Madrid? Hated it. Just a big, dirty city with too much traffic. We did go to the Prado Museum and saw Bosch´s "Garden of Earthly Delights", which was really cool, and there was a special exhibit by Duhrer. Awesome. And our hotel was kick ass. Our first night, Danielle (Hawk´s mom) almost got her purse stolen from a cafe on the Puerto del Sol, but she chased down the thief (who was absolutely dumbfounded that this middle aged American woman was busting ass across the street to run him down). Exciting! We´ve also had a really hard time eating in Spain so far. The Spanish are huge on ham and crazy seafood, and we just aren´t. We had a nice dinner on Wednesday night, since it was Hawk´s 31st birthday (yay baby!), but drank way too much and were completely hung over for our day trip to Toledo.
Toledo is cool, but I´m glad we didn´t spend a couple days there like we originally planned. It was perfect for a day trip. It is a town on top of a hill about an hour outside Madrid, and the architecture hasn´t been updated since the 1700s. Gothic and really beautiful. Did some shopping and sightseeing, then headed back to the city.
We left Madrid this morning and took a flight to Barcelona, and it feels really good to be back here after five years (we were here for three days on our honeymoon). This is an amazing city - beautiful, gothic, charming. It has changed a lot since we were here last - got way fancier, with more stores and upscale cafes. Yummy gelato! We´ve been here an hour and already I have sampled one lemon gelato and am planning my next. We are here till Sunday, then are heading north, to a small town called Figueres, where Salvador Dali built his museum, and then I think we´re going to a tiny beach town called Cadeques.
That´s all for now, so…
Adios!
Sorry to hear that you didn’t like Madrid. I kind of understand though–I absolutely despised it the first time that I went, and swore never to go again. The 2nd time I went there (yeah, I’m not so good at keeping promises to myself), I completely fell in love with the place…and the 3rd time, I was kind of ambivalent–I liked it still, but it had lost some of its luster. It really is just a giant dirty city, but there are some truly beautiful areas if you hunt around…And Toledo, yeah, definitely a day trip. There isn’t nearly enough to do there to even bother spending the night; although they do make nice swords and knives!
Have fun in Barcelona…glad to hear that, overall, you guys seem to be enjoying yourselves. Although if you think the gelato is good in Spain, just wait til you’re back in Italy! =)
And even though I’m a few days late, give Hawk a big ol’ birthday hug from me! Wish I could have been in Madrid to celebrate with you!
Neil -
You´´ll be glad to know we are indeed going to your favorite city! Our plan is to take an overnight train tomorrow night from Barcelona to Nice. Any tips?
I’m not sure what search I did that led me to your page, but when I read what you wrote about Madrid vs. Barcelona, I had to post a comment. I lived a year in Madrid in 2002-2003 and LOVED it. Yes, the food sucks, and Sol is dirty and full of purse snatchers, but the rest of the city kicks Barecelona’s ass. Did you explore the small streets beyond the center? Did have a drink in the Plaza Mayor? Did you walk up Calle Serrano? Barcelona has nice architecture, but the people are cold and the bars are boring. And you should check out San Sebastian before you head back to France!