Even more Madrid!

We're back in San Antonio. Our flight from Newark, New Jersey, was a tad delayed, so we didn't get in until after 11:30 p.m. Monday, San Antonio time, which was 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, Madrid time. Since we woke up at 6:30 a.m. Monday in Madrid to have breakfast and make it to the hotel's lobby by 8: 15 a.m., it was a full 24 hours of travel. I'm happy to report that we all made it back safe and sound.

I'm also happy to report that I stepped on the scale yesterday morning, and didn't gain a pound! The secret? WALKING. WALKING, and MORE WALKING. Even though we had ice cream for dessert almost every night and I drank too many cups of San Gines chocolate (and vino tinto) to count, I didn't gain any weight. Plus, I'm in much better shape than I was before we left. So, forget joining a gym! Just book a trip to Spain for three weeks!

I didn't have time to write about our adventures in Madrid while we were there since we were on the run non-stop. Here's a re-cap of our last several days there:

After dinner at Anonimatto on Thursday, Gary and I rook Richard to the hospital. He'd been running a fever on and off since Sevilla (about six days), and he wanted to get checked out before he began traveling on his own. (After our trip, he was flying to Belgium to visit several countries before meeting up with a group from SAC who will tour England, France and Italy.) I'd already made plans to meet up with the rest of my Spanish family, so I didn't stay long at the hospital. ER ("Urgencia") waiting rooms aren't any different from those in the U.S. Lots of sitting around.

When I got to my Spanish family's piso on Cea Bermudez, four of my five sisters were there: Maria, the baby; Silvia, second to the youngest and my same age; Maricarmen, third oldest; and Beatriz, the eldest. (Elena, the second to the oldest daughter, lives outside of Madrid, but we were able to see her son, Willie, who had spent the day with Pilar and Paco.) Beatriz suggested that we go to a nearby park so that the kids (Maricarmen's twin 8-year-old daughters, Willie, Carmen--Silvia's 13-year-old daughter, and Aedan) could play. I was once again impressed with Spain's dedication to creating enjoyable spaces for its citizens. Even though it was after 9 p.m., the park was full of joggers, walkers, strollers, golfers (driving range), and work-out enthusiasts (at an outdoor gym, sort of like one on Town Lake in Austin, but larger), all relishing the pleasant weather and beautiful setting. Giant fountains that shape shifted and color shifted were the park's best feature. The cool spray felt wonderful, and the girls loved dancing in the mist.

After walking around the park, we headed over to the playground so that the kids could climb and swing. It was so good to "catch up" with my sisters. They all lead busy, fulfilled lives, and I'm thrilled that we have remained friends over the past 25 years. It looks like the next generation will be friends, too. Aedan hit it off with Silvia and Samantha, the twins, so we're already planning to visit them in New Jersey and/or have them visit us in San Antonio. Aedan also enjoys being around Carmen, Silvia's daughter. I told her that she ought to come spend a summer with us to practice her English. Truthfully, I'd love for all of my Spanish family to come see us in Texas. They know that the welcome mat is always out.

We didn't say goodbye until after 11 p.m., so we didn't get to sleep until long after midnight. (Remember, transnocheras we're not.) We slept in late Friday morning and decided to skip Segovia since we'd visited there in 2004. (It's gorgeous, though, and I highly recommend that you spent at least one day there. Mother and Casey went and loved it, as did Steve. The Roman aqueduct is an amazing sight to behold.) After breakfast, Aedan, Blair and I went to the Museo Arqueologico Nacional (National Archeological Museum). It's massive, with a collection ranging from the evolution of mankind to the modern age. The Egyptian mummies, the Guarrazar treasures, the Alhambra jarrones (giant jars), and the Dama de Baza were my favorites of the collection.

After a little over two hours in the museum, Aedan and I had seen all that we wanted, so we left Blair behind. (He stayed for four and a half hours. Steve beat him, though. He visited the museum three separate occasions! Like I said, it's a massive museum with an incredible collection.)

Aedan and I walked to the Mercado de Fuencarral, a funky, Austin-like, three-story mini-mall, via Chueca, a gay neighborhood. While we were in town, Madrid was the official location of Europride, a gay/lesbian celebration, so the area was hopping. A band was rocking out in an outdoor plaza, and the drummer was wearing a hot pink lucha libre mask. He made me think of Melanie, one of my Oaxaca students, who looked for a mask for her fiancée while we were there in March. I was also reminded of Candace, another of my Palo Alto students, who won the Guitar Wars' Contest last year. I think she would have liked the band, which was heavy on the metal. I couldn't help but admire one attendee's t-shirt that read, "Make music, not missiles." I didn't find that t-shirt in the Mercado de Fuencarral, but I did find a brown one at a store named KLING that is covered in metallic gold polka dots. I don't know if I'll ever have the nerve to wear it in San Antonio, but it makes me happy just to look at it.

Aedan and I stopped to have lunch at a posh McDonald's (inlaid marble floors and high, gold-painted ceilings) on Gran Via. It was Aedan's fourth and final Happy Meal for the trip. (Not bad, since she ONLY ate at McDonald's in 2004.) She got the prince from Shrek 3 in this meal. I just ate a cheese bocadillo I had left over from breakfast and some of her french fries. We decided to go to El Corte Ingles, a high-end department store near Sol, after lunch, so I looked at a map to figure out the most direct route. We walked down Calle Montera, a street I'd never been on before, to get to Sol. Mercy! It's hooker alley. Young women dressed in short shorts, high heels, and tons of makeup were on parade. We'd already had a talk about this line of work after Dave's experience with the prostitutes in Barcelona, but hearing about it is much different than seeing it. Aedan's eyes were like saucers. (Mine were, too!) I'm sure she will have plenty to tell her fifth grade friends when she gets back to school in August. Yeesh. It made me sad.

We made it to Sol's El Corte Ingles without any incident, but we were told that all of the Spain souvenirs were now at the Callao store, not too far away. We walked over there and we found the purse that Aedan had been longing for: hot pink with MADRID written all over it in white lettering, save for one turquoise MADRID on each side. Adorable. We walked over to the Opera metro stop and made our way back to the hotel. After resting for a bit, we strolled down the street in front of the hotel, Paseo de La Florida. I wanted to buy a tube to put our posters and Aedan's caricature in, and I had seen a Chinese dollar store on my walks down to the locutorio that I wanted to visit. Success! We found a plastic tube at a papeleria (stationery store), and I found a cute pair of silk slip-on shoes (dragons and all!) at the Chinese dollar store. (It was odd to speak Spanish to someone whose native language is Chinese; however, I don't speak Chinese and she didn't speak English, so at least we were able to communicate in Spanish!) Aedan also scored a zoo of tiny stuffed animals that light up and say "I love you!" in English. We ran back to the hotel hoping that Blair would be back. (Aedan and I were out of cash.) Blair wasn't home, so we knocked on Richard's door. He spotted us the 10 Euros we needed until dinner.

Dinner was back at El Museo de Vino. I split a little jar of sangria with Steve. Oranges and lemons flavored the drink. Yum. Aedan and I went to San Gines after dinner. Several of my Palo Alto students were already there. Blair opted out. He went with Steve to a pub that serves all kinds of European beers. After San Gines, I asked the doorman at the disco Joy Eslava, which is next to San Gines, if I could walk Aedan through. I'd danced the night away there on more than one occasion 25 years ago. It's still as beautiful as ever. I went back into San Gines to tell the students to check it out. The doors opened at 11 p.m. Aedan and I headed back to our hotel. Blair wasn't far behind. They couldn't find the pub that Steve liked, but they managed to find another one that served Belgian beer.

On Saturday, Blair woke me up at 9:50 a.m.!!! My watch alarm went off at 8:30 a.m., but I turned it off. Good thing he woke up, or we would have missed breakfast. We saw Mariana and Richard at breakfast. I took off by myself to go to the Sorolla Museum and the Reina Sofia Museum. (Aedan was museumed out. She and Blair were going to lay low and perhaps hang out at a park.) From Principe Pio, I took the metro to Cuatro Caminos. While riding, I was reminded again of how Spain is a nation of newspaper readers. Almost everyone riding had a tabloid-sized paper in hand.

I was supposed to change to the turquoise line to go to the Iglesia metro stop, but I got off at Cuatro Caminos by mistake. After I walked up the 233 steps, a new record, I decided to walk the rest of the way to the museum. (I did not want to walk the 233 steps back down. My chest was still heaving. My thighs were burning, and my heartbeat was racing.) The walk from Cuatro Caminos to the museum was fairly long but totally worth it. Along the way, I saw framed prints of Botero's paintings that are now hanging in the San Antonio Museum of Art and the Southwest School of Art and Craft. I also stumbled upon an incredible jewelry store, Arte Mineral, at Santa Engracia, 88, where I purchased my fifteenth wedding anniversary present: two thin turquoise rings that "guard" my tenth wedding anniversary present, a gold rosary ring. (Blair was happy that he was off the hook.) I explained to the store's owner that I had made a mistake and gotten off at Cuatro Caminos instead of Iglesias, but I was glad that I had. He said, "No hay mal que por bien no venga." (There's no bad that good doesn't come.)

I got to the Sorolla Museum and felt right at home. The museum was one of my "haunts" during the year that I lived in Madrid, and I love being there. Sorolla was an Impressionist painter who was a contemporary of the French impressionists. Because he was Spanish and not French, he didn't receive the acclaim that they did, but I think his work is every bit as good or better. While I was walking through his home, which is where the museum is housed (a la the McNay), I came across one of my favorite paintings, "Mis Hijos". I said to the gentleman next to me, "Es como Velazquez." (It's like Velazquez.) He said, "Alguien dicen que el es mejor." (Some say that he's better than Velazquez.) Sorolla painted giant, realistic portraits, like John Singer Sargent, and he painted gorgeous beachscapes. He also painted amazing still lifes of his home's garden. He was a master of capturing light. Sorolla's home is quite beautiful, and you can tell that he made it that way to empower his painting. He was very influenced by La Alhambra's gardens, and the tiles and fountains throughout his outdoor gardens echo La Alambra's beauty. Once again, tears came to my eyes. Such beauty! Such talent! Do not miss the Sorolla Museum if you're in Madrid. It's free on Sundays. (Several of my students went, and I'm happy that they did. Mother and Casey went, too, and Mother said that it was one of the highpoints of her trip.)

From the Sorolla, I walked to the Iglesia metro stop and took the metro directly to the Atocha Renfe stop. When we were in Spain in 2004, we went by the Atocha station to pay our respects to those who had lost their lives on March 11. I wanted to stop in to do the same, and I was pleased to see that an official memorial had opened. You walk through glass doors into a room that lists all the names of those who were killed. You then walk into a bigger room that's painted royal blue, and a circle of light, almost like a theatre spotlight pointed directly down, beckons you. When you walk into the circle of light, you notice peaceful and encouraging words and phrases that are engraved onto a large, glass-like cylinder that goes up above the street. I'd seen the cylinder from the street level, but I didn't know what it was. I was glad that I made the trip inside.

When I left the station, I asked a street cleaner where the Reina Sofia Museum was. He said, "En frente de la fuente." (In front of the fountain.) That's a fun phrase to say, so I said it over and over as I walked to the museum. I visited the Reina Sofia when we were in Madrid back in 2004, but I felt rushed. It's a huge museum, and I wanted to take my time. I did, and I was blown away. First I strolled through a special exhibit, Louis Gordillo's "Tropical Iceberg". I was reminded of my brother-in-law Tobin's art. I think his work is every bit as good or better, and I wish he could get a show at the RS! I also saw a special exhibit of the artwork of the famed architect Le Corbusier. His sculpture of a woman carved out of wood reminded me of San Antonio artist Phil Evett's work.

I then traveled into yet another special exhibit, "Los Cineticos". I was blown away. Too many fantastic works to name them all. I was especially taken with work by Jose Patricio (domino floor), Rebecca Horn (motorized paint brushes that bend back and forth like a peacock), Jean Pierre Yvaral (paintings of Salvador Dali and Marilyn Monroe, all made out of either square or diamond shapes), Jesus Rafael Soto's "Penetrable" (a forest of plastic IV tubes hung from above that you walk through--an amazing sensation, sort of like walking through cool spaghetti), and Carlos Cruz-Diez's "Physichromie 22" (painted edges of cardboard in day-glo colors that were then arranged on their sides in a shallow box). It was an awe-inspiring showcase of creativity.

The second and fourth floors of the Reina Sofia hold the permanent collection. Lots of Picasso, Dali and Miro. Picasso's "Guernica" steals the show. I'm still moved each time I see the mother who is holding her dead child and crying out in anguish. I enjoyed seeing Texan Donald Judd's "Sin Titulo" (Without Title), a sculpture he did in 1992. As I was going down the elevator, I started talking to two guys from New York City. I told them not to miss "Los Cineticos," and they asked me where to go for chocolate after their museum visit. (They asked the right person! San Gines, of course.)

I had about an hour before I needed to meet our group for dinner, so I walked up Atocha toward Sol. I landed at a tavern down the street from our meeting place called La Tia Cebolla (Calle de la Cruz, 27). On the way there, I ran into a woman dressed in rainbow colored feathers and ruby red slippers. She was from Scotland, and she was with friends from Barcelona. I asked if I could take a picture of her, and her friend said that she would take a picture of me with her. Even better! We started chatting, and I found out they were in town for Europride and were headed to a huge parade.

At La Tia Cebolla, I asked for a tinto, and the waitress brought the wine and a plate of tapas (cubed cheese, sausage, and melba toast bites that were shaped like American footballs). I sat there, sipped my wine, enjoyed the tunes they were playing--a waitperson gave me a list of her favorites: Andres Calamara, Chambao, Los Delincuentes, Bebe, Kiko Veneno, Los Rodriguez, and Camaroy--and wrote in my Express-News reporter's notebook. Ah, Spain!

After dinner at El Museo de Vino (again), Blair, Aedan, Mariana and I went to a flamenco show at Casa Patas. (It started at 9 p.m., so it was perfect for us non-transnocheras; however, Mariana, la vampira, stayed out after the show, of course!) The dancers, one male and one female, were good, as were the two guitar players, the two singers, and the one cajon (percussion) player. It was a bit on the pricey side, 31 Euros, but you got up close and personal, and the price included one drink. After the show, Blair, Aedan and I headed for the hotel.

We slept in late on Sunday, and our friends Mari and Felix picked us up at the hotel at 11 a.m. The drive to their home, which is south of Madrid on the way to Toledo, only took about 30 minutes. They've lived there almost three years, and it's beautiful. It was so good to see Javier and Cristina, too. We also met Mari's mother, who's 80, for the first time. We felt like visiting royalty. Mari and Felix prepared a feast fit for kings and queens. After a stroll through Griñon and a stop at a local restaurant for a drink and some tapas (see Griñon entry), Felix bar-b-qued 11 (yes, ELEVEN!) types of meat: cordero, cinta de lomo, butifarra, pinchos morunos, hamburguesa, secreto, chorizo, morcilla, sardinas, and panceta. They also had jamon serrano, which we ate with melon. (Melon con jamon.) Delicious sweet and salty taste together. On top of all the meat, we also had tortilla española, gazpacho, a giant salad topped with all sorts of goodies, wine, beer, and an after-dinner drink called Mano de Santo (a liqueur made out of raisins). For dessert, Cristina and Mari made tiramisu with Cola Cao (sort of like Nestle's Quik or Ovaltine) instead of coffee. We thoroughly enjoyed laughing--at one point I asked Javier if he was allergic to anything. My allergies had been acting up in Madrid, and so had some of the students'. He said, "Work" without missing a beat!--and catching up and exchanging recipes with Mari, Felix, Javier and Cristina. We hope that we'll be able to return their hospitality in the very near future.

Mari, Felix and Cristina drove us back to our hotel in Madrid in time to meet our group at 6:30 p.m. Mother and Casey ran down to meet them, and I'm happy they did. We had dinner at Marciano again, but I couldn't eat a bite. I was afraid I might explode. I asked for a doggy bag. It's the first time I've had paella para llevar (paella to go). I did take all of the chicken out before packing it. I had some today, and it tasted great. After dinner, most everyone in the group went to see "Carmen" at the Teatro Reina Victoria. What a way to end our adventure! I've seen a lot of flamenco over the years, but this show topped them all. Sara Lezana choreographed Bizet's famous opera, and she even danced in the show. I don't know how old she is, but I do know this: she's still got it. Wow. What a dancer! I gave her a standing ovation after she finished, and she acknowledged my wild clapping with a nod. Truly, the show was breathtaking. The woman who played Carmen was superb. All of the guy dancers were great. The torredor, especially, was a knock out. I leaned over to Erica and whispered, "Wouldn't you like to take him home?!" She nodded yes, laughed, and passed it along to Sarah. If Arts San Antonio can bring the Royal Ballet to town, I don't see why they can't bring Ballet Flamenco de Madrid to town. I know that it would be a hit! I bought a program, and I wanted to buy a DVD. The guy selling programs said that they wouldn't be available until next week but that I could buy one then online. I'm going to.

After the show, we walked one last time through La Puerta del Sol to our final metro ride of this trip. I took a great picture of the Tio Pepe neon sign all lit up. I wish I could bottle Madrid and bring it home with us. Since I can't, we'll just have to go back. Like Mariana said in 2004, "Es como una droga!" (It's like a drug!) Spain is indeed an addiction you can't and don't want to break. I hope this blog has given Spain to you. Thanks for traveling with us!

Griñón, Spain

Blair, Aedan and I are in Griñón today visiting friends that we made during our 2004 Madrid stay. Mari, Félix, Javier, 20, and Cristina, 14, lived in our same apartment building, but they´ve since moved to a ¨chalet¨ (home) outside of Madrid. They invited us out to see their new place and to have lunch.

We just got back from a stroll through the village. It´s precious. Very tranquil, and only a 30-minute drive from Madrid. Félix takes the train (cercania) to Madrid´s center (across from the Real Madrid Soccer Stadium) every day, and it takes him about an hour to commute one way.

We had a cerveza and a sangría in a restaurant´s outdoor patio near the town square. The tapas were unbelievable. I had mejillones (mussels) with Spain´s version of pico de gallo: tomato, onion, green bell pepper, olive oil and vinegar. TO DIE FOR!!! The bacalao (fish) was also extraordinary. Blair had lacón, a smoked ham. Now, we´re back at La Casa de Los Márquez. Mari is making lunch, and Félix is getting the grill ready to bar-b-que outside. Javier has set me up on his computer, and it´s nice not to be charged by the minute to use it!

We have been running around Madrid like crazy, and I will write about all of our adventures once we return home. It´s been a great week, and it will be difficult to say goodbye to Spain. So, we won´t. We´ll just say ¨¡Hasta la próxima!¨or ¨Until the next time!¨