Madrid

there was a time when i would prefer to go to a major city, but i think i've hit a point where i'm a bit over them. mainly because they are so big and there are so many tourists (if thats not pot calling the kettle black, i don't know what is). Madrid is very touristy. they are everywhere and with tourists come tacky shops and people flogging maraccas and other things spanish stereotypes. i find it a bit of a turn off really, especially since i've just come from from places that aren't as busy. there are parts of the town that aren't jammed packed full of tourists.
as you can probably tell, i wasn't really looking forward to Madrid and my first impressions weren't the greatest. but i have to say, after i did a bit of exploring outside the touristy areas, i did warm to the place.

i wouldn't say all the plazas are great. as i was saying, there are a lot of tourists and people flogging tacky items to them, but some of the plazas were quite cool. some of the architecture around town is interesting and very elaborate at times, with domed roofs, fountains etc. it got to the point where, sometimes it felt like on every buildings roof was a statue of a horse on its hind legs.
there transport here is quite good. when i first got into Madrid i used the underground a little bit to get to my hostel. it works in a pretty similar way to the London tube. before i got here i heard that on the news they continually report about people getting stuff stolen while on the underground. i didn't have a problem, though i was extra careful. the good thing about the underground is its only 1 EURO per trip and its 2 EURO's to the airport, which is perfect for me since i'm flying out of here. usually most cities bump up the price quite a bit when you have to go to the airport.
not that i was looking, trust me i wasn't, but i noticed there were plenty of prostitutes around, and they're weren't just ladies of the night either, you'd see them at all times of the day, even in the morning, i suppose when you're in the mood you're in the mood, but just after breakfast?

I checked out the Palacio Real. some of its decore was also really over the top, plenty of gold, red velvet, marble, frescos - all the good things in life. there was a room that was full of armour which was pretty cool. i was quite surprised to see that they used to have there own pharmacy in the palace, i guess it makes sence, you don't just want anyone making medicine for the Royals. but something that was a bit out of place was there was a few rooms with a bit an asian influence. supposedly, at one stage, it was very fashionable to have something asian in your palace. i found it a pretty good palace to check out, i think it was probably worth waiting in the hot sun for a ticket. as i was wandering the halls of the Palace i came across the portait of Carlos III, i reckon he's a dead ringer for legendary Australian cricketer and commentor, Bill Lawry, what do you think? i wonder what Carlos III batting average was?

Carlos III

Bill Lawry

the Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, which is the Centre of Contempary Art is quite good. i suppose you can't leave Spain without seeing some of its most famous artists. they have quite a big collection of Miro, Dali and Picasso. actually, they have a really famous painting of Picasso's called 'Guernica' its quite massive and pretty interesting to look at. i really enjoy Picasso because his work just seems so off the cuff. i remember when i was at University i did an elective in art. one lesson we sat down and watch a movie observing Picasso painting, it was quite amazing to see the picture come together, and how one minute something was nothing but a squiggle on a page and then the next it was a bird or something - genius! the museum had a couple of other artists from outside of Spain, like a statue by pop artist Roy Lichtenstein. i didn't realise Roy did sculpture, i've only known his paintings. anyway, the sculpture was titled 'brushstroke'. i wouldn't be surprised if he perhaps meant for it to be his 'final brushstroke' because he died not long after. but i might be reading into it a bit too much.

the other art gallery in Madrid worth seeing is the Museo del Prado, if your into old paintings this is your place, plenty of Rubens and Rembrandt. i have to say, this stuff doesn't really tickle my fancy much, but after 6pm you get in free, so i can't complain. there was one painting there that had me a little perplexed. there was a guy with massive breasts and he had a baby suckling from his nipple. who knows, maybe they did have plastic surgury in the 15th century, but if so, maybe he should've looking into some botox, his crows feet were horrendous.

though there are a number of nice parks around Madrid to break up the city, my pick is the park right behind the Museo del Prado called, Parque de el Retiro. big old trees provide much needed shade from the spanish sun, and also plenty of lush green grass to lay down and chill out on. the the array of kooky statues seem to be a bit of a hit with the local kids. something i really liked in the park was the Palacia de Cristal which is like a giant glass gazebo, its very old and classic looking, it would be perfect setting for a movie. on the grounds they also have a lake where you can hire a boat to row around and yep, you guess it, a monument with more horse statues.

Madrid is quite big but all the sights are surprisingly walkable. on the otherside of the city they have this egyptian temple thing here which is a little bit strange, not really what you might expect in the middle of spain, apparently it was a gift from the Egyptians and was relocated stone by stone to Madrid. something kind of funny happened while i was at the Templo de Debod. i saw this person walking with and older lady, and was pushing a older man in a wheelchair down the street. from behind, and from the way he was dressed, it looked like person was a teenager, but as i got up closer it was a man in his 50's! i couldn't help but laugh, but then he started having a tantrum, and it reminded me so much of the movie 'Kevin and Perry Go Large'. if you haven't seen the movie, check out the trailer below, its so bad that its good. looking at the trailer again, it made me wonder why i didn't go to Ibiza while i was here... kidding!

usually when i get to a big city they offer a free* tour of the place (*you give them a tip at the end, so its not exactly free) and in they tour they give you a bit of a quick run down of the history of the country and the place. its really good because otherwise, i find, you feel a bit disconnected from what it is your looking at. here in Madrid they normally do offer this but have run into a few problems with the government and tourism board because of red tape etc. its a bit of a shame really becuase, for people like myself who travel on a shoe string budget who are a totally different demographic, can't always afford to pay for a fancy tour (the bus tours here are about 20EURO, which i think is a bit steep considering they just play a tape as they drive passed sights) also it doesn't educate tourists about the struggles of the city and, more often than not, the charming qualities of the city. i always think its a shame when making a quick buck gets in the way of people enjoying themselves. hopefully they lift the ban soon so that more tourists can enjoy Madrid to its fullist.

After spending nearly a month here in Spain, i'm totally fasinated by it. becuase i didn't get to do the tour my history on Spain isn't that great, but i heard a few things here and there from other people. i was shocked when i heard it used to be under the dictatorship of Franco. and when you think about it was only recently that Juan Carlos came into power that it turned into a democracy (by the way, Juan Carlos is a very popular guy around here, so much so his face features on the 1 and 2 EURO coin). it really made me think about how much Spain has been through, and why things are the way they are. also maybe i should've been paying more attenion in history class, i think i'm going to have to spend next week on wikipedia. anyway, thanks to the lovely people at EasyJet i'm flying to Sofia in Bulgaria where i'm sure many tales of sleepless nights lay ahead, stay tuned.