| 2:08p |
Eets just sooo beautiful!
This is our fifth day since landing in Madrid, and we've been on the go non-stop. The first couple of days were pretty brutal because of the jet lag, but we seem to be catching our stride. For me, it's great to be back! It's been 14 years since I stepped foot in Spain. I lived here in the fall of 1981 and the spring of 1982 during my junior year of college. I returned in 1986 for a visit and again in 1990.
Interesting aside: David Robinson was on the plane with us from San Antonio to Houston! He was asleep when we boarded, so I didn't bother him.
On Thursday, Crystal, the Student Activities Director of Suffolk, met us at the airport, and we took a shuttle to our apartment, which is located behind the Ministerio del Aire in the area of Moncloa/Arguelles. It's a very nice location. We crashed for an hour before heading over to Suffolk for a mini-tour.
On Friday, Crystal and Cristina Grasset, the Director of International Programs, led an orientation to acquaint everyone with Spanish culture and reminders on how to keep safe. Then Nuria, Cristina's assistant, led us on a tour around the campus. We had lunch at VIPS, a Denny's-like restaurant.
Friday afternoon, several of us toured downtown Madrid on foot. We saw La Plaza Mayor, La Puerta del Sol and El Palacio de Comunicaciones, to name a few landmarks. When Libby Castillo saw "Metropolis," my favorite building in Madrid, she said, "Eets just so beautiful!" Libby had heard the story of when my sister, a friend and I toured Europe in 1990. Molly, Celeste and I were at a bistro in a small French village, enjoying the local scene and sipping a glass of wine. An elderly man, about 80 years old, approached us and told us in broken English about his brother who lived in America. We continued to chat, and every once in awhile, he would be overcome with emotion and say, "Eets just soooo beautiful!" and wipe a tear from his eye. Whenever we would see something beautiful from then on, that was our trip's slogan. I have an idea it might become the slogan for this trip, too! :)
On Saturday afternoon, Blair (my husband), Aedan (our daughter) and I visited my Spanish family. I lived with Pilar and Paco the year I lived in Spain, and they are treasures. They have five daughters: Beatriz, Elena, Maricarmen, Sylvia and Maria. Although we keep in touch via Christmas cards and, now, e-mail, I hadn't seen them since 1986, and they had never met Blair or Aedan. (They were out of town when I was here in 1990.) Pilar and Paco look exactly the same! They haven't aged at all. Pilar is 77 and Paco is 80, but they could pass for much younger. They are great examples of why we should all choose to live la vida tranquila. We were also able to see Beatriz, Sylvia and Maria and some of their children. Beatriz is going to organize a fiesta before we leave so we can all get together at one time. It was so good to see everyone.
Pilar reminded me about the time Kelly, my roommate, and I had an audience with King Juan Carlos. Kelly only had tennis shoes, and Pilar wouldn't let her go to meet the King with tennis shoes on. She insisted that Kelly wear a pair of Maricarmen's shoes with very high heels. Kelly agreed, but on the way home she couldn't stand them a minute longer. She kicked them off and walked home. When she got to the house, her feet were black and bloody! But, she looked stylish for the King!
On Sunday at 1 p.m., Blair, Aedan and I took the Metro to Retiro Park. It was "llena" with people: gypsies selling rosemary, a guy dressed in a Scooby Doo outfit selling balloons, Central Americans dressed in Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Spider Man and Winnie the Pooh suits; Native American (?) drummers and dancers, parents strolling kids, physically disabled people in wheelchairs, evangelists waving flags and marching for Jesus, a guy strumming Beatles tunes on his guitar, an orchestra playing selections from Bizet's "Carmen" in a gazebo, a group of people demonstrating Capeoira (sp?), including one black guy who had the body of Hercules; fortune tellers, and on and on. We enjoyed lunch (tortilla espanola) at a cafe in front of the park's main lake, and then walked over to see El Palacio Cristal, which has been renovated and is absolutely gorgeous. Many people had rented boats and were enjoying a cruise across the lake. One of the gypsies asked Blair if he'd like to buy some rosemary, but he declined. She whispered some sort of curse under her breath as she left our table. I hope it didn't take!
I love watching people stroll by. One woman was especially fascinating to watch. When she walked, she "rolled" her toes, like she was playing a scale. It looked like she was playing the piano. Right foot forward: C, D, E, F, G; Left foot forward: C, B, A, G, F; Right foot forward: C, D, E, F, G; Left foot forward: C, B, A, G, F! She wasn't scrunching her toes to keep her sandals on; she just walked that way. It made me wonder how I walk!
Cristina invited me, Blair and Aedan to her nephew's seventh birthday party later that afternoon. Pedro and Aedan are the same age. The party was at her sister's beautiful home just outside of Madrid in a suburb called La Florida. They have a gorgeous back yard and a pool. It felt like we were in a park! It seems that Spanish birthday parties are a lot like American birthday parties. The kids played, we ate cake, and we sang "Happy Birthday!" in Spanish. It was a lovely way to spend the afternoon.
Our first classes were this morning, and the students are off and running. We have a lot to cover in a short period of time. Blair, Aedan and I are sitting in on Mark's class, Art Appreciation. Love it! We learned about a Japanese artist who created colored-sand ant farms of 144 flags. He turned the ants loose via plastic tubing, and they mix the sands of the different flags, demonstrating how interconnected we all are. Brilliant. I'd love to see that in person!
Bueno, now I'm up to speed. It's so good to be back! More posts to come! Stay tuned. Cheers, Denise |