(Note: I finally wrapped up and posted this half-written Day 30 post a full 30+ days after returning to los EEUU. Ay.)
Woke up this final day in Spain a little later than I planned, so was rushed a bit in getting ready and out of the hotel. Thankfully the metro station was right across from my hotel, so my trip to the aeropuerto should have been easy peasy.
Except, when I bought my ticket and went through the turnstile, I had forgotten to look at the map to see what train(s) I would need to take. Also, I realized time had slipped further away than I had planned -- my flight was leaving in less than 2 hours. And I had no idea how long the train would take.
After going around the station and not finding any attendants, nor a map anywhere, I finally ended up asking someone. Thank God for good people. The girl/lady I stopped took out her headphones and told me she thought it was the 8 that I'd need, but that I'd need to switch trains. I asked her if she knew which train I needed to get on even to start with. She ended up digging her metro map out of her backpack, and after reviewing it w/ me and telling me which trains I would need to take, she gave me the metro map. I told she was awesome and that her I loved her in English, and she laughed. Lol. Said MUCHAS GRACIAS again and got to studying. I had to make two train switches to get myself to the airport.
Done, done, and done. Got myself to the airport and made my way to the check-in counter. Got checked in, went through security, and got myself to the departure gate. Made my final FB post using the free 15 minutes of wifi that I was allowed in the airport at no cost. And was again a little tripped out at how different the general feel of even the airports in Europe are -- people are quiet. They speak in low voices. So composed. So... classy. Lol.
Got on the plane and got settled in for this 8 hour trek back across the big pond. Took advantage of the free movies in the embedded TV screen in the seat in front of me. I didn't plan it this way, but each of the 4 movies I watched back-to-back were hitting me over the head with the same general message... a message I had picked up here and there during the trip, to be honest. A message that I acknowledge I continually need to be reminded of, and need to get better at practicing. A general message that life is now... now. NOW. Do the things I want to do... now. Embrace every moment. Make the most of every moment. Think positively, because in general, life IS good. Great, in fact. And if I'm bored? Lonely. Maybe even, maybe just a little sad once in awhile? Go and DO something about it. Engage. Connect. Ha -- yes, all seemingly intuitive stuff. Apparently I needed to have a milestone birthday and spend a month over 5000 miles from home in order for this to (generally) sink in. I am hoping it continues to stick.
At any rate, the 4 movies I watched in succession were American Hustle, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Inside Llewyn Davis, and Dallas Buyers Club. Seriously, 4 heavy, heavy movies. I don't watch movies often, but this time I did it big.
So, I got to Newark NJ, and had an hour and 45 to get to my connecting flight to LAX. What I DIDN'T anticipate or plan for was that I was going to need to go through security at EWR... which took basically the entire time of my layover. Ugh. Finally got myself through and got to the gate as they were already boarding. Although this time, luck was on my side. Being one of the last people to board, I make my way to my seat near the back of the plane. I always get the aisle seat if possible, and noting that there was a guy at the window seat and no one in the middle, I was wondering if I had in fact lucked out for this last major leg of the journey with some extra elbow room and spread space. And indeed I (or I guess we) had. We both noted our good luck for this 6 hour or so trip, and ended up chatting for a spell. Turned out he was an actor returning from a 3-day shoot for a film he was a supporting actor in. Said he has been in the biz for over 25 years. Mentioned he was in the movie Field of Dreams. It was all feeling very surreal and VERY L.A. after spending a month in Europe, lol. At any rate, cool chat, and I did doze for more than a bit as I realized that I was basically chasing the sun and ended up being up for more than 24 hours straight on this journey home.
But ah, the journey didn't end at LAX. I had a connecting puddle-jumper flight up to SBA -- which I missed because the EWR-LAX flight was 45 minutes late arriving. So for the second straight time with United Airlines, I ended up stranded at LAX. A lengthy conversation with their customer service yielded me a rebooking the following MORNING on a flight up to SB, which was (obviously) not acceptable. Ended up getting a paid voucher for the SB airbus, and was told that if I wasn't able to get on that that if I rented a car I could submit a claim to get reimbursed through United. I walked away from the counter quickly deciding the one-way rental was going to be the better bet to get me HOME the quickest... home to Santa Barbara and home to my bed.
Funny that I had made a two-day car rental reservation the following day at Enterprise in SB, as I was planning to go visit friends that weekend 2+ hours away and wanted the plush luxury of a clean, new full-size car for the trip. I was able to convert THAT reservation at Enterprise at LAX into a one-way rental there to SB, and my sum total was just over $80 (would have been a much more expensive rental w/o a rezzo). Thanks to the LAX Enterprise peeps for bringing this to my attention. And they were very sympathetic to my international travel predicament, ha.
In no time I was exiting the parking lot in a loaded Altima for the final leg of the trip home. After not driving for a month, my sloppy driving was making me laugh. Or maybe it was the delirium from lack of sleep, ha.
Made some pretty sweet time and was home before I knew it. Well, I knew it. But still. Figure of speech, no? It felt so good to drive up to my place, park, dig out my house key from my luggage and open that front door. Ah. Yes. And nevermind that a termite fumigation took place while I was away (shout out to my friend that checked in on my place and aired it out for me while I was away!), I was happy that despite a stripped down bed, no groceries or anything perishable in the house... I was HOME. Also, for those in the know, I have this bonded leather couch that while riddled with sickness (some say it has eczema, some say cancer... the bonded leather peels all over and sticks to one's skin), happens to be SO. COMFORTABLE. I settled in and had enjoyed some sweet, sweet -- and long overdue -- American slumber.
So no pics here, just narrative... and so it goes. 30 day Iberian Peninsula adventure trip, done. Bucket list item(s), check. Newfound perspective and appreciation, check. All in all, a great, great (great.) trip.
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Day 29 - Madrid: Walking In The Rain, Not Eating at the World's Oldest Restaurant, Hard Rock Cafe, New Hotel Room, Templo de Debod, Rooftop Beers, Museo de Jamon
So for my final full day in Spain, rainy weather made a return visit. I decided that since rain is basically non-existant in SB this year, I might as well enjoy it. Dressed for cooler weather and planned out what I was (or wasn't) going to do on this final day.
I decided to cancel my online reservation I had made a few days at Botin, known as the world's oldest restaurant (and recognized in the Guiness Book of World Record as such). Got to thinking about how the restaurant got generally bad service reviews, was really expensive (I would have spent about $100 US dollars for just me), and the fact that I had to identify my country of origin when I made the reservation (possibly subjecting me to even crappier service), I decided to cancel it. I was planning to have their house special lunch: gazpacho and roast suckling pig -- which didn't really even sound good to me then. So, I decided to lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe instead. Haha, what an American I am.
Made a long roundabout walk across town to get to HRC, and my timing was perfect -- I snatched up one of the few open tables just before 2pm, when a lot of people started showing up. For whatever reason the half a BBQ chicken sounded awesome to me (I would typically get ribs, or a burger) -- and it was. Along with 3 beers. And a cafe con leche afterwards since maybe just a litle of Europe has rubbed off on me :)
When I was through with HRC I was thinking of going to visit the Palacio Real, but decided not to. Headed back to the hotel and decided to formally complain about my room (the construction noise had been consistently starting early, lasting throughout the day) -- and in channeling my diplomatic but firm grown man-ness I succeeded in getting upgraded to a top floor (9th) room that was double the size and had a window view of the entire city. Sweet!
Got my stuff up to the new room and ultimately headed back out to go see the Templo de Debod. I had passed by it quite a few different times on my hop-on/hop-off bus excursions, and the one time I walked through that area it was closed. It was this time and I got to go inside what is an ancient Egyptian temple that was given to Spain as a gift from Egypt back in the 1960s/70s. It was two stories and had ancient hieroglyphics etched into many of the walls. Pretty cool -- I was excited for my trip for one reason for being able to see things hundreds of years old -- and I ended it with seeing a temple that was truly thousands of years old.
After the Temple I headed back to the hotel as I wanted to catch my last Iberian sunset from the rooftop terrace. I had the terrace to myself to ruminate over the fading light (note: sunsets in Madrid don't happen until after 9pm here in March/April).
I decided to make one final walkaround town and maybe stop in somewhere for a drink and maybe a tapa or two. Ended up checking out something else on my to-do list -- a Museo de Jamon. They are all around the touristy areas, but filled with both locals and tourists as the food and drinks are pretty cheap, and allegedly good. One part is an actual butcher shop, another part is a huge walk-up bar/counter where you order food and drinks and eat there, and then there's a separate dining area. The bar areas was packed so I decided to do a final sit-down meal. Went with their house special -- and had probably the grossest soup I've ever had in my life. Salmorejo, it was called. Didn't even know what it was when I ordered it, haha. I thought it might be some ham tapa thing -- I was presented with a bowl of pink thick soup that had chunks of ham in the middle, and was dotted with olive oil in spots around the diced up ham chunks. The color and consistency reminded me of that picture/video of what McDonald's Chicken McNuggets are made from -- that pink chicken soft-serve like puree of muscle bits and connective tissues. So, I go to take a spoonful bite -- and it is COLD. Like it just came out of the refrigerator. And it tasted like -- pureed ham. Like what a ham milkshake might taste like. It was disgusting.
Second course was pollo al horno -- not sure why I wanted chicken again, but it sounded the best out of the special options. And that was actually good. But haha, when the waiter took the soup away he asked if I didn't like it with a smile, and I confirmed (in Spanish -- final meal biz was all en espanol there).
I had two beers with my bill and when I got la cuenta, I saw I was only charged for one. That was nice. Both my first meal in Madrid and the last had a comped drink.
Headed back out and through Puerta del Sol/Vodaphone Sol/Sol and ultimately back to the hotel. Got aggressively propositioned by a prostitute on the way back lol -- that was a first here in Madrid. Headed back up to the room and got to the business of sorting out my luggage situation, as I had a morning flight out of Madrid the next day. Finished out a few more beers and didn't get as far with packing as I had planned, as I crashed out on the nice king-sized bed. Buenas noches to me.
I decided to cancel my online reservation I had made a few days at Botin, known as the world's oldest restaurant (and recognized in the Guiness Book of World Record as such). Got to thinking about how the restaurant got generally bad service reviews, was really expensive (I would have spent about $100 US dollars for just me), and the fact that I had to identify my country of origin when I made the reservation (possibly subjecting me to even crappier service), I decided to cancel it. I was planning to have their house special lunch: gazpacho and roast suckling pig -- which didn't really even sound good to me then. So, I decided to lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe instead. Haha, what an American I am.
Made a long roundabout walk across town to get to HRC, and my timing was perfect -- I snatched up one of the few open tables just before 2pm, when a lot of people started showing up. For whatever reason the half a BBQ chicken sounded awesome to me (I would typically get ribs, or a burger) -- and it was. Along with 3 beers. And a cafe con leche afterwards since maybe just a litle of Europe has rubbed off on me :)
When I was through with HRC I was thinking of going to visit the Palacio Real, but decided not to. Headed back to the hotel and decided to formally complain about my room (the construction noise had been consistently starting early, lasting throughout the day) -- and in channeling my diplomatic but firm grown man-ness I succeeded in getting upgraded to a top floor (9th) room that was double the size and had a window view of the entire city. Sweet!
Got my stuff up to the new room and ultimately headed back out to go see the Templo de Debod. I had passed by it quite a few different times on my hop-on/hop-off bus excursions, and the one time I walked through that area it was closed. It was this time and I got to go inside what is an ancient Egyptian temple that was given to Spain as a gift from Egypt back in the 1960s/70s. It was two stories and had ancient hieroglyphics etched into many of the walls. Pretty cool -- I was excited for my trip for one reason for being able to see things hundreds of years old -- and I ended it with seeing a temple that was truly thousands of years old.
After the Temple I headed back to the hotel as I wanted to catch my last Iberian sunset from the rooftop terrace. I had the terrace to myself to ruminate over the fading light (note: sunsets in Madrid don't happen until after 9pm here in March/April).
I decided to make one final walkaround town and maybe stop in somewhere for a drink and maybe a tapa or two. Ended up checking out something else on my to-do list -- a Museo de Jamon. They are all around the touristy areas, but filled with both locals and tourists as the food and drinks are pretty cheap, and allegedly good. One part is an actual butcher shop, another part is a huge walk-up bar/counter where you order food and drinks and eat there, and then there's a separate dining area. The bar areas was packed so I decided to do a final sit-down meal. Went with their house special -- and had probably the grossest soup I've ever had in my life. Salmorejo, it was called. Didn't even know what it was when I ordered it, haha. I thought it might be some ham tapa thing -- I was presented with a bowl of pink thick soup that had chunks of ham in the middle, and was dotted with olive oil in spots around the diced up ham chunks. The color and consistency reminded me of that picture/video of what McDonald's Chicken McNuggets are made from -- that pink chicken soft-serve like puree of muscle bits and connective tissues. So, I go to take a spoonful bite -- and it is COLD. Like it just came out of the refrigerator. And it tasted like -- pureed ham. Like what a ham milkshake might taste like. It was disgusting.
Second course was pollo al horno -- not sure why I wanted chicken again, but it sounded the best out of the special options. And that was actually good. But haha, when the waiter took the soup away he asked if I didn't like it with a smile, and I confirmed (in Spanish -- final meal biz was all en espanol there).
I had two beers with my bill and when I got la cuenta, I saw I was only charged for one. That was nice. Both my first meal in Madrid and the last had a comped drink.
Headed back out and through Puerta del Sol/Vodaphone Sol/Sol and ultimately back to the hotel. Got aggressively propositioned by a prostitute on the way back lol -- that was a first here in Madrid. Headed back up to the room and got to the business of sorting out my luggage situation, as I had a morning flight out of Madrid the next day. Finished out a few more beers and didn't get as far with packing as I had planned, as I crashed out on the nice king-sized bed. Buenas noches to me.
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Day 28 - Madrid: Museo del Prado, Jardin Botanico, Rooftop Respite
This day's agenda was to primarily make it to the Museo del Prado, very much touted as THE significant museum here in Spain.
Got myself up, groomed and out of the room, and... I had bfast at the McDonald's next door. Haha. I've been being good in general with not giving in to American temptations, but... I had to do it once in Madrid, right? I have to say I was quite let down with the coffee -- am I becoming a cafe con leche snob now?
Anyway, finished grubbing down and caught the tourist double-decker bus to head down to the Museo. Got there, paid my admission and got the audioguia to aid me in navigating all things notable.
I was there a long time. Over 3 hours. My contact lenses dried out a few times and I had to re-moisten. And I still didn't listen to all of the audio, nor see all of the exhibits. Lots of good shit though, this heathen acknowledges. A lot of works by Diego Velazquez, Francisco Goya, El Greco... and also a lot of still lifes of fruit and chiascuro portraits that make my eyes glaze over after awhile.
I think the most notable painting was Jardin de las Delicias, or Garden of Earthly Delights, by the Holland painter El Bosco (Hieronymus Bosch). That painting was a trip. The painting was done in the 1500s, but uses the elements of early 20th century surrealism (such as in works by Salvador Dali).
After getting through most of the museum I hit up the gift shop, then the cafe. It was already past prime time midafternoon Spain eating, so I got some empanada thing that was translated to "Galician Meat Pie" -- it was good. And they had Cruzcampo beer -- what? Odd to see Andalucian beer in Madrid, for sure...
After food I left the museum and decided that since the botanic garden was next door, I might as well check it out. 3 Euros later (I was able to rid myself of a lot of pocket change, haha), I was in. And... underwhelmed? Hmm. Why did seeing some rosemary make me miss Santa Barbara (rosemary grows everywhere in SB, including my own yard)?
I gave the garden the proper respect of a full stroll, then left to head back to my hotel. Stopped off for some beers at a market -- the plan was to take in the sunset from that sweet hotel terrace.
Ended up getting some chips too -- ham flavored?! Yeah, they weren't that good haha. They tasted just like a ham steak -- in chip form.
The sunset view from the terrace was def nice, though. Very nice. I could get used to this.
Day 27 - Madrid: Hop On/Hop Off Bus Sightseeing, Plaza Mayor, Pastries, More After-Dark Bussing
Woke up early as my hotel here apparently has some construction going on. Not completely pleased with the situation, but trying to see the positive in that it doesn't let me sleep through half the morning.
Got up, got showered, got dressed, and got out to see what the day had to hold. Ended up revisiting a Spain chain fast-food place I hadn't had since Barcelona... Pans & Company. Got their breakfast special that landed me a cafe con leche and a breakfast sandwich "planchado" (meaning "ironed", haha), which gave me this huge panini-type sandwich thing with ham and cheese inside. Breakfast, done.
Found the nearest station that sold the hop-on/hop-off bus tour tickets, and bought my two-day pass (the difference between one day and two days was 4 Euro). Hopped on Ruta 1 and listened to all the narration for the entire route. Ended up realizing that I had already seen most of central Madrid on foot already, haha. Regardless, still good to get some perspective.
I learned that Plaza Mayor was a major spot for Madrid, as well as previously-mentioned Puerta del Sol/Vodaphone Sol/Sol. The audioguia went so far as to say Puerta del Sol is the center of Madrid and to many the center of Spain. Hmm... I hope that's not the case. It kind of wants to be like a Times Square, but it's not even anywhere near on that level. And given what I've seen of Spain, this tourist would argue vehemently with "Vodaphone Sol" being dubbed the center of Spain.
Anyway, if Barcelona felt like NYC a bit, then Madrid feels like DC. Lots of stately buildings, wide avenues, monuments, park space, and professional peoples.
After learning the significance of Plaza Mayor, I decided I'd late-afternoon dine it up there in one of the patio seating restaurants there. Picked a place that had a nice view but probably the worst tapa I've ever had. I thought I couldn't go too wrong with something with patatas -- turns out I could and did. The "fried pork" that was in this was like lechon (Filipino food item), but like 3x deep fried and then left under a heating lamp. Seriously, I was pulling bits of that pork out of my mouth like they were bones and putting them back on the plate, that meat was so overcooked. This is what I get for being super-touristy, I suppose. I know better.
I ended up wrapping up pretty quickly as soon as a bunch of futbol fanatics got seated one table away -- there were 12 I believe, all speaking in German and very animated about their love for whatever team they were rooting for. Haha. With all the cops I had seen aggregating around the plaza I figured this might be the scene of a crime -- I had seen a full-on bottle-breaking fight in Porto, Portugal down on the riverfront because of a futbol game. Since I don't care about futbol (soccer) at all and didn't want to be any part of the "festivities", I was quick to make an exit before things got stupid.
Headed back to the room for some respite, then went back out with intention of hitting the hop-on/hop-off bus after dusk to catch some of Madrid after dark. Hit up a pastry shop right in Puerta del Sol for a few items to take with me on the bus to munch on. Turned out I hit up a majorly historic pastry shop there -- La Mallorquina. I got a palmera and a napolitana something. They were delicious. I felt like the proverbial fat kid that loves cake as I munched away while on that tourist bus, haha. Took in some good sights, too.
Got up, got showered, got dressed, and got out to see what the day had to hold. Ended up revisiting a Spain chain fast-food place I hadn't had since Barcelona... Pans & Company. Got their breakfast special that landed me a cafe con leche and a breakfast sandwich "planchado" (meaning "ironed", haha), which gave me this huge panini-type sandwich thing with ham and cheese inside. Breakfast, done.
Found the nearest station that sold the hop-on/hop-off bus tour tickets, and bought my two-day pass (the difference between one day and two days was 4 Euro). Hopped on Ruta 1 and listened to all the narration for the entire route. Ended up realizing that I had already seen most of central Madrid on foot already, haha. Regardless, still good to get some perspective.
I learned that Plaza Mayor was a major spot for Madrid, as well as previously-mentioned Puerta del Sol/Vodaphone Sol/Sol. The audioguia went so far as to say Puerta del Sol is the center of Madrid and to many the center of Spain. Hmm... I hope that's not the case. It kind of wants to be like a Times Square, but it's not even anywhere near on that level. And given what I've seen of Spain, this tourist would argue vehemently with "Vodaphone Sol" being dubbed the center of Spain.
Anyway, if Barcelona felt like NYC a bit, then Madrid feels like DC. Lots of stately buildings, wide avenues, monuments, park space, and professional peoples.
After learning the significance of Plaza Mayor, I decided I'd late-afternoon dine it up there in one of the patio seating restaurants there. Picked a place that had a nice view but probably the worst tapa I've ever had. I thought I couldn't go too wrong with something with patatas -- turns out I could and did. The "fried pork" that was in this was like lechon (Filipino food item), but like 3x deep fried and then left under a heating lamp. Seriously, I was pulling bits of that pork out of my mouth like they were bones and putting them back on the plate, that meat was so overcooked. This is what I get for being super-touristy, I suppose. I know better.
I ended up wrapping up pretty quickly as soon as a bunch of futbol fanatics got seated one table away -- there were 12 I believe, all speaking in German and very animated about their love for whatever team they were rooting for. Haha. With all the cops I had seen aggregating around the plaza I figured this might be the scene of a crime -- I had seen a full-on bottle-breaking fight in Porto, Portugal down on the riverfront because of a futbol game. Since I don't care about futbol (soccer) at all and didn't want to be any part of the "festivities", I was quick to make an exit before things got stupid.
Headed back to the room for some respite, then went back out with intention of hitting the hop-on/hop-off bus after dusk to catch some of Madrid after dark. Hit up a pastry shop right in Puerta del Sol for a few items to take with me on the bus to munch on. Turned out I hit up a majorly historic pastry shop there -- La Mallorquina. I got a palmera and a napolitana something. They were delicious. I felt like the proverbial fat kid that loves cake as I munched away while on that tourist bus, haha. Took in some good sights, too.
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Day 26 - Madrid: Train Ride from Sevilla, Hotel Check-In, Afternoon Wandering & Shopping
Woke up and got myself packed and ready to check out of my hotel, and head on up to the train station for the final train ride of the entire trip. Ended up running a little late, and by the time I got out of the hotel, up to the train station, through the initial check-in -- I was boarding the train within minutes of its departure. Haha, it all worked out.
Was initially bummed to find myself directly across from a tercera edad guy holding a maybe-two-year-old girl at the face-to-face table seating, but it ended up being fine. Actually, I ended up feeling bad for the guy -- the little girl was fussy for a good part of the 3+ hour train ride, so he would disappear with her for 20+ minutes at a time to indulge in her desire to be up and walk around. Realized he was by himself with the little girl and helped him with his stroller when we deboarded at Madrid.
Got off the train finally with my heavy luggage (although I left behind three dingy & baggy button-down shirts, along with a pair of jeans at the Sevilla hotel room), and got over to the metro station. I knew that my destination station was Puerta del Sol (translates to Door of the Sun, easy enough) -- but I could not find that as a destination when I was looking at the map. Ended up asking one of the two attendants if the station labeled "Vodaphone Sol" was the same as "Puerta del Sol", and she confirmed it was. Ok, that made sense, since it was in the center of the city, where I was staying.
So I go to buy my ticket, and there is no "Vodaphone Sol" station. Nor a "Puerta del Sol". After paging through all the stations I ended up concluding that the station "Sol" might very well be yet another name for my destination. A follow-on question to the attended confirms this. Puerta del Sol, Vodaphone Sol, Sol -- all the same station. Fair enough. I go to buy the ticket and -- my card gets stuck in the machine. Ay de mi. Get that worked out and finally purchase my 1,20 Euro ticket.
Metro ride was easy breezy, as was the trek from the station to the hotel (albeit uphill -- I have come to expect this. Anytime I need to trek somewhere with luggage, it will be uphill. Work them hamstrings and glutes... positive thinking. The power(s) that be want me to have strong legs. Fine.).
Checked into the hotel and got to my room. After getting settled in decided to check out the 9th floor terrace I was told was available for guests' use. Very cool.
Got out to see some of Madrid for myself. Used the hotel map to basically aid in getting myself all turned around and lost. Haha. Madrid feels international and (even moreso) English-language-friendly than Barcelona. Geez, Barcelona feels like so long ago at this point.
Stopped into a cerveceria nearby that didn't look to touristy for lunch -- and indeed it wasn't. I was the only person the bartender/waitress converted to English (sometimes) for (I have this thing where when I speak in Spanish to start out conversations the other party then assumes I am all fluent and replies/talks rapid-fire... and I end up asking (albeit in Spanish) questions to verify what I heard. Then they will go to English lol). I had to navigate her narration of what specials of the day were still left for the day in Spanish though (I was late in getting food), and I ended up hearing correctly for my first choice of the pasta with chorizo, then the chicken and potatoes for the second course. Got my cafe con leche to wrap it up. There were also two beers consumed -- now back to Estrella Damm, since that's what was on tap given I'm no longer in Andalucia.
Headed out to explore some more. Admittedly feeling more than a bit road-weary, I wasn't all that impressed with what I was seeing. Maybe I have become a jaded traveler. However, I will acknowledge that Madrid is probably the most Westerner-friendly walking city I've walked through yet on the Iberian Peninsula.
I decided a hop-on/hop-off bus was in order -- the significance of the memorials, the plazas I was walking through were not evident. Decided to call it a day and hopefully wake up with renewed energy for city 7 of 7...
Some Day 1 of Madrid pics:
Stumbling upon the Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz statue was a trip -- I remember reading/studying her back in college.
Was initially bummed to find myself directly across from a tercera edad guy holding a maybe-two-year-old girl at the face-to-face table seating, but it ended up being fine. Actually, I ended up feeling bad for the guy -- the little girl was fussy for a good part of the 3+ hour train ride, so he would disappear with her for 20+ minutes at a time to indulge in her desire to be up and walk around. Realized he was by himself with the little girl and helped him with his stroller when we deboarded at Madrid.
Got off the train finally with my heavy luggage (although I left behind three dingy & baggy button-down shirts, along with a pair of jeans at the Sevilla hotel room), and got over to the metro station. I knew that my destination station was Puerta del Sol (translates to Door of the Sun, easy enough) -- but I could not find that as a destination when I was looking at the map. Ended up asking one of the two attendants if the station labeled "Vodaphone Sol" was the same as "Puerta del Sol", and she confirmed it was. Ok, that made sense, since it was in the center of the city, where I was staying.
So I go to buy my ticket, and there is no "Vodaphone Sol" station. Nor a "Puerta del Sol". After paging through all the stations I ended up concluding that the station "Sol" might very well be yet another name for my destination. A follow-on question to the attended confirms this. Puerta del Sol, Vodaphone Sol, Sol -- all the same station. Fair enough. I go to buy the ticket and -- my card gets stuck in the machine. Ay de mi. Get that worked out and finally purchase my 1,20 Euro ticket.
Metro ride was easy breezy, as was the trek from the station to the hotel (albeit uphill -- I have come to expect this. Anytime I need to trek somewhere with luggage, it will be uphill. Work them hamstrings and glutes... positive thinking. The power(s) that be want me to have strong legs. Fine.).
Checked into the hotel and got to my room. After getting settled in decided to check out the 9th floor terrace I was told was available for guests' use. Very cool.
Got out to see some of Madrid for myself. Used the hotel map to basically aid in getting myself all turned around and lost. Haha. Madrid feels international and (even moreso) English-language-friendly than Barcelona. Geez, Barcelona feels like so long ago at this point.
Stopped into a cerveceria nearby that didn't look to touristy for lunch -- and indeed it wasn't. I was the only person the bartender/waitress converted to English (sometimes) for (I have this thing where when I speak in Spanish to start out conversations the other party then assumes I am all fluent and replies/talks rapid-fire... and I end up asking (albeit in Spanish) questions to verify what I heard. Then they will go to English lol). I had to navigate her narration of what specials of the day were still left for the day in Spanish though (I was late in getting food), and I ended up hearing correctly for my first choice of the pasta with chorizo, then the chicken and potatoes for the second course. Got my cafe con leche to wrap it up. There were also two beers consumed -- now back to Estrella Damm, since that's what was on tap given I'm no longer in Andalucia.
Headed out to explore some more. Admittedly feeling more than a bit road-weary, I wasn't all that impressed with what I was seeing. Maybe I have become a jaded traveler. However, I will acknowledge that Madrid is probably the most Westerner-friendly walking city I've walked through yet on the Iberian Peninsula.
I decided a hop-on/hop-off bus was in order -- the significance of the memorials, the plazas I was walking through were not evident. Decided to call it a day and hopefully wake up with renewed energy for city 7 of 7...
Some Day 1 of Madrid pics:
Stumbling upon the Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz statue was a trip -- I remember reading/studying her back in college.
Monday, April 21, 2014
Day 25 - Sevilla: Easter Sunday Desayuno, (End of) Mass at the Cathedral, River Walk, Macarena, Alcazar... and Easter Pizza?
So, Sunday was Easter Sunday, and the final wrap-up of my week of Semana Santa in Andalucia. Decided I would go somewhere and have a full breakfast with patio seating, and I did just that. What I didn't realize is that I think I ended up picking a place that catered to British tourists. There weren't that many breakfast options.
After breakfast I headed into the centro to see about seeing the Cathedral again. As it turns out, they were holding Mass when I showed up and they were letting tourists in the side viewing area to the right of the altar. I entered right as they were about to give Communion.
I stayed through the end of the Mass. I know that it wasn't too many years ago that all of Mass was said in Latin, but it still surprised me that some of the song was in fact in Latin at this Mass. That was all though, the rest was in Spanish. It surprised me that what little of the Mass I caught (the tail end) still resonated so much. Thousands of miles away, it was like being at a Mass in Cali -- the same basic messages being conveyed. I particularly liked the way the priest began his final remarks -- he started by explaining the origin of word "Pascua" (Easter Sunday in Spanish is Domingo de Pascua) -- translating back to the word originally for "paso." He tied it into his general parting remarks -- I won't get it across well here in English, but needless to say I am glad I attended what I did.
After the Mass, I headed out to the riverfront and decided to go for a walk along the river.
One of the many bridges that crosses the Guadalquivir River.
I knew I had to be at the Alcazar at 3pm for my appointed visit time. As it turned out, I ended up walking basically the entire length of the river through town without realizing it. When I pulled out my map to figure out where I was, I realized I was very near the Basilica de La Macarena. I didn't think I was going to make it over to that church since it was completely on the other side of town, but there I was.
It was funny, the weather was fine for the entire duration of my walk along the river, but not but within a minute of coming in and crossing the main boulevard that runs along the riverfront, it started raining.
The two pasos on display that must have been used during the week's processions.
After leaving the Basilica I decided to head across and through the entire maze of central Sevilla to get back to the Alcazar, which was basically on the entire other side. Ended up stopping and buying another 3 Euro umbrella as I didn't have one with me and I was getting soaked, tall buildings and narrow one-lane streets notwithstanding.
Made it to the Alcazar with maybe 15 minutes to spare before my 3pm entry time. Wandered through a few souvenir shops and made the 3pm entry time, on time.
I spent maybe 2 hours in the Alcazar? A little more? Some of it was quite impressive, but after seeing the Alhambra in Granada it was hard to be that mesmerized by the Moorish architecture and tilework in the Alcazar. Although, the interior of the palaces in the Alcazar were much more recent and well preserved, which should be given proper credit. The extensive gardens were nice, and if anything a nice respite from the otherwise busy and constrained feel to the centro in Sevilla.
Also, it was still raining for a good fair amount of my time at the Alcazar.
After the Alcazar I made my way back to the room, as my shoes and pants were soaked through wet from the rain (thankfully I was wearing khakis instead of jeans, so they weren't all heavy and cold). Once back to the room, ultimately decided the plan was to go to an ATM and get cash (I had less than 15 Euros on me), then see about getting some beers and some tapas nearby for my final night in Sevilla.
I leave the hotel and it is pouring, torrential rain. So bad that people with umbrellas are ducking into doorways. My clean, dry shoes (my *expensive* running shoes, no less) get completely soaking wet, along with my dark heavy jeans within the two short blocks that I walk to the ATM (I could see it from the front steps of the hotel). THEN the ATM rejects my card. So, I am soaking wet from the knees down even with the umbrella, still low on cash -- and it is still pouring rain. I recalled seeing I could order pizza delivery from the room, and scratched the prospect of ordering drinks and tapas while in squishy shoes and cold, wet pants.
It took over an hour for that Easter pizza and combo appetizer to arrive. I was starving. However, apparently in Sevilla the Telepizza places don't cut the pizzas??
My guess is they probably just forgot to cut mine. Oh well. I didn't have any type of cutting utensil so I went Neanderthal mode and ripped it in half, then chomped away. Funny, my Ethpanol appetite just isn't the same as it was in the US. Couldn't even finish half of the thing.
(Note: I don't ever post pics of half-eaten food -- to me it's one step away from posting pictures of garbage (I blame this on my days spent working as a dishwasher in a cafeteria), however... this one makes me laugh.)
Feliz Domingo de Pascua a mi! Looking forward to Madrid for the last leg of this Iberian Peninsula journey!
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Day 24 - Sevilla: Final Travel Plans & Deliberations, An Almost-Trip to Cadiz, Torre de Oro
So yesterday was kind of a down day (not being much of a tourist per se) -- I had to figure out how I was getting to Madrid and what my Madrid hotel would be. I ended up heading the couple blocks up to the train station to buy my train ticket up to Madrid on Monday -- only to find that they were apparently completely sold out on Monday. Uh oh. This was at the automated machines, though. I figured I should at least fully verify it with an actual ticket agent, so I go inside to see. It's a take-a-number situation, and they were like 25 numbers behind me. Waited 5 minutes and they moved up like 2 numbers.
Said screw that and went and had a late breakfast at the Roldan cafe place there at the station (it's a chain here in Spain I think; I've seen it elsewhere). I love that you get cafe AND zumo de naranja almost everywhere here when you eat breakfast (note: this is specific to being here in the Iberian Penisula) -- have I mentioned how damn good the OJ is here?! So, so good. And most places have juicers right behind the counter that they throw the oranges into so that the OJ is fresh-squeezed on the spot (this was the case in Portugal too). Anyway, this ham and cheese sandwich thing was a construct-yourself situation -- I had my little cup of sliced up ham, a little cup of pureed tomato, and two little pre-packaged things of... olive oil. Never seen that before. Regardless, it was actually pretty good when I put it all on my bread and proceeded to send on down the hatch.
Anyway, I was also trying to figure out what I was going to do if I wasn't going to be able to get out of Sevilla on Monday. Stay another night here? Nah. I tried the Alsa bus website, but ended up finding that they were also sold out too. Looked up flights from Sevilla to Madrid, and cheapest that came up was like $350, with some lame stopover somewhere farther away than either my origin or destination.
What to do? How about I go somewhere ELSE then? Pulled up Spain's map, and ended up deciding on Cadiz. Got all the way planning through the Monday train to Cadiz, the one night there (which was really cheap at most places right on the beach too (its a beach city)) and the train ride from Cadiz up to Madrid on Tuesday (thus giving me 3 nights in Madrid instead of 4). I even went so far as to cancel the reservation at the Madrid hotel I had made just that morning before heading to the train station to buy my ticket.
Went up to the automated machines again to buy my ticket to Cadiz on Monday -- and my credit card wouldn't work. So, I headed inside to try again with the ticket agent... by now the backlog of people had subsided and I was talking to a guy within a few minutes. Decided to just confirm 100% that all seats were sold out on Monday... and it turns out they weren't. Apparently the face-to-face seats with the table in the middle... the ones I was complaining about for the ride from Granada to Sevilla? Apparently they don't sell those as single tickets at the automated machines... you have to secure one of those from an actual agent. So, I scrapped Cadiz and bought the AM ticket to Madrid on Monday.
Went back to the hotel to rebook my Madrid hotel. Got up to my room and it was being cleaned. Sigh. Lady was nice, though... grabbed my laptop and dropped some other stuff. Went down to the lobby, sat down and got to work... and a deskop computer with a printer next to it caught my eye. Finished up the room booking, but thought about the fact that for a lot of the major sites you can pre-pay for your ticket at an appointed time -- if you're able to print your ticket. Checked with reception and verified the computer and printer were free for my leisurely use -- sweet. Bought my ticket to the Alcazar for 3pm on Easter Sunday. I looked up the cathedral, but decided I didn't trust the website because it was saying ticket purchases were available all day, and I knew with it being Easter Sunday that couldn't be the case.
Anyway, enough of this blah, blah, blah. Traveling is FUN. So, to go make something of the day. Decided I was going to try for the Cathedral again. And again, nope. I did catch a procession nearby though.
Headed out to the riverfront and decided to tour the Torre de Oro. Got some great vantage points for seeing all of Sevilla in a 360 degree view.
Said screw that and went and had a late breakfast at the Roldan cafe place there at the station (it's a chain here in Spain I think; I've seen it elsewhere). I love that you get cafe AND zumo de naranja almost everywhere here when you eat breakfast (note: this is specific to being here in the Iberian Penisula) -- have I mentioned how damn good the OJ is here?! So, so good. And most places have juicers right behind the counter that they throw the oranges into so that the OJ is fresh-squeezed on the spot (this was the case in Portugal too). Anyway, this ham and cheese sandwich thing was a construct-yourself situation -- I had my little cup of sliced up ham, a little cup of pureed tomato, and two little pre-packaged things of... olive oil. Never seen that before. Regardless, it was actually pretty good when I put it all on my bread and proceeded to send on down the hatch.
Anyway, I was also trying to figure out what I was going to do if I wasn't going to be able to get out of Sevilla on Monday. Stay another night here? Nah. I tried the Alsa bus website, but ended up finding that they were also sold out too. Looked up flights from Sevilla to Madrid, and cheapest that came up was like $350, with some lame stopover somewhere farther away than either my origin or destination.
What to do? How about I go somewhere ELSE then? Pulled up Spain's map, and ended up deciding on Cadiz. Got all the way planning through the Monday train to Cadiz, the one night there (which was really cheap at most places right on the beach too (its a beach city)) and the train ride from Cadiz up to Madrid on Tuesday (thus giving me 3 nights in Madrid instead of 4). I even went so far as to cancel the reservation at the Madrid hotel I had made just that morning before heading to the train station to buy my ticket.
Went up to the automated machines again to buy my ticket to Cadiz on Monday -- and my credit card wouldn't work. So, I headed inside to try again with the ticket agent... by now the backlog of people had subsided and I was talking to a guy within a few minutes. Decided to just confirm 100% that all seats were sold out on Monday... and it turns out they weren't. Apparently the face-to-face seats with the table in the middle... the ones I was complaining about for the ride from Granada to Sevilla? Apparently they don't sell those as single tickets at the automated machines... you have to secure one of those from an actual agent. So, I scrapped Cadiz and bought the AM ticket to Madrid on Monday.
Went back to the hotel to rebook my Madrid hotel. Got up to my room and it was being cleaned. Sigh. Lady was nice, though... grabbed my laptop and dropped some other stuff. Went down to the lobby, sat down and got to work... and a deskop computer with a printer next to it caught my eye. Finished up the room booking, but thought about the fact that for a lot of the major sites you can pre-pay for your ticket at an appointed time -- if you're able to print your ticket. Checked with reception and verified the computer and printer were free for my leisurely use -- sweet. Bought my ticket to the Alcazar for 3pm on Easter Sunday. I looked up the cathedral, but decided I didn't trust the website because it was saying ticket purchases were available all day, and I knew with it being Easter Sunday that couldn't be the case.
Anyway, enough of this blah, blah, blah. Traveling is FUN. So, to go make something of the day. Decided I was going to try for the Cathedral again. And again, nope. I did catch a procession nearby though.
Headed out to the riverfront and decided to tour the Torre de Oro. Got some great vantage points for seeing all of Sevilla in a 360 degree view.
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