Madrid Weekend

Well, I spent another lazy weekend in Madrid. I woke up early on Saturday, ate breakfast, and then took a two hour nap. The day was really cloudy and I didn't feel like sightseeing. I had heard there was free wireless internet at Starbucks so I headed over to the Starbucks at Callao, near work. I should have realized that Starbucks would never offer free internet as it cost about $10 for two hours. Although I felt a bit lame hanging out in Starbucks all afternoon, I figured I should use all of my two hours (I actually began writing this same post when the two hours were up yesterday). After my time at Starbucks I headed home, dropped off my computer and went out to dinner. I went for a few drinks, which turned into many as I met two guys who SPEAK ENGLISH!!! One is Irish/Greek who is studying in an international MBA program and the other is a Spanish Architect. It was very calming to have a night of conversation in English. I feel a bit more recharged now to face a week of speaking Spanish with my friends and co-workers.

I had a very late night as we went to a dance club until 4:30am. I have to pontificate for a second and say how much I LOVE NO SMOKING LAWS. Seriously, the Spanish smoke like fiends. My eyes, fresh off of problems with my contacts, are getting quite the workout not only when I go out, but in most places where I've gone to eat as well as in the OFFICE! Anyway, I got up a bit late, discovered that the movies in the apartment had an English option and I watched Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. I didn't feel guilty about hanging around the apartment because it was raining. But once the rain cleared I made my way up to the northern part of Madrid to see the Puerta de Europe. The "Gate of Europe" consists of two leaning office towers. They are quite impressive, especially because there is little modern architecture in Madrid. From some angels, they seem to have a lot of the same lines as the John Hancock Tower in Chicago.