Thursday night we went danced all night at Kapital, one of the biggest clubs in Madrid. It's 7 stories and each floor is different with it's own bar and type of music. On the main floor they blast cold air on the dancers every once in a while (scary but so fun and smart!). Almost our whole group came, plus we met some interesting Spaniards, among other nationalities. We had fun and now have plenty of stories... 5 hours passed by in a blur and before we knew it, we were on our way home on the first metro! We were all so exhausted we didn't bother to get churros con chocolate, but next time I'm determined! Starting to crave them now...
The plan was to sleep for an hour or 2 then take a bus to Salamanca, but that plan was doomed from the moment we said "Kapital." My alarm may or may not have awoken me (I probably slept straight through it, I was so beat) but had a surprisingly productive day for coming home so late/early! I finally worked out, got into a serious cleaning frenzy, cooked dinner, went grocery shopping, and got to bed early! So THIS is how the Spaniards do it... lol
Saturday we had the most beautiful weather to date. It was a day to rival any spring So Cal day... we’re talking gorgeous!
Went on a picnic at Retiro park and just ate and laid around in the grass, Judy and I "rode" the giant lion statues at the lake, and visited the Palacio Cristal by the romantic lake/small waterfall (pretty, but useless). It was quaint, complete with ducks, swans, huge karp, turtles, dogs, and lots of families around enjoying the sunshine and breezy spring day! Afterwards we went to The Museo del Arte de Reina Sofia (my second time) and got my fill of modern art. Can’t lie, I was a little over it after 2 hours, but it’s good to appreciate it anyway. Overall it was a very “Madrid” day!
Sunday morning Molly and I saw a bit of the huge marathon that was going on and went to church. It was beautiful, as usual, and I bought a CD of Spanish worship music! Singing in Spanish to the creator of this big world creates a feeling I can’t even describe. I was so excited to listen to it, the realized that I have no way to play it til I get back to the states… Afterwards I visited a small part of El Rastro, the giant flea market in Spain, and then went to see a corrida de toros at Las Ventas, the most important bull fighting ring in the world. I didn’t plan on going when I heard about the group trip, but after a couple of classes about it and a little bit of education on its importance among Spanish culture, I decided that it would be worth my time even if I don't get it.
It was quite an interesting experience... It didn't change my mind, I still think it's unnecessary and cruel and I didn't enjoy what I saw. But, I did understand a lot more about the tradition and the culture by actually going. It was rough, I ended up crying during the 5th and 6th (final) bull and I don't really want to look through my photos or videos of it ever again. That being said, some exciting things happened during the performances, such as 2 of the horses getting knocked over! The bulls went at them, but luckily they walked away unharmed because of their armor. Also, the 5th bull was so angry it jumped into the stands from the ring, which is virtually unheard of, MAN that was crazy!
Anyway, enough said, I'd rather move forward then dwell on that. This week is zooming by already, got a test and a lot to do!
Friday morning "I'm off, on the road, to Mor-oc-co!" (as Bob Hope and Bing Crosby would sing!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_w3UG6C_Mo
Hasta luego,
Danielle
ps, if you're on my facebook, I've started to upload pictures! I only got through week 2 so far, but feel free to browse! (and I'll also be posting something non-facebook later on.)
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