I just got back from a long weekend in Madrid, and had a pretty good time of nonstop "tourist-y goodness". I was happy to spend a weekend in a city that actually had some sunshine. On Friday, my cousin was in class all day so I had some time to wander the city by myself. I paid $9 for a guided audio tour that I found online which basically took me all over the city. It started out at the Palacio Real, Madrid's version of Buckingham Palace. But basically, there were lots of plazas and churches, along with a Ham Museum (so random...I didn't go inside). Madrid also has some really pretty street signs. I liked them a lot. The tour ended at the Prado Museum, which was my final stop of the day. It has a lot of really impressive Spanish art, and it was nice to see a lot of the works that we talked about back in high school Spanish class. A lot of them were way bigger than I expected them to be, especially "Las Meninas" by Velazquez, it was be-au-ti-ful. After walking around the city for a few hours, I had lunch and took a short siesta (nap), in true Spanish fashion. After my nap, I went out again the Reina Sofia, another popular art Museum in Madrid. I felt bad for spending less than a half hour there, but I wasn't recognizing a lot of art, except for Pablo Picasso's Guernica - another surprisingly massive painting. Its 11 and a half feet tall and 25 and half feet long...to put it in perspective.I met up with my cousin later in the evening (around 9) for dinner then went out for a glass of sangria with her friends and headed back to my hostel for the night.
Side note: this is the one complaint I have about Spain - and its their eating schedule. I really cannot function eating dinner at 9 or 10 at night, since I really have no willpower when it comes to staying up late. I didn't experience it, but apparently people don't even go out to bars or clubs until 1 or 2 the morning, and then they stay out until 6 or 7 AM. I imagine this is a young person's lifestyle, since how in the world could you maintain a job if you don't even get to bed until 7 in the morning? Even with that middle-of-the-day nap time.
Since I basically saw all of Madrid in one day, my cousin, her friend and I took a day trip out to Segovia on Saturday. Although it was pretty, I was disappointed to find out that it was very overcast - and why would I enjoy that when I get it all the time in London? Its a small city, but we managed to spend a few hours there taking pictures and browsing the shops. Segovia is home to a castle that is possibly the inspiration for Cinderella's Castle in Disneyland. Its not quite as over the top, but you can definitely see the resemblance. The tower of the castle also had some really great views. On the way back we stopped and got some lunch, and I had my first bocadillo de tortilla espanola, and I am officially in love. Its basically an omelette with potatoes and onions on a loaf of french-type bread, and it is amazing. Even if you don't like eggs (ahem...Mom) its delicious. I had 2 more during my stay in Spain. After Segovia, we headed back to Madrid where I took yet another nap. I actually took one every day while I was there, getting up early really took its toll on me. I met up with my cousin and her friend again for dinner, this time at 10:00, and we waited almost 40 minutes for a table at a really good Mexican restaurant, but that could have just been because by that time I was so hungry anything tasted delicious.
On Sunday I met up with my cousin yet again and we went to El Rastro, the big street market they hold every Sunday in Madrid. It was pretty big, with lots of jewelry and scarves (and SO cheap). It was good since I was able to find gifts for friends from home at reasonable prices. After that, we went and walked around Retiro, Madrid's famous park. It looked really beautiful with all the fall colors. It also had a man-made lake in the center where people were using row boats. If I ever go back to Madrid its something I am going to look into. After walking around we stopped and had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe. You might ask why I would eat there when I am in Spain, but to be honest I could not have been happier to eat an American meal (chicken strips and fries). I went back to my hostel and will not even bother to mention what I did, since I'm sure you already know (hint...it involves sleep). I did dinner on my own this night, and had what my friend recommended I try when I go to Madrid. It was called a doner kebab, and its nothing a shish kebab. Basically they cut really thinly sliced meat off of a rotating spit and put it in a pita with some salad and amazingly delicious sauces. Its Turkish in origin, and I guess its similar to shwarma or gyros. I am going to seek it out in London though, because it was to die for. I met up with my cousin later in the evening for churros, which were disappointing in comparison to the American-ized version that are covered with cinnamon and sugar.
This will be my last post for awhile, since I plan on school consuming my life for the next three weeks. But that was my weekend in Madrid, adios!
Viva Madrid! (& Segovia)
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Posted by Rachel at 8:39 AM 1 comments
Cymru am byth
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
In case you didn't know I learned how to speak Welsh this weekend...just kidding. But I can thank Wikipedia (only the most valid source on the planet) for providing me with my blog title, which means "Wales forever" and is supposedly Wales' motto. Since when do countries have mottos? Does the US have a motto?
Anyway, I am taking advantage of the free wireless on campus. Since the internet is limited in my dorm, I am taking this opportunity to download my TV shows from last night so I can watch them later. Along with the episode of Grey's Anatomy from last Thursday that I still haven't been able to watch.
Saturday morning I left bright and early to catch the bus to go to Wales. It was a nice drive through the English/Welsh countryside and my inability to sleep in moving vehicles allowed me to appreciate the sights. Our first stop was in Caerleon, the site of an ancient Roman amphitheater and army barracks. Its always interesting to see how this stuff is all still standing after all these years. It makes me think of my Roman history professor who always raved about how the Romans were so far ahead of their time when it came to architecture. I can't say he was wrong since they have some pretty impressive structures all over the world, which we can still see today.
After leaving Caerleon we went on to Caerphilly Castle, which I can't really describe except its an ancient medieval castle. Before entering the castle they gave us 45 minutes to eat, not nearly enough time when there are 100+ students on the tour and only about 2 places to eat. Our tour guide told us two really disgusting stories which I can't really repeat here but they involve some pretty nasty torture. Feel free to ask me to elaborate if you are so inclined.
Our final stop for the day was at the Museum of Welsh Life. It consisted of old Welsh buildings that had been moved and restored to one site. They gave us way more time than we needed to explore the place, which seemed to be a recurring theme throughout the weekend. It was cold outside and no one wants to be forced to spend so much time outdoors in that kind of weather. I did get some really pretty pictures of the fall scenery though.
After leaving the museum they brought us to our hotel, a bed and breakast literally in the middle of nowhere. I volunteered to sleep on the top of the bunk bed they had given us, since my friend Tessa has to sleep in the top bunk of her bed that she shares back at her flat in London. They dropped us off "in town" for dinner, a town that consisted of only three restaurants that were open, and this was on a Saturday night. We managed to find a decent place to eat, and had some pretty amazing nachos. It seems like I manage to find some good food everywhere I go. We returned to hotel after dinner and watched some British television, then made it an early night as we were all in bed by 10:30.
On Sunday they took us to a coal mine in Blaenafon, Wales. We got to wear some pretty funny looking helmets which came in handy since I hit my head more than once on the low ceilings in the coal mine. I am sorry I wasn't able to document these helmets, but they told us on the bus not to bring our cameras since anything with a battery was not allowed in the mine. The tour guides were actual miners, and they had some pretty interesting stories to tell. The one that I liked most was about the pit ponies, the horses that were used to pull bins of coal to the exit of the mine. He told us about a horse (named Welsh...so creative, haha) who stopped in one particular room of the mine, refusing to move on into the next room. The miners believed that the horses had a sixth sense about these things, so miners would always stay back if their horse would not budge. As it turned out, the ceiling to that particular room caved in, and the pit pony had saved the miner's life. Of course it could just be an urban legend, but I thought it was pretty impressive.
After leaving the coal mine, we stopped for lunch. For the second time this weekend they dropped us off in a place with limited places that were open, and not nearly enough time. We managed to eat at a Pizza Express (one of my favorite places in London, and way better than it sounds) although we had to scarf down our food pretty quickly.
After lunch, we got back on the bus and went to Tintern Abbey, our last stop of the day. It was still pretty beautiful, considering that had been virtually destroyed by Henry VIII when he dissolved all the monasteries in England. Our tour guide told us a little bit about the monks, and what a meager life they lived. They wore only white robes, and were forced to consume a meager vegetarian diet. I guess you sign up for that kind of lifestyle when you decided to be a monk, but I know I would never want to be one. We spent a short amount of time here, but it was still nice to see one of the important sites in Wales.
All in all, it was an okay weekend. If you're only in England for a short time I wouldn't put it on the top of your list though, since it involves doing a lot of traveling all over the country. And definitely don't stay at the Dare Valley Park Hotel, unless you want a wilderness experience. I found out later that it was situated on a campground, so that probably explains it. Until next time, cheerio!
You can view my album from Wales here.
Posted by Rachel at 8:55 AM 0 comments
Missing in Action
Friday, November 7, 2008
Sorry for the lack of blogging lately, you haven't missed much though. The past couple weeks have consisted of these events:
1. School
2. Quantum of Solace (Bond movie #22) Premiere - the coldest day in London yet. I stood outside for 7 hours to attempt to see some famous people but after those 7 hours couldn't take it anymore and decided to go home.
3. Halloween - not as big as it is in America, and people really take the scary part of it seriously
4. Had the best ice cream sundae I've ever had in my life at Harrods (yes...a department store, its amazing)
5. Guy Fawkes Night - London's celebration, if you can call it that, of the night Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators tried to blow up Parliament. They celebrate it with fireworks, I guess its supposed to be symbolic. They were fun to watch though, and I got some pretty cool pictures which you can see here.
I am off to Wales this weekend, so expect a full report when I return.
Posted by Rachel at 1:14 PM 0 comments