Granada - Thursday, Feb. 26

Me and Katie in Granada!

Jackie and I wanted to sleep in a little. We had had an incident the night before where we found blood on the sheets of our hostel beds (well, that's what we thought it was, I'll explain in just a bit). We hadn't gotten much sleep, having slept on top of the beds bundled up in every inch of clothing we could find so we wouldn't touch the comforters. We looked so absurd!

Casey and Amanda decided to go off to Alhambra without us, and we risked getting a ticket later in the afternoon. Only problem was that Amanda took not only the guide book (which had a map of the city), but also the extra map! So once we crawled out of bed, Jackie and I wandered the streets looking for a tourist office. Eventually Katie finished class and rushed to our rescue, map in hand! She pointed us in the right direction, and we made our way to Alhambra, up an extremely steep hill!

The Alhambra is a palace and fortress city complex dating back around the 9th century that was once home to the Moorish rulers of southern Spain. It's such a famous tourist attraction because of the beautiful Islamic-influenced architecture and the incredible views of the city on one side and the mountain range on the other. It was definitely worth the hard physical exercise and the money to go see it. The Alhambra is up there in my favorite places I've been.

View on the hike up

Views from the top!

Hot in the sun, cold in the shade. I promise to never wear a scarf and tank together again.

Palm tree in the foreground, mountains for a backdrop

The gardens

Water stairs - that girl in the back is our Canadian friend Kendra

Orange trees everywhere!

At Alhambra Jackie and I met this girl from Canada named Kendra. She's backpacking alone throughout Europe, and she tagged along with us for the rest of the day and evening. I love meeting fellow travelers. Kendra was a really nice girl with some great stories and she might stop by Dublin to visit us, but I can't help but think she's a little crazy for doing the trip all alone at the age of 19.

After meeting back up with Amanda and Casey, we grabbed some lunch at a place called B+B. Worst food decision EVER. My crepe with veggies left a lot to be desired, but the truly grotesque item of the meal was Jackie's salad. I've never seen anything so frightening. Basically, it consisted of a huge pile of lettuce and other veggies, with tentacles of an unknown sea creature and a fried egg on top. The whole thing stunk like seafood gone very VERY wrong.

Anyways, the rest of the day consisted of walking around the city - seeing some more parks, the main streets...and eating the best helado ever! (Note: not gelato, helado...but the fresh fruit in it was beautiful and gave gelato a run for its money!) I think I had something crazy, like cafe with real coffee beans in it and kinder egg (yes, chunks of kinder egg candy, how much better does it get?!).

After a full day of walking around we went back to the hostel. We still hadn't told the lady at the desk about the blood in the sheets, because we had been in a hurry to leave that morning/early afternoon. Katie came back with us and offered her services as translator and the most competent in complaints/social customs. She did a fantastic job painting the gruesome picture - a lot of the word "sangre" (blood). It went something like "Sangre en la cama." "QUE?!?! SANGRE?!?!" "Si, SANGRE!!!" Except certainly a lot more eloquent. Well the woman was horrified as well and told us someone would be up to give us clean sheets asap.

When we got back upstairs everyone wanted to see the sangre, so after a lot of nervous deliberation and essentially working ourselves up into a frenzy, we got up enough nerve to pull back the sheets. And that's when we realised that we had been complete and utter idiots (eejits as they would say in Ireland, which I believe has a better connotation for conveying the extent of our stupidity). There wasn't any blood. It was just a big hole in the sheets with a red blanket underneath! Granted, the blanket was the perfect shade of blood red, and we had formulated these assumptions in very dim lighting at 3 in the morning. Still, it was pretty rough having to go back down and apologize for the mix up. Apparently in Granada there's no way to say "I am embarrassed" you have to say "the situation was embarrassing." Either way, it was pretty damn terrible.

After the sangre situation we went back to Alhambra to see it lit up at night. We got a little lost in one of the neighborhoods, but Katie had enough sense to get us out of any sketchy areas. Apparently we didn't get the best views by foot, but those of us who accompanied Kendra via taxi back up to the top to drop her stuff off at her hostel saw some more of it. It's absolutely beautiful no matter what time of the day! It amazes me how humans are capable of such stunning architectural creations (and the natural backdrops definitely had a part to play as well).

Upon returning to the center of the city, Katie took us out for what was hands down the most amazing night of tapas. Let's just say I managed to have two delicious drinks of tinto de verano, 3 servings of tapas, and the best sandwich I have ever had in my life for a grand total of 5 euro! Unlike in other parts of Spain, when you order a drink in Granada you are given a free tapa. The surprise is half the fun - they pick what they serve you, and change the dish with each round you order. For tapas I had some bread with tomato paste thing, a sausage on bread, and a chicken and potato dish that I could barely touch I was so full (although they gave it to us for free just because, so I felt like I had to try!). If you're a foodie, definitely go to Granada. Just stay away from questionable seafood.

Granada - Wednesday, Feb. 25

Parque de los Pajaros - 100s of birds! Don't walk into it without an umbrella!

We checked out of our hostel early Wednesday morning after grabbing a quick breakfast at Nebraska (someone had a craving for pancakes). Casey was shocked to find that even in the restaurant "Nebraska" people still didn't speak English, which provided for a good laugh. That's like insisting that the waiters at Bertucci's should all speak fluent Italian. I had some delicious pastry at Nebraska, even if it was a bit overpriced. It's hard to gauge coming from Dublin, which is extremely expensive as far as food goes.

The bus ride to Granada took a little over 5 hours. Madrid is closer to the center of Spain, while Granada is in the south along the Mediterranean. The movie playing was none other than Air Bud. Sometimes I'm shocked at what stuff makes it over to Europe and what doesn't. I imagine people most hold very strange views on American culture if they've never visited the States. The 5 hour journey gave us some time to sleep as well as check out the scenery. My pictures aren't all that great, seeing as I took them from a speeding bus, but they should give you a sense of the Spanish landscape we drove through. A lot of it reminded me of Tuscany, but redder in color. Towards the end of our journey the land became a lot more mountainous.
We took a short cab ride to get to our hostel. I tried to explain to the cab driver the street we wanted to go to (Calle Navajas or something like that). He kept correcting me. The accent is sooo different in Granada! The "s" is often dropped (He couldn't understand Calle Navajas, but Calle Navaja worked just fine), and a lot of things are shortened or slurred. It has a really thick sound to it, and it was so much harder for me to understand anything!

After dropping our stuff off we headed to the frozen yogurt place next door. Such a good decision! Then we wandered the streets in our area until it was time to meet up with Katie. The location of where we stayed was fantastic, and it wasn't expensive. The room I shared with Jackie even had a balcony. But I would NEVER stay there again. Over the next two nights, we realized that the place was really dirty. The shower head was so blocked with mold that the water would spray everywhere. I got hit in the eye pretty hard with a stream of water that burst through the mold - not the best showering experience to say the least. I don't need to stay somewhere fancy, but it has to be clean.

Meeting up with Katie was fantastic, and she was the BEST tour guide imaginable! In fact, she's made me nervous about when she comes to visit Dublin in a few days because I know there's no way I can live up to that professional level of tourguideness. She basically gave us a tour of our area - the Cathedral, the different main streets, Parque de los Pajaros, etc. - and she told us the history of pretty much everything we saw as we walked. She really needs to start charging people (but not me of course!).

We decided to see a flamenco and dinner show that night. The place was really small and intimate. The only other people were clearly tourists as well. The French people next to us kept staring and commenting as they picked at their salads. "Those Americans really like to eat a lot of pizza"::insert look of disgust:: (a few people in our group knew French). The intense staring and subsequent discussion is a cultural difference that I frankly will never like or appreciate. It was particularly noticeable this trip amongst French tourists (it happened not once, but 3 times where we had a French person practically sit at our table they were watching so intently and then lean back to talk about us with friends!), but it was noticeable amongst the Spanish as well. I said "hello" once and stared back, but I was ignored. This is not to say I detest the French or French culture as a whole (going to France sometime would be great!), but I am proud to come from a culture where our people are so mixed and heterogeneous that staring blatantly at differences and discussing them as bizarre breakings of the norm is not a regular part of our behavior (though of course it happens on occasion). At least I don't think it is a regular part, feel free to discuss.

The flamenco itself was really cool, and my pizza was delicious, thank you very much! The style of singing is extremely melodramatic, and the dancing is not particularly pretty, but it is all done with such a heightened level of passion that it is breathtaking. Katie helped translate some of the love songs to us, so we could follow along and were not simply listening to a steady stream of unfamiliar words. We also had a glass of tinto de verano, the drink of choice in Granada, which is even better than sangria in my opinion!

The food in Granada was quite different than in Madrid, and overall even better in my opinion! It probably helped that we had someone with us who knew all the good places to go. The food, like the architecture, tends to have a Mediterranean and Moorish influence (not the pizza of course), and the fruits and vegetables are so fresh!! There are beautiful orange trees everywhere, and although you don't want to eat the public ones, the oranges for sale in the shops and stalls are incredible! It was so good to eat so much healthy, fresh food. Dublin doesn't have a lot of good fruit and vegetable options. And don't get me started on how inexpensive everything was - Granada has so many good bargains (food, shopping, etc.). Eating a fresh orange was the perfect way to end my first day in Granada.

Madrid - Tuesday Feb. 24

Flamenco near the famous Bear Statue. Don't ask me why it's famous, I have absolutely no idea!

Our last day in Madrid was very relaxing. I had wanted to go to Reina Sofia, which houses Guernica and a bunch of other cubist and surrealist works. Sadly, though, Tuesday is the one day a week that it's closed! Oh well, I guess I have an excuse to go back to Madrid sometime.

We spent most of the day shopping and relaxing in Plaza Mayor. We had seen it at night, but hadn't explored it yet during the day. There are a lot of street performers, and the frescoes on the buildings are fantastic. We also shopped on the surrounding streets and had considered visiting the monastery, but really we all just wanted a day to soak up the sun and wander around. A bunch of people were there to see the Madrid vs. Liverpool match, so the atmosphere was quite festive throughout the city. Oddly enough, there were also supposed to be events taking place for Carnivale, but we never saw any. Apparently it's a lot more subdued in Madrid.

A whole bunch of views of the Plaza Mayor

Flamenco in the Plaza
A sad looking Charlie Chaplin
Chewbacca???

We grabbed some more queso for lunch, and this time went to eat it at the Royal Gardens next to the Palace. While we were there, a bunch of guys began taking pictures of us. We were stuffing our faces with cheese! Apparently that is attractive in Spain.

This leads me to my first lesson on traveling in Spain - do not wear a dress. I had decided it would be a lovely day to wear a dress since the weather was so warm. It was by no means revealing (even had sleeves!) and I wore it with some frumpy flats so I'd be comfortable walking around. That does not matter. I had gotten an excessive amount of stares and people trying to talk to me all week, presumably because of my hair, but the day I wore a dress was extremely uncomfortable. Way too many "Que tal Chica?"s and such. So be forewarned - don't travel with three blonds and a redhead if you want to blend in in Spain, and don't wear a dress or a skirt. I've never felt like such a freak show in all my life. I changed as soon as we could get back to the hostel.

Lunchtime in the Palace Gardens

Eating cheese wrapped in a map while wearing a dress and having red or blond hair = MAJOR Spanish scandal

That night a friend of Casey's studying in Madrid took us out for tapas. We had planned on going to el Tigre, which apparently is super good and super cheap, but it was closed so we ate at this place next door. It was probably the most uncomfortable meal we had. We were clearly very much the outsiders, and had trouble deciding what to order. Even Casey's friend, who has been there for some time now, had no clue what most of the stuff was - no patatas bravas (my favorite) or ali-oli. We ended up with the weirdest asparagus I've ever had in my life - white, pickled and served cold with mayonnaise. It was kind of an unpleasant, unsatisfactory meal all around - the atmosphere was so awkward - but I guess it was an experience.

So now for my overall impressions of Madrid...

The food - Food was either hit or miss. I loved the paella, the empinadas, the cheese, patatas, sangria, and I hated the flan and asparagus. The chorizo was sooo greasy, but the flavor was great. Not sure what to make of that really. The churros con chocolate were great too, but as I was soon to find out Granada's are even better! When you travel in Spain, if you know any word, learn "jamon" = ham. It will get you far. Oh, and in Madrid you don't tip. How awesome is that!

The language - Bring a dictionary at the least, but preferably go with someone with some experience in the language. Even though it's big and international, people don't often speak English. I barely got us by, but it was such a relief to have Katie in Granada!

The fashion - Spain is INCREDIBLE! You can find decently priced items of good quality, and their high-end stuff is just breathtaking. The people of Madrid tend to dress with impeccable taste - classic pieces tailored to perfection. If I ever had money to blow on an international wardrobe (which will probably never happen but one can dream), Spain would be the place to do it. Such a nice sight after Dublin, which really is the pits for fashion (try stuck in 1994, with a lot of Seattle grunge).

The city - Madrid has to be one of the cleanest cities I have ever been to. They literally hose the streets down every night! It's got incredible public spaces, and tons of things to see and do. Despite some language issues, most everyone we met was incredibly patient, easy going, and friendly. I'll be going back some day for another visit, most definitely!

Madrid - Monday Feb. 23

The hostel said there would be a free walking tour of Madrid in the morning, but when we got to the meeting space the only people we found were other confused girls staying in our hostel. The seven of us decided to go take a tour of Palacio Real instead.

The Palace was impressive - ornate fabric wallpaper, silver and gold threaded tapestries, priceless works of art, etc. To be honest, it was so gaudy I thought it was ugly, and some of it gave me a headache. I'd say the Gala Dining Room was my favorite because it was grad but a little more subdued in color palette.

The best part of the self-guided tour came when we entered the room with the stradivarius violins. They are among the most famous and prized treasures in the Palacio Real. Casey mentioned off-hand that violins, even the most fragile and precious, need to be removed and played on occasion or else they will become ruined. At that exact moment a group of men, decked in protective suits and gloves, marched into the room, carrying with them cases for the violins. They ushered us out as quickly as they could. Apparently they were going to play them that very day!

After the Palacio we walked to a Museo del Jamon (Museum of Ham) to get a baguette and some cheese for lunch. I again had a chance to practice my Spanish when we ordered - I guessed at what cheese to buy, but it turned out really well. We made our way to Parque del Retiro, my other favorite place in Madrid (it's up there with el Prado). We ate in the park and then spent a few hours meandering around the grounds. The boat house as probably my favorite part. The building is grand, but what is really cool are the boats you can rent for 5 euro. They're nothing special - just a simple rowboat, but they looked like so much fun for a date, parents with children, or just with friends. We didn't get one, but such a wide variety of people use them! The weather was perfect for it - so warm and sunny. I was also really impressed by how such a large public space could be so well maintained.

Museo del Jamon!

We walked through the Crystal House in the park, which had some great, funky crystal art. Then we moved to a bunch of cherry trees where we had a siesta. The rose gardens were still pretty too, even though they're not in full bloom yet, and I really like the fountain of the "Fallen Angel." It's the only public statue dedicated to Lucifer in the world.
We spent a significant amount of time in Parque del Retiro, which I'm very glad for - it was time well spent. That night we decided to go out, and Amanda called her friend Joel who is studying in Madrid so he could meet up with us and possibly show us around the city a bit. He and his roommate Brandon brought us to a tapas place in Plaza Mayor that was good, but nothing special. We had some sangria and shared patatas ali-oli.

Next they took us to Dubliners. There are a ton of Irish pubs in Madrid. It was kind of funny to go to an Irish pub in Madrid - but I didn't think we'd stay there all night! We were in Spain - I wanted Spanish nightlife! We had a decent time there all in all, but afterwards things became difficult.

On the way back the guys took over leading the way. Jackie thought it was wrong, but they wouldn't listen to her and she didn't want to argue. Truth be told, I had no access to the map and don't have the best natural sense of direction, so I couldn't really argue either way. Eventually, though, things got uncomfortable as they led us into some rather sketchy parts of the city, and we all realized they had been wrong. Turns out they study outside of Madrid and don't know the city that well. They still wouldn't listen. They didn't speak the language well either. It was 2am, my limited knowledge of the language was all we had, and we were lost in a foreign city. The guys and Amanda wouldn't stop being loud or pulling out the map. Eventually we ran into a really nice Australian guy who led us back in the right direction.

Joel and Brandon ended up being huge jerks, and Amanda was all upset at Jackie for "emasculating" them. She could have cared less about the fact that our safety was in danger. Overall, Amanda was incredibly dumb and I don't think we'll be travelling together again. Still, her behavior was the only bad part of my spring break. I still would do that trip over again - it was fantastic otherwise. More later...