When we landed in the motherland, I was at once impressed with Madrid’s pristine and modern Terminal 1 at the
Barajas Airport. The fifth in Europe
and 11th in the world, more than 52 million people passed through this hub in
2007. It is the world’s largest airport
in terms of area covered by the terminal buildings—over 11 million square feet,
in fact. All of the signs are visible
and easy to follow here. After admiring some of the interesting murals
on display, we were anxious to get to our hotel. As for the metro, having aced the one in
Brussels, Madrid’s was a piece of cake considering that both of us spoke fluent
Spanish.
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| Another view of La Gran Via |
In no time, the we had arrived at our hotel.
With Cristina's acute sense of direction and
map-reading skills, we had no problem finding the hotel. El Gran Tripp is conveniently located just steps
from La Gran Via metro stop, on the famously ornate and upscale boulevard by
the same name. The hotel was perfect –
clean, modern, and affordable.
“Finally,
it is happen to me!” The moment we got
in and I got a good look at our room, I broke out in song to the lyrics
of Cece Peniston’s “Finally”.
“Mom, you are CRAZY!”
Ignoring my daughter, I went on singing,
as I scoped out our chic and roomy accommodations.
“Finally! A place to lay our weary heads! But not before taking a nice, warm
shower. Ah, what a beautiful thing! To be able to shower and nap after two days of
travel! We’re finally home, Crissy. Well of course, not home, home, but somewhere
we can call home, if only for a few days.”
My tendency to ramble was a telltale sign
of the fatigue. While Cristina, my polar opposite,
speaks only when absolutely necessary.
“Mom, you are too much. I am convinced that you can talk forever.”
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| Fuente de Cibeles |
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| Beautiful buildings abound in Madrid |
Madrid is a city bustling with life and
bursting with seemingly content people—a style of life so palpable one can
almost stretch out their hand and touch it.
I felt at home immediately, and
at once welcomed and relished the way everyone merrily went about life—so different
from what we’d experienced in Brussels, or even back in New York. Madrileños
seemed to be out and about everywhere, sitting on street and park benches just shooting
the breeze, or at the cafés and taperias; but always savoring the precious
life around them. I wondered if they
had always been this way. It was only in
1975 when Generalisimo Franco died and Spain transitioned into a democracy.
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| Madrid at night |
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| Puerta de Alcala |
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| the city is even more beautiful at night! |
As in other European cities, street
crossings are equipped with mechanical sounds that emulate the chirping of
birds, indicating that it’s safe to cross (presumably for the hearing-impaired).
This had a soothing and calming effect
on me. Paradoxically, while at once I felt
part of this groove, I also had the feeling of being in an alien world. There
was definitely a different vibe here – invigorating, yet at the same time
mind-numbingly relaxing. For some
reason, I couldn’t remember ever having experienced this unique laid-back
attitude in New York City—maybe because this lifestyle did not exist in the Big
Apple.
The large number of Madrileños sitting and
sharing pleasant conversation 'al aire
libre' as they indulged in hot chocolate and assorted sweet rolls and/or ham and eggs, struck us.
Some, even drinking wine that early in the morning. Here,
time seemed to stand still. And I had
distinct feelings of déjà vu, as if watching a silent movie playing right
before my eyes, while at the same time feeling like we were
characters acting out our respective roles in the movie.
As we waited for breakfast, I skimmed my book: “La Gran Via, one of the city's most important shopping areas, with a
large number of hotels and large movie theaters, is also noted for the grand
architecture prevalent among many of its buildings. Nowadays most of the theaters are being
replaced by shopping malls. “Spanish
Broadway” is considered a showcase of early 20th century architecture, with
patterns ranging from the Vienna Cessesion, Plateresque, and Neo-Mudejar, to
Art Deco.”
Needless to say, I was in my glory.
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| in front of one of many tapas bars.. |
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| we passed this beautiful church while touring at night |
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| my new Spanish friend... |
After touring the city, we decided on
tapas for dinner. Our quest for tapas
took us past the area where the 'ladies of the night' were conducting their
business.
“It’s heartbreaking to see such young girls engaging
in that trade. That girl can’t be more
than sixteen,” I observed. “And she’s being
shoved around by her pimp.”
Being the mother of two girls, I couldn’t help feel empathy for the
pretty young girl.
Not long after, a policeman arrived at the
scene and both the pimp and the girl disappeared down an alley. This particular event was upsetting to me, who
tends to feel everyone’s pain, particularly in situations where I am hopeless to act. It put somewhat of a
damper on our otherwise first day in el Foro, as some Madrileños
refer to their city.
Not far from El Prado Museum, the part of
town we were in was busy and bustling with nightlife. And one couldn't help but be captivated by it all.
The taperia was about to close for the night, but we managed
to sneak in, in the nick of time. After
securing a table in a cozy corner of the establishment, I got up to place our order at the counter: jamón Serrano, croquetas, and empanadillas among
other savory delectables, accompanied by a tall glass of ice-cold sweet Mahou
beer. I had never tasted anything as mouthwatering,
as sweet, and as delicious as Mahou clara—a refreshing picker-upper made with
equal parts beer and Sprite or lemon soda, and served in a cana glass. The Spanish version of a shandy, these
refreshing sweet drinks are more popular in Western Europe than in other parts
of the world. After the episode we had witnessed with the young
prostitute and her pimp, I welcomed and relished my choice of sedative. Like
tapas, Mahou beer is distinctively Spanish.
And I could not get enough of the icy cold, sweet concoction.
“I am not a beer drinker, but from my
first taste of this stuff, I am definitely hooked,” I confided to Cristina. She could only laugh—I tend to dramatize
just about everything.
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| La Gran Via |
We could have stayed in Madrid for the
major part of the trip, but there was still so much to do and see to limit
themselves to just one city. So immediately after breakfast, on the third
day we walked the entire distance from the hotel, to a car rental
on the far end of La Gran Via where we lucked out with a brand new Mercedes/Benz
for the price of a regular car.
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| Plaza de Espana |
The next day we were off to tour El Escorial, the King Philip's summer palace and El Convento Las Descalzas Reales.
Check back for our adventure at El Escorial.
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| El Metropolis Building |
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| The Westin Palace |
