Vive Espana

Anna and I went to Spain. We got to Madrid early Saturday afternoon after a very emotional 24 hours. Following a successful Metro navigation from the airport, we arrived at Hostal Yolanda, our abode for the next few days. “Hostel” may not be the best word to describe Hostal Yolanda; guest House Yolanda might be the more appropriate name. Classification aside, it was precious. A Spanish-only-speaking elderly couple runs the joint. They greeted us at the door with a big smile on their faces, and the woman showed us through the winding hallways to our room. The language barrier made checking in and checking out interesting, but we managed. The one and only Mary Kathryn Dykes showed up shortly after we did. Mary Kathryn is a sorority sister and is currently a junior at PC. She is putting her Spanish major into practice by studying abroad in Salamanca this semester. Her boyfriend flew into Madrid on Sunday, so she visited with us (and served as our translator) until then.

We had a late lunch after MK got there. Correction: we had a regular Spanish lunch once MK got there. The Spanish eat lunch around 2-3pm, tapas around 5-6pm, and dinner around 9-10pm. We had traditional “tortillas Espanolas,” kind of like a potato and onion omelet. We leisurely explored the city by foot before a dinner of tapas and vino blanco and then bed.

Sunday morning, we went to Toledo!! Claire Atkins, a friend of Anna’s from Kanuga, has been studying abroad there since September. Over her Christmas break, Claire visited us in Edinburgh, so it was her turn to show us around her neck of the European woods. Toledo is BEAUTIFUL! Claire showed us all around the city. I am not exaggerating in the least when I say we walked ALL DAY LONG. But I’m not complaining; I walked around befuddled at how pretty the city is. The city is very hilly. Our first path was to view all there was to view as we walked down the city. But don’t worry your pretty head about us having to hike back up all the hills because there is an escalator built in the side of the mountain. No joke.

Serving as the religious capital of Spain, the architecture shows the cultural combination of Jewish, Catholic, and Muslim. Since I know next to nothing about architecture—religious or secular—I took Claire’s word for it. We went in the cathedral. I generally stand by the theory that a cathedral is a cathedral is a cathedral. The same goes for this one. It was stunning. It was impressive. It was MASSIVE. The artwork was elaborate (featuring most of Goya’s artwork that is not showcased in the Prado Museum). The statues were everywhere. (The quire featured statues of the lineage of Jesus according to the Gospel of Matthew. Except the women were left out. Figures.) The stained glass windows were colorful. It really was beautiful. But it was just another cathedral.

I should mention that we had authentic Spanish sangria whilst enjoying the breeze at an outdoor café. We went back to Madrid that night.

MK left for the airport early Monday morning, leaving Anna and me to our own defenses in the language department. Yes, I have took 4 years of Spanish in high school and another semester in college, but being able to translate on a 3rd grade level doesn't help much with communication skills. MK did write out a few pointers for us, i.e. how to ask our hostel lady if we could store our bags there for the day. After checking out, Anna and I caught up with New Europe’s free walking tour. We’ve done the tour in Edinburgh (several times), London, and Dublin as well. The company’s guides work on a tips-only basis with the philosophy that everyone can take the tour regardless of budget restrictions. In Madrid, however, there is a law that only licensed guides can charge customers for tours. New Europe has been functioning in the gray area: they do no charge for tours, so they do not have to be licensed guides. The Madrid guides are mad that this company is taking away business, so they are protesting. As a result, our tour was joined by 4 protestors holding up signs that read, “ILLEGAL TOURS!” AND “BLACK MONEY IN MADRID!” Of all the things to protest in the world, they choose a tour company??

We learned a lot on the tour. We saw a lot. I probably couldn’t recall 25% of it if I tried, so I won’t. The tour took up most of the day, leaving us time to stroll through the Puerta del Sol and the Plaza Mayor once more before hopping on our short 16-hour bus ride to Paris.

This ends my busy, successful, and fabulous trip to Spain.