After a week in El Barco de Avila, we took the VaughanTown bus back to Madrid for the last few days of our 30/40 World Tour. It was a bittersweet time. On one hand, we were excited to go back home to a life of more than 3 pairs of underwear and the same bed every night. But on the other hand, we were embarking on the last few days of our life of leisure and exploration together. Work? A job? What’s that???
The French architecture of Edificio Metrópolis is a focal point along Calle Alcalá near our hotel
Once we got to Madrid, we took the subway to our hotel, but we had no idea the ride would be so exciting. We were joined by a rapper who traveled with his own microphone and speaker to “entertain” us. I think most of the passengers would have paid to make him stop.
Ms. HalfEmpty encounters a nun outside Retiro Park
The pope was about to visit Madrid for World Youth Day, so the city was aflutter in preparation. Workers were erecting stages, screens, speakers, and bleachers in the city. Nuns in habits and volunteers in official t-shirts were a common sight.
During our final few days of touring, we took advantage of the sun and explored outdoor sites in Madrid including Parque del Retiro, Puerta del Sol, Plaza de Oriente, Plaza de Cibeles, Plaza de España, and Parque del Oeste.
This headless man in Retiro Park was one of the best. We saw various inferior imitations throughout the city.
Remember how we talked about street performers in Barcelona? Madrid seemed to be the Mecca of street performers in comparison. We saw several headless men reading newspapers. The first time was a neat sight, but after we saw the same act all over the city, it wasn’t so novel. Quite a few of them could have used an outside eye to help them look more realistic.
These guys held the most awkward positions for long periods of time and really looked like clay until you saw the whites of their eyes. Very impressive!
There were street performers who posed as statues with their entire bodies and clothes painted a single color. Some of these guys were just amazing; they were in impossible positions and completely lifeless. You didn’t know they were real until one guy would show the whites of his eyeballs.
Kids loved the huge bubbles in Retiro Park
Bubbles were another favorite performance art form. Every park, plaza, and monument had a bubble man or woman. The giant bubbles were certainly a winner with the kids.
Of course, musicians staked out their territory throughout Retiro park, as well. The park is beautiful with green spaces, statues, fountains, and waterways. It was filled with people enjoying picnics and exercisers in hot pursuit of fitness. We even saw an inline skating class.
Lobster & clam paella and sangria — delicious!
After a disappointing paella experience in Barcelona, we knew we had to try again before leaving Spain. This time we got recommendations from our VaughanTown friends who lived in Madrid, and scored with lobster and clam paella.
Puerta del Sol is filled with people
The next day, we ventured to Puerta del Sol, a huge square filled with tourists. Earlier in the summer, it was an occupied tent city. It seems unimaginable since it was already so crowded with tourists and no tents while we visited.
Ms. HalfEmpty dips a churro in chocolate at Chocolatería San Ginés
It is also home to the popular Chocolatería San Ginés where patrons dunk churros in chocolate. After waiting in line, we purchased our chocolate and attempted to find a place to stand along the crowded bar. Fortunately, Mr. HalfFull and I only ordered one cup of chocolate to split. It was so rich, we didn’t even finish it.
Don Quixote & Sancho Panza statues in Plaza de España
After getting fueled with chocolate, we headed to Plaza de España. The main attraction is a statue of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza; everyone wants their photo with this duo. But the park is also full of statues of other famous Spaniards like Cervantes.
Egyptian Temple in Parque del Oest
Our final destination of the day was Parque del Oeste where we saw an Egyptian Temple. I’ve been to Egypt, but didn’t expect to see such a sight in Spain!
Not a good day for the guy pushing the go-kart that ran out of gas/electricity!
On our way back to the hotel, as we thought about our tired legs, we felt like we were running out of fuel. But we weren’t the only ones…there was a man pushing a go-kart down the street.
Massive drinks at Gin Bar. I know it doesn’t look massive in this photo, but it’s all perspective. You’ll have to trust me.
On our final night in Madrid, we met the VaughanTown program director for drinks out on the town. Apparently, she is an avid gin drinker, so we all met at Gin Bar.
For some reason (perhaps the drinks???) Ms. HalfEmpty ended up in sunglasses at XXX Café
The drinks were massive and I only planned on having one, but of course the program director bought another round! Then she suggested we move to a bar down the street — XXX Café. Woah! I certainly didn’t need any more drinks, but when in Spain…
When we arrived at XXX Café, we were the only patrons. Perhaps it was too early for Spaniard night owls. We sat in the window and could see a few passers-by check out the scene inside. The program director informed us that it’s a gay bar, so perhaps we scared all the regulars away!
Ms. HalfEmpty collapses on the hotel bed after a night of drinking
By the time we got back to our hotel, I was certainly feeling the effects of the alcohol. Plus I knew I had a flight back to reality the next morning. A rough transition lay ahead…
- Do you start thinking about going back to work toward the end of your trip?
- Is it better to give money to a performer to satisfy his monetary needs for the day in hopes that he will stop, or does this encourage further “entertainment?”
- What beautiful or intriguing sites have you seen (or do you hope to see) in Madrid?
- Is drinking the night before your flight a good way to cap off the trip or a recipe for a painful ending?
Cibeles Palace (now City Hall)
Royal Palace of Madrid in Plaza de Oriente
Metropolis Building at the corner of Calle de Alcalá and Gran Vía
Manicured gardens and statues surround the Royal Palace
#1 by Mr. HalfFull on August 24, 2012 - 9:33 AM
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I can still smell and taste that delicioso paella, and blame the blurry image on that half full pitcher of sangría!
#2 by Ms. HalfEmpty on August 24, 2012 - 9:52 AM
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The photo taking was so embarrassing in a busy restaurant with lots of tables and servers moving quickly. But I’m glad I had something to put on the blog.
#3 by Sarah P. on August 24, 2012 - 11:33 AM
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Oh, wow, that paella sounds amazing. I’ve never had paella before.
I have a big question for you, Ms. HalfEmpty… how did you take notes on this whole trip? Surely your memory hasn’t sufficed in providing all the detail for these extremely detailed blog posts? Did you take notes digitally, or did you carry a notebook? If a notebook, what size? did you organize it in any particular way?
#4 by Ms. HalfEmpty on August 24, 2012 - 3:12 PM
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Sarah, how dare you doubt my memory powers! =) But you’re right, I did take some notes…
When I was at work, I used an old-fashioned paper planner. Many of my office environments did not allow PDA syncing, so it was easier to keep my schedule with me in one place than try to merge various electronic calendars. So I used the same thing for the 30/40 World Tour, but I downsized (and have stuck with the smaller size). My old black leather-bound planner was a 1.5 inch binder, while my new red one is 1 inch. I was able to keep a lot more address pages and business cards in the old one, but the weight and size were significant.
I generally use Franklin Covey compact-size single page-per-day pages. But they changed printers right before our trip, so I was unable to get refill pages for the months I needed before our departure. Mr. HalfFull found a substitute at Office Depot, but the pages are slightly smaller and the paper quality is inferior, which makes erasing difficult.
I was able to keep track of our scheduled events like flights or meeting people on the planner pages. If something particularly interesting happened, I would often jot it down at the bottom of the page. But a lot of my details also came from the photos. There were some days when I didn’t write anything, but the photos would jog my memory.
#5 by Sarah P. on August 24, 2012 - 7:59 PM
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Well, I’m sure your memory powers are way better than mine! But we’re talking a year ago now, right?!
Thanks for explaining… and I forgot about the fact that photos do jog memory very well, and presumably all of your digital pics would be time-stamped, so you could easily figure out what all happened on which days.
#6 by Ms. HalfEmpty on August 26, 2012 - 3:07 PM
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Yes, it was a year ago (but don’t tell anyone I’m a slow blogger!!!). My memory powers aren’t that great, but I like to give you a hard time! =)
The only problem with the timestamp on the photos was that sometimes when we would enter a new country in a different time zone, I would forget to update the camera when we landed. So some of the photos would be listed with the correct date and time, and some I would have to fix later by looking at the number sequence.
#7 by Tracy on August 26, 2012 - 9:59 PM
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My nephew will be in Madrid this fall. Somehow I’ve blown most of my vacation time this year without even taking a real vacation. But these pictures make me want to go there. The Egyptian Temple is amazing.
The bubble picture rubs salt in my uncommitted photographer wounds. When I visited the beach on my trip home last week, I didn’t feel like lugging my camera. Then this guy kept going out on a raft into the lake and blowing massive bubbles. I really wished I’d brought my camera.
Yes, I start thinking about (and, sadly dreading) going back to work towards the end of a vacation. I can’t seem to help it. Did the drinking help?
#8 by Ms. HalfEmpty on August 27, 2012 - 7:38 AM
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That’s a bummer when regular life ends up taking your vacation days. Hopefully, your nephew will be in Spain for more than a semester so you can visit in 2013 with your new batch of vacation days!
It’s hard to know when it’s a good time to take expensive equipment to sandy or otherwise damaging locations. We don’t have a real photographer’s camera; ours is compact and light, so we never feel like we’re lugging it. I’m sure you’ll get your bubble photo op in the future!
Drinking may temporarily help me avoid thinking about going back to real life, but I think the hangover effects (especially when I wake up early and have to board a plane) may render it a less than ideal solution. =)