Mi última noche en Madrid, y adiós!

For our last night, I was in the mood to celebrate (you will likely find out more later).  David, the Director of Research and Development and the organizer of this conference, was also feeling good that it was over and was a huge success.  Antonio wanted to take us all out (those of us who were left anyway).  I had made plans to have dinner with my cousin Anna, but when Antonio asked me to join them I really felt like I should since, afterall, they brought me here and we had some celebrating to do (again, more later).  Antonio said “have your cousin come to the restaurant at 10, and you can go with her for a drink.  So, I let her know where I’d be and told her to come pick me up for an after-dinner drink.

We started our evening at the museum across the street, which was putting on a Cartier exhibit.  How magnificent! It was really amazingly well done, with a timeline of history, and 4 completely pitch-black rooms, with huge cases of jewels in the middle.  On some of the black walls, they had slideshows of the drawings that were used to design the pieces.  Grace Kelly, a huge idol of mine, was the Princess of Monaco in case you didn’t know.  The Monaco family loaned several of her Cartier pieces for the exhibit, including her famous engagement ring.  My favorite of all was a set from 1850.  It was a very grand necklace with a matching broach and jeweled hair comb.  The stones were purple and the metal was gold, which had a very darkish tone because of how old it was. 
After the museum, we walked into a very old restaurant called Lhardy, and were led up two flights of spiral stairs to a beautiful dining room.  The walls were leather (click on the link if you want to see!), and the woodwork and molding were very dark.  We sampled more amazing food, had wonderful discussion and delicious wine, and I was again feeling so grateful to be there.  All of a sudden, Antonio said “Emma, it’s 10.  I will go see if your cousin is here.” We hadn’t even finished our main course yet, so I was a little worried.  I didn't want to be rude and leave right in the middle of dinner!  Two minutes later, he reappeared with Anna, who was very red in the face.  He made her sit, ordered her some food, and told her to be with us! We ended the night with a fabulous dinner, and finished with “baked Alaska” for dessert, which was so yummy. After dinner, Anna and I went and had a drink at a local bar.  It was great to catch up with her.  Would you believe that in Madrid, the bartenders yell "Hola!!" to every single person that opens the door?! And it's a sincere hello! I loved it.  Anna walked me home, and I went to bed. 

This morning, after a quick 3 days and nights, I said goodbye to Madrid.  It was the perfect morning, wet and rainy. I had my last breakfast at the hotel, then took a taxi to the airport.  This time, the driver spoke English, and he was so animated! He was telling me that most young people are learning English, because it's important, but that the old people still insist that visitors should speak Spanish (he said 90% of the tourists in Spain are English-speaking).  He dropped me off, I had a perfect flight home, and am now waiting for my flight to Burlington, and really enjoying documenting my wonderful memories from the week.  It was certainly an experience I will never forget and, for sure, the start of something big, exciting, and lots of fun.  xo

La Segunda Noche en Madrid

After a long and very intense (but fabulous) scientific meeting, punctuated with 4 coffee breaks, a 15-minute pre-lunch cocktail party, and a lunch of gourmet (Ritz-style) tapas, I went to my room to put my feet up.  I was feeling a little dizzy from the exhaustion and the jet lag, but in just 45 minutes we had to be down in the lobby for a group outing. 
After a quick toes-up and a change of clothes, we all met in the lobby and took the bus to the old part of the city, where we were to have dinner and see “the best Flamenco show in Spain” according to Antonio.  I won’t say much about the food, because of course it was delicious and the company was good.  I have to say, though, that I’ve decided the sit-down meal is actually quite boring! Yang Ming, who is Chinese but lives in The Netherlands now and was with us the night before, kept looking at me with twinkly eyes and saying “Nice, but not quite as good as last night…”

The restaurant was old, with low exposed beams and small old tables.  It opened in the mid 1950’s, and I’m pretty sure the tables and chairs were original.  There were brochures at each plate to tell us about the star dancers that would be performing: Beléne Lopez, who is also the prima ballerina for the Madrid ballet, and José Fernández.  All I can say is that words cannot describe the show they put on.  The four old Spanish men with guitars, the costumes, the emotions, and the speed at which they moved their feet had me on the edge of my seat the entire show.  I was totally blown away, and just kept clapping and cheering. The show lasted about two hours, and we all loved it.  Marcos explained to me that the reason they don’t smile is because they are often telling a serious story with their dancing.  Ocassionally, though, Beléne did smile.  I pointed it out to Marcos and he said “she smiles because as part of the song, the guitar players are talking about her, telling her she is beautiful.  That’s the only time the dancers smile.”

Sapphie would have loved the show.  I am so glad I bought her a Flamenco dress straight from Madrid!

Buenos Noches Madrid!

Sorry about the introductory qualifier, but I just want to say I do have some pictures.  However, the wireless connection in Philly is so terrible that I'll have to post them later! 

After the long flight and all the afternoon walking, my legs were tired.  When I got back to the hotel, I made a huge bubble bath and soaked in it, then slowly did my nails (this is a luxury to me now; it's impossible to do my nails with Teo around)! Just as I finished, the phone rang.  A wave of terror came over me: I was planning to relax some more, then go to bed! Who could be calling? Will it be a last-minute request to work tonight? To network with the visiting scientists? Oh God, I didn't think I had it in me.  I let the phone ring and didn't answer.  I had my computer, so I started to email Kevin and ask him what I should do (sure I was tired, but this was a work trip...they didn't pay my way over here so I could lie in bed!)....then, it rang again! I decided I should pick it up. 

It was my dear colleague Antonio.  Antonio is a little older than me, is an absolute teddy bear of a Spaniard, loves to socialize, and lives in Madrid.  I could hear the excitement in his voice that I answered.  "Emma" he said, with a strong Spanish accent.  "If you're not too tired, I'd like to take you around my city, we'll have some drinks and take some tapas, and it will be a good time.  Are you too tired?" Of course I immediately said "no! I'll be down in the lobby in 15 minutes." As the words came out of my mouth, I was already regretting it.  I would be exhausted the next day, which was going to be extremely long and intense! But I was not going to disappoint Antonio, who was clearly so excited to have all his friends and colleagues in his city.  I pulled myself together, got dressed, and put some bright lipstick on.  That always makes me feel better.

When I got to the lobby, there were three other men with him.  One from Barcelona, one from The Netherlands, one from Switzerland and one from South Africa.  And me.  What a mix! As soon as we started walking, and Marcos started gently talking to me with the most dreamy Spanish accent, I immediately knew I had made the right decision, and would never have forgiven myself if I spent my first night in Madrid in my room!!

What an unforgettable evening we had.  It was absolutely one of the best nights of my life.  I love Spanish people.  We walked for hours, literally, from about 5 to 10.  We sampled from all over the city, and Antonio took us to all the best spots.

First stop: the "meat museum."  Sounds weird, but it's more like a very high end deli with more types of cured meat than you could ever imagine, cheese, and wine.  Of course, the first meat that caught my eye was called pata negra, is considered to some to be the best ham in the world, and was, no joke, 90 Euro per kilo! Antonio grabbed my arm and said "we try that one." Then he got a twinkle in his eye and said "how about some sherry with it?" Yes please!! And that was only the beginning.  We slowly ate the thinly sliced and very divine pork, which comes from an Iberian pig that eats mainly acorns (bellota in Spanish).  The meat is very red and extremely flavorful, and the marbling is thin, uniform, and almost clear.  I was dying over the taste, and how well it went with the sherry, when I looked over and Antonio, who had a lukewarm look on his face.  "It's good, but not as good as I had expected.  There is better meat elsewhere, let's go!" So off we went to the next stop, and Antonio proved his point there. 

Second stop: a market called Mercado de San Miguel.  Antonio explained that this used to be an old, stinky and dirty market that smelled like fish.  One day, someone decided to clean it up and started this very unique sort-of gourmet food court, but that really doesn't describe the elegance of it.  It is a food court in the sense that it is enclosed, with counters all around and some tables in the middle (most of them without chairs).  Each food counter has a different type of food: wine, cheese, olives, more olives, more olives, seafood, cured meat, raw oysters, you name it.  Antonio walked us around the entire place, then told us to go stand at a table and he would bring food.  He brought us wine, plates of meat, olives, cheese, and even some "pork crackling" as my new South African friend Benny called it, which went surprisingly well with the wine.  Benny said when he was a boy, he used to put crackling in his porridge and that it was absolutely divine! We stood for a long time talking, eating, and raving about the flavor.  We could all taste the difference in this meat, which was also "Bellota" but much more flavorful.

After the market, we decided to walk.  A lot. We walked all over the old part of the city.  Antonio stopped a lot to explain the history, and give us neat little bits of trivia.  For example, the copper statue of a horse on its hind legs was made in the 1600’s.  At that time, the sculpture did not know how he was going to make this huge and heavy horse standing on its hind legs without the whole thing crashing down.  He consulted with Galileo, who suggested that the hind legs should be solid copper, and the entire front half of the horse, which is mostly up in the air, hollow.  What genius! The palace is the second largest in the world, second to the palaces of St. Petersburg in Russia.  It has never been attacked, so almost all of the furniture and décor are original (that’s right, like 300 years old).  I really wanted to go in (it’s partly a museum now), but it was closed.  We peaked in the back, where the king has parades and horse performances.  Next we saw the old city hall - there is now a very grand (and ugly, according to Antonio, who doesn't seem to like the Mayor very much) one right near the Ritz.  The mayor thought the old one was too small! I thought the old one was much more beautiful. 

After all the walking, we needed some more to drink.  Antonio led us down a very narrow and old road, and said “it’s ugly, but this is where the best tapas are.” The street was lined with these little dark, almost dungeon-like old restaurants.  They were very specific: one said “mushrooms” and the one next to that said “tortillas.” Antonio was very excited to have a tortilla.  We entered into the tiny door, and the old Spanish chef (actually all the workers in the restaurants were older men) was just heating up the oven, at 8:30pm! So we went next door to have some mushrooms and some wine.  The mushrooms blew all of my expectations.  They were upside-down caps, stuffed with a little cube of chorizo, and sprinkled with garlic and parsley.  The chef was just putting the first batch on when we walked in.  He grilled them slowly on the hot cooktop, and served them to us with some of the vino de casa.  Honestly I think those mushrooms have destroyed me.  I don’t think I’ll ever taste a mushroom that good unless I go back that that place.  "Fantástico!" As Uncle Jerry would say.
After the mushrooms, we went back to the tortilla place. Antonio was very excited and asked the chef if the out-of-towners could watch.  I saw eggs, potatoes, and garlic and started to get confused.  “Antonio” I said, “I thought we were having tortillas.” “Ah…Emma, tonight we will have real tortillas! The best in Madrid.  The Mexican tortillas are not the original.” What an amazing thing! We sat at these tiny short old tables, about the size of Sapphie and Teo’s table at home.  Out came the wine, some beer for Marcos, and the tortillas.  Imagine an omelet with potatoes and garlic (no cheese!), that is full of flavor and has the most delicate texture.  Apparently it’s almost like paella because you have to know when it’s done, then stop touching it and just leave it in the skillet.  Then a couple of flips in the air, and it’s ready to eat!
We laughed, we drank, and ate until our bellies were stuffed.  Benny commented that even though we hadn’t eaten a large amount, he felt more satisfied than he does after a huge sit-down meal.  “This is something I could really take home,” he said.  Benny is so cute.  He’s a real South African, if you’ve ever met one: extremely friendly, curious, engaged, and very easy to talk to.  It was a pleasure to meet and spend time with such wonderful people!

In ecstasy, we slowly walked back to the hotel.  I felt like I was on top of the world, and so glad that I had been given such an amazing opportunity to experience this amazing city, the people, their unforgettable food, and their unique and fabulously social food culture.  Muchos gracias, Madrid!

Hola Madrid!

I arrived at The Ritz at 8am, and they let me check in early (they were so nice of course). I wouldn't realize this until later, but the Ritz Madrid is one of only three original hotels designed and built by César Ritz, who was an architect, in collaboration with King Alfonso XIII, who needed a place to have good parties.  The other two original hotels are in London and Paris; after those three originals were built, the Carlton family purchased the Ritz name and went on to build many hotels. This one was built in 1910 and is absolutely beautiful; it’s considered a baroque palace! 

 Here's the outside of the hotel.  Look at the decorations!! The whole hotel is really magnificent. 

 

 Here's my room from the entrance

And here, from the bathroom

I love my bar!! It was literally a little door in the wall.  I love Europe. 

 

Inside the bar

 Bathroom

 

View from my window

 

After a short nap, I decided to freshen up and walk around Madrid.  I hadn't eaten since I left Philly and was pretty hungry.  I found an adorable little café, and ordered my first (very Spanish) meal:
Café con leche, a side of olives (I never realized how well they go with coffee!), and a huge hot sandwich of Chorizo paste with melted cheese. Brian Mangual would have been proud.  It was delicious!!

The waitress at the cafe was very friendly and, it turned out, spoke excellent English.  I do have to say, that during this trip my old feelings of frustration with Papa came up again.  Why didn’t he teach us Spanish? It is my biggest childhood regret.  I have a Mexican colleague, whose husband is German, and they live in Shelburne and are raising their kids tri-lingual (she doesn’t speak German, and he doesn’t speak Spanish, but they only speak their mother language to the children). It would have been so easy Papa! You can only speak Spanish to my kids from now on.  Anyway, at first, I tried to speak Spanish.  When I'm traveling, I always feel it is really important to respect the fact that I am in another country, and it is (in my opinion) disrespectful not to appreciate their language and acknowledge that they might not speak English.  Here's how it went:

Waitress: "Hola, buenos dias."
Me: "buenos dias.  Café con leche por favor."
Waitress: Caliente?
Me: "Oui."

Oops! She laughed and started speaking English. 

After I enjoyed my amazing lunch, I asked her where I could go to get some gifts (this was my only free afternoon so I need to get that done ASAP.  She told me where to go, gave me a map, then said if I come back she'll wrap up some olive oil for me (they sold some at the restaurant).  She explained all the different types of olive oil that they sell, and I told her I would come back later so I wouldn't have to carry them all over Madrid. 

She sent me to an area called Plaza Mayor, which is near the old part of the city.  It was a wonderful walk and absolutely beautiful.  I walked all over, got some presents, and after a few hours made my way back (it was 3pm and I was exhausted from the jetlag).  I stopped at the café, got my olive oil, and headed back to the hotel. It was a wonderful, warm, and friendly first day in Madrid.

En route to Madrid!!

Have I forgotten how to think clearly when there isn't complete chaos around? I'm so used to dealing with constant whining, tugging, and crying, that I think I have lost the ability to function on my own.  As a mother of two young children (and one child of a husband - just kidding - but not really), I have somehow, perhaps with the help of hormones, found a way to optimize my mental performance in almost any hectic situation.  But not so much in the peaceful moments, it seems.   

Starting right away in Burlington, in a totally quiet airport on a Monday afternoon, I could barely check in using the US Airways kiosk without the help of the attendant standing next to me.  Seriously.  I have a PhD, and common sense, I really do! But I almost paid $15 to check in early and would have if she hadn't explained that was an optional fee.  Then I couldn't get the machine to scan my passport and she gently took it from my hands and said "you have to swipe it up here." I was totally honest and told her I don't know what I would have done without her! What do the normal people do? Or the people that don't use computers regularly? Am I just really dumb and don't realize it? What will I do when I'm 65 and totally clueless? Oh God, I can see it now.  You know who I'll be? My Mother. 

On the way to Philly, I think "I can do this.  I can relax on my own.  Alone.  I'll take a nap." Nope, that didn't happen. So I drank my favorite chamomile with lavender tea, read People Magazine from front to back, then just stared out the window until we landed.  The mountains were peaking out through the clouds, and I wished that Sapphie and Kevin were with me to be amazed at the view.  I took a picture for them. 

Once I landed in Philly, I got so confused that I:

• went to the currency exchange and forgot that Kevin gave me cash to switch over, so tried my Amex and the lady wouldn't take it.  
• Then I forgot that there is an exchange rate so that if I ask for 100 Euro, it is going to cost me more than $100...so when she said the total was $169, and that she wouldn't take my Amex, I walked away.  Then after about ten minutes of walking, I decided I should turn around and get some Euro so I could pay for my cab in Madrid (no, I decided not to go with Hannah's hilarious suggestion to call the Ritz and ask where the car is that was supposed to pick me up, and please send one immediately at no charge!).
• After the woman rang me through using my bank card, I opened my wallet and saw all the cash Kevin had given me.  She laughed and said "well, you can spend that when you get home!"
• Then, I forgot that most of the food at the airport venders is, of course, to take away (yes, I asked the woman if the wraps are to-go!). 

Feeling pretty silly, I boarded the plane.  

Now I'm on the plane, on my way to Madrid.  I got in my seat, and quickly found out that my entire row of 4 seats is empty.  I eat my caprese wrap, then hear the flight attendant speaking Spanish.  This unexpected wave of comfort comes over me.  I can feel Mama Sonia sitting next to me.  I wonder if she's happy that I brought some of her jewelry with me for good luck: the Tiffany gold leaf earrings, and the Gumps beads that I know Papa Roger got for her.  I miss her so much.  I miss both of them so much. 

Next came the beverages.  I thought I should have some wine to help me sleep, so I order two "mini-bottles" of the Cabernet.  The flight attendant, who is very pleasant, is somewhat flirtatious and hands me two. I realize that they are bigger than I expected, so I just take one.  He says he loves my name.  I turn on an episode of Glee and sip my wine.  I forgot how much I love Glee.  Love it.  Of course those wine bottles only hold about 1 large glass, so after about 40 minutes I was ready for another. I catch his eye and go over to him, and tell him I think I need another one after all.  I said "it went down so smoothly...come over whenever you can, no hurry."  Within minutes he's handing me another one, and as I hand him my card he says "no, don't be silly." I wonder, would he have been so flirtatious and friendly if I had my little darlings with me? I'm not sure...but I certainly would not have noticed it if he was!

As I enjoyed my second glass of wine, I noticed that the person behind me is persistently and repeatedly pushing on the back of my seat.  What the heck could they be doing? I was considering giving a dirty look but I decided to wait it out, and turn on another episode of Glee.  We were in a fancy new plane.  I pushed the touch screen for "play" and nothing happened.  Pushed again, longer and harder.  I took five tries and by the end, I realized that's what the person behind me was doing! Whoever decided to install these touch screens didn't realize that it is extremely uncomfortable for the person sitting in the seat in front....if they had tested it out, they would have quickly decided a touch screen on the back of someone's head? Bad idea.  

Anyway, all in all it was a wonderful flight over.  Now I'm here!!! More soon.  xo