revelation 8:22

a couple days have passed since i last updated the new world on my spanish adventures, and now i find myself back in my favorite wifi (wee-fee) spot, very near casa de neil y chrissy. it is called "CheSSCAfe" and for the life of me i cannot figure out the seemingly arbitrary capitalization. maybe it's something i need to be a local to understand but if anyone reading this has insight, i welcome it. i'll even buy you a cafe con hielo (valued at 1.70 E aka $2 something) to thank you, so it's a good deal for you! don't let me down.

i have now been in madrid for four days, yet it feel like weeks, or months. in a good way. i feel comfortable, somewhat oriented, and my spanish is (in my own humblest of opinions) improving by the day. i try to just communicate "normally" and not even tell people i am american, if it is not already evident from my accent, fashion, or bizarre actions (such as opening up the holed-lid of a water-filled ashtray on the restaurant table to find out what was inside--ich, my mistake) that probably make me appear as an alien trying to blend in and failing. remember "mork & mindy"? yeah, like that.



oh, but speaking of fashion, i have been casually observing the local styles. trend-spotting, if you will. yes, a few ladies here and there are trampy, with their melones on parade and their stripper heels (so great for walking on cobblestone streets!), but some are stylish and hot hot hot, and some just strut around in the 100 degree heat in things that make no sense to me, like gladiator sandals up to the knee which end up being like boots with a few holes for ineffective ventilation. how do the (nicely bronzed) calves not become a sticky jungle? no gracias. another thing i'm seeing lots of is women with lip piercings. who knew? i am likewise amused to see spaniards wearing shirts with english writing on them. just like americans wear elusive foreign phrases on their chests and sleeves thinking it appears mysterious and alluring. but here it's like i'm in on the secret and they're not. like this guy sitting across from me at the cafe in the san antonio spurs jersey (u.s. professional basketball, for those of you in need of sports reference cliffs notes). has he been to texas, really? or did he just find this sleeveless garment in some overpriced shop touting prestigious american wares guaranteed to get you laid? no, i'm not going to ask him, so i'll just let you guess and leave it at that.



so what have i done since we last spoke? i realize that the daily diary has the potential to become (or already is) a bit tired after a while, with me recounting everything i ate, where i walked, how hot it was (yeah, yeah, you get it already) so i will attempt to make note of the things that stand out, but forgive me if this becomes self-indulgent redundant rambling. if you are bored or offended, you can tell me off! in the language of your choice! i have google language tools at my finger tips.

to get it out of the way, i will start with the food update, because there are some of you who have a fascination with epicurean details and i care about your needs, i really do. it's all about you. so, naturally, we have made some stellar meals at the house. neil & chrissy dont F around. they eat well and i am thankful for this. one lunch was sushi, but without rice (because it was going to take too long and required some kind of intricate fanning action). delicious, fresh salmon & bonito/tuna (yes, from my main man dah-veed) with mango, avocado, cucumber. neil is sick of me talking about the lacking rice (c'mon, man, i only mentioned it twice!), but something i realized is that i think the body (or mine, at least) needs the starch to balance out all the fish. it's becoming evident that the south beach diet and i will ever have a relationship. not even a one-nighter.

dinner last night was another feast for the books: pan-fried steaks (when i asked the butcher if it was from a cow [vaca] he said yes, but young. to me this means veal [ternera] which is commonly eaten here, but the meat looked too dark to be veal and thus we have concluded it was probably not a baby calf but more like an adolescent. right in the middle of that teen angst. (apologies to any vegetarian readers that may still be hanging around. if i haven't yet, i am bound to offend you with my unabashed carnivorousness. c'est la vie. [et mort.]) with our steaks we had roasted cauliflower, which neil cut thin slices of so that they looked/tasted like caramelized trees of heaven. also some potatoes, salad, gazpacho. to any jewish mother reading, please take comfort in knowing i am not going hungry. and with our meals we are sipping sangria, nice wines, a little nightcap of bailey's on ice. it seems this is a culture that drinks often, but keeps its cool, if you know what i mean.

i walked a lot yesterday, and what would be an easy six miles in SF is a struggle here because i am sweating enough to fill a small pool (that no one would want to swim in). neil and i first went to the corte ingles which, i believe, is spain's largest department store chain. but not only is it the spanish macy's, they also have a huge supermarket below. let me show you the meat case:

later in the day i walked from the house down to retiro park which is pretty massive and filled with fountains, sculptures, much-coveted shade, young lovers making out on the grass, a large pond with rent-able row boats, and a few costumed mickey mouses (mice?), the purpose of which eludes me.

from the park i walked to the nearby prado museum. i timed my visit perfectly so that i could get in for free (the last two hours of each day are this way) and browsed the massive permanent collection of classical jesus paintings by goya, el bosco, botticelli, and the like. no joke, they are nearly all pictures of christ at various stages of life. oh yes, and the cross is a big deal too. lots of those. the few that don't feature J.C. are a "retrato de un caballero/dama" (portrait of a gentleman/lady) and a couple chaotic multi-paneled scenes of ancient people giving in to indulgences (perhaps the woodstock of the 15th century) and/or enjoying the fruits of heaven/pugatory/hell. though i had visited the prado 10 years ago, i felt i should swing back through again with my older eyes and see what popped. a few works i found myself getting into a bit and zoning in on details, like the sun hidden behind the trees, or the way bodies are drawn in odd postures and contortions, but for the most part, i just walked through each room, feeling as though i had seen the same faces in the room before. i became overwhelmed and, also being fatigued from the journey there, was ready to leave. one hour, in and out. and then i came to realize, i don't really like museums. i like art, as a concept. i like knowing it exists and seeing it, but i get more pleasure out of things on the street or in a shop than the classics that are held up to such a high value in our culture for a reason i am still unable to grasp. the museum experience itself is a bit cold to me. all tourists, going through the motions. feels obligatory. i'm sure some (possibly most) people actually enjoy every element of the visit and get something from it that i don't, but i am me, and this is how i feel. i am not big on landmarks and national monuments either. yeah, i've been to the eiffel tower, empire state, vatican, etc. and don't get me wrong, there's a certain satisfaction associated with being able to stand on something that is so iconic worldwide. but traveling, to me, is not for the purpose of checking boxes on a list that is printed in bulk and in the hands of every traveller alike. being seen as a tourist, even by myself, is something i strive to avoid. visiting different places is something i do to experience living. i want to morph into a local and live a typical day. yes, i will whip out my camera, as covertly as possible, and snap photos of door handles and signs and silhouettes that are aesthetically pleasing and uncommon to me, but i try to let that be the extent of the tourist tendencies.


today i went with neil & chrissy into the center of town to a very sleek marketplace filled with deliciousness.

inside this beautiful building with high ceilings and modern details there is a counter for any type of edible: produce, fish, cheese, jam, pastries, meat. we stood at the counter of one place and ate some langostinas which are essentially large whole shrimp (from head to tail) and some pinchos of different fish and cured meats on crostini. we then purchased food to prepare at the house for the next couple days since most things are closed on sunday, probably so that people can stay home and paint portraits of jesus descending from the cross in hopes they'll one day hang in a museum.

i am now going to say goodbye to the CheSSCAfe (before they look over at me again wondering when i will leave already) and take a walk in the heat of the heat to el corte ingles once again to swoop up some meat, cheese, and bread for a little snack to hold me over til our 10:00 dinner at some mysterious place that neil has talked up as a very "pirates of the caribbean" experience. ay dios mio. i can't wait.

i'll leave you with this song by alesha dixon, "the boy does nothing", which is really big here (as is "pokerface"). has it hit the states yet? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xn9lLnVurYI&feature=related