Make do and mend

Apologies, it's going to be a relatively short post today (stop cheering, dear reader!). The heat here in Cordoba has to be felt to be believed and the terrace I'm sitting on has no air conditioning, so even though it's open to the sky and in the shade, the chimney effect of the buildings surrounding it means that every so often I get a down draft of hot (not warm, but hot!) air.

Getting up early today was a real bonus. Not only did it mean I got in free to the Mezquita Cathedral, it also meant that at least some of my wanderings were in the heat (as opposed to the searing heat). By 11 am it was already 35 degrees, and it's been getting steadily hotter ever since. I can actually feel myself shrivelling up as I'm walking around even though I'm walking in the shade. The visit to the Alcazar gardens was an adventure in slow sprinting (I defy anyone to move quickly in this heat) from one piece of shade to the next. Entry to the Alcazar was free too, but cunningly they stop anyone staying too long by closing the toilets - very crafty.

So, the title for this post I hear you ask (above the snoring of my more regular readers that is)? Well, the Mezquita was a 14th Century mosque, the most beautiful in the whole Islamic world at the time beating even Damascus hands down apparently. And it was built on top of the previous Christian church. How's that for domination? Not to be outdone, the Christian Kings (Los Reyes Cristianos of Alcazar fame presumably) when it was there turn, ripped the centre out of the Mosque and built their own cathedral instead. So now you have a strange mixture of styles that all, unbelievably, meld into one stunning building - as you can see from the number of pictures I took. There were more, these are only the ones I thought I'd put on Flickr.

Other than the Alcazar, the rest of the day was spent seeking shade and dipping back to the hotel for a blast of air conditioning every now and again. I even managed to get some crochet done before my hands stuck to the crochet hook.

Seville tomorrow - where apparently it's just as hot, if not hotter (?!). It's also where I'm hoping to see some Flamenco if I can get the nerve up for a sortie out after dark. I happened across a Flamenco exhibition today - inside the most beautifully air conditioned building - come to think of it, I don't know why I didn't just stay there for the rest of the day!!

and for those who like to know these things, this is my current blogging spot

Gastronomie Espanol

I arrived in Cordoba at lunchtime today, and was immediately hit by a wall of heat. The girl sitting next to me on the train informed me that I'd probably chosen the two hottest places in Spain to visit in Seville and Cordoba. But not to worry, it was much hotter a couple of weeks back - then it was still over 40 degrees at 1am. Oh boy!

So, I've not actually done much today. I've wandered around Cordoba, along the beautiful little windy streets that remind me of York but with sunshine and heat, lots of heat. I've taken lots of photographs (as ever).

And I've eaten. Well, it seemed rude not to. Cordoba, apparently, has a very good reputation for food so I thought I'd better test it out. I'm not sure that I've found it yet, but I've had fun trying. Although in this heat, my appetite is a bit muted.

For this blog post, thought, I thought I'd share with you some of the things I've been eating so far this holiday. I feel it's my duty to experience Spain as fully as possible, and so I've suffered to bring you the following list of culinary delights:

• Tortilla, including a fabulous plateful from the bar next to the hotel this lunchtime
• morcilla 
• chorizo
• patatas bravas
• pimientos con atun
• jamon de la bodega
• jamon con brevas
• some kind of meatball in tomato sauce (tasted nice!)
• gazpacho, with and without jamon
• sopa do ajo
• lots of vino tinto
• heuvos revuelta (and they were sadly)
• arroz con leche
• cafe con leche y solo y cortado
• quesa de cabra

and tonight *drum roll* Flan!! oh boy, was it good!

I've avoided callos so far - and will continue to do so, I refuse to suffer that much. Also cochido (too hot) and paella (just not fancied it). Rabo de torre seems popular here. Apparently it's bull's tail (oxtail?) but to begin with I thought it was bull's something else until I remembered that was cojones!

There are plenty days left and I'll continue to suffer for the culinary arts. It's a hard life, but someone has to do it!

(Early morning visit to the Mezquita called for tomorrow. Hopefully I'll manage to avoid taking any more photographs of the minaret/bell tower but I can't promise it. Sorry!)

On the move

A quick blog post while I'm on the move from Madrid to Cordoba. I got on the high speed train in Madrid about half an hour ago and in just over an hour I'll arrive (with any luck!) in Cordoba. And meantime, I've got my crochet.

The onward journey from Cordoba to Seville later in the week looks equally straightforward, but Seville looks a bit less convenient. No AVE for that route and not great departures means it looks like a fair chunk of the day travelling. Oh well, it's all part of the adventure!

Discoveries

Here in Madrid, there's a Park given over to celebrating Christopher Columbus' discoveries of the New World. My discoveries this holiday have been nowhere near that momentous, at least not globally so, but they have been interesting - well, interesting to me at least. If you're still awake by the end of this post, they might just have been mildly interesting to you too!

I have discovered that (in no particular order of importance):

- I like Goya. Actually, I love Goya. I haven't been so captivated by an artist since I first saw the Degas bronzes in the Musee D'Orsay in Paris. Sometimes grotesque, his works are gritty and real. No glorification of war for Goya, instead the reality of death, dying and loss.

- Madrid is a very cool city, although clearly not the weather, it's scorching hot! It has a real vibe about it but isn't too busy (although that could, of course, just be the August effect)

- Madrillenos like to dig their city up - witness all the road works everywhere

- my Spanish is both better and worse than I thought it was. I find that I can actually make myself understood, however I haven't yet really understood anyone who has tried to talk to me, unless of course they use one word sentences!

- knowing more than one foreign language isn't always a help. My brain does understand that I'm trying to speak a foreign language but sadly at times of stress (like trying to work out how to say something unplanned) dives for any language rather than the one I'm trying to speak. Sentences comprising Spanish, English, German, French and Italian are not unheard of (but are of course completely incomprehensible!)

- the red light district in Madrid is surprisingly central!

- the section on Making Friends in the Berlitz phrase book is still good for a laugh and is written, I'm sure, by swingers (Hello, how are you? Are you on your own? My wife and I would like you to join us for a drink tonight. We're staying at X hotel!) The chat up (and brush off) lines are equally amusing (Would you like a cigarette? are you waiting for someone, do you mind if I sit here? would you like to go for a drive? No thanks I'm busy washing my hair tonight)

- the Spanish don't like talking about the Civil War, perhaps not a surprise really

- Madrid is a fantastic city (did I say that already?)

- travelling solo has its ups and downs, but so far the balance is definitely positive

And for those of you how tuned in to find out what I did today - I spent the morning at the Reina Sofia art gallery (Picasso's Guernica- above- being the star attraction) after having a hip and trendy cup of cafe con leche at the bar of a nearby famed cafe. After that I headed across to Madrid's achingly hip and cool Malasana and Chueca district and discovered the trendy shops and bars. Another hit for the guide book for lunch too!

As ever, photos to be found on Flickr

By then it was 4.30 pm and time to meander back to the hotel to cool off, catch up on my virtual world and decide how to spend my last evening in Madrid. Tomorrow I head off from Atocha railway station for the next leg of my adventure in Cordoba. I'll be sorry to leave Madrid but I'm excited about what's next.

Madrid - a hair raising experience!

 
Ok, for today's post, we'll be starting at the end of the day and working back and then forward again (just so I don't confuse you, dear reader!)

It's been another glorious day in Madrid - almost (but not quite) too ho. A strange thing for a girl from Scotland starved of summer warmth and sunshine to say perhaps, but true all the same. The photograph above was taken towards the end of my day as I revelled in the glories - and the breeze - to be found at the top of the Circulo de Bellas Artes. From the 7th floor of this wonderful Art Deco building, not only do you get amazing views of Madrid's roofline, you also get a photography exhibition and a stunning deco statue of Minerva to wonder at as well. Well worth the 2 Euros for the lift up!

The earlier (and later now that I think about it!) part of the day was spent pondering the variety of shopping to be found in Madrid. As keen followers of Craft Maneoeuvres will know, yesterday found your brave correspondent with a low camera battery and no charger. So the first port of call this morning was to a camera shop just slightly out of town. And it was a successful trip, no less miraculous since it involved me navigating both streets and the Metro (which I now think I've got the hang of, and actually isn't that difficult) but also undertaking the whole transaction entirely in Spanish - and what's more, coming away with the right thing (that I've since confirmed does actually work!).

After that it was off to (allegedly) Europe's largest flea market, El Rastro. I must admit, interesting though it was I did kind of think that it wasn't that big - York Market is probably about the same size. And alarmingly selling much the same produce - well, maybe not quite, but a fair amount of same old, same old disappointingly. Perhaps it's bigger outwith August (see posts passim).

(Jumping about a bit) Later in the day I surveyed another form of Madrilleno shopping - the High Street, courtesy of Gran Via, possibly one of the most stunning high streets I've seen. It reminded me that it's always good to look up in cities anyway, but Madrid is the place to really prove the rule - as you'll see from today's Flickr crop! To round off the shopping experience, yesterday I bussed through the exclusive bit of Madrid's shopping zones - Salamanca, a place with more designers, stick thin women and haughty expressions than you can shake a stick at. No doubt there are more of them outwith August too!!

The other delight of today was unexpected meetings. At El Rastro, I sat watching the world go by on a wall only to find myself next to a couple who'd not only previously lived in Stirling but had also lived in the next town to where I grew up. And then we were joined by the couple I met on the train from Paris to Madrid (who I bumped into yesterday in El Retiro - as you do). But to cap it all, I bumped into them again - the train couple (Jane and Mark as I can now call them!) - outside the Circulo de Bellas Artes and we stopped for some refreshments. They do say it's a small world but I've been amazed at the chance meetings. (Although to be fair we both have the same guide book so that might account for some of it!)

And finally, before I finish for the night, some musings on solo travelling. Everyone keeps telling me how brave I am to travel on my own. To begin with I dismissed the comments, but I now realise that I am both brave and intrepid. I know this because at times it's a bit scary and quite often I wish I had someone else with me to share the experience. But I don't and so I have to get on with it myself - and I've found that it's really good fun! So I shall carry on being brave and intrepid, and now I'll also allow myself to feel just a bit proud of my successes too!

Mad dogs...

 ...and in this case Scottish women, go out in the midday sun it would appear!

Actually, I tried very hard to avoid it today in Madrid - very hot and sticky here, particulary for a Scots lassie used to the dreich summers we've had of late. So hot and sticky in fact that I woke up in the middle of the night, having turned the air conditioning off to be good, with a very soggy bed and promptly turned it back on again. My green credentials only go so far I'm afraid.

Other than the brief sweat induced crisis, I had a good night's sleep last night and consequently woke up this morning raring to go and fit for a day sightseeing. An open top bus tour was called for. Always a good way to get your bearings in a new city. (Not to be confused with getting your barings - that's a whole different story and can often land you in the arms of the law if you're not careful. Not that I'm speaking from personal experience I hasten to add!)

Before bus however, breakfast was required. It turns out that the sign to Breakfast room in my hotel, whilst looking promising, is in fact a lie. Either it's still to be finished or has been and gone. It could, of course, be part of the experience that is Madrid in August - many things either shut or being dug up. The city resembles one big roadworks - not sure if this is an Edinburgh-like attempt to scare off the tourists in revenge for not getting the 2012 Olympics, or what happens every summer when the sensible city residents head off to avoid the heat. Breakfast was instead in a traditional taberna just round the corner and consisted of a cafe con leche, er that's it! Followed by a bottle of orange juice from the shop round the corner.

And then it was all aboard the open top bus for a couple of tours round historic and modern Madrid. I always think those kind of narrated bus tours are very informative - and quite often unintentionally so. Today's was no disappointment. A few gems - from the bizarrely unidiomatic commentary read by a clearly native English speaker but with no attempt to correct the idiom mismatch! - I learned today were that the Paseo del Prado has the greatest concentration of art in the world, Madrid is almost exactly at the centre of the Iberian peninsula (640m above sea level no less!) and the mountains to the North are responsible for significant climate change - and here was me thinking it was greenhouse gases. Doh! Oh, and I also saw the Bernbeu stadium, the Prado (again), the Royal Palace and the super trendy, ultra cool shopping district of Salamanca (and yes, I did stay on the bus and resist the lure!)

In case you're wondering, I did find time for a few other things today - not least of which was getting into the Madrillenos eating and drinking vibe - after breakfast at my taberna (at the bar of course), I had a very touristy coca cola at the Retiro, followed by an equally touristy (but very tasty) Magnum Gold, mmm! I was going to try the little restaurant opposite my hotel for a typically Spanish and more substantial lunch than I'd normally have but the heat had robbed me of my appetite so I headed off to the Mercado de San Miguel instead and browsed the food stalls for a lunch tapas style. Probably touristy but at least it was (almost) local delicacies - gazpacho (which I didn't ask to be heated up), jamon y brevas, croquette de bocalao y croquette de queso azul. All eaten standing up - much more authentic!

I also learned that squid ink has the same effect as beetroot - least said about that the better!

My day out ended with un copa de vino tinto followed swiftly by a cafe solo to wake me back up again for the walk home, sitting in a terrace cafe overlooking the Jardin de Vistallas - the first bit that the guide book has got wrong so far. Disappointing, but a welcome chance to stop and stare for a while nonetheless.

And then it was a wander back to the hotel to recover and decide if I feel up to a meal out - this time I think I will try the restaurant across the road. Makes for a very short stumble home after dinner that way! So, in summary, another good day - lots to see and do, plenty of chances to practise my Spanish with no amusing or embarrassing incidents (that I know of at least!) yet and more confirmation that this holidaying alone thing ain't too bad!

and if you want to see more of Madrid, have a look at the rest of my photos as I post them to Flickr (assuming I can buy a charger for my camera tomorrow since the one I brought with me, with its special interchangeable adapter, doesn't interchange - grr!)

Magnificent Madrid

 
And finally I'm here. After what felt like forever travelling, I finally arrived in Madrid this morning - feeling more jetlagged than if I'd flown transatlantic - but having emitted much less carbon.

For those who don't know, I've taken a carbon challenge this holiday and have got here without flying. It involved only 3 trains - well, 5 if you include the 2 underground journeys - but unfortunately 2 of them were overnight. Never the best of sleepers at the best of time, I discovered that neither of them lived up to their name. Not much sleeping was done on either, although to be fair that was definitely down to me on the Paris-Madrid journey since it was actually pretty comfortable.

Anyway, I arrived here at 9.15 am, successfully navigated the Metro and found my way without too much confusion to my fabulous hotel not far from the centre of Madrid.  And it was all the more fabulous since even though it was only 10 am, my room was ready and I was able to crash out for a couple of much needed hours.

So after my siesta and a shower, I was ready to hit Madrid. However, it was me that was hit as soon as I stepped outside the hotel. Don't worry not by anything more damaging than the heat - unbelievable, at least for a Scottish girl after the summer we've had. Hot or what! But undeterred I headed off towards Plaza Mayor to find the tourist information, first stop on any holiday. After that, it was a wander about until I realised I was heading in the direction of the Prado and I reckoned since I was there, I might as well head in.

What a delight - the art was fantastic but I must admit, the air conditioning was equally welcome!

But before I sound like too much of a philistine, let me just say that the art was staggering. Velazquez, Goya, Rubens, Bosch, el Greco, Durer - stunning! And somewhat scary too - particularly Goya's Las Pinturas Negras and Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights. Look closely at the latter and see if you can find the innovative flower vase!

After the Prado, it was a wander back through the streets of Centro and Sol, past my hotel to catch the evening sunlight at the Royal Palace and then back 'home' for supper and bed. All in all, a good day - despite my jetlagged feeling - and even getting by with my school girl Spanish. Train ticket to Cordoba for next week bought from an assistant who didn't speak English - at least I think it's to Cordoba, but who knows?!

Watch this blog for more news on the great solo Spanish adventure. Day 1 and still going strong.