Comin' home
Trip Start
Jan 02, 2008
1
6
16
Trip End
Feb 05, 2008
Madrid, Spain
Monday, January 7, 2008
I came to Madrid, this time at least, for football. This is, afterall, the football trip of the devil of death. Specifically, I came for Real Madrid (my team) versus Real Zaragoza (bunkies). Only 2 days - in, football it up, out.
Yeah, right. I say I came for football, but in reality, Madrid is about so much more than merely the roundball game. As I said, coming to Madrid is like coming home, with catching a football game being just the cherry on top. I don't need football to visit this beautiful, and peerless, city. But of course, I'll take it. Because football is wicked. Madrid plus football - f*cking bueno.
So, why do I like Madrid? Well, I won't bore by going into all the reasons why Madrid dominates, so here are my favourite 5 -
1. Culture - some cities have quality architecture, some have decent museums, some good food, some have kick ass bars. Madrid has all of these. The buildings around Puerta del Sol and Gran Via, the Prado Museum, chorizo, albondigas and the bars around Chueca. Brilliant.
2. Sports - my team, the King of Spain's football team, Real Madrid, are here. Los Merengues. The most successful team in Europe. Plus, in the summertime, bullfighting. I dig bullfights.
3. Food - I touched on it before, but allow me to elaborate further. Here are some wicked foods I dig in Madrid - chorizo, albondigas, tortilla, croquetas, patatas bravas and the fast food chain 'Pans & Company'. I know they're just tasted baguette sandwich things, but they're wicked.
4. Uncomplicated - Madrid is an uncomplicated place for me - almost effortless. Perhaps that's because I know it so well. I know, as soon as I leave my hotel, that I don't need to put alot of effort into plans because my day will quickly fill up with a combination of wandering winding streets, sitting on benches in plazas or parks and snacking in cafes. Thats it. And that makes me happy. Completely content.
5. Respect - I respect Madrid. By this I mean that Madrid hasn't sold its soul for the tourist cash. Unlike Barcelona, Venice or Tallinn. Madrid doesn't need tourists. It couldn't care less about tourists. Everything Madrid is, has come from hard work on its own part, not from bus loads of Japanese, American or Russian tourists with deep pockets. It's got character. Much respect.
Incidentally, Real beat Zaragoza, somewhat unconvincingly, 2-0. Our seats were average, the field partly obscured by 3 metal bars. But that didn't matter, because we were there. The Estadio Santiago Bernabeu. One of the mecca's of football. My mecca of football. The perfect way to launch the football trip of the devil of death.
A few more days to kill before the Italian League kicks off - Venice it up...
Comments
F*cking Bueno
Nice post. Nothing like combining great cities with great football.
Regards,
Johnny Centreback
The Beautiful Game Search Engine
www.beautifulgame.com