Last Friday I went into Madrid for the first time ever! I loved it. My friend Andrea kept calling me a "guiri", which means tourist, because I stopped and took pictures of everything. We caught the five o'clock bus and spent about three or four hours in the city. When we got there we went to the Plaza de España first. I took some pictures and we walked through a little pop-up market in the plaza.
From there we bought my first European starbucks (amazing, if you were wondering) and just started walking.
We eventually made it to Puerta del Sol, but I enjoyed the walk there just as much. The architecture here is beautiful. There are different colors and styles everywhere you look. The people are just as interesting as well, and the energy of the city is incredible. We passed a mini-concert and a motorcycle-fundraising group (?, not exactly sure) on our way.
The tags here in Spain are so much better than in America
On our way to Puerta del Sol we walked through a street stuffed with people. I think it was because it had a ton of shops lining it. We stopped to watch a street magician and met a couple from the States and translated for them. I think it's kind of a rite of passage for every exchange student to meet someone who speaks English the first time they go to Madrid hahah.
And then, finally, we were at Puerta del Sol! We went to the Km 0 first and took our pictures and all that jazz. What I was most excited to see, though, was the famous monument of King Charles III in the center of the Plaza. There was a small protest going on right next to it, but I'm not sure what it was about and it didn't seem to be to that big of a degree.
After Puerta del Sol we walked down another busy street, Gran Via, I think, but I'm probably mistaken. We just looked at the little shops, stopped in some tattoo and piercing parlors (because I want more ear piercings, but you need to be with a parent when you're younger than sixteen) and I finally bought some new shoelaces for my vans. (Sorry Dad, but orange really doesn't go with anything.)
Then the metro! I think I could write a book on how much I love subways. But I'll spare you.
We went and saw the Palacio de Telecomunicaciones and Plaza de Cebeles. Needless to saw, it was beautiful at night. We met a woman from Argentina and we took each others' pictures and just talked for a while.
(The big building is the Palacio de Telecomunicaciones and the statue is Cebeles.)
After we left that, we wandered around and took more pictures until it was time to leave. We took the metro to the bus and came home, where we met our other friends and hung out with them until about midnight.
This was the inside of an H&M
All in all, my first time in Madrid was perfect.
Adios,
Sam
Afternote: If you want to see all the pictures from my journey, you can find them on my Facebook. Look me up!
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