Pride, Parties, and Photoshoots

17.07.19 — Madrid

As mentioned at the end of my last blog post, upon my return to Madrid from Murcia it was time for the city’s pride celebrations! I kicked things off a little early, heading out for tea at La Casa Tomada. My friend is lucky enough to work there, and so he used his staff discount to grab us a free round of onion rings and the city’s best sandwiches!

The next event in my calendar involved a concert by an artist from Asturias! If you have kept tabs on my blog over the past couple of years, you’ll know that I have grown rather attached to the region in the north of Spain – in fact, check out my travel page for my visits to both Oviedo and Gijón, two Asturian cities.

A few months ago, I discovered a certain Rodrigo Cuevas through Spotify, and immediately got in contact with my friend Kevin. Kevin was sure to give me the low down: Cuevas is a singer from the region who mixes Asturian folklore, traditional song and dance, covers of Tino Casal (who was an iconic artist from the region), and very modern sounds. After obsessing over some of his work on YouTube for a while, I knew that a free concert by him in Madrid was definitely not to be missed!

I mentioned that I was going to my colleague María at work, as I thought she’d have heard of Cuevas as she is also from the region. After confessing that she didn’t, I rushed to show her a clip on YouTube, and very soon thereafter she was hooked and it was decided that we’d go together. Before we knew it, we were all gathered in the Plaza de Santa Ana and ready for the show to begin!

A screen displays Rodrigo Cuevas, with the singer beneath on a stage adorned with flowers.

Well, all I can say that Cuevas, who in the past has been likened to the genius of Freddie Mercury, did not disappoint! We spent a good few hours dancing, screaming, and flailing our arms in the air as we sang along as best we could and listened to Cuevas’ hilarious jokey comments about the region, its language, and its people. There was even a fabulous moment when he made his way into the crowd, during which Maria and I turned into the biggest pair of screaming fans!

Todos me miren de llau, y dicen “neña, que guapa yes!”

As you can see, the whole concert was one big gay affair, which set the tone quite nicely for the following weekend’s main event: the pride parade! For this, I grabbed some beers with my friend Leo, and we headed down an empty Gran Vía and to the parade route along the city centre’s widest street, La Castellana.

A rare, deserted Gran Vía in Madrid, Spain.

A selfie of me and my friend Leo at Pride, Madrid.

We were soon joined by more friends, and we stood by as the trucks eventually made their way through the crowds, blasting music and shooting foam and confetti all over the shop. We had a blast, and ended the night with plenty of food, before I realised I’d have to walk home due to the night buses being cancelled due to the parade. A small price to pay!

The next week at work began with a rather fun little outing, where I headed around the business district in the north of Madrid, directing a photo shoot alongside a client and photographer. I saw some pretty cool architecture that I’d never come across before, and even had the chance to make my way half way up an office building, meaning I could snap an arial shot which I would have otherwise never seen.

A staircase leads up to a modern building in Madrid.

A Madrid office building with a wavy-shaped series of sun screens.

The week at work also involved Erretres’ summer party, where we invited ex-colleagues, clients, and friends to come and celebrate the new office and inaugurate the new pool! I was so busy chatting away during said party that I didn’t remember to take a single photo, however I did grab this one of the rather warm following day, where we made the most of the leftover pizza and beer whilst hanging out in the garden…

I simply have to end this post with an absolute gem thought up by my colleague Borja, who had the ingenious idea that I should engage in a spot of ‘balconing’ – a word the Spaniards have created to describe British tourists’ habit of throwing themselves off balconies whilst drunk. As the only Brit in the place, I simply had to do the honours, and I can think of no better way to end this post than with the photo evidence.

Long live old Blighty!

Another Murcia Visit

09.07.19 — Murcia

Upon arriving back at my flat after a whirlwind 18-hour trip to Barcelona, I had very little time for rest nor recovery, for I had only a few hours to unpack and repack my bag ready for yet another train journey! This second trip of the day was to be a gruelling six hours instead of the mere three I had endured in the morning, but it was all for a good cause – I was off to Murcia to visit my parents!

With my auntie owning an apartment down in the southern region, and with my parents visiting relatively regularly for short holidays, I have been down a good few times before. This time I was to follow the same plan as ever, catching a late train down to a nearby town in order to coincide with my parents’ arrival on the plane.

Once they’d picked me up in their hire car and we’d made our way to the apartment, I revealed what I’d brought for tea (dinner, if you want to call it that): some cream cheese and turkey breast bocadillos (sandwiches). After we’d eaten those it was pretty much straight off to bed, as it was way gone midnight by the time we turned in for the night.

The next morning began, as mornings down on the golf complex often do, with a trip up to the resort’s little supermarket for the breakfast essentials. Usually I enjoy a leisurely stroll up to the shop in the renovated barn, but we had risen late and were dying for some food, and so we made the short journey by car.

After a spot of breakfast, we then hopped back in the car and began our fist (and my only) full day. Heading down to the coast, we stumbled upon a little craft market along the promenade, and I bought myself a little artesanal candle holder for my flat – I do love a good candle-lit evening by myself!

The shadow of garland lights cast on the beach sand.

The beach on the coast in Murcia, Spain.

With the heat soon getting to us, we dipped down a side street and sat down at a little bar we found along the way. Mum remembered about the existence of ensaladilla rusa (a mayonnaise-based salad of vegetables and tuna), so I ordered a sharing plate of the stuff and a round of drinks, and we proceeded to sit there for a good time, chatting the afternoon away.

An old building with the sign "Villa Cartagenera".

The facade of buildings near the coast in Murcia, Spain.

As we passed into the late afternoon, however, we had to make a move, as I wanted to visit the imported British foods shop to see if there was anything I particularly missed that I could pick up – like me and Cami did in Tenerife just a couple of months back! I am pleased to report that my tastes must be changing, as I didn’t find anything that particularly caught my attention, and instead found myself looking forward to a trip to Mercadona (a Spanish supermarket chain) afterwards!

Once we’d done a proper shop, we headed back to the apartment, where we ran into my auntie’s neighbours and good friends. As we’d just finished putting out a little spread of snacks and drinks, we invited them over, and sat around for a good few hours having a chat and a good few laughs.

We eventually had to head back inside, however, as we’d booked a table up at the golf resort’s restaurant so that we could all have tea and a drink together that evening. We wandered up to the little place, and I enjoyed a typical plato combinado (“combined plate”), which consisted of fried chicken, chips, a fried egg, and some salad. I also got chatting to a lot of the staff, who seemed quite shocked to hear me speaking Spanish – I have to thank the guys at Erretres for constantly teaching me new phrases!

A sunset over the golf complex in Murcia.

The next day was a rather lazy affair, as I jumped in the pool and hung around the apartment for most of the morning. For lunch, however, my parents had an idea of where to go, and so we jumped back in the car and headed to a little local village in order to enjoy a menú del día (a daily set menu) at a spot that my auntie and uncle enjoy.

I’d never been to the place before, but upon arrival it was blatantly obvious that it was very popular amongst locals – for me, always a good sign! The poor staff were rushed off their feet, but we enjoyed a gorgeous three-course meal of salad, ribs, and homemade desserts, all washed down with a coffee and accompanied by a beer.

A vibrant blue building in a town in Murcia.

Fit to burst, we hopped back in the car, and made our last stop of the visit before I headed back to the train station. This time we visited another coastal town, sitting on a terrace along the front for a quick drink in a cocktail bar, where I realised that I had once again lost my sunglasses – this is why I never spend more than 10€ on a pair!

All too soon, however, I found myself back on the terrace of a bar which sits by the train station, sipping on my last beer before the train back to Madrid. I waved my parents off as they stood on the platform, not knowing when I’ll next be back in England to visit them, but I returned to Madrid happy and recovered after such a relaxing weekend.

I have to send thanks to my parents for allowing me to crash a couple of days of their weeklong holiday, and also my auntie and uncle for letting us stay at their place whilst they spend the summer months back in old Blighty. I am looking forward to seeing my auntie and uncle again when they stop off in Madrid on their long car journey back down to Murcia in October, after the three of us had a lovely time together when they visited back in May.

I am, of course, now back in Madrid, and so the next post will have a lot to do with the pride celebrations which have been painting the city with colour for the past week or so. Watch this space!

The Laus Awards

05.07.19 — Barcelona

After a steady stream of visitors who’ve been keeping me company here in Madrid over the summer, it was eventually time for me to head off to a different city myself – this time to Barcelona!

I headed off to the northern city with my colleague Rocío, as we were off to pick up a series of Laus Awards that Erretres has won. For those wondering, the Laus Awards are Spain’s biggest design awards, similar to the D&AD Awards in the UK, and we’d be off to pick up two silver and one bronze! I had worked on one of these projects, and so the two of us hopped on the train from Madrid and headed up to Barcelona.

Upon arrival, we headed straight to a little beachside area of the city called la Barceloneta, where we took a stroll down the seafront and took in some of the sights. With the hour of the awards ceremony fast encroaching and our stomachs rumbling for some proper lunch, we made back towards the city centre, stopping for a snack on the way to our hotel.

With just over half an hour before the celebrations began, the two of us arrived at our hotel room, dumping our bags and quickly showering in preparation for the short walk to the Museu del Disseny (The Design Museum). We then, upon arrival, found our colleague Marco, who had also won an award for one of his student projects.

Before too long we were allowed to take a seat in the large auditorium space, which had a roof which sent my eyes momentarily spinning – I don’t think so many parallel lines was the best idea, especially for a design museum! Whilst my eyes had adjusted to the space, we chatted the time away whilst the other attendees filed in and then, as often expected in Spain, the presentation began late.

The interior of the Museu del Disseny, with the presentation screen showing sponsors. Taken before the event.

The preceding presentation was then mostly conducted in Catalan, which required an extra effort on my part to understand, as it can vary between being strikingly similar and then wildly different to what we’d call Spanish. It was lovely to see all the awarded projects, however, and listen to a few speeches along the way.

With the awards all handed out and the main event wrapped up, we then filed back out of the space, picking up the heavy acrylic awards as we went. We then all spilled out into a rear courtyard, where there was free beer and pizza up for grabs, so naturally we made the most of those!

With Rocío and I preferring a quiet night on the beach to a full night out, as well as the prospect of an early train back to Madrid the following morning, we passed on the invitation for a free club night, and headed instead back to La Barceloneta. Once there, we sat ourselves down on the terrace of a little bar on the sand, putting the world to rights over our last drink for the night.

The following morning involved a bright and early start, with the two of us heading out in search of a local café for some breakfast. Once we’d refuelled on some pastry and coffee, it was straight back to the train station for our 9am trip back to our home city – another super rapid visit to the city after I was there just a couple of months prior for a client meeting! This time, however, I did at least get a view of the Sagrada Familia from the taxi – reminding me of my first ever visit to the city!

The Sagrada Familia in its unfinished state, with a Barcelona boulevard in the foreground.

The view from our hotel room in Barcelona. The sun rises, illuminating buildings in a warm glow. A lone man walks through a courtyard below.

The train journey back was a three hour one, but that was to pale into insignificance, as later that same day I hopped on a six-hour train bound to Murcia to spend a weekend with my parents! More on that, though, in my next post…

The Briggs Siblings in Madrid

01.07.19 — Madrid

After Danni & Abi headed back to England, there was still one person left to visit before the end of my back-to-back weekends of hosting – my sister! She arrived for what would be here second visit, as she’s already visited last year when she was accompanied by her partner Johann.

This time we were both in the mood for taking things a little easier, and so I didn’t pack the schedule nearly half as full with plans as last time, and hence the Friday of her arrival was spent eating at a local bar and then wandering around the city centre for a while.

With the beginning of the weekend, the two of us decided to head out and check out a few areas of the city that Ellie hadn’t been to during her last visit, beginning with a trip to pick up some Manolitos, little sweet croissants which I maintain are the best in the entire world. After arriving to find the shop empty, we resolved to come back the next day, and I took Ellie to try the city’s best palmera (heart-shaped glazed pastry) from La Duquesita.

After snacking on this as we weaved out of some of the kooky shops around Chueca and Malasaña, we wound up back near the city centre, and headed up to the roof terrace of El Corte Inglés. There we checked out the views over the roofs of the city, enjoyed some of the best pizza going, and held a little photo shoot – even if the sun was adamant we should have terrible lighting.

A beer whilst looking over the city is always a good plan.

Ellie stands on the terrace of El Corte Inglés, the buildings of Gran Vía in the background.

From there we headed on to the Teleférico, repeating what I’d done with Danni & Abi just one week before. This time, as it wasn’t an evening, we weren’t in such a rush to return, and so we took a good while sitting on the grass at the other end, chatting about life and other shenanigans whilst sharing a packet of crisps.

The views of a Madrid neighbourhood from the cable car.

The mountains surrounding Madrid seen from the cable car over the Casa de Campo.

Ellie, with the skyline of Madrid in the background.

The rest of the afternoon was then spent hopping from one area of the city to another, in each spot stopping to relax on a bench or enjoy a cold glass of beer with lemon mixed in – the perfect summer drink.

Ellie with a drink sat in a plaza in Madrid.

For tea (see: dinner), we headed back to a place that has proven a hit with everyone who’s ever visited (especially Luisa) – Buns and Bones. Here we munched down on some of the tastiest Vietnamese bao going, and then headed to the southern neighbourhood of Vallecas to watch the sunset from one of the best vantage points going.

Ellie in Vallecas, Madrid, with the city skyline in the background as the sun sets.

It was here where we finally got round to taking the only photo of the two of us from the whole trip, but we soon found ourselves very distracted by the arrival of two dogs, who came along and sat with their humans to watch the sun set with us. We were truly blessed!

A selfie on me and Ellie as we watch the sun set, bathed in the warm glow of the setting sun.

Two dogs sit with two women and watch the sun set over Madrid.

A lot of my time was spent watching these two dogs rather than the sunset in the background.

Sunday began with a lovely brunch at Ojalá, another spot which never fails to delight – and which always takes me back to my parents’ first visit or when Izzy came along and stayed with me whilst I lived nearby. With the cute deco and the picturesque and tasty plates, it was a struggle not to spent the whole time searching for the perfect Instagram shot!

After our lovely meal in Malasaña, we caught the metro back down to my neighbourhood, Arganzuela, and paid a visit to the city’s massive greenhouse. I’ve walked past this place a few times, but I’d never really paid much attention to what was inside the big glass building – an oxymoronic statement, I know. Also, as Ellie is all set to study a master’s in biology starting in September, and with the place being open for free to all during certain hours every weekend, it would have been lunacy not to take her!

We spent a good time inside exploring the four different climate-controlled areas, with specimens ranging from desert cacti to tropical rainforest vines. The humidity and heat inside the place, however, soon got to us, especially with the outside temperature in Madrid rapidly climbing, and so we soon found ourselves sat at a terrace with a cool beer in hand.

Once we’d recovered, we headed down to the lake in Casa de Campo, taking with us a picnic bag and a box full of Manolitos (the mini croissants) that we’d eventually managed to get hold of!

We then spent a decent amount of time lounging and half napping on the banks of the lake, before heading back up to one of Ellie’s favourite spots, the Debod Temple. There we watched the sun set behind the mountains in the distance, and then headed back to my flat to prepare for Ellie’s departure the following morning.

Another Madrid sun set, this time seen from the Debod Temple.

I had a lovely time having Ellie over with me in Madrid, and I think we set the perfect pace such that the weekend felt much more like an exercise in relaxing in different spots rather than a rushed tourist tour. Also, when you’ve lived for around 20 years with someone in the same house, having them crash in your flat for a few nights feels like second nature!

I know Ellie had a lovely time, and I hope to have her back soon, but for now I must rush on with writing the next post! You may be pleased to know that this post marks the end of my many visits, and that the next one involves me taking a trip to Barcelona and features plenty of free pizza. All shall be revealed…

Abi & Danni Visit

28.06.19 — Madrid

Once Em and Lincoln had headed back to England, one of my first free weekends in a good while ensued. I didn’t feel like doing much, preferring to sit at home alone to recuperate and save a bit of money, but Bogar managed to convince me to head out for a little picnic down by the river.

I lie in the grass by the river in Madrid.

After a lovely spot of sunbathing and a proper catch up, a week of work then ensued which then ended with my next summer activity – a visit from Danni and Abi! The last time they visited was back in 2016, when they flew over for a few days whilst I was completing my internship was Erretres, so it was exciting to have them back again!

Their visit began with an epic battle in the airport, as droves of people had poured into the arrivals lounge for the arrival of what I assume was a big flight or possibly some kind of famous person. Once I’d managed to find the two of them and plucked them out of the crowd, we headed straight for my flat and spent the rest of the day relaxing and chatting.

That evening, however, it was about time that the three of us had a good few drinks and headed out together – it’s been a while since we all last went out as a three! Heading once again to my favourite cheesy karaoke bar, the three of us sang along to Queen, Bowie, and – of course – the typical cheesy local hits.

Me, Danni, and Abi sit in a karaoke bar in Madrid.

Me and Danni sit in a karaoke bar in Madrid.

We didn’t head to bed all too late, so the next day we were up bright and early(ish) and full of energy, heading to the park for a picnic with the food we’d picked up from Mercadona the day before. From there we headed down to Malasaña, as the Pinta Malasaña (Paint Malasaña) event was well underway, with local artists renewing the street art which coats the vibrant walls of the neighbourhood. I caught this event last year too, when Kevin visited me in Madrid, but this time I didn’t think to take a single photo of the shenanigans – oops!

The next day we headed down to Parquesur, a shopping centre in the south of the city, but we managed to end up way off course! Just when we thought we couldn’t walk through any dodgier areas, I realised that we’d headed the wrong way, and so we had to perform a u-turn and head all the way back through said questionable area! After having to make a dash for it across a slip road, however, we did eventually make it to Parquesur in one piece.

Later that evening, and once back in the city centre, I decided we should try to do something a little different. For the first time since me and Kevin made the creaky journey over the trees of the Casa de Campo, the three of us jumped on the Teleférico (cable car), taking a little trip to enjoy some of the best views back over the city.

Danni, me, and Abi take a selfie by the Casa de Campo Teleférico Station overlooking Madrid.

Danni, me, and Abi by the Casa de Campo Teleférico Station overlooking Madrid.

With a lovely evening meal to conclude Abi and Danni’s visit to the city, we headed back to my flat for an early night – they, like visitors gone by, would be up early to catch a taxi to the airport, and I’d be up to see them off and get myself off to work.

I had a fabulous few days with two of my oldest and dearest friends here in the city, and I can only hope that they’ll be able to come back and visit again very soon. If nothing else, however, I will be back over to see Sigrid live in Leeds with Danni in November, so I do at least have that to look forward to for now!

Now I must wrap this blog post up, as the next weekend saw the arrival of one of my summer’s last visitors – I shall once again leave it as a little surprise. Until then, it’s time for me to head down to Murcia for a weekend relaxing with my parents!