Normal, Everyday Stuff

Dave is off for four days to Morocco with his students for camel rides and other kinds of fun and new experiences.  The boys and I are staying in Madrid and we look forward to his safe return.

In the meantime, I thought I'd tell about a mashmash of our experiences and things that we notice around the city:
 
1) The women are dressed beautifully, even for a mundane trip to the grocery store.  This time of year nearly all women are wearing gorgeous boots.  The winter sale season has just about ended and spring fashions are on display in store fronts.  I'm inspired to dress better.


2) When we're walking around, we see teams of city workers picking up trash, raking leaves and smoothing gravel (not kidding) in the parks and public areas.  And yet there is graffiti everywhere in this otherwise tidy city.

3) During the week, we see few other children.  It is not unusal for Owen and Sam to be some of the only kids on the metro or at the playground.  On the weekends, it's a different story.  Child care is free for kids three and up.  Childcare facilities are on every block.  I can see two from the bedroom window of our apartment.  Here's one nearby:

4) So far the weather has been good.  We've had a few longer stretches of rain and some cold days, but for the most part it's been sunny and with highs in the low 50s during the day.  Next week it's supposed to be in the 60s!  I'm told that this is an unusually warm winter so far.

5) The language has been a difficulty.  I sometimes feel like I'm walking around in a bubble.  I study a little Spanish nearly everyday, try to read the local paper, and I've begun to practice speaking and listening every week with my new friend Miriam (which I enjoy very much).  So I'm getting there, but it's slow going.  The boys are starting to say a few words and will probably learn more than I will by the time we leave.

6) We often seen older men playing this game.  It's called Pétanque, which is similar to bocce ball.

7) Every street and plaza has these beautiful tiled signs on buildings nearby.  Some of them are quite elaborate.  There are no street signs, only these.

8) Tobacco shops are everywhere.  Besides tobacco, this is where you go for some metro passes and tickets to events happening around the city.   Other things that are common include fruit markets, fish markets, and florists.

9) The city is incredibly pedestrian- and bike-friendly.  Many of the sidewalks are bigger than the roadways.  The shopping is built around the walker rather than the driver.  I like that.

Pictures of Dave's Morroco trip next time....