The Life Tranquilo, Madrid-Style

Hello! I’m back, this time from the other side of the Atlantic. My husband and I (plus our two dogs) made it safely from Boston to Madrid last week. So far, I love the city. I don’t want to overstate it, but it is perhaps one of the best places I’ve ever lived. However, it has been an adjustment: learning to live in Spanish stretches you, both linguistically and culturally.

Tranquilo Means Calm

Getting ready for moving to Madrid, has been rush, rush rush. Now that we have arrived, moved into our apartment, and found our way around the city, the pace has slackened. You simply can’t rush around this city, it won’t let you. The heat is a major factor. You won’t see people charging down the street under a 90+ degree sun. In restaurants, your waiters aren’t impressed with your impatience, so be prepared to spend over an hour for a quick bite to eat. When the Realtor says, mañana he doesn’t mean tomorrow, he means next week.

We came into the city bursting with energy, ready to devour it in greedy gulps. Instead we’ve found a culture that enjoys leisurely strolls and long lunches.

The Dogs (Los Perritos)

After their transatlantic flight, passed out on Benedryl (vet recommended), everything has been cake for our two labradors, Molly and Jack. While Madrid doesn’t have as many green spaces as Boston, it is definitely doggie-friendly. Madrileños bring their dogs with them everywhere and it’s not unusual to see well behaved dogs off-lead, carefully picking their way through street traffic and stopping at intersections while they wait for their owners. Our two puppies have joined us most days for a late lunch in the Plaza next to our apartment. They lounge by our table while we eat, and passerbys dole out affection for the perritos. The men in particular seem to love our dogs and will give them two quick ’air’ kisses in their direction as they pass.

We’ve had some great conversations with locals because of Molly and Jack, as they stop to tell us about their dogs or complain their wife won’t let them have one. Much of their Spanish is too fast for us to understand, so we just smile and say “si!” in the right spots.

Our Apartment (Nuestro Piso)

It’s tiny but has everything we need: except fans, which we bought the first day from a Chinese-owned shop down the street. There seems to be an interesting relationship between the Chinese and Spanish, that I don’t fully understand yet. Without stepping clumsily into complex social dynamics, I will say that the Chinese shops have found a foot-hold in this seemingly mono-culture.

The apartment building has an internal courtyard which our two windows face, making it very quiet. We live on the fourth floor or five flights of stairs up (the ground floor is considered floor zero). Sometimes we have to conjole the dogs in making it all the way to the top. At about the third floor they just look at us like, “Really? More stairs? Can’t we just live here?”

This City Was Made for Walking or Not (El Metro)

Our first few days we simply walked everywhere. Six, Seven hours a day, just wandering the city from one end to the other. It’s an amazing way to get around, as it’s nearly impossible to get lost, and around every corner is a beautiful plaza or a statue garden or stunning architecture. When you’re too tired to walk, Madrid has an incredible subway and bus system. For 1 Euro you can travel anywhere in the city, and the stops are every few blocks. Between the Metro maps and large tourist maps downtown, we haven’t needed to carry a map or guidebook our entire time here. When we want to venture out further, there are trains to all of the neighboring cities like: Toledo, Sevilla and Córdoba.

You know it’s a beautiful city when you start getting photo-fatigue like, “Oh great, another beautiful building. I already have 200 pictures, can’t we just put the camera away for a bit?”

The Siesta (It’s not a joke)

When I read about taking naps in the middle of the day, I though, “Ha! That must be great…” It wasn’t without a bit of American-centric naivete that I thought the entire idea as slightly ridiculous. But here is the thing: Spain gets really hot between 2-4. You are going to be up until 2 AM anyway, you might as well take a little break. I don’t necessarily sleep during this time, but I definitely plan my day around it. Maybe we’ll take lunch in the shade or some enjoy quiet time reading, but that downtime does help recharge your batteries for the long evening ahead.

The Nightlife (Loco)

Did I say Madrid was tranquilo? Well, things move a slower pace, for sure, but don’t let that fool you. Tomorrow I will be sharing pictures and stories from last week’s Gay Pride week in Chueca. Massive crowds, live music, multiple stages, and plenty of cervezas, vino and my new favorite: Tinto de Verano (red wine plus lemonade).

Right now it ‘s 2 PM local time, my husband is sleeping, and I swear he has a smile on his face. The forecast for the next week? Sunny. Sunny. Sunny. (Should I go on?) I would wonder why I didn’t do this sooner, but sadly I know the answer–I felt safe and cozy in my small world. But now anything is possible, and possibly wonderful.

On a personal note, it’s good to be back; I missed writing here. It was killing me to not just jump onto the blog and post something. Also I want to thank all the guest bloggers, who gave me a chance to settle in and explore the city a bit. You guys rock, and you know I’ll return the favor whenever you need.

All Photos: Christine Gilbert