Losing Jamon Virginity

“Nobody went to bed in Madrid until they had killed the night” — Ernest Hemingway

Museums, history and art! We went to Madrid to experience everything we could in a week, to see the work of Velazquez, Goya, El Greco, Dali and Picasso.  Something I NEVER DID and I WOULD NEVER DO at home FOR SURE.

We arrived in Madrid quite late, and damn, Ernest (Mr. Hemingway) was right! We were surprised to see so many people on the street.  Every street we turned to was jam-packed.  We stayed at a hotel right in the centro.  We were just a few blocks from Puerto del Sol and Gran Via.  The streets around the hotel were pedestrian streets lined with shops and restaurants.  I loved Madrid already.

Later that night, we ventured on foot to get something for dinner and to check out the neighborhood.  Almost all restaurants we checked out were full, well it was true again that people in Madrid do not eat dinner until after 10pm.  We finally went into a pizzeria, not exactly a local cuisine, but we could hardly care, we were starving by then.

The next day we headed to the renowned Museo del Prado.  The museum contains a fabulous art collection.  One visit is not enough to do it justice.  The three classic Spanish painters – El Greco, Goya and Velazquez – were well represented, but also some other European painters like Rubens and Van Dyck.  The museum’s main show piece was “Las Meninas” by Velazquez.  Of course, what I loved most about the Prado was that I got some great posters for a bargain at around 3 euros each.

Afterwards we got lunch at the Museo del Jamon (Ham Museum), where hundreds of hams hung on the wall. “Miss Piggy’s nightmare,” was the guidebook’s description.  I realized the jamon situation was getting out of hand.  I wasn’t a pig eater and found big jamon legs laid out in the windows of restaurants or bars took a little getting used to.

Budget eating was never a problem in Spain.  You saved a few just by eating standing at the bar.  The local varieties of sausages and pork, paella, or just any steak and eggs, can be served up quickly.  And quick meals like these also cost well below those at rival cities like Paris, where at the same price you could hardly get a local French meal, instead you’d have to content with Kebabs, sandwiches or burgers.

For the rest of the afternoon we window-shopped the boutiques near our hotel.  Clothes are cheaper here than in France, may be because of the tax difference.  This got me thinking, why then, would people go to Paris just to shop? They might as well come to Madrid and stretch their euro.

The next day we walked to Plaza Mayor and to the Palacio Real.

Plaza Mayor, not sure what I was expecting but this wasn’t it at first. We walked to the center and I was impressed with the size of the plaza. We strolled passed the street artists who were displaying their works.

Afterwards we stopped for coffee at a cafe near the train station. We quickly got into the habit of an afternoon cafe con leche while watching the pedestrian traffic. We then went back to the Museo, del Jamon that is, to get lunch.

On the last day, after a late start, we walked to the modern art museum, the Museo Nacional Centro del Arte Reina Sofia, which was a few hundred metres down from the Prado, opposite the Atocha train station. This museum houses one of the Picasso’s great works, GUERNICA .. and NO, DON’T ASK ME WHY THIS WAS IMPORTANT! I blacked out in the first five minutes of his story.

Madrid did not pull at my heartstrings the way other places did. It’s not a city that demands that I come back. I would love to see the Museo del Prado and the Reina Sofia for the second time but the city itself did not pull me. I found the city too noisy and crowded.

But we very much enjoyed our time in Madrid. Madrid has some terrific attractions, it is also a great city for just walking around, with so many pictureque plazas, monuments, parks and fountains.

And, … in this city that never sleeps, I LOST MY VIRGINITY TO JAMON