Day 18 in Europe (Madrid to Berlin)

Sad day for me. Madrid has been great and I really don't want to leave! The city even turned up the heat today to a cool 39 degrees by the time I hopped on the plane.

Not much to say about the total travel time of 11 hours including flight delays etc. Also my German U-barn map seemed a bit off so it did add some traveling time.

The part of me that became Madrileños wanted to have dinner at midnight so I obliged. Found a place that sold 'pommes frites, scampi, mayonnaise, and 23 Karat Goldstaub'. Had no idea what that was until it came; gold flakes! I found it rather neat.

The other fun thing I found out is that people will happily walk around with bottles of beer in hand. I tried it myself and I felt like I was an alcoholic. But still, pretty cool huh?

Day 17 in Europe (Madrid)

Panic stations! Having originally thought that there wasn't much to do in Madrid I've somehow left two art museums and a rather large park to visit today.

The Centro Arte Reina Sofia may focus on contemporary art, but its collection is certainly no pushover. Took me a good three hours to cover a couple of floors. The keystone piece is probably Picasso's Guernica, one of his most famous. But beyond that there was a lot of depth and range in 20th century art, more than I had thought was possible in one museum.

Had to drag myself away from the Reina Sofia without fully exploring all the pieces due to the fact that I really wanted to visit the Prado as well. So with lunch and a single tinto in my stomach I headed onwards to the last of the three great museums.

I probably didn't enjoy the Prado as much as I could've. One thing I've learned about my taste in art is that moving back in time is hard.

Anyway by the afternoon I was all museum'd out and it was time for me to step into the searing heat of the Madrid summer. I explored the huge block of green on my map called the Parque del Retiro, and it didn't disappoint IRL. Beautiful long paths through what is essentially a forest led to intersections with pretty fountains. An awesome way to spend an afternoon really.

I did run into a bunch of shirtless guys working out and chatting. I think it may have been a cruising spot but I didn't stay long enough to find out!

The night was rather sad as I had to pack, but luckily I found a Spanish boy from Mallorca to cheer me up!

Day 16 in Europe (Madrid)

I thought it was a good idea to sleep with the fan off for a night as it wasn't very hot. Unfortunately I didn't realize that the soft droning sound of the fan masked a viciously snoring person in the room adjacent to mine. In any case I woke up feeling drained and thinking oh no it's 'one of those days'.

Actually the day started off with a small win. I managed to have desayuno (breakfast) without saying a word of English. Granted there wasn't exactly a conversation but still...

Today was meant to be museum day. I was gonna do three art galleries. The first was Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza and just wow. If you ever need a high quality crash-course through the history of European and Euro-American art then this is it. From a beautiful 15th century diptych by Jan van Eyck to 17th century Dutch realism to Monet to Van Gogh to Picasso, there was something nice in every room. My favourite being this piece by Gustave Courbet. The only downside was not being allowed to take any photos at all so other than telling stories here I have nothing to show for it.

A little hiccup during the visit was when there was a super cute Spanish museum-staff guy distracting me from the art in one of the rooms. My conscience kept pestering me with 'grrrrrrr concentrate on this art dammit'. I caught him looking at me many times while I was checking him out but didn't end up finding out what that was all about. Story may be worthy of /sadface but who knows.

By the time I was done with the Thyssen it was almost 16h00, perfect timing for lunch in Spain! At this point I was really feeling the lack of sleep so I gave up on the other two museums and headed home. On the way I stopped by for some jamon and huevos fritos and tinto de verano. Ok a couple of tips for future travelers; 1, jamon is theoretically delicious but if like me you don't like meat, then don't try it; and 2, many glasses of tinto de verano can be pretty lethal when it's a hot summer day and you're dehydrated!

So by the time I went for my siesta I was quite happy. :) :)

Have to cut this short, way too long already! In the evening I was on the internet, sitting under the air conditioner at my hotel lounge when I started chatting to a nice fella and we hooked up (yeah yeah too much info, but this is my trip diary too). At night 22h00 I went out for a dinner of paella and a copa of cuerveza.

I'm glad I dragged myself out of bed because I had one of the best days of my trip so far. Maybe not THE best but it would be close! (Dammit museum guy you ruined my perfect day!)

Day 15 in Europe (Madrid)

What better way to feel better than doing a bit of retail therapy. I'm not a shopper but with all the 'rebajas' signs around I can't really help it can I?

Wandered aimlessly for a while. Outside of the very centre of Madrid the city isn't catered towards tourists,  and there are thousands of streets to wander. I went up to the heart of Malasaña barrio and then back down to Chueca in my search for something to buy.

I eventually walked past a store I liked the look of, and bought five items of clothing. The number is relevant because I think I bought five items of clothing in the whole of last year haha.

Had a delicious sushi dinner at a restaurant with waitstaff that were Chinese. Had a half-decent conversation in Cantonese with one of the waitresses where she exclaimed that I had a very thick accent (obviously I know this already!).

Dinner was followed by another totally random incident where a Chinese kid asked me for directions, and after a lot of effort we discovered that he only speaks Mandarin and Spanish only, whereas I only speak Cantonese and English. Awkward. I showed him my map and he nodded and thanked me before walking off. I have no idea if I was of any use but it sure was funny.

Day 14 in Europe (Madrid)

It's 25 July and I'm halfway through my trip. It's been one hell of a ride and there's still two weeks to go!

Met up with another friend today from good old Club Mac (-quarie University). Despite having to pack for his own trip the next day, he was kind enough to take me on a tour around central Madrid.

My mate was really awesome at playing tour guide so I really got to enjoy myself for the afternoon, no worrying about where to go and what to say. We had some nice pintchos with a caña for lunch, walked everywhere, then relaxed with a tinto de verano. Two types of alcohol and it wasn't even 16h - the Spanish sure know how to have a great time!

After we parted ways I had a siesta, then I went down to the Temple de Debod where there was a great view of the Palacio Real in the dusk. I couldn't get the best pictures so I walked all the way downhill to Príncipe Pío station, but many trees do not a great picture make. By this time it was 22h30 so I stopped by Maccas on the way home.

Just a comment here - it's always so damn embarrassing when you can't even order a Filet-o-Fish meal properly. I can get my words out fine, but as soon as they ask me a question it turns to shit. I have no idea if they're asking what size meal, or if I'm eating in or taking out, and so I just nod like some idiot hoping that it works out well. The serving chick realizes quickly that it's hopeless to say anything further and just proceeds with the order, and I grab my food and run back to my hotel room in tears.

Ok not in tears but I did download a Spanish training audio track and listened to it for an hour or so. On the one hand I really did have an awesome day but on the other my confidence has been crushed beyond repair...

Day 13 in Europe (London to Madrid)

A lot of work this morning for a 2 hr flight; the whole trip took 8 hrs with added time from London tube and Madrid metro, Gatwick express, and most of all a massive take-off delay. Apparently budget airlines in Europe suffer from the same problems as those in Australia!

Anyway I took a nap then went wandering round town. Madrid is amazing! Not nearly as rich and pretentious as Paris or London, but there's a lot of shopping and nightlife is  great. It's a huge pity I don't know enough Spanish to hold a conversation or even say, pick up a guy, because if there was a place to let go of yourself it'd be here. :)

Had dinner for €13 which included three courses and a carafe of wine. My choice for the three courses were goat's cheese salad (delicious) mushroom and potatoes with scrambled eggs, and ice-cream/frozen yoghurt, all with vino tinto.

What a way to end the day! (Actually apparently this is when the Madrileños start going out but I need to catch up on sleep after waking up so early!

Day 12 in Europe (London)

Ok short one today, as I spent most of the morning online then sleeping and most of the afternoon sleeping then packing.

I visited the National Gallery today, and their collection is very impressive! Particularly liked their Cézanne pieces, though there's a good number of big names there too, like Van Gogh, Seurat, Pissarro, and Corot. I'm really not a fan of art nor a student of art history but I think everyone should learn a little and at least be able to appreciate art.

The evening was capped off by Avenue Q, whic I had previously seen but enjoyed so much that I was very happy to see it again. The videos were different as was the set but otherwise the essence of the show as the same as the Sydney production, and the show still wasn't terribly well balanced between the first and second halves (first is way better). Nevertheless this is one show all adults should see. Loved it!