Heather Was Here: A special place in my heart.. Madrid, España!

I went to Madrid in October of 2010. I spent a week there. I also did a day trip to Segovia. Madrid is different then I expected. It's full of culture, hip people and great food. Madrid has a calm feeling about it. I always feel like cites have their own moods. Their own feelings and heart. Madrid mood was calm, cool, and collected. Not too much effort to be hip, it just is.
It is also oddly enough, a romantic city. Everyone in Madrid is either in love or in the process of being in love or thinking about making love. Everyone was a couple. Holding hands, kissing. And no one cares about PDA being awkward. They are all for it. It's kind of charming in a way. The way these couples look at each other while walking to work, its heart warming.

The other surprising thing about Madrid was how they perceive fashion. All the girls wear black legging or tights with boots and jackets. EVERY FEMALE. It's almost a must if you to go to Madrid in the fall you must wear this outfit. Women there are not over accessorized, or trying to hard. It's effortless.

My Must sees Madrid!

Parque De Retiro

Retiro Park is a huge park in Madrid. It has a large lake. You can rent boats and have a fine afternoon paddling around with the family. There are people doing magic tricks in the streets, wannabe Mickey Mouse’s dressed up to get pictures with, and popcorn and candy vendors. I went on a Sunday, which was also Columbus Day. One surprising thing about Spain is that Columbus Day is a national holiday. Most businesses are closed. Which was weird because in America you don't even realize it Columbus Day till like the day is over and you go on Google and the homepage tells you! We decided to go to the Park that afternoon since everything was closed. Which was clearly everyone else’s idea as well. It was packed! It's the hot spot for families who wanted to escape to a wooded, green paradise in the concrete jungle of Madrid. It was such a peaceful escape, just sitting on the steps under the equestrian statue of King Alfonso XII. Being with the locals. Just watching how the locals interact with each other. And of course in Madrid fashion, seeing lots of couples renting row boats or holding hands while sitting in silence watching the sunset. I got a popcorn and coke, wonderful little afternoon park snack. There is also lots of monuments and historical buildings to look at. The park was originally created for the royal family, and you can tell that in all the beautiful statues and architecture made for royalty. I would 100% love to spend many more afternoons riding a bike or reading a book in this "parque." A nice change to my normal travel style. Just spending a afternoon not rushed to look at the next "must see" from TripAdvisor, but just "being."