So today after our flight was 1 hour delayed (damn Ryanair!) we managed to arrive safely into Madrid, navigate our way to the hotel and get a good nights rest.
I got such a suprise at how warm it was at night! Was great!
Our hotel was perfect, large and roomy, with air con!!
The lift was TINY! Seriously - there were 2 lifts and one of them was only a 2 man lift, WITHOUT bags! Was hilarious!!
Saturday, August 22, 2009
our first day in Madrid we had a bit of a sleep in and headed out.The temperature was already climbing and getting hot! And of course me coming from chilly London it was taking its toll on me... I had a headache by lunchtime and discovered how important water was in the heat!
We didnt have much planned for the day so we just wandered around the city and checked out the sites, the Plaza's and buildings.
The main Plaza - Plaza Mayor was huge and seemed to be a busy bustling place. Somewhere where you could sit (in the shade) and people watch for hours I imagine.
We got a good feel for the city walking all around - and after a tapas lunch we headed to Reitro Park in the Bourbon area of Madrid. Smoking inside!!
By this time the temperature had already reached 42 degrees and at around 4.30pm we decided to head back to the hotel for a siesta as we were both hot and sweaty and tired from the heat.
After our much needed siesta we headed out for a tapas dinner and some beer at a small resturant. We then decidded to stop for a drink on the way home, and got chatting to some American's - one of whom was a pilot..
On the walk home we stopped at the Plaza Mayor.. Man what a difference between the day and night times!
During the day there were childrens entertainers, spidermans, mickey mouses with balloons and more, but by night they were gone and there were people dressed in scary costumes, heads on boards, definatley not an area for the small kids after dark. Was almost like a ghost house or something similar. Was pretty awesome though!
Sunday, August 23, 2009In the morning we headed out to Ventas to buy our tickets for the bull fight that evening, we decided to go to a little local place for some food.Still cant get used to the smoking in doors! Scott ordered a beef burger and I ordered a ham and cheese sandwhich – we both pointed to our choices on the menu (in hope to avoid confusion) But 10 minutes later 2 chicken burgers and chips arrived in front of us!! And they were disgusting… Obviously our Spanish isn't too great!
We then headed back into the city and checked out the Sunday Flea Markets - where you could buy anything from food to clothes to household applicanes to toys to dvds to porn! It was insane! So much random stuff and so much junk!
Later in the evening we headed to the bull fight – I was a bit nervous having heard the things that happen at bull fights and having so many people tell me how cruel it is etc etc… but after the 2nd one I was enjoying it. Yes it was cruel to the bull that eventually dies but hey – all in the name of a cultural sport right!?!
So it started out with the matadors tormenting the bull… flashing their pink capes to get the bull to chase them, then they quickly duck in behind these little wooden man sized pocket holes in the arena… this winding the bull up and getting him running round chasing whoever he can. Then they have to soften his neck muscles, and to this they again wave their pink capes to get his attention and as he runs towards on of the matadors the other one quickly throw mini dagger spike things into his back and neck. Again making him angry! (Of course) And if that wasn’t enough, they then bring out 2 horses, the matadors flash their capes and the bull charges for the horse which is blinded by carpet (covering his body and eyes) and the man on the horse stabs the bull in the back of the neck and spine, weakening the bull so he is ready for the main matador to show his stuff!
The main matador then comes out dressed up all pretty and branding his red cape… ducking, diving and twirling away from the bull every time he slowly charges The Sunday Markets
This goes on for about 10 minutes – whilst the crowd chant "Olay" every time he does a good one! Then afterwards – for the finale, the matador brings out his sword and as the bull charges the matador sharply stabs the bull in the back of the neck, just behind the head with such force that he goes down to the ground (sometimes it takes the matador a few tries, or the bull gets stabbed but doesn’t go down for a few mins, but after being tormented by the other matadors again he starts walking round in circles and eventually falls to the floor. A matador then comes over and finishes him off with a small dagger to the back of the spine.
Then the horses come out with heroic music playing and they drag the bull away!!
This routine was repeated 4 or 5 times by different matadors to impress the judges and the crowds.
So was that so bad? No, yes the bull dies but hey, he has fun doing it!
After the bull fight we then went back to the main square and had some sangria at a little local pub/restaurant by the Puerta De Sol.
Monday, August 24, 2009Monday was a cooler day 32 degrees! We had a nice sleep in and then headed back to the temple at the Plaza De Espana, it was an ancient Egyptian temple which overlooked the western area of the city and was quite unique I thought.
We then walked along and went inside the Royal Palace… We weren't allowed to take any photos inside the palace which was a shame… but there wasn’t anything too fascinating about it really, another extravagant palace where the King and Queen once lived. Still good to go inside though!
We had a bit of time to kill after that so we headed out the Real Madrid Stadium. I really wanted to do a tour of the place but it was 15€ and the queue was way too long to bear! It was pretty impressive though and I believe there was a game on there that night too!
For dinner we went to a for Paella and Tapas and Spanish Beer – mmmmm paella
I believe that this was the restaurant where I learnt the true meaning of "smoked ham" as the guy behind the bar was slicing up Scotts ham for his meal whilst smoking on his cigarette! Mmmmm smoked ham!
We had an early night tonight as we had a 6am flight to Valencia which meant a 4am wake up call!
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