Madrid

Since we had some extras days in between our two programs (and couldn't stay with María tooo long), we headed to Madrid a little early before our orientation with ISA Sevilla. We were pretty exhausted from the long bus ride so we did a lot of napping, taking extremely long showers that we had missed so dearly, and getting our money's worth of the free breakfast (which was amazing!). All the ISA Spain programs meet in Madrid in the same hotel for orientation before they head out to their respective cities. So I was pleasantly surprised to see and get to spend the day with my friend Allie, who is studying in Granada for a year! We went out for sangria and the first paella of Spain. Both were perfect!

Last time I was in Madrid (what?), I didn't get the chance to go to the Reina Sofia (Madrid's famous modern art museum) because it was closed. Luckily our hotel was within a block of the Reina Sofia AND students get in free. It was incredible! It may have been the best museum I have ever been in.

Picasso statue in the Reina Sofia gardens

Once the rest of the Sevilla kids arrived, we took a few excursions to some popular sites in Madrid (both of which I had already seen, but I learned something new at each place from our Spanish tour guides):

El Palacio Real

Next to El Prado Museum

After our excursions we walked around a bit to find some lunch. We eventually passed El Mercado de San Miguel, which is an upscale indoor market that sells all kids of tapas, breads, prepared seafood, drinks, chocolate, and ice cream. I was being way too cheap to buy anything but here's an idea of something San Miguel has to offer its patrons:

Gazpacho with Iberian ham

Plaza Mayor

So as most of you know (or have figured out by the amount of food-related photos I take), most of the memories I have of places revolve around food. One of the things I remember most vividly about Madrid is a bakery en Puerta de Sol called La Mallorquina. So I obviously had to return.

When you walk in, the walls are lined with rows and rows of freshly pastries, just waiting to be placed in the case. There are people everywhere--Spanish men standing and sipping a café con leche while reading the paper, women buying bread for the day, or hungry American girls like myself drooling over the treats.  It's like any other Spanish bakery you would find here as far as the types of pastries they actually offer, except for one thing: La Napolitana. Most bakeries will usually have a chocolate croissant or something similar, but La Mallorquina makes napolitanas. They're like napoleans but not at all...because they're better. It's basically a sweet, soft, buttery pastry filled with whatever your heart desires. My favorites are the jamón y queso and of course, chocolate. The napolitana con chocolate is filled with this rich chocolate filling that I don't understand and topped with some sort of crumbly sugar that I've never tasted before. The whole pastry is a gastronomic mystery! I would pay many a euro for the recipe. When we finally made it to Retiro Park to sit and relax, I opened up my delicious treats:

This baby, and it's ham and cheese friend, make for a delicious, cheap, and unhealthy lunch in Madrid! Worth Every bite!

Overall, Madrid (and Toledo--which I will post pictures of soon!) were bittersweet for me. As we passed each famous site or even certain restaurants, I was reminded my friends in Houston/Waco/Paris who came to Madrid with me during my first visit to Europe. For example, making multiple trips to La Mallorquina, taking secret illegal pictures inside the palace, almost falling asleep while standing in the Prado, or taking imaginary pictures with Rick Steeves in Plaza Mayor. Although I enjoyed more the first time, it was so fun to come back and to experience the city in a new and totally different way!