Madrid, Spain

Madrid is only the second time I've visited Spain. Several years ago, pre-pandemic, I met a friend near Barcelona and we wandered for about two weeks. It was nice but felt very much like a box checked with no connection for me. Madrid was the same. I enjoyed the trip but nothing resonated deeply, it wasn't my vibe.

The Good: The people of Madrid were nice to me. I only know the most rudimentary Spanish but everyone with whom I interacted pleasantly worked with me in conversation. The ladies in the grocery store I frequented (fresh bread has to be purchased daily) made small talk just as if I were a resident. Interestingly I used my French, still limited but better than my Spanish, twice. At the James Joyce, an Irish pub a few spaces to the right of the Casa de America, the host shifted from Spanish to French almost immediately. The fact that he thought I might be able to speak French I took as a huge compliment. It was terribly amusing to be at an Irish pub in Madrid, a Spanish city, speaking French, and listening to American country music. The James Joyce has wonderful food. The atmosphere is pleasant and all of the staff was efficient and friendly.

The second time French came into play was at the post office. I purchased post cards for the grandchildren so they know I miss them, hope they don't forget me, and have a souvenir from my travels. Actually buying souvenirs is not practical as I'm gone for months at a time, try to squeeze in as many places as possible, and my backpack would get too heavy. Normally in any post office, I use the self service machines. I've discovered that all self service machines from ticketing agents to postal services have a handy dandy button with the British flag indicating it will give me information in English. However, there was a gentleman with a table full of some sort of commemorative stamp paraphernalia chatting with others of like mind blocking the only working machine. It was a well staffed post office with several counters. It took me a few minutes of looking around to figure out the process since there was no line. It was a simple Take a Number. When it was my turn, I approached my assigned desk six and handed the woman my stack of postcards. She smiled. Let me pause here to point out that an interaction beginning with a smile is automatically heading in a less stressful direction. After counting the cards, there were seven, she explained something in detail but also in Spanish. I smiled and shrugged. She then proceeded to weigh one of the cards. I have no idea what we're doing. Another explanation in Spanish which prompted the response, "Je ne comprends pas" from me. I say "I don't understand" so often in Paris that my brain hit the default button. But, viola, she speaks French! The postage for the cards to go to the United States is expensive, she tells me. She thought weighing them would be less but it is not. I told her they were for grandchildren so it didn't matter. Expense falls by the wayside when it comes to grandchildren. The lady then asked if I had pictures! For the next several minutes we bonded. She only has one and they live far away. She thinks I am very lucky and I agree.

The parks, filled with sculpture and fountains of vast shapes and sizes, were beautiful. They provided the perfect venue for concerts of the loudest birds I've ever experienced. These birds sang all day, everyday. There had to be thousands.

The Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum was my favorite. The collection spans time and genre beautifully. It was once the second largest private collection in the world before the owner, Baron Thyssen could no longer house it moving the pieces from his museum in Switzerland to Madrid after holding a competition to determine where it would be best suited. I went on a Monday when it is free. There was a line but not long a fast moving. There is also the opportunity to do virtual tours through the website: https://www.museothyssen.org/en/visit

The metro was extremely easy and extremely inexpensive. You'll purchase a refillable Public Transport Card and load it with tickets. These are available at every station starting at the airport and the machines have multiple language options making it a breeze to figure out. The city is very walkable so you won't need much. More than one person can use the card which is different from many other European cities. Children under four years old travel free. I loaded the ten trips onto my card and it was around eleven euros. There is obvious signage all through the stations to get you on the right line and the busses seemed to be plentiful but I'm not a bus girl so I can't help with that. More information on transportation can be found at https://www.metromadrid.es/

The Not So Good: Museo Prado was not my favorite and, considering the options, I would not recommend. The line during the free opening was so long, I was sure it was going to be amazing. It was a pleasant surprise to find the ticket price to only be fifteen euros. Online the price was thirty six euros which is a bit steep for my budget. Once inside, the environment was not pleasant. There are no pictures or videos allowed so there were workers patrolling the salons menacingly stating "No photos" every time they saw a phone out which was ridiculous considering all the QR codes encouraging you to get more information. These were worthless to me since I don't have internet other than wifi and this museum did not provide wifi. Before anyone gets all judgy, in my defense I've not once been in a major museum that did not have free internet and certainly not when there were QR codes they wanted me to use. There was an extraordinary collection of Rubens with a ton of information on how to tell which part of the work was his and what was that of his assistants complete with great quiz type questions. Unfortunately the answers were, you guessed it, within a QR code. If you decide to visit: https://www.museodelprado.es/en

The downright Disappointing: The National Library is tremendous with incredible sculpture on the massive stairway and beside entryway that rivals the great cathedrals. Once inside, the marble lobby is breathtaking. Enjoy it because that's all you get. Entry into the actual library is restricted. There is security that only tell you, "It is not possible". Not being able to try and get a library card to add to my collection was sad. Security barring entry to a library, a national library at that, is disgraceful.

All in all, Madrid is a lovely city and definitely a need to visit once. It didn't make me want to stay though.