Our First Excursion: Madrid!

After about our first month in Seville, Spain my friends and I decided it was time to plan our first overnight visit to another city. We decided on Madrid, as it is a must see in Spain and a relatively easy trip to plan on the four days of preparation we allowed ourselves. We chose the cheapest mode of transportation to reach our northern neighbor, the bus. We scheduled the midnight bus and arrived in Madrid at 6am, with our excitement temporarily clouded by our sleep-deprived status. Feeling both adventurous and also skeptical about booking our first hostel on the internet, we figured since we knew a good deal of spanish at that time we would find a hostel once we arrived. And so, 3 American girls began strolling up and down Gran Via in Madrid looking for lodging in the early morning hours. We settled on the first place we found with a vacancy: Hostel Acapulco, a nice place, but a bit expensive. We did not yet know the ins-and-outs hostel living: good rates, the best websites, the different room options. The little, old madrileño working at the front desk let us know it would be a few hours until the room was ready, so with no other option we hit the streets. After a brief stop for a cafe con leche we got out our trusty map and began whizzing through the city. As the Spanish are known for their late nights and late mornings, we had much of Madrid to ourselves during our first hours of sight-seeing. We were so excited to explore the city and just see a new city for a change, as we had been itching to travel. Ever since high school Spanish classes I had learned about the great paintings of Velazquez, Goya, el Greco, and Picasso housed in Madrid museums. Seeing the paintings in person was like coming full circles as I could remember sitting in Spanish classes looking at these paintings in textbooks and dreaming of studying abroad in Spain one day. It was hard to believe the day had come. Throughout the trip we made near constant comparisons to Sevilla, as we had become so acquainted with it. We noticed similarities and differences in the food, the accent, the character of the people. Maybe it took out first trip away to see how connected we had gotten to the city, our new friends, and our host families. The weekend helped us see another side of the country of Spain, another aspect of its personality.

Posted by Clare, Seville, Spain, Spring 2007