early afternoon and were so close to the center that we did a lot of touristy things the first day after a great big relaxed Spanish lunch. Over our whole trip we used the metro there which was really impressive. It covered everything and it was cheap and actually clean. And even when you took it at 4AM it was pretty safe. So we metroed over to the incredible Palacio Real. It was the royal palace for generations and it showed- I have never seen a grander building and a more beautiful park. We went in the next day (the lines were too long the first) for a mere 3,50 euros and had our socks knocked off at the ridiculous grandeur (an entire room was made of porcelain and there were frescoes by Tiepolo on the ceilings). There was also a pharmacia and a huge armory (all the armor was so small! I always forget that humans are much taller now than they were). We also went to the cathedral next to it where the most recent royal wedding was and the crypt (no catacombs unfortunately) too. We went to the Plaza Mayor which was pretty packed, walked down the Gran Via (about a mile of old impressive buildings and shops), and explored looking for the Puerta del Sol which we never found. That is where the city's emblem, the tree with the bear eating and getting drunk off the grapes is.



I think the number one thing on my list was the Prado (of course). It was HUGE. And so impressive. Goya, Poussin, Caravaggio, Fra Angelico, Titian, everyone. It was like a huge art history textbook party. We didn't even make it to the top floor and I'm sure we missed a lot on the others. We also got to the Reina Sophia on another day which was really impressive with a lot of modern art. I loved the Surrealist stuff.



Over the trip we went to the El Retiro park a few times. It was huge, beautiful, manicured, with enormous monuments and lots of people. The first time we went we rented a little boat to row around the lake which was really nice but lethal to my skin. We also tried some Spanish horchata which was different (made with tiger nuts) but still good. A great place to hang out and listen to people speaking Spanish. I think it is my favorite language. Unfortunately I can only read it a little bit and not speak it at all (which at one point had me ordering just meat and cheese instead of a cheeseburger), but overall no major mishaps. I don't think Spanish is something I can learn in a school. I really want to go back to Central America, Spain or everywhere in South America and see what I can pick up.



We also got to the Plaza de Espana where the monument to Cervantes is (I got another bracelet that will never come off). Nearby was the Temple Debod, a real Egyptian temple they relocated. It was really cool and oversaw half the city and the mountains in the distance. The last night we were there was the Real Madrid v. Barcelona game which was pretty exciting although Madrid lost (everyone was really dejected on the metro and in the streets).



I think my favorite thing that we did was go see real flamenco in a little restaurant one night. The restaurant was gorgeous, the musicians so good and the dancer. . . well there really aren't words. It was so intense. She was amazing. I really want to learn flamenco.



We spent most of our free time hanging out at the hostel with new friends we met over the trip. Overall the atmosphere in Madrid was so great and relaxed. Everyone was so chill and up for anything. I would love to go back anytime.



Todo mi amor hasta próximo tiempo mis amigos!