I had fully planed on leaving for Basque country tomorrow, and as I looked to see what the weather conditions would be like I saw rain all day in the forecast. I told myself I'd grab an espresso and walk around the neighborhood I'm staying in (Malasaña) to think about my next move. Then it hit me, I could just stay for another night. I asked myself, do I have to be anywhere tomorrow? I smiled and said, nope!
I think I'll stay...
Madrid
When I first arrived by train I instantly realized that I wasn't in a sleepy beach town or in the slow moving region of Andalusia. I was in a city bustling full of stimulation. It reminded me a bit of NYC, but without the edge, slightly more laid back. Intimidated at first, I quickly found my city legs, had to.
In such a big city you think you won't find the warm that you might find in a smaller town, but that's not the case here. Every drink comes with a tapa (I find that to be polite, why should they?). And last night met some friends from NYC who were so much fun. It was nice to finally hang with some people from the homeland. We drank, danced, and hung out like a local would, til 5am.
Today I checked out the city by bike. You can cover a lot of ground in a couple hours but it can be a bit cumbersome, dodging people and constantly locking up your bike. That's what Ms. Jamis and I signed up for though.
I had couple of "to dos" while I was in a big city. On my list of things to do while I was in Madrid was to get a cap for my handlebar grip, it must have fallen off at some point. I spotted one while on my way to the Royal Palace. It just so happens it is the oldest bike shop in town. El hombre from the bike shop was so welcoming and filled with joy. He was so pumped I was doing a long distance tour across Europe that he hooked it up it for free.
Una ciudad de amigos!
Layover (Jaén)
Before I started my trip I wanted to stop by a few olive oil farms and manufacturing plants in a variety of different countries. Little did I know that I would stumble upon Jaén during my 'layover' (by train) to Madrid. This little gem of a city is the number one producer of the stuff in all the world. The EVO here can make just about anything tasty. Now off to Madrid...
Bocadillos with jamón, queso y tomate and local olive oil. I've never seen olive oil in a sample size so I thought I'd share.
Euro vs. Dollar
I am fortunate enough to be in Europe while our dollar is as strong as it's been, but it looks like Europa is turning the corner. The first day I landed in Lisbon the exchange rate was €1 euro = $1.07.
muy caliente!
Hey gang- just wanted to share a quick post, something I'm going to be trying to do more often. I'll save the longer posts and vids for the days I'm off my bike.
San Juan del Puerto - Seville (55 miles)
I knew it was going to be hot, but damn.
The sunflowers in the morning.
The sunflowers at midday. Anybody got any SPF 70+?
Solar farm. Those are sunrays all pointing towards one central location.