Queue Up: Iggy Pop’s “I Want to Go to the Beach”

It was time to leave the city behind, and head north to a smaller, and hopefully, more laid back town. This beachside resort town was where royalties and celebrities came to get away. A one hour flight later and we landed in San Sebastián.

To close this trip chapter on Madrid, it was a very different place than when I visited it 30 years ago, as most places tend to be. Today, it’s a vibrant cosmopolitan city that tightly holds onto its cultural roots, and thankfully food traditions. I was struck by how much Madrid and Andalusia were shaped by the 700 years of Moorish rule, the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella and Ferdinand who united Spain 500 years ago, and Franco’s dictatorship which ended only 50 years ago. Every Spaniard we spent time with provided a different, and passionate, perspective on the history of their country.

Thirty years ago I don’t remember lines for much. I was young and maybe more patient, well who are we kidding, I’ve never really been patient. Like every major tourist destination, there were lines into the major sites, but these were really long. For example, when we drove by the Prado last night at 5:30, the line extended almost an entire city block. Every place seemed crowded, and this is the shoulder season. I also didn’t appreciate, that this is the time of year when school groups go on field trips…..to a different country. Pre-teen and teen age kids in very large groups are everywhere (I can’t imagine being responsible for all those id’s/passports, tickets, bags, etc). I kept reminding myself that I was glad to see kids in museums and historic places, phones down (because many places photos were prohibited), and spending time looking at stuff. But, boy, they can really expand and occupy the space and disturb the tranquility of a place.

Ok, now that I sound like an old crumudgen time to move on. As many of you know, I am a germ magnet. It wouldn’t be an international trip if I didn’t come down with something. All those kids, coughing and sneezing, in small spaces it was bound to happen (yes, I’m blaming the young people :)). My chiverlous husband went foraging for some form of medication through the airport (because that seems to be where I get my drugs while traveling), and came back with something he thought looks like throat lozenges, the only thing I didn’t put in our medicine bag. I’ll let you know in a couple of days if the lining of my esophagus is still in tact.

We are heading out in a couple of hours for a food tour, Basque Country style – Pinxtos (this is the Basque version of tapas), so I’ll leave you with a few more photos of our time in Madrid.

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