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Spain
| Journal Entries | Photos |
|---|---|
|
• Madrid by Andy (this page) [added Oct. 20, 2006] • Madrid by Liza [added Oct. 22, 2006] • Valencia by Andy [added Oct. 12, 2006] • Barcelona by Andy [added Nov. 5, 2006] • Sanxenxo, Galicia by Andy [added Nov. 15, 2006] • Seville [added Jan. 2, 2007] |
• Madrid [added Oct. 25, 2006] • Valencia [added Oct. 25, 2006] • Barcelona [added Oct. 25, 2006] • Basque Country [added Nov. 12, 2006] • León and Camino de Santiago [added Nov. 28, 2006] • Sanxenxo Photos [added Nov. 29, 2006] • Seville Photos [added Dec. 30, 2006] • Cordoba Photos [added Jan. 2, 2007] • Granada Photos [added Jan. 7, 2007] |
Larger map of Spain
Madrid, October 4-8 2006
As this is my first entry for the Web site, I will explain a little bit of how this
works. The entries here are written by both Andy and Liza, in the case they were
written by one or the other, authorship is indicated..
I began a journal in Madrid, but I had the misfortune of having it stolen, along with my jacket and guide book, in the Madrid train station. What follows here, is an attempt to recreate the entry about Madrid.
As I write this, the bus we are taking from Valencia to Barcelona is pulling out of the station. I will try to relate a few of my thoughts from Madrid, contained in the lost journal. Madrid, I admit, was not my favorite place. I had heard so many great things about Spain, and I had hoped to experience it. In a way, I guess I did. Madrid is, after all, a very beautiful city. We stayed in a great little hotel, Hostal La Macarena, right next to the Plaza Mayor. We walked around and saw the Palacio Real, as well as timeless paintings by Goya, Rembrandt, Vasquez, Picasso, Dali and others in the Prado and Reina Sofia museums. Still, the people and the culture seemed distant and inaccessible. It was like the Madrilenos no longer bothered to try to be friendly. Maybe it is the result of constantly dealing with tourists, who generally leave sooner rather than later. Maybe they are so assured by their own beauty and that of their city that they do not bother trying to make an impression beyond that. At any rate, I felt like trying to get at Spanish culture - the real, day-to-day stuff - in Madrid would be like trying to dig a well with a spoon: the spoon would be long-gone by the time you hit water (pardon the metaphor)!
— Andy