Friday, April 7, 1989

My Last Full Day in Madrid ...

Today is going to be my last full day here in Spain. It started out with not much to do during the day except sleep in, clean, draw a bit and read. But then Viv skipped class to spend more time with me on our final day here, so we decided to walk down to El Prado (top, with me in front of the statue) and check out more of the paintings that we missed the first time we were there a few weeks ago.

Of course, it was great. Saw the Bosch painting again (that's our favorite), as well as another favorite of mine, "The Triumph of the Dead" (middle). I bought postcards of both of these paintings, as well as one by Goya (bottom). It is simply a spectacular art museum, unlike any I've ever seen before. Granted, I've only seen a few thus far...

So then we left the museum, only to be greeted by a downpour, and after a wait to see if it would stop, we decided to dash through the rain and go to a nearby gift shop. Eventually we realized the rain was not about to stop in the near future, so we scratched our plan to visit the Templo de la Egypt and made it to the Metro for the return trip back to the flat on Calle de Pelayo.

Tonight was to be the flat mates' housewarming party, so Viv and I bought some rum and coke for the evening. After umpteen more games of Gin Rummy, we joined the party of international students. I met another American student, Todd, from Minnesota, who is braving it out over at the Residencia with The Old Man.

I mingled with the gang until Puri, Liz, Viv and I took a late night excursion to McDonald's, had Big Macs, then returned. We saw a scuffle take place out in the street (it is a bit of a rough neighborhood), though we never figured out exactly what had transpired. After that excitement died down, several people went to a disco, but Viv and I stayed behind.

The flat was a wreck, but it was a modestly fun last evening in Madrid. This will be the last time I see Viv until she (hopefully) makes the trip over to visit me in the United States this summer. I'm going to miss Viv so much.

Thursday, March 30, 1989

The Old Man Gets the News ...

When it was time to wake up and go to class, only about half of the students in the Residencia actually made it. Viv was one of the stragglers.

Somehow, when we woke up, Kurt was in the same bed as Angie. (Even Kurt says he doesn't know how that happened. He said the last thing he remembered was going to his room at the end of the evening. But I guess drinking straight gin will have some impact on your memory.)

Viv took Raquel's bed, and with a chair firmly placed in front of the door, Angie, Viv and I slept peacefully until 1 p.m. At that time, I took a shower, and shortly thereafter the students that actually made it to class had returned for lunch. Following lunch (which was actually quite good), most everyone went back to class, except for Kurt and Angie. Kurt and I played some Gin Rummy and a quick game of chess (he beat me), before I ventured out to purchase today's International Herald Tribune (2nd time in two days... it's an excellent newspaper).

When Viv returned, there was further discussion about the flat before Viv and I left to find a Hostel to stay at tonight. After last night's debacle, we wanted to go somewhere where we could both get a good night's sleep and get away from the Residencia.) We went back to the Villa Garcia off Gran Via, where I stayed when I first arrived in Madrid, and got a different room, this time with a balcony.

After getting squared away with the room, we returned to the Residencia to discover that The Old Man had already been told about all of the students who were leaving. His reaction wasn't what everyone expected, and The Old Woman said "we already knew" (but she said it en Espanol).

Apparently, they've already lined up some new suckers, I mean students, to move in. Poor sods. I guess The Old Man's scam is to overcharge and false adverties to students, then get a new batch to move in every month.

Well, we ate our dinner (my last here), and after Viv and I packed all of our things, we returned to Villa Garcia. I can't say that I'll miss life at the Residencia, except for some of the students that I've befriended who won't be moving into the new flat.

Viv and I relaxed and went to bed much earlier than we were able the night previous.

Pictured is the sign for a building located not-too-far-away from the Residencia.

Wednesday, March 29, 1989

No Rest for the Weary ...

I didn't wake up until 12.30 today when the cleaning lady came in. I took a shower, and when everyone returned from class, we went downstairs to eat a weak and unsatisfying lunch.

Then everyone went back to class again with me alone in the room. A bit later, The Old Man came in and turned off the light, complaining about the music. Stupid man. I'm looking forward to getting out of here.

I tidied up a bit, played some patience, and rested listening to "Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" and some Neil Young. Up until now, a relatively uneventful day.

Then evening approached.

It was Leona's birthday (one of the students staying here at the Residencia), and permission was granted to have a party. All went well. It was held down in the basement and featured music, dancing, "special" drinks, and they even had the back door open so that you could stand out by the so-called "pool."

It was after the party that the fireworks began.

First, Angie got rip-roarin' drunk, and after we went back up to the rooms, and while Viv and I were playing a few games of Gin Rummy, she and Kurt started fooling around a bit, and then Angie asked us if we would leave the room. This upset and angered Viv, but we left and went for a short walk (which was preceded by a hassle from The Old Man, naturally).

When we returned to the Residencia, we stayed downstairs until we had an opportunity to make it look to the Old Man and Old Woman like I had left for the evening. However, with money tight, I needed to stay here, and did not want to have to pay the extra money. So when we finally made it up to the room, it was about 1.30 a.m. We were tired, so we decided to get some sleep. I had to share a tiny bed with Viv, because no other empty bed existed (a problem that will be remedied in a few short days). So there we were, Angie drunk and out like a light now, while Viv and I tried to get some sleep.

It was not to be.

In the room next door, the French students and others were still awake and talking (including Kurt and Raquel). No problem there.

The problem arose when The Old Man came up and told them all to go to bed, accused them of being drunk (a point on which he was correct), threatened to call the police on them, and said he was going to stay there until they all went to bed. That didn't work out well.

To give you an idea of further atrocities these people infringe upon these students' privacy, The Old Woman then came up into Viv's room without knocking, and flicked on the light to look for bottles. Of course, I'm not supposed to be here. Fortunately, I was able to hide between the two beds and The Old Woman did not see me. Later, whenever they came back upstairs, I hid under Angie's bed, Angie sound asleep right above, until they went back down and it was safe.

Also during the evening, Angie got rather ill, so we had Kurt come and take her into the bathroom. This, of course, also brought The Old Man back upstairs. When Angie was safely in bed asleep, it was around 4 a.m., and we finally managed to get some sleep... until 6.30 a.m., when Raquel and Jerome rather noisily entered the room. With Angie snoring loudly on one side of the room, and Raquel and Jerome making their own special noises on the other, it became rather difficult to get back to sleep. But somehow, I managed.

Pictured above is my collection of Metro tickets from Madrid. They feature paintings from El Prado on the back. I thought they were pretty cool, so I started keeping my tickets when I got one that I needed. No idea if it's a full or partial collection. The ticket in the middle shows the reverse side with the train information.

***


The second picture is of some of the students who were at the party (photo is not from that party): from left to right - Kurt, Angie, Raquel, I don't remember her name, Viv and Liz.) Photo provided for this blog courtesy of Vivienne King.

Tuesday, March 28, 1989

Well I Went to the Post Office ...

Hey, today is the 10th anniversary of the TMI Nuclear Accident. I wonder how they are celebrating back home. I was in fourth grade when the accident occurred. Very bizarre day, that was. We weren't quite sure what was going on, but it wasn't good. Throughout the day parents were coming in and taking their kids out of the class. We thought we were pretty funny when we all laid down on the ground and "played dead" after lunch, before the teacher came back in the room. She didn't think it was quite as funny.

Anyway, Viv woke me up at 8:45 a.m. for breakfast, which was a much-too-exciting array of biscuits and cocoa. Afterward I came up to Viv's room and fell asleep in Angie's bed, only to be awoken by The Old Woman at 11 a.m. I got up like I think she requested, sat in the other room, and waited for it to be cleaned. When it wasn't, I went back in and fell asleep again until the cleaning lady came in. She said she would go and clean the other room first, which was very nice of her, but a few moments later old Beelzebub came back in and kicked me out.

So now that I was reluctantly up, I did a bit of writing, listening to music, etc., until the others returned. I was informed that it was now official... they called the agent back and confirmed the flat off Grand Via. Now they'll have to inform The Old Man that they're moving out at the end of the month.

We ate lunch, which was pretty good, and after Viv went to the bank and we finally had some money again, everyone went back for their afternoon classes. When everyone returned from class, Viv and I went to the post office to send all of our mail. It costs 69 pesetas to send a postcard to the United States (35p, or about 50 cents), but it costs only 115 pesetas to send the big letters. The stamps tasted icky, though.

We returned and rested until we were treated to the most repulsive meal I have ever seen: Red (purple, actually) cabbage, followed by cold fish with mayonnaise. I ate almost none of it, and after the meal Viv and I walked up to the nearby Wendy's and had hamburgers.

Now fully satisfied, we returned to the Residencia to talk, play cards and once again not do all that much. It was Kurt and Angie, Raquel and Jerome (not Geronimo, as I thought earlier), and Viv and me in the room for the final moments of the evening.

Pictured is one of the Madrid post cards I sent, this one of El Prado for my parents. It was actually one of several I put into one envelope, then had my parents hand them out to people, in the interest of saving money on those icky-tasting stamps.

Monday, March 27, 1989

Flat Decisions ...

Easter Monday is another "big day" here in Spain, which means that the banks were shut today as well. I awoke this morning to the sight of ants crawling all around Dave's room (obviously, they are friends with last night's cockroach).

It was late morning by the time I woke up, and it was soon time for lunch. I grabbed a shower after leaving "the zoo," which was followed by an adequate meal. During an afternoon plagued by loafing, reading, and playing cards while everyone else was studying, Liz and a few others returned from whence they came.

With Liz here, we were prepared to finally take a look at that flat the students are interested in letting. Unfortunately, Liz disappeared before we left, so we had to make the trip without her. We took the Metro to Gran Via, saw the agent, who gave us the key, and we then walked to the flat.

It was a dive.

The flat was messy, with junk all over the place. It even had graffiti painted all over the walls in the hallway. It needed a lot of work, but it was huge and cheap - about the same for five to stay here as it would cost for one to stay at the Residencia.

Initially, the answer was a unanimous "No." But further consideration on the way back left it again up in the air as a possibility.

The lecture from The Old Man back at the Residencia during a repulsive dinner (fish cake thingies) sealed its fate. He talked of a student's duty to study and not fool around, and offered to give the students Statistics lessons for £25 a month. (Viv translated for me.) He said all of this while everyone basically ignored him and showed him no respect whatsoever, simply continuing to carry on their own conversations while he talked.

Granted, the way he runs this place, he deserves little respect. Still, I felt a little bit sorry for him when he was being completely disregarded by the students. Hopefully he will learn a valuable lesson from his errors. These students really got ripped off by these people here.

Well, as talk among The Five (Kurt, Angie, Viv, Liz and Raquel) leaned towards taking the flat (Viv was still very skeptical and unsure), the evening continued. Later, many of the students went out, but Viv and I stayed behind, again because we have no money until the banks open tomorrow.

So instead we played two games of checkers (draughts), which I won, and then a first-to-five series of Gin Rummy (I won again, 5-4). Then when that was finished, we parted our separate ways for the evening. I had trouble getting to sleep at first, but managed.

Pictured is the cover of the Metro map I used during my stay in Madrid. It didn't take too long before I didn't really need it to get around. I would show you pictures of the flat but, well, more on that later.

Sunday, March 26, 1989

Mixing It Up with The Old Man ...

Woke up very late today... 1 p.m. in the afternoon, to be exact. Played a few games of Patience before Easter lunch. It wasn't much to scream about... some icky bean and potato casserole followed by a pretty good steak and chips (as in potato chips).

Spent most of the afternoon on the terrace writing postcards, reading The Satanic Verses, and acting silly. Dinner was sandwiches... great.

Viv and I played umpteen games of Gin Rummy, and for quite awhile she was clobbering me. Then we played a first person to 10 series and I narrowly beat her, 10 to 9.

Following that, we got together the students in the Residencia for an international game of "Up the River, Down the River." For our international French and German friends, I ran the game in Spanish. So now I still can't speak the language, except to play this drinking game (and to order mas pan y mas agua, por favor... more bread and water, please.):

• "Tres bebe dos." (3's drink two [times])



• "Nueves regulan cuatro" (9's give four)

Well that was all fine and dandy, but just as the game was breaking up, The Old Man came up to the room to complain about the noise. After he left, everyone except Viv and me (who are broke until the banks open again on Tuesday) left for a pub. We cleaned up the room a bit, interrupted by The Old Man three times (one time he told us that the lady next door had called the police).

We're still not sure if he suspects that we aren't brother and sister.

Well, the evening didn't end there, no siree bob. When everyone returned from the pub at about 2 a.m., we sat in the room talking and making coffee when The Old Man came up again and yelled that we should be in our own rooms and in bed by midnight.

On this point, Kurt (pictured right) blew up and began a spirited argument with The Old Man. In the room at the time was Angie, Raquel (who had just returned earlier today from Germany), Geronimo (cool French dude who looks a bit like my friend Bill Lattanzee back at Millersville, and who later hit it off with Raquel), the guy whose name escapes me but looks like Lou Diamond Phillips and my friend Duncan Campbell from Camp Hill High School mixed together, Viv and me.

Well, after the row, I went downstairs to Dave's room, my place of residence for the evening, and after getting rid of a cockroach, I went to sleep.

Pictured above: I am leading a game of Up the River, Down the River with the students at the Residencia. Note that I have my trusty Spanish translation guide to make sure everyone understands what to do. The second photo is of Kurt, celebrating... who knows? Sunday? Both photos are courtesy of Vivienne King.

***

• Number One Song in Britain This Week: "Like a Prayer" - Madonna
  
• Number One Song in America This Week: "Eternal Flame" - The Bangles


• Eurochart Hot 100 Singles This Week: "Like a Prayer" - Madonna (it hit #1 this week, and would stay there until June 10.)
  

Saturday, March 25, 1989

With 3 pesetas in my pocket ...

Woke at 10.30 a.m. and showered before packing our things to check out of the room. They wouldn't accept Vivienne's check, so we had to go out and find a bank. None were open (again with the Easter weekend, in hindsight probably not the best weekend to visit a very Catholic city), so we had to go to an automatic teller and use my Access card to get the money we needed.

We went back to Pension Pintor, paid our bill, and then left our luggage there so that we could take in a bit of last-minute sightseeing. Again, we walked through Gotica and Ramblas, eating sandwiches at a little shop near our room (the only way to eat on a vacation to Spain!) (Pictured is one of the buildings located in he Gothic Quarter.) Next we took the Metro to the Arc de Triomphe, and it was an absolutely clear day. I took a few more photos and relaxed in the park before we returned to our room, picked up our luggage, and returned again to the Arc de Triomphe, this time to wait for the bus.

At 3.30 p.m., our bus left for the return journey to Madrid. Along the way, we were treated to listening to the American Top 40 countdown on the radio while getting another look at exactly the same beautiful scenery we saw when we first came to Barcelona.

Unfortunately, we had Mario Andretti as our bus driver, who insisted upon driving excessively fast along some very narrow and winding roads that would be tricky for a regular car, let alone a large motorcoach. We weren't the only ones who thought he was going a bit too fast. Eventually, he was pulled over by the police and ticketed for speeding, which was actually quite humorous to me. Of course, it did little to deter him, and it wasn't long before he was speeding along the Spanish countryside once more. (Pictured is some of that Spanish countryside, zipping along.)

Well, after passing through the cities of Zaragoza and Guadalajara, as well as making two pit stops - one where I bought a Barcelona '92 Olympics key chain and a can of beer (since it was 60 pesetas cheaper than buying a Coke), we finally arrived at Madrid's bus station, poor and tired, at midnight.

Further revelations occurred at this late hour:

1. Being Easter Sunday now, the Metro was closed.
2. This meant we would have to take a taxi back to the Residencia.
3. The clocks here were moved ahead an hour, making it even later than midnight.
4. We had very little cash on hand.
   

Well, we dished out all of our money to the taxi driver (including 100 pesetas extra for night service.) So with a secure 3 pesetas in my pocket, we carried our luggage from the taxi back into the Residencia. We said our hellos to everyone who was present, and even The Old Man gave us some food - a delicious hot ham sandwich.

After unpacking and a game of checkers, Viv and I hit the hay for some sleep. After all, it was 3 a.m.

Tuesday, March 21, 1989

And the Winner Is ...

Well, I woke up very late today. I led another game of Up the River, Down the River with the gang at the Residencia, and let's just say I am never playing it with Gin and Lemonade again. Ever. (Editor's note: It was actually a few years before I could even drink gin again.)

Viv and I went back to the bus station to purchase our tickets (billettes) to ... drum roll ... Barcelona! It beat out Andorra only because it is more difficult to get in there thanks to the damn French government.

Anyway, after we bought our tickets, we returned to the Residencia and did close to nothing of any importance other than eat, pack, watch bits of a dubbed "Roxanne," and get a lecture from The Old Man and Woman, which I, of course, didn't understand. After faceless nondescript endless games of cards, we went to bed.

Thursday, March 16, 1989

Adventures in Telephoning ...

Started off the day with much the same routine. Left the hotel with Viv and ate breakfast at our usual spot (hey, I'm becoming a regular!), then caught the Metro to Republica de Argentina (highlighted in the map), the stop closest to her Residencia. Ate a little more food here before everyone left for classes, which is when I wrote up the rest of my "Life in Hull" article.

When everyone returned for good, other than a trip to the grocery store, we remained inside for the evening, playing cards or checkers (draughts, as the English call the game), eating dinner, and watching a dubbed episode of "Moonlighting." I couldn't understand a word of what they were saying, but I still watched.

At ten thirty Viv and I began our attempt to call my parents. First we tried the hall phone, but nothing happened. So we next tried an outside pay phone, which informed us that we were not permitted to make a collect call from a pay phone.

Great.

So, now we went to The Old Man in the Residencia and asked him if it would be possible for us to use his phone, and he gave us the runaround, and spent the whole time trying to connect using the methods we had already unsuccessfully attempted. Finally, he let us call ourselves, and it took us five minutes to get through... and there was no answer. The connection was not successful. Frustrated, the operator aked if we'd try again in 15 minutes, which we did, and lo and behold, we got through!

I talked to Angie and Dad to let them know how things were in Madrid. Unfortunately Mom was out at the time I called. Dr. Morrison had arrived from England a short time earlier, and Mom was showing him around the area. After concluding our call, Viv and I made a mad dash to the Metro, but our one connection we had just missed, so we had to wait 16 minutes before the next train arrived. I finally got to Gran Via and the room at around 1.3o a.m.

Wednesday, March 15, 1989

Beware the Ides of March ...

Woke up bright and early again, and Viv stopped by so that we could make our way again to the little bakery across the road for an inexpensive breakfast. We traveled by Metro back to the Residencia and as they all left for their lessons, I remained behind once again on Viv's bed, this time to write some postcards to friends at Millersville.

When I finished writing post cards, I started writing "A Day in the Life" for Michele back home. I thought it'd be a nice way to give her a snapshot of what a typical day is like living in Hull. I was in the process of writing this letter when everyone returned for lunch, which was pretty good if you like fish.

Following lunch, Angie, Raquel and others continued to hunt for a new flat... and some of the French students weren't shy about it at all. They were looking at places in the paper right in front of the owners of the Residencia... the owner is a throwback from the Franco Era, very stern and disciplined. Also, apparently, rather cheap and a lover of fish.

After going to the bank, Viv and I took the Metro to El Retiro (pictured above), a large park located right in the center of Madrid. It was a beautiful day and we were able to take off our jackets and enjoy the sun, the trees, and everything about the place. My only complaint was the large concrete road that cuts right through the center of the park. In Retiro you can rent boats, enjoy an outdoor lunch, even have gypsies read you your future, or as we did, lay in the sun and relax for awhile.

There's also an art museum in the center of the park, but we didn't go in, because foreigners are required to pay admission (Spaniards are not). Strange. (Pictured below is the building we did not enter.)

After a relaxing afternoon in the park, we ventured back out into Madrid and took in other sights. We marvelled at many of the buildings and stopped at one of the dirtiest cafeterias I've ever been in. I've been told that in Madrid, cleanliness is not next to godliness.

We weren't exactly sure where we were at this point, until we happened to stumble upon Gran Via. So we returned to my room for a bit before returning via Metro to the Residencia for dinner.

After the meal I caught a few minutes of an episode of "ALF" dubbed in Spanish. That was an interesting experience. He's quite popular here, but it looked strange to me being dubbed. From what I saw, I wasn't able to identify what episode it was. Also interesting were some of the commercials. Apparently, nudity is OK to sell products on prime time television in Spain.

Later that evening, Viv and I left once more for Gran Via, and I got an early bed tonight.