Madrid on a string
Here’s one I did earlier about a recentish trip to Madrid. I considered submitting it for publication but decided to keep this one just to myself 
Arriving in Madrid Barajas Airport around 5.30pm, I began my adventure aboard the train to Sol in central Madrid. As a seasoned traveller of seaside resorts, I was embarking on a midweek city break for the first time.
As an habitual lone-traveller, I was self-assured when I stepped onto the metro system. This, I quickly discovered, was my downfall as by the time I stepped off the metro system my bag was open and my purse was gone.
Embarrassed and horrified all at once I realised aside from the €10 in change from buying a three-day metro ticket, I was penniless. It’s common knowledge that pick-pocketing in Madrid was rife but I didn’t think that my confidence could so quickly turn to foolishness. I had inadvertently displayed my tourist status like a peacock waiting to be noticed. Luckily, I was couch surfing with Twist who was a friend of a friend so the situation wasn’t completely dire. Still, this was going to be one big challenge.
It was still early so I decided to try and find the police station before meeting Twist. The flaw is that I can’t speak Spanish, and the Madrileños spoke very little English. I soon gave up on that fruitless venture and found myself a cheap eatery where I could regroup while I waited for Twist to meet me. A couple of hours passed very quickly as I ate and reread the Guardian I picked up on the flight over. I found a calmness that would be misplaced in my usual hectic schedule and was feeling strangely at home.
I didn’t know Twist terribly well at this point and cringed at the thought of having to explain my embarrassment to him. See, I was first introduced to Twist many years ago at Reading Festival where he was camping with some mutual friends. He was a free spirit in those days who knew exactly what he wanted to do. Since then, we’ve kept in touch sporadically via Facebook. These days, Twist is self-employed and teaches English to Spanish businessmen so I had no idea what to expect. When Twist came to meet me at 8pm as arranged, I felt a huge sense of relief.
He confidently weaved through the throngs of people now crowding the streets of central Madrid and I, humbled by my recent experience, followed timidly. We went to one of many open air café bars on a square alive with music and entertainers. There over cheap but good wine, we chatted about our lives, recounted stories of old times and planned the next few days.
Day two was gloriously sunny, typical of February in Madrid. The previous day’s events were now a distant mirage. Twist took me to SATE (Servicio de Atención al Turista Extranjero) to file a police report and then introduced me to the tourist information office for their extensive range of free local maps and guides. He also helped me out with some spending money and I was finally set to begin my holiday, on a drastically reduced budget.
I found myself deliberately avoiding the usual trudge around shops for fear of not being able to afford anything. Instead, I focused on looking for interesting things that I wouldn’t find back home.
This wasn’t hard since my visit coincided with CowParade. One hundred and five cows with uniquely interesting designs were dotted around the city, each with commentary on design and individual stories. At the time I thought that these colourful displays were part of Madrid, like the Bath pigs, so the search for these took me all around the vibrant city.
My journey started at the ‘Bear and Strawberry Tree’, the symbol of Madrid. From there, I managed to stumble upon Plaza Ciebeles, Museo del Prado and a few other famous landmarks. The richness of the history and changing culture in Madrid was certainly very prominent. Walking along the bustling streets, the ghosts of the city’s past were highlighted by the notably different styles of architecture between even adjoining buildings.
I was thoroughly relaxed and in holiday mode after settling onto a bench in Retiro park to enjoy the mellow afternoon sun and my holiday read. Later, I caught a military parade at the Royal Palace before going on to the Temple of Debod to watch the sun set over the city. The intense amber of the setting sun on Egyptian sandstone created the perfect end to the day. The best thing was I hadn’t spent any money all day.
Day two saw me trekking to the nearby city of Toledo. Just a short bus ride away from central Madrid, Toledo is a World Heritage Site that’s host to extensive medieval architecture and hidden gems of sculptures. Once inside the city, it was quite easy to get lost in the endless twists and turns of side roads and narrow passages so having a map was quite useless. However it was easy to spend a day just wandering around aimlessly discovering new sights and enjoying the lovely weather.
By my last day, I was quite certain that I had already been to every part of central Madrid possible, but when Twist led me round it was a completely different experience. I found that there were still many quirky places that I hadn’t discovered like Plaza Mayor. We visited Retiro park again which like many other Madrileños has become one of my favourite places in Madrid. I love that it’s busy but peaceful. There were water features and landmarks to seek out, benches and extensive lawns to relax on and plenty of ‘live performances’ around to watch. This seemed to be the general theme of Madrid too. There were lots of things to get involved in and absorb.
That night, we went out and partied like the locals. The evening started with meeting some of Twist’s friends at a pub quiz. That was in English of course. Then we went on to a communist bar called Marx Madera and discussed, what else, but politics? After being engrossed in a heated debate until the 5am closing, we headed to a club, stopping frequently to talk to complete strangers about life and everything else. When 7am finally rolled round, we strolled into a churroria for some sinful breakfast churros and hot chocolate. Exhausted but very satisfied, we headed home so I could shower and get ready for my afternoon flight back.
While I wouldn’t recommend being relieved of all your funds upon arrival, it had certainly provided me with an incentive to explore the city for its culture and heritage. Not only was there plenty to do, I managed to do it very cheaply too. This is definitely a bonus for any budget traveller.
All that’s left to do now is plan my next adventure with my now very dear friend Twist.
