Madrid: In Pictures

Got ham?

Inside the Catedral de la Almudena

A look through the gate at the Royal Palace

Don Quixote

A few of the military watching the Columbus Day parade

En Madrid: Best Craft Beer - Fabrica Maravillas

After a week or so of pretty much only drinking wine (or Port), it was time to switch things up.

In all my times in Spain -- from living there to visiting -- I can't remember good beer being much of a choice. There were maybe one or two national brands available (depending where you were), and they weren't all that great. So, to say Spain isn't known for beer is an understatement.

But beer is what we (or perhaps just I) were craving, and beer we needed to find. Luckily, times in Spain they are a'changin'.

Much like in other parts of the world (or at least here in San Francisco), there is a surge in beer popularity, craft beer in particular. So I took a chance and did a little googling to see what I could find while in Madrid, crossing my fingers that there would be something, and not too far from our place.

And the finger crossing paid off! We came up upon Fabrica Maravillas, located not too far from our place in the Malasana neighborhood. This modern space is where the beer is actually brewed -- as evidenced by the clear casings showing off the tanks. It is modern while still being comfortable, and has a serious neighborhood vibe to it. We arrived just moments before the placed started filling up, and found ourselves a space at the bar.

When we arrived, they had perhaps five beers on tap. There are three different sizes to choose from -- a taster, half pint, and full pint. This is one approach I see very rarely in the States but really appreciate those choices when you just don't want to commit to a full glass. I started with a half pint of the Weitbeir (spelling incorrect, I know), which was very traditional and tasty. My friends had the Saison -- that is not my favorite style in general, but this was a good variation of it. Next I moved to the FL(ipa), which was a pretty nice IPA. I also had the Malasana, a pale ale named for the neighborhood occupied by Fabrica Maravillas. This was my favorite of all of them -- lucky for me this was also one of two beers they had actually bottled!

We liked this place so much we returned the next night just to taste (or heavily drink, depending on how you look at it) again. Thankfully for us, the staff speaks English so we could ask a question or two before the place got too crowded (and be warned, it does get crowded). With each drink, you'll get a bowlful of Spanish green olives or a snack mix. But that is the extent of the food they serve there. But if you want to escape the tourist trail and hang out with some locals and drink some good beer...this is your place!

Fabrica Maravillas is located at Calle Valverde 29 in Madrid.

My Seven Super Shots

My friend Francesca over at The Working Mom's Travels "tagged" me to participate in this fun challenge:  Hostelbooker's Seven Super Shots. As someone who loves talking travel, and showing off photos, I am excited to take part! Thanks, Freesia!

So, here we go.

A photo that...

1. Takes my breath away

In the Fall of 2009, I had the opportunity to visit Yosemite. I think I had been once, very briefly, for a day in college, so it felt like I was seeing it with fresh eyes. And, with every turn, I was astonished by the beauty that surrounded me. I could not believe such a place could truly exist, and even more amazing to me, that it so close to the bustling City where I spend most of my time. 

2. Makes me laugh or smile

After a long day's hike on the Cinque Terre Blue Trail, our feet were hurting and we were hungry! We had arrived back in Monterosso, taken a nap and gotten ready to go eat! But before we could go down to the restaurant, we took a little stop to dip our toes in the Med. My mom seems to so be enjoying herself here -- her first time touching the clear blue waters there! 

3. Makes me dream

When I returned to Buenos Aires after a brief visit to Mendoza (and before I realized I lost my passport), I took a rainy-day visit to La Recoleta Cemetery. This may be a strange place for dreaming -- after all, it is celebrating those that no longer have the capacity to dream -- but this particular picture has a sense of hope, of purpose. The angel in the forefront is pointing to the sky, as if telling us to believe, and the opening in the clouds in the distance, through the rain clouds, seems like the light emerging through the tough times. 

4. Makes me think

My first visit to Barcelona was in 1998, on my way back to Paris after living in Sevilla. The contrast between the two cities was amazing. I was especially struck by Gaudi, and how he influenced so much of what I was seeing in Barcelona. And nothing caused me more pause than the Sagrada Familia, the huge, unfinished cathedral. That someone dreamt up this place, and made other people believe in it so much they continue to work on it through to this day! I have visited it on two subsequent visits, and love to sit and reflect on life, dedication, and what it means to have such passion. Will I ever feel that passionate about something? 

5. Makes my mouth water

A perfect cappuccino, served to me in Vatican City prior to the tour of the necropolis and grotto. I fell in love with these cups of goodness on my trip in 2011, and while I try, nothing I have had back here in the States can even compare. Is the milk different? The espresso? Or is it just the special pleasure of partaking in such a delicate drink while in midst of a different culture, language, and routine? I'll never know.

6. Tells a story

I love the juxtaposition of these two people sitting beneath the mural of two others. The past and the present coming together in the same moment...this was mid-morning on a weekday in Cartagena, Colombia, and already oppressively hot. These two seem to be taking a break, although I do wonder what they do, since Cartagena seemed like a place where unemployment may be high. They seem deep in conversation, but there's also a chance they are just acquaintances from the neighborhood that happened upon a break at the same time. I was far enough away that they didn't see me take the photo, but they seemed so intense that I couldn't resist taking a shot.

7. I am most proud (i.e. my National Geographic shot)

Taken near Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica, these little buggers were all over the place at the Bali House where we stayed. But while they were a constant, it was near impossible to get a good picture. They would poke their heads out and then quickly hide if they sensed any movement -- like a whack-a-mole! One day, I headed towards the beach, framed my shot, then patiently waited...and waited...finally, this little one popped its head out politely allowed me to snap a picture. It was a matter of seconds, but I just love this one.

I don't have any other bloggers to tag at the moment; stay tuned and I will add a few when I can!

Being Home

I've been home now for a week...catching up on sleep was tough, especially since I had a work trip thrown in there, but I am finally starting to get back into the swing of things!

There are some things I don't miss about my travels...I don't miss being shoved all the time. I don't miss not having toilet seat covers. Having to find public restrooms got a little old after a while. The smoking, well, I don't miss that either. Having no schedule or structure, that is tough for me. And I don't miss missing my Luca.

But, there is so much I do miss. I miss the fashions -- both clothing and hair (MULLETS galore!). I miss wandering around, finding hidden surprises around each corner. I miss the Spanish men paying me compliments as I walk down the street. I miss taking a paseo after dinner, strolling down the Santa Cruz of Sevilla and passing under the looming shadow of the Cathedral. I miss wandering the streets late at night (or early in the morning, if you will), and encountering random bursts of flamenco music. I miss my friends, with whom I shared a special city, and who I look forward to seeing there again in 2018. I miss observing people -- tourists, locals, workers, vagabonds -- all trying to find their way. And, I miss the randomness that happened throughout my trip -- seeing the king, being on a flight with a famous futbol player, watching some robbers sprint down the street after breaking into a store.

It is nice to be home, but do love my second home of Spain. I felt at peace there.

El Ultimo Dia en Barca y Espana

Today was my last day on Barcelona, and I had absolutely no plans. I finally dragged myself out of the hotel at around 10.30am, and upon stepping out, was greeted with the bright, warm sun!!! Weather.com had forecasted cloudy weather, but hooray, they were wrong. This was by far the nicest weather day I've had here; around 70 degrees with no clouds or wind.

I first visited the Palau Guell, a palace designed by Gaudi. Like many places in this city, they are currently working on some restoration, and only the bottom was open. But that's ok, because it was FREE!

Then I somehow ended up in front of la Seu, the cathedral. I have never been inside, so I went. It is really beautiful inside, and I guess it is partially dedicated to St Eulalia, which was the proper name of my great granny. That's pretty cool. Oh, it was FREE, too.

The sun was just blazing, and it was the perfect time to do something I rarely do here -just sit. I found a cafe with tortilla espanola (I had to have one note before I left), and sat there for two hours. The sun felt so good!! It was really fun to watch all the people, too.

I then decided to eat my way through the rest of the day, then walk to burn off the crap I was eating. First, my last falafal. I am so going to miss those... I haven't found anything like the ones here back at home. Then, a mcdonald's sundae, my favorite treat on the road. Then I walked until I got lost and found my way home again.

Now I'm at dinner, with a waitress who has a cigarette dangling from her mouth. CLASSY. I am in no way cool enough for this bar!

Language Barriers

Language is a funny thing. Sometimes we all just want to communicate with someone, and will do whatever it takes to do it. Today I overheard a conversation between an Argentinian and a Russian; neither spoke the other's language, but both were alone and really wanted to talk.

As for me, my head is spinning. I couldn't get my head around portuguese (although I could read it ok), and in Sevilla, I was around my friends who spoke Swedish and Swiss-German, in addition to us all speaking Spanish and English. Now I'm in Barcelona, where they speak Catalan, but most people also speak Spanish...and, well, my brain is starting to mix it all up! People think I am local, and ask me for directions in Spanish/Catalan, and today some woman thought I was german and started speaking to me in her language. But, no worries dad, I am using Spanish plenty. (although, my English now is getting really bad!)

The sun was kind of shining today, so that was a great thing. I first went to the Picasso museum, which is pretty amazing. I prefer some of his earlier works to the cubist ones, and there were a lot at the museum. Then I started walking, and about 2 hours later, I ended up at Montjuic. This is a huge, beautiful mountain that overlooks the city. There was, randomly, a beach volleyball tournament going on, so I sat and watched that for a while. Then continued my walk though the mountain to the Olympic Stadium, and to the Castle, which I hadn't seen before.

Well, I still haven't seen it because I was pooped by the time I got close and didn't want to walk anymore. I took the funicular down and the metro back to my hotel. And I participated in the great Spanish tradition of siesta for a few hours.

Once awake (kinda), I did done shopping, then had dinner at a place called Princesa. Appropriate, no? I finally got to drink a few glasses of cava, hooray!

One day more before I return home; time has gone so quickly.

The Rain in Spain

Let me clear something up... The rain in Spain falls everywhere, not just mainly in the plains. The weather throughout this entire trip has been marginal at best, gloomy and wet at worst. It is supposed to rain for the next 3 days, too. Sigh.

Today started early so I could catch my tour bus. I didn't realize there was no hairdryer in my room, so it started off as a bad hair day. Not good. Our first stop was Torres winery. We took a tour first by this little tram. They gave us headphones, and the tour guide was a prerecorded voice.

When we got into the caves, the music soared and it was all very dramatic. There were weird screens with a movie; I felt like I was at Disneyland on that silly winnie the pooh ride. Then, our tasting was one rushed glass, and a push to the store. This family also has a winery in Sebastopol - Marimar, I think. It was overall pretty disappointing; maybe I got spoiled by last year in Italy.

Next it was off to Montserraut. This is a very important place in Catalynya during Franco's reign; the boys choir were among the only groups allowed to keep catalan alive. It is very beautiful, set high on a mountaintop. You wonder how they got up there in the first place!

I was prepared to be wowed, like at the Vatican, but I wasn't. It is lovely, but again, it felt more touristy than sacred. I could only watch the boys choir for about 10 minutes - there were just too many people. I did find a nice walking path, so took that for a while. As we were leaving, the rain started announcing itself; good timing!

Our final stop was Sitges, a beach community right outside of Barcelona. I think had the weather been better, it would be awesome. As it was, rain dropped for most of our stay, and it was windy. There are lots of bars, and it kind of reminded me of Miami Beach. I wish the weather had been nicer!

We're now on our way home, and it seems like the weather is ok. I think I will grab dinner and a drink before heading home. Fingers crossed it doesn't rain tomorrow!!!

Adiós Sevilla, Hola Barcelona

It was definitely hard to leave for the airport this morning. I said goodbye to Pernilla last night, which, not easy, and Kim and Stina very early this morning. The weekend flew by so fast...I felt like I did last time I left Sevilla, homesick for it before I was even gone; but at least this time everyone else was leaving, too, so I didn't feel like the fun times there would go on without me. I don't know if I'll make it back before our 20 year reunion; I sure hope so!

Now I am in Barcelona. I took a long nap when I got here (luckily, my room doesn't have a TV, otherwise I never would have left). When I woke up, I was starving, so went to look for the falafal place next to the Kabul, where I stayed last time. It's not there any more, but there is another one around the corner. I don't know what it us about falafal in Barcelona, but I can't get enough.

I headed up La Rambla, and found myself in the tourist office, booking a tour for tomorrow. I will go to montserraut, sitges, and a winery. Mom, you'll be happy to know that I didn't stress about the price (too much). That leaves tomorrow at 8am and goes for 12 hours... It should be fun!

I decided to keep walking up to La Sagrada Familia, Gaudi's unfinished church. Though I have been there twice before, I went in to see what has changed. They've really made progress in the last 5 years; the inside is much more finished than I remember. I wonder if it will ever be done, and if I'll be able to see it then!

El Ultimo Dia en Sevilla

Despite getting in at around 2 last night, I was up and out of the flat rather early (sleeping on the sofa doesn't help matters). I really wanted to find a painting for my condo, so I wanted to check out the market on front of Las Bellas Artes. I am disappointed to report that while there were some beautiful paintings, nothing really suited my place.

Rafa and Anja were leaving today, so I wanted to make sure to say goodbye. I headed back to the flat, where I also ran into the girls, and we went to breakfast after saying goodbye to the Grafs.

After breakfast, we went through el barrio Santa cruz to get to the alcazar. On our way, stina & I heard a marching band, so followed them to a nearby restaurant where they apparently surprised the management and the patrons! We eventually made it to the alcazar (I really suggest getting lost in the barrio, you find some fantastic treasures).

I didn't visit the alcazar whole I lived here, but I really wish I had. It is absolutely beautiful. It reminded mr of the Alhambra in Granada, but a bit smaller. They ask you to be quiet, which offers a nice reprieve from the busy streets. We stated and hung out in the gardens for a while, which... I wish I had known about this place when I was here!!

I went over to meet the Alm family at the Catedral, but unfortunately it was closed. Que pena! I had really hoped to go back in.

We are drawing to the end of our time here in Sevilla. It has really been wonderful.

Chillaxing in Sevilla

We are currently sitting in the piazza of pernilla's hotel, savoring our tintos and some dulces. Life is sure sweet here in sevilla!

Last night we had a great time walking down memory lane. We went to La Carboneria, a place they used to hang out to watch flamenco (I don't remember going there). I had spent the day much like I had spent my time while I lived there - walking around checking things out. I was a bit tired, 6 hours of walking will to that to you.

Segundo dia en Sevilla

Day two in sevilla started out with a trip to the supermarket to get some cava and the ingredients for tinto de veranos. I lugged those
back to my hotel, packed up my things and headed over to the apartment we had rented. After checking in, I sat in the plaza and waited for
Kim and Stina, who were to meet me at noon.

They rolled in at about 12.45, and by that point they let us into the
apartment. It is a really cute place, perfect for the weekend. We dropped our bags and went to find our old teacher, Reyes, who is still
teaching at CLIC.

Unfortunately, we were too late; she was already gone. So we shopped instead, and then went to Las Columnas, where we had spent many a morning and after school hour drinking, eating, and hanging out. The guy who worked there ten years ago was still there, but they had fixed up the park and it looked so different!

Soon it was back to the supermarket, where we ran into Pernilla, Jens,and kids. Then off to meet Rafa, Anja, and Leandro by the Catedral.

We kicked off the night at a roof bar, where the clouds started rolling in. We had a great view of the Catedral, which was sounding its bells every 15 minutes or so. Dinner was crazy... 3 kids running around, and 7 adults trying to remember what tapas we ordered. Finally the kids pooped out and were sent home with the spouses, and the Sevilla 5 remained.

It was really like old times. We finished a few bottles of wine, and talked about how we were all a little scared to come come back here, because we weren't sure if it'd live up to our memories. So far, it has.

It soon started pouring; we made a mad dash through the rain the get home. After hanging out in the apartment for a bit, it was time to send home the visitors and go to bed!

Primera Dia en Sevilla

I found out a little more about the festival yesterday. From what I can tell, it was the festival of the Corpus Christi. When I have a chance, I will look it up and let you know more. One interesting thing, though...they cover the ground of the procession with rosemary. I couldn´t figure out what it was at first, I thought it might be incense. But then it dawned on me...the heat had started to cook the rosemary a bit, so the whole area smelled like it. It is a very nice smell, though it made me crave Aunt Trish´s potatoes.

As I was walking around yesterday, I saw the King of Spain! I happen to be walking by the Alcazar (I was lost, again), which I think is still used as a royal residence, though I could be wrong on that. I saw a procession of cars go in, but didn´t think much of it. I read my map wrong, so had to turn around, and on my way back we were all shooed out of the way by the police. A procession of cars went by, and the man in the first car waved to us. It was the king! I had just been watching a show about his very cute son (some couple got married the same day as the prince, and then had a baby on the same day...this is, I guess, big enough news here to deserve a talk show appearance), and they had showed a picture of the king, so I knew right off the bat who he was. This was confirmed by the guy standing behind me, freaking out about seeing "El Rey." The Infanta Elena (princess) was also with him. My front desk guy didn´t believe me, but the paper confirms he was in town yesterday to inaugurate a statue or something.

Pretty cool, huh! I have now seen the King of Spain and the King & Queen of Sweden. Now if I could only get close to Prince William or Harry... (I kid, I kid)

Tinto de verano

When I lived in sevilla, we drank tinto de veranos all the time. They are essentially a wine cooler - red wine with Fanta. Today I had one with my tapas dinner... Served by a bartender that looks like Javier Bardem. Que bueno, no?!

En Sevilla... Una fiesta loca

Luckily, I was able to check into my hotel room when I arrived, even though it was about 5.30am. Sevilla was still buzzing...when I arrived there were street closures and a party still happening at catedral, a club that opened 10 years ago when I was here!

Apparently, today is El Dia de Sevilla, or something; it's acity-wide holiday. I had every intention to go watch the procession, as it either started or ended ( or both) right outside my hotel. I fell asleep instead.

I had planned to take a day trip to Cordoba today, so I finally got up from napping and got ready to go. I was not in any way prepared for the maddness outside. I think every Sevillano is in the barrio Santa cruz. Because of the holiday, everything is closed, so I couldn't go to the tourist office for a map. Instead, I got my bearings and headed to El Corte Ingles (of course), figuring it at least would be open.

I was wrong. It was closed, too. So I started walking, and soon found the street on which I used to live (pictured). I remembered the area clearly, although it has changed a bit. Still trying to find the train station, I got myself completely turned around, and ended up back at my hotel. Heh.

They gave me directions, and I fought my way through the crowds (really... Think bay to breakers combined with st. Patty's day/union street fair and you almost get a sense of the crowd), finally arriving at the station at around 2pm. Unfortunately, I had just missed the train, and the next one's not for another hour, which just isn't worth it. I sat to write and now will head back downtown.

The weather is pretty perfect. Not cold like Lisbon, but not deathly hot. I am hoping by the time I get back to the hotel, the crowds will have gone home for siesta. I was right! They were gone!

The Bus

I don't have the greatest history of long haul bus rides. The last one I took, in Argentina, I spent 15 or 16 hours (it was only supposed to be a 12 hour ride, max) trapped in a winsow seat next to a poopy baby. My expectations were not so high, then, for this 7 hour overnighter.

While not as big a nightmare as Argentina, it still stank... Literally. The gentleman next to me smelled of mothballs and sour breath. He was unhappy from the get go, and wanted to make sure we knew. He fidgeted the entire ride, including when we stopped to get food. The way he was acting, I thought for sure he was getting off at one of the early stops - when he had a very loud phone conversation at 1.30am, I thought he was telling someone he'd be there soon.

This was not the case, though. As we approached Sevilla, and after he had picked his nose clean (seriously), he jumped up and prepared to run from the bus. It was a good 10 minutes before the stop! I guess he needed to be the first one off. Once we stopped, he ran and blocked the luggage compartment, moving everyone's stuff until he could find his own. I almost had to hip check him to get my own bag!