Another crazy weekend. On Friday, I lost my voice; it could be some kind of cold, or the fact that it was my birthday on Monday, but I have done three Covid tests since returning from Barcelona/Madrid and all are negative.
For my birthday, I made a pavlova and we had a lovely evening at Chumbera Café in Torre del Mar with a Spanish friend, 15 Auxes, and my host family + the abuelos (‘grandparents’). My earlobe was pulled 22 times (one for each year), which is an old tradition. I also received some chanclas (‘thongs’) as a birthday present from the family (I don’t think they approve of my Birkenstocks). Abuana ('abu' short for abuela ('grandma') + Ana (her name)) made me a heat pack with cherry pits on which she had embroidered ‘153’ which is approximately 5 months, symbolising the number of days I’ll have stayed with the family by the time I leave. I also had tickets to see Tash Sultana (an Australian artist currently on an EU/UK Tour) so that's why I have just been in Madrid.
On Saturday evening, I went to book my 1 hour bus ride to Málaga in time for the 8.50am flight (despite being a lot longer, European trains are sometimes not much cheaper than flying), however, the bus schedule is heavily reduced on Sundays and so I had to catch the last bus on Saturday night and stay at a friend’s place.
I met up with another Australian Aux at our Hostel (Mola). It was both fancy and affordable, and each dorm has its own toilet/shower. Unfortunately, they don’t hold luggage for you, and the beds lack curtains, but apart from that, I have no complaints.
We walked through El Rastro which is the enormous market place (spanning over several streets) open on Sundays 9-3pm. Perfect for buying clothing, art, and antiques.
Later, we visited the Prado museum which contains Spanish art from the 15th-19th centuries. It was huge! And we had free entry due to the fact that we are teachers (however, it is also free from 4pm) and spent about 2.5 hours walking through it all. If you really want to see everything, I’d recommend allowing 3.5 hours. Under the museum, there is a museum about the museum with pictures of how Prado has been used over the years. I really liked the room with Hieronymus Bosch paintings. (Note that photos aren’t allowed in Prado.) I thought that the 1616 'Fiestas del Ommegang en Bruselas: procesión de gremios' by Denis van Alsloot was my favourite painting.
We then ventured off to the Monasterio del Corpus Christi las Carboneras in search of the 'Secret Nun Cookies'. The convent was built in 1607 and nuns sell cookies to make a living. Once you find the door with venta de dulces written on it, ring the bell for monjas ('nuns') and a voice will ask what you want and then buzz you through. Walk through to the torno ('turntable') and say what type and size of biscuits you'd like (the list is on the wall). While they get your order ready, place your cash on the turntable and the nun will rotate it around to give you your biscuits; you will not see the nuns. Originally, the turntable was used to drop off unwanted babies! It was a bizarre experience, however, lifestyle of these hermit nuns is dying out, so make sure you get a chance to visit the convent!
We then walked to the Palace and looked out over the western side of Madrid. The Temple of Debod was an interesting experience. After the construction of Aswan Dam in 1960, the reservoir threatened many of the nearby historical sites, so the Spanish government donated money to UNESCO to help conserve the temples. As a thank-you, Egypt presented Spain with the Temple of Debod. It was taken apart and reassembled in Madrid in 1972. At nighttime, the temple lights up; many people were preparing for the sunset views when we arrived.
That night, we caught up with four girls from the US and went to Salmon Guru, an exotic cocktail bar, where we had cocktails in crazy vessels. One of them was literally a dragon with steam coming out its nose! Drinks ranged from 7,5-12€. We went to Ojalá for dinner which is a café/restaurant with a sandpit in the basement!
That was Day One.
On Day Two, we made our way over to the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia which is the contemporary art museum in Madrid. Again, we got free entry for being teachers, however, there were lots of different discounts (make sure you bring your Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero or have a copy of your passport to show as ID). (Bear in mind that Reina Sofia is closed on Tuesdays.) We spent 3 hours there and were pretty 'arted' out by, but I’d say you’d need 5 hours if you really wanna see it all. You are able to take photos everywhere except for the rooms containing Picasso’s 'Guernica'.
'Identidade do Artista' by Angelo de Aquino in 2007, was probably my favourite piece. He had sent out the same template by post to artists all over the world for them to personalise. The piece took 11 years to collate and these are a couple of my favourite responses.
'A Chile' by Elías Adasme in 1995, are digital prints on cotton of photo-performances. Adasme is part of the 'Escena de Avanzada' Chilean artists group who made subversive art that went against the Pinochet regime at the time. I found this very moving.
For lunch, we went to 100 Montaditos (a ‘fast-food’ sandwich restaurant chain) where we each had two mini-sandwiches, a plate of chips and a small jug of Tinto de Verano for 10,50€! What’s more, is that every Wednesday and Sunday, everything is 1€!
We walked through the Mercado de San Miguel which is an indoor marketplace for tapas. It’s not cheap, but it is a great way to taste little bits of traditional Spanish food (there were also some Asian food stands and two for desserts).
Last night was the Tash Sultana concert. Madrid was their first show of the EU/UK Tour. It was in the Wizink Center and unseated. We managed to get spots dead-centre and only three rows in! Tash was incredible! They played close to 10 instruments on stage, including: guitar, voice, drums, sax, and flute. I didn't notice any other Aussies in the crowd.
Coming back on the train/bus now is very interesting because of the calima in the sky which is when the air is full of sand that has blown over from the Sahara desert resulting in an orange haze. It is expected to reach as far as Germany! Below, you can see a before/after pic from one of the other Auxes as well as one of my street.
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