27 Jul 2011
Is Madrid overrated?
According to my friend Diana you are much better off by visiting Seville, than to head to the nation’s capital:
By Diana (after a disappointing visit)
Madrid, Spain, with its mix of the old world and the new, its rich cultural history, and its economic prowess, is touted as being a jewel of southern Europe. Considered being one of the top ten most livable cities in the world, and the most visitor-friendly in Spain, Madrid is a tourist mecca, and the fourth most visited city around the European continent. With everything that it has going for it in terms of cultural events, monuments of note, and beautiful scenery, one could think that it would be a perfect place for a summer holiday. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Speaking from recent experience, there are several things about Madrid which make it a rather difficult destination for a vacation.
#1 Infrastructure Issues
“Infrastructure issues” is actually a polite technique of saying that nothing works… pretty much ever. If you’re used to coming to the train station, then buying a ticket, then waiting for the next train to arrive, the getting on it and going to your destination, get over that sequence of events right now. That is only going to happen about 50% of the time in Madrid. The rest of the time, be prepared to wait a long time to buy a ticket. Then cross your fingers that the train comes when it is expected to and goes where it actually says it will. Ditto for bus travel, courses at educational institutions, and business transactions. Why didn’t I just walk you may ask? I tried, but the Indian restaurant I was meeting my friend at was too far away to walk.
Historically, when any country’s economy is failing, the people of that country have always done two things, sought out someone to blame and scammed anyone who came within their easy reach. The latter seems to be quite prevalent in Madrid currently. Speak with an accent, and that four Euro snack the man in front of you just bought, will suddenly double in price. This manner of doing business exists everywhere from the corner store to the boardroom.
#3 Kindness is an Option
Having traveled a great deal, I have met some simply wonderful people and had some amazing experiences. Generally, I do my best to learn a minimum of the fundamentals of the language of the country where I am traveling. This is simply common courtesy. My efforts to speak the native language have always been met with friendship and encouragement by those around me, and someone in the community who speaks English has always made an effort to help me out as well if my vocabulary failed me. Not so in Madrid. If you do not speak Spanish, you are essentially out of luck. Learn the language or be prepared to stumble around by yourself.
