EN:
It’s
time to tell you the illustrated story of my short vacation in Madrid, as
promised. I went in the middle of May, when Romania had 24-26 degrees Celsius
and, upon arrival, was confronted with 12-13, even 7-8- in the mornings and evenings
- degrees Celsius. It was freezing, I’m telling you! I’ve seen many people
wearing winter jackets and boots on the streets. The cold and the rain from the first two days
were the main downsides of the trip (apart from me forgetting my umbrella at
home). Besides that, though, everything went even better than expected.
The
hotel was located on Gran Via, in a very central area, at a walking distance
from almost all the important sights. Gran Via is one of the main commercial
areas/ streets in Madrid, with lots of cinemas, bars and restaurants on it. The
lights made it even better at night, just perfect for a relaxing walk. I
alsolutely loved the atmosphere and the people. Actually, if I were to choose
one country in which I would like to move from the ones I’ve seen so far, Spain
would most probably be my choice. And I’ve seen quite a few.
RO:
E
timpul sa va impartasesc povestea ilustrata a scurtei mele vacante in Madrid,
asa cum v-am promis. S-a intamplat la mijlocul lunii mai, cand in Romania erau
24-26 grade Celsius. Am ajuns acolo si- surpriza: am dat peste maxime de 12-13
grade ziua si 7-8 grade dimineata si seara! Am vazut numeroase persoane cu geci
de iarna si cizme pe strada. Frigul si ploaia (in special in primele 2 zile) au
fost principalele inconveniente de care m-am lovit (exceptand faptul ca, pe
deasupra, umbrela mea ramasese, uitata, acasa). Exceptand aceste lucruri, insa,
totul a fost excelent, mult peste asteptari.
Hotelul
se afla pe Gran Via, intr-o zona extrem de centrala, din care principalele
obiective erau usor accesibile pe jos. Gran Via este una dintre strazile/
zonele comerciale principale din Madrid, presarata cu cinematografe, baruri si
restaurante. Seara era frumos luminata si parca te imbia sa te pierzi in
multimea care se plimba de-a lungul ei. Atmosfera si oamenii m-au cucerit pur
si simplu, incat, daca ar fi sa aleg o tara unde mi-as dori sa ma mut, dintre cele vizitate pana
acum (si nu sunt putine), Spania ar fi optiunea mea!
EN:
On
the first day I went to Warner Park- after having tried Disneyland this past
autumn, I was eager to have a term of comparison. And now I do. Disneylad is
definitely designed to be more suitable for children, while this one was far
more difficult- and I am referring especially to the main attractions. I hadn’t
made much research on them before my actual arrival, so, without knowing, I
started my day with the most difficult one: Stunt Fall. Well, I can tell you
that it was by far the most intense sensation I’ve experienced in a
roller coaster before. What surprised me was the presence of many 12-13 year
olds either by themselves or with their parents/ teachers, trying the most
intense attractions, one after the other. Well, I must admit I even felt
challenged by that at some point. I guess Spanish people must be a lot less
prudent than what I am used to, at least when it comes to children.
Other
attractions that I would recommend are: Superman, Batman: La Fuga, La Venganza
del Enigma and Coaster Express. I was pretty tired at the end, so, after a
little shopping, a walk on Gran Via and dinner, I called it a night.
RO:
Prima
zi a fost dedicata parcului de distractii Warner- dupa vizita la Disneyland
Paris de anul trecut, imi doream un termen de comparatie. Si l-am gasit.
Disneyland este mult mai potrivit pentru copii, pe cand acesta a fost mai
dificil si intens- ma refer mai ales la principalele atractii. Nu ma informasem
prea mult cu privire la ceea ce ma astepta in parc, asa ca, fara sa stiu, m-am
urcat direct in cea mai dificila atractie: Stunt Fall. A fost de departe cel
mai intens rollercoaster incercat ed mine pana acum. Am ramas surprinsa de
prezenta a in parc a multor copii de 12-13 ani, multi dintre ei nesupravegheati
de parinti sau profesori, care incercau, una dupa alta, cele mai complicate
atractii. La un moment dat chiar m-a ambitionat prezenta lor acolo, la modul : ”daca
ei pot, sigur pot si eu!”. Cred ca spaniolii sunt mult mai putin precauti decat
noi, cel putin la capitolul copii.
Alte
cateva atractii pe care le recomand sunt: Superman, Batman: La Fuga, La
Venganza del Enigma and Coaster Express. La final, oboseala si-a spus cuvantul,
asa ca dupa cina, o plimbare pe Gran Via si cateva mici cumparaturi, m-am
retras in camera de hotel.
|
La Venganza del Enigma |
|
Stunt Fall |
|
Stunt Fall again
| | | | |
|
|
|
Superman |
|
Coaster Express |
|
Remember the Flintstones? |
|
I even met Yogi Bear |
EN:
Day
two started with a cold rain, a visit to the Opera, The Royal Palace (Palacio
Real), the Almudena Cathedral (Catedral de Santa Maria La Real de la Almudena),
then to the Santiago Bernabeu stadium. The latter was really impressive and the
timing was great, since that night exactly Real Madrid was playing there
against Atletico de Madrid, for the King’s Cup (Copa del Rey) Final, so I got to
witness the preparations for the big event. The next stop was the Zoo Aquarium-
after a lovely experience at the Rome Zoo last year, this one was a must. By the time I got there it started
raining heavily and the fact that it was in the open was, as you can imagine,
not very helpful, so I had to take shelter until it stopped- for like an hour
and a half. Apart from that, the Zoo was great- they had this gorgeous white Bengal
tiger, lions, pandas (including red pandas), koalas, lemurs and many, many
others, all very well taken care of. I particularly enjoyed the lemurs- they
would actually let you enter their area and interract with them. I thought they
were so funny, taking shelter from the rain and trying to get dry in the sun
afterwards. (you can see pictures below) The next thing I did was take the
teleferic and get an overall image of the city from up high. It was not as
impressive as I expected, as the crossed area wasn’t all that nice. That night
was the night of the Copa del Rey game, so the streets and bars were packed. It
was a real pleasure to get a taste of the atmosphere of such an important
event.
RO:
Ziua
2 a inceput cu o ploaie rece, o vizita la Opera, Palacio Real, o vizita la
catedrala Almudena, apoi la Santiago Bernabeu. Stadionul este cu adevarat
impresionat, iar momentul a fost mai mult decat bine ales, pentru ca, tocmai in
seara aceea urma sa se desfasoare Finala Cupei Regelui, confruntare dintre Real Madrid
si Atletico Madrid, asa ca am putut asista la pregatirile pentru acest
eveniment chiar de la fata locului. Urmatoarea escala a fost la Zoo Aquarium-
dupa experienta frumoasa cu Bioparco din Roma de anul trecut, aceasta era un
must. Cand am ajuns acolo, deja ploaia se intetise, asa a am fost nevoita sa ma
adapostesc undeva pentru aproximativ o ora si jumatate. Trecand peste asta,
mi-a placut mult la Zoo Aquarium: am vazut un tigru bengalez alb absolut
superb, lei, ursi panda (inclusiv panda rosu), koala, lemuri si multe, multe
alte animale, toate foarte bine ingrijite. Lemurii au fost preferatii mei-
puteai sa intri in spatiul destinat lor si, sub supravegherea unui ingrijitor,
chiar sa interactionezi cu ei. M-am amuzat observand cum se adaposteau de
ploaie si cum isi uscau blanita la soare dupa aceea (gasiti fotografii mai
jos). M-am oprit apoi la teleferic, pentru o imagine de ansamblu asupra
orasului. Nu a fost impresionant, cum ma asteptam, pentu ca zona strabatuta nu
avea nimic deosebit, iar principalele obiective se vedeau din departare. A fost
seara Cupei Regelui, cu strazi si baruri pline de localnici si turisti si
atmosfera electrizanta.
|
Palacio Real |
|
Almudena Cathedral |
|
Baby Elephant. Cute, isn't he? |
|
Lemurs taking shelter from the rain |
|
And another one |
|
Cuteness |
|
White Bengal Tiger |
|
A Beauty |
|
Lemurs drying in the sun |
|
Somebody's hungry |
|
Red Panda |
EN:
Third
and final day. It happened to be Museum Day- the entrance was free to all
museums. I could but take advantage of it, so, first thing in the morning,
after visiting Plaza Mayor, Puerta del Sol and Plaza de Cibeles, I was headed
to Prado. Lots of people were taking advantage of the free entrace, so the
place was crowded. My intention was to visit the Reina Sofia museum also and
admire masterpieces by Dali and Picasso, but the queue in front of it was huge,
so I decided to head elsewhere. I therefore walked to the Debod Temple and
Plaza de Espana, then stopped at a mall for some shopping. Before you know it,
it was time to pack for my return. If I ever return someday, I plan to take a
trip to Toledo and the surroundings. If you get the chance to visit this
amazing city, don’t miss it!
RO:
Ziua
a treia si ultima s-a intamplat sa fie Ziua Muzeelor, cu acces gratuit in toate
muzeele. Am profitat si, dis de dimineata, dupa opriri scurte in Plaza Mayor,
Puerta del Sol si Plaza Cibeles, aflate in imprejurimi, m-am indreptat catre
Prado. Acolo, multa lume, localnici si turisti, toti profitand de intrarea
gratuita. Intentionam sa vizitez si muzeul Reina Sofia, pentru a admira opere
semnate Dali si Picasso, insa coada de la intrare era imensa, asa ca am
renuntat. De acolo m-am plimbat pana la templul Debod si Plaza de Espana, apoi
am hoinarit printr-un mall. La urmatoarea vizita in Madrid mi-am propus sa vad
Toledo si imprejurimile. Este un oras plin de viata, cu personalitate si oameni
frumosi, care merita vizitat!
|
Puerta del Sol |
|
Plaza Cibeles |
|
Prado |
|
Reina Sofia |
|
Templo de Debod |
|
|
Plaza de Espana |
|
|
On Gran Via at night |