férias em Madrid (semana onze)
- Ash
- Apr 21, 2016
- 6 min read
Vacation in Madrid
Monday:
This morning I woke up at 3:30am, caught a taxi and a plane, and ended up in Madrid. Madison and Anna were waiting for me when I got off the plane and the day started! After getting lost 3 times on the metro, we stopped to grab chocolate croissants and then visited Plaza Mayor where Anna and I took a picture with Mikey Mouse. After we stopped at Mercado de San Miguel to try olives with cheese and sea urchin. Sea urchin actually wasn't that bad, it tasted like a thicker clam chowder. We ate lunch at this cute little Spanish place, El Rincon de la Cava. Then went to the Museo Nacional Del Prado. It features one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from the 12th century to the early 19th century, based on the former Spanish Royal Collection, and unquestionably the best single collection of Spanish art. Founded as a museum of paintingsand sculpture in 1819, it also contains important collections of other types of works. El Prado is one of the most visited sites in the world, and is considered one the greatest museums of art in the world. The numerous works by Francisco de Goya, the single most extensively represented artist, as well as by Diego Velázquez, El Greco, Titian, Peter Paul Rubens and Hieronymus Bosch are some of the highlights of the collection. And yes, I copied that off of Wikipedia. The art work was amazing, but I think my favorite piece was by a man who was painting a replica of a famous painting while we were walking around the museum. For dinner we ate nachos, it was nice to have a little spice in my food since spicey is hard to get in Portugal. Overall, it was an amazing first day in Madrid!
Tuesday:
I got to sleep in, first night sleeping in a hostel was an experience because people come and go at such weird hours. Madison and Anna picked me up at 10:30 and we went to a cute little cafe to get a traditional Spanish breakfast. It's called tostadas, basically bread with olive oil and tomato jam. It was really delicious. After, we walked around and stumbled across Plaza de Cibeles before heading to the university where Anna and Madison hold an English class every Tuesday. We grabbed lunch at a restaurant with make your own burritos, it was so nice to have some version of Mexican food and REAL sour cream. I got to visit their residencia, where they live, and after hanging out we headed to get chocolate con churros at Chocolateriá San Ginés who has been serving this style of churros and chocolate since 1894. Then we went to see Puerta de Alcalá. The Puerta de Alcalá's name originates from an old path from Madrid to the near by town of Alcalá de Henares. Madrid in the late 18th century still looked like a somewhat drab borough, surrounded by medieval walls. Around the year 1774, king Charles III commissioned Francesco Sabatini to construct a monumental gate in the city wall through which an expanded road to the city of Alcalá was to pass, replacing an older, smaller, gate which stood nearby. It was inaugurated in 1778. (yes, still pulling my information off Wikipedia). Then we headed back to the hostel to hang out. It was a nice day, but it has been raining the last two days and has put a damper on plans. So, I am praying that it will stop raining.
Wednesday:
Well, I'm currently writing the Wednesday post at 2:30am and I am thankful for friends (like Anna, Madison and Pablo) who walk me home late at night (but I'll explain why soon). We started the day by going to Buen Retiro Park, one of the largest parks in Madrid, and walked around and rented a row boat! It was finally sunny and warm so we got to soak up the sun. :) After we went to lunch at another cute little Mexican restaurant and got nachos and fajitas. I really think I'm all Mexican'd out and could live without it for a while after eating it two days in a row. After lunch we went to a food distribution for Moroccans, we got to help and play with the kids while the moms were getting their allotted food. When the food distribution ended, we met some of Madison and Anna's friends at the theatre to watch Batman v Superman. The movie ended at 12:00, of course we were hungry. It felt like we went to every McDonald's in Madrid before we found one that was open around 2am. It was an experience, but everyone is well fed and ready for tomorrow. And again, I am thankful for friends like Anna, Madison and Pablo.
Also!! CONGRATULATIONS to Bethany and Jonathan and the birth of their sweet little girl Isabella, I'm so excited to meet her when I get back to Lisbon.
Thursday:
Thankfully today was a lazier day. This morning I went with Madison and Anna to meet with their supervisors. After, we are at Wok to Walk for lunch then did a little bit of souvenir shopping in Plaza Mayor. We finally made our wake back to their residencia; there we made popcorn and watched Nee Girl. After a while, we started a game of Risk with Marcos, Pablo and Jeff. It was nice to hang out, have fun, and just relax while Madison kicked everyone's butt in Risk. But a peaceful day today will lead into a very busy day tomorrow and I'm excited. :)
Friday:
Today I got to sleep in, Madison and Anna did not pick me up until 12. For lunch we went to Steak N Shake, it was AMAZING. After we went to the park, Madrid Rio, and had our quiet times, read books, and just relaxed. It was really nice to just hang out and enjoy the sun. We had a snack at this cute little cafe where I got a Nutella crepe and a berry iced tea, which is the closest thing I've had to sweet tea in months. After, we toured the Royal Palace. The Royal Palace was amazing! Full of fancy rooms, amazing art work, decorative furniture and so much more. It was cool to see where the king of Spain had signed important documents and see the crown as it was displayed in the throne room. But I think my favorite part was the armory, where we got to see the armor that the Spanish army had worn in important battles. They had everything from armor for grown men to armor for horses and dogs. It was so interesting to see how the armor of the soldier always matched the armor of the horse they were riding and how the armor had changed over the years.
Then went we to get tapas with Nancy, a missionary on the field in Spain, and they were delicious.
Saturday:
We woke up early, and headed for Spanish breakfast once again. After waiting an hour to get toast, we ate quickly and made our way to the bus station to catch a bus to Toledo. Toledo was a cute little town, a walled in city, where we shopped and hung out. Despite the rain, we had an amazing time! Toledo is famous for their steel and knife making and the knives were gorgeous. The cathedral was also amazing, it was so articulate and beautiful. Toledo was an all around good experience full of laughter, rain, and good memories.
Sunday:
By far my favorite day of the week. I woke up, packed all of my luggage and braved the metro by myself to Madison and Anna's residencia for church. We went to the church that is underneath where they live. The whole service was about a mission trip that the church had just taken to India, although I could not understand a word it was amazing to see their excitement about the work that was done there. Another exciting moment was when a family from India stood up in front of the church and told them how they had come to Spain to be missionaries for two years because God has called them to "GO". It was so so cool to see that and to have the opportunity to pray for them and their ministry in Spain.
After church we headed towards the airport, grabbed lunch, shared some teary stories about our family and a sad goodbye as I headed into security. I flew back to Lisbon and I approached my heart began to do flips. I stared out the window and teared up. It felt like I was coming home, this is my city, my place of comfort, and it was good to return.
My week with Madison and Anna was so rejuvenating and gave me a burst of energy to complete my term here in Lisbon. I am excited to say that the two of them will be visiting Lisbon in two weekends and I'm so thrilled to show them around the city that has become my home.
Thank you so much for the prayers, the letters, the words of encouragement. I miss you guys, but I still have work to do here and, now, only a short time to get it done.
See you all soon!
Love,
Ashton
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