In less
than two weeks I’ll be leaving Texas and my family to return to “Um Al-Dunya.” On my way back “home”—a wanderer like me has
to put that word in quotation marks—I’ll make a brief, three-day stop in
Madrid, Spain, to break up my trip.
I’ve already
spent time in Madrid’s Barajas airport, but that doesn’t count. Thus, this will be my first time in the land
of bullfighting and flamenco.
If Spain
turns out to be anything like Portugal, a place I visited a couple of years
ago, then I’m in for a treat. As a
matter of fact, I’d put Lisbon on my list of favorite European cities. I’d add Amsterdam, Krakow, Prague, Valletta,
and Bucharest to that exclusive group.
Wait. Throw Istanbul in too. (The interesting parts of that Turkish behemoth
are in Europe, albeit just barely.)
I’ve already
reserved a room in Hotel Meninas,
a four-star facility that’s located in the heart of the city, walking distance
away from palaces, squares, museums, parks, eateries, bars, shopping districts,
and you name it.
In the
world of travelers, there are those who consult guidebooks and those who
don’t. I’d definitely put myself in the
latter group. Before jetting off, I read
just enough about my destination to make sure I can get from the airport to my
hotel without too much hassle. I also want
to learn enough to get a feel for the sort of city I’ll be visiting and its basic
layout—I might carry a map with me or get one soon after my arrival. Other than that, I like to wander, turn down
narrow alleyways, get “lost,” and make accidental discoveries.
My trip to
Romania, several years ago, epitomized this sort of travel. To get there, I went on a twenty-hour train
ride from Istanbul to Bucharest. I didn’t
have a hotel reservation upon disembarking but managed to find an atmospheric
place, near Revolution Square, after a bit of trial and error. I then spent the next few days stumbling upon
many beautiful spots, like the
Cişmigiu Gardens.
Of course, this approach also has its risks, and I occasionally find
myself in a dodgy neighborhood in some unfamiliar city. This happened in Bucharest, and I was
accosted by three robbers, pretending to be police officers. We wrestled around for awhile, and they
nearly ended up making off with my wallet and all its contents.
Yes, they nearly enriched
themselves at my expense. Actually, in
some strange way, I feel like that whole episode enriched me. It certainly made my visit to Bucharest that
much more memorable.
