Day 3: Art Overload

Day 3 and we're back for more in Madrid! We started off the day with one of the things I was most looking forward to, the tour of El Estadio de Santiago Bernabeu! If you didn't know this is where Real Madrid and my future husband Cristiano Ronaldo play. Some of my backup husbands play here as well, so the excitement was real!

And the tour didn't disappoint. Well, it did because we weren't able to see the players dressing rooms and tunnel because there was a game that evening, which we also couldn't get three tickets together for. Double the sadness. But it was awesome being inside this masterpiece and walking the same ground as so many wonderful players! And especially worth it to get a picture with Ronaldo, even if it was only via green screen.

Caught by the paparazzi: me and Ronaldo! Then posing with the Champions League trophy

Carissa and I were not amused by some of the questions from the press/Inside the stadium!

Next it was time to find our more cultured side so we took the metro to El Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia. This is the museum of more modern art in Spain and it definitely showed. While it had some cool paintings and sculptures, the first one was not a winner. They had a special exhibit called the Invention of Concrete and to sum it up, I'll provide a quote: "Um we could do this. So can I be in the museum?" But maybe I'm just not a good appreciator when it comes to some of the modern art:

Eric works to understand the meaning of the yellow room; Eric's favorite of the modern art; An artistic haystack?

Other snippets of commentary from the Reina Sofia (as you can tell, we weren't huge fans of some of the modern art):

• He's French, he has a beret
• That one looks like gollum from the side
• What's the name of this one, camel toe?
• Children with plants--why is the one naked? They're hobbits. 

Camel Toe; a Picasso; and a Dalí

Then because it was close and also recommended by the guide book, we walked to El Museo del Prado. And you know what? It was FREE because it was after 6pm. I always love free. However, maybe it was the after effects of 7 hours of walking the day before but I had a low tolerance for art today. We went and saw the "masterpieces" but that was about as much excitement as I could muster. Some of the paintings, like Goya's "Saturn" were cool but it was a lot of art overload. Which led us to more comments like "Is that water she's shooting at him?" "... that's not water..."

Then we grabbed dinner at a place called Estado Puro which had some delicious food. I tried octopus for the first time, kind of scary, but tasted like calamari--which I love--so it gets a passing grade.

The octopus risotto! And then "Ali-Oli potatoes" that were delicious!

Hamberguesas and jamon, a winning combination; Salud!

And then we were off back towards the apartment with one goal in mind: gelato. Carissa has made it we goal to have gelato every day that we are here. And what kind of person would I be if I didn't help a sister out? A bad one. So if I must, gelato it is :)

And now for the rest of the pictures from today:

Day 2 (bonus): I'm a clutz

So yeah, I definitely managed to run into the side window of the bus yesterday. Carissa thinks I got a concussion but we all know I'm hard-headed :)

This is the aftermath:

I am so not amused. 

Day 2: Getting Lost in Toledo

For our second day in España, we decided to do one of our day trips out of Madrid and caught the train to Toledo (thanks for the recommendation Pablo!). For those who don't know, Toledo used to be the capital of Castile and is known for having Christian, Jewish, and Muslim influences.

Once we got there we decided on the bus that took us on a loop of the city before going within the city walls. That loop gave us these fantastic views of the city:

Our first and last stop of the day was the Alcazar. We went up about 5 flights of stairs to the Library only to discover that, hey we don't know how many flights of stairs there are AND there may not be an entrance through the library. So back down we went. And around the building. And then we find, it's not even open. What the heck peoples?

So, undeterred, we're off to the next destination which is the Catedral Primada. And this is a huge Cathedral! I'd put it on par or above Notre Dame because the inside of this thing is just ridiculous. I don't know if I've ever seen so much gold in a church before. Seriously, tons of gold. And there's the columns which according to the audio guide are like tree trunks plunging into the sky. The best (or worst?) thing is I initially didn't take pictures but then saw everyone else was so I may have snapped a couple or... a hundred :)

Then we get lost wandering around trying to find the Museo del Greco and Iglesia de Santo Tome. Thankfully I can get by somewhat with my elementary Spanish and we are able to get somewhat decent directions. But I did find myself thinking... why wasn't the grid system invented earlier?

But we finally found La Iglesia de Santo Tome! I had erroneously thought it was the El Greco museum. We looked around inside and then sat down. And Carissa's question was, what's so special about this place? I had to agree because while it was nice, not exactly on par with the Catedral. It's nothing to write home about. Then we read that it's because it houses el Greco's most famous work. Which explains why there were tons of people just outside the door but not in the church. Just came there for the painting. Heathens. The painting was cool though so I snapped a picture.

We then stumbled upon the Sinigago del Transito that we had tried to find but didn't see on the map. So of course, we went in side. Built in 1336-57, it's really old and has seen a lot of things in it's day. From being a synagogue to a military barracks and then back to a synagogue. If I could read Spanish better I could have learned lots more about Judaism. But alas, all I got was this map of Jericho. (JK I got other pictures, too).

Then it was El museo del Greco. Apparently some guy bought this house thinking it used to belong to the painter, but alas, he was wrong. Didn't stop him though (lesson in perseverance) and he created a house to represent how else Greco would have lived. And then added some of his and his followers paintings. Despite the tone in the previous sentences, I actually enjoyed this and thought it was cool. And El Greco was clearly a gifted painter. His depictions o the apostles was wonderful and I especially loved his Tears of Peter. 

Then we went to the exhibitions on Leonardo da Vinci: the inventor and medieval torture devices aka how the people running the Spanish Inquisition used creative torture devices. I literally cringed at many a description for the devices they had on display. Those devices are no joke. I'm glad we don't allow "cruel and unusual punishment" these days.

That was the last of the sights for us and then we just dawdled around the city, getting lost some more and eventually making our way back to the bus so we could take the train home. We ended up being in Toledo for about 10 hours and I'd say about 7 of those we were on our feet so let me tell you, my feet are so glad to be done for the day!

And now for the the pictures from today. Get ready, there are a TON. Enjoy!

Day 1: Plazas y Plazas en Madrid

First, jet lag is definitely not being fun right now. It's a fun-sucker and making us all tired! And I may have just woken up from a 3 hour siesta. I'm a regular Madrileño already!

Second, the Europeans of the Middle Ages? Yeah, I don't think we'd be friends. But more on that later.

So far today (it's only 6pm right now), we have gotten a good bit of walking under our belt and saw La Plaza del Sol, La Plaza Mayor, La Plaza Oriente, and El Palacio Real (Royal Palace). One of the guide books suggested this and it seemed like a good choice for our first day so away we went!

The plazas were all pretty cool and offered some good-looking architecture. La Plaza del Sol lived up to it's name and was, indeed, sunny. La Plaza Mayor was quite large, enough so that I had to do two panoramic photos to capture it all! It also gave us the fattest Spiderman I've ever seen, so there's that. La Plaza Oriente was my favorite as it was situated right in front of the Royal Palace and had a lot of trees and shade (don't ever underestimate shade).

Plaza del Sol

Plaza Mayor

 

Plaza Oriente

After our journey through the plazas, we ended up at the Palacio Real. It kind of reminded me of Versailles except it wasn't pink or at that level of opulence. I only wish I had some pictures of it but noooo, those are not allowed. Spoil-sports.

Also on the grounds was the Royal Armory. This was probably my favorite thing of the day although it led me to the second conclusion mentioned above. Why, you may be wondering? Let's lay out the facts here:

• These Middles Ages men were short. I'm talking 5'5 here. Not just shorter than me. Just plain short.
• Some of these men liked skirts. As in skirted armor. What?
• They had armor for dogs. Who sends their dog into battle with them? Someone alert PETA on these guys.
• They had armor for boys. Like little boys who don't even know what war is. I seriously hope this was just for looks and not function.

Other things of note in the armory: they had guns in the 1500s? Why did I not know this? And these things look more sophisticated than the guns our good ole boys were using in the Revolutionary War in the late 1700s. I clearly need to brush up on my history.

But enough about the armory, after that it was lunch at a Tapas Bar on the 9th floor of a building near us. They were delicious! And came complete with Coke Light, my favorite! And check out that can please.

And then it was naps. And now I'm watching Scandal while the others nap. It's been a good day so far!

Holy leg room, Batman!

Carissa done hooked us up with the seats on our flight from Atlanta to Madrid! I can honestly say this leg room will make this 8 hour flight a whole lot more bearable. 

Also, I got some lovely in flight reading! (Much better than the regional cover I got in the mail, ew)

Tomorrow!

Officially one day left! The past week has been a blur between getting things at a good point at work and prepping for the trip. But my out of office message went up Friday at 5pm so I'm already on vacation! All that's left is to get on that plane tomorrow and jet off to Madrid.

As previously promised, I will be bringing my lovely Macbook Air and will be posting updates when possible. So get ready for some pictures and hopefully good stories!

Hasta más tarde!

Less than a week!

It feels like the trip is finally almost here! It's crunch time! And of course this means that this has to be one of the busiest weeks of work yet. Such is life, right? Bring it on, nothing can spoil my mood!

There's a lot left to do, but thankfully not planning wise. More like getting a pedicure so my toes look all lovely while I'm sipping sangria on the beach. And finalizing outfits so I look glamourous in front of the palaces in Sintra. It's a tough life I lead.

Today I spent part of my day being productive and planning outfits based on different combinations so I know I have packed enough without overpacking too much. Feeling confident that I finally have the hang of this thing! Of course, it makes it easier knowing I can share clothes with Carissa, too. Double the wardrobe, score!

I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS TRIP! goosebumps. impatience. let's get this show on the road!

chau chau

THREE WEEKS!

It's really hard to believe but only three weeks until Spain! Thank goodness (somewhat) the time has flown by because I feel like I've been looking forward to this for forever but it has always seemed so far away. Now it seems so close!

I'm going through my calendar at work and declining and cancelling meetings and it's so liberating. I just won't think about all the unanswered emails I'm sure I will have upon my return :)

Next item on the planning agenda is to think about what I'm going to wear. As a girl, I am sure I will overpack but maybe somehow I won't overpack toooo much. I tell myself I'll only pack what I need, but I know I'm lying. It's just so hard to make decisions! Who knows what I will want to wear? How can I plan for every type of event that I won't know will be happening until we get there? Maybe I'll just to plan to buy fun things while I'm there... yeah that sounds like a beautiful plan!

Hasta luego! (estoy practicando mi español!)

Woes of finding a place to stay in the South of Spain

The only piece remaining to be booked for our trip to Spain is a place to stay for one night while we are making our way from Seville to Valencia. You would think this would be easy. But oh how wrong that thought is. So far we have tried 4 different places on airbnb and been shot down every single time (although, to be fair, we did some of the shooting down too).

However, this turned out to be a blessing in disguise because looks like our original ferry to Ibiza got cancelled and we'll be booked on another one that leaves about 8 hours later. This means more time to spend on our winding drive along the coast of Spain! So really it's good these people didn't work out because now we can have a little more flexibility on where we stay.

Cross your fingers for us!

Housewarming fun

Had a lovely time at the housewarming last night! Thanks to all who came out :) And hopefully those were there got a chance to meet my lovely parents--they're the best in the world!

Can't wait to have people over again. Next step is actually putting away everything upstairs. Easier said than done though...

Finally the Big Move is complete

It was quite the stressful last 7 days. From packing up everything to the actual moving, it was all a blur--aside from the 6 hours it took the movers which actually seemed like forever. But FINALLY, we are out of the apartment and in the new condo!

It still amazes me how much space we have. I knew we wouldn't have enough to fill it up but even with what we have it seems like we have still have so much room. Guess that means I need to go shopping! One of my favorite activities. So the plan is to hit up Ikea this weekend and buy me some furniture. Because otherwise I don't know what people would sit on in our living room, and we can't have that.

And in case you were wondering, Watson is already enamored with the new place. He was in panic mode when I dropped him off at a friend's while we moved (and I have a scar to prove it), but now he's happy as a lark and running all over the place. I just hope he doesn't decide his litter box is too far away...

But anyways, excitement about the condo! And so glad to be there! Now to spend more as we shop to get organized and fill it up. Not a terrible problem to have :)

Getting ready for the Big Move

I suppose I should take a break from my Spain planning and focus on my move to the condo I just purchased about 1.5 miles away from where I currently live downtown. I'm calling it the Big Move.

I am oh so excited about the big move and cannot wait to begin living there. It's a FANTASTIC space with tons of room, fun colors, move in ready, a wet bar, and well I could go on and on so I guess I'll just show you some pictures I took when I went for the home inspection. And then you can all be jealous :)

 

The plan is slowly coming together...

If you know me, you know how impatient I am and you will understand that I am oh so excited to have most of our planning out of the way for Spain and Lisbon!

As of this weekend, we are now successfully booked for all of our accommodations except for the driving tour, and all of our transportation except the train to Lisbon (which you can't book yet) and the rental car. It's so close I can smell it! But maybe that's the nachos I had for lunch...

Anyways, my friend Sam just left yesterday for Italy and Paris and I am oh so jealous. Now I am impatient to depart on my own fun trip. So... with that said... is it August yet?

Spain planning has commenced

We met for a while on Saturday to map out our route and as you can see in the map below, we are going to try to fit in a lot!

I think at this point, I'm most excited about Madrid, Lisbon, Ibiza, and Barcelona. Should be a fantastic time! And the traveling along the coast should be beautiful as well.

Is it August yet?