Today is my last Saturday - and last full day - in Madrid, and I am currently sitting in my living room sheltering from the rain. It seems somehow fitting that my Spanish adventure should end in almost exactly the same way it began - sitting alone, hiding away from the miserable weather. This time there is an important difference, and that is that I’m not alone at all, not really. Everyone from work has gone away for the weekend; Alicia and Ali are with their au pair families; Marellia is spending time with her boyfriend; but that doesn’t mean I feel lonely. I’ve met so many incredible people this year that, even though I may be on my own at a particular moment, I can’t help but feel that there will always be people who will treat you with kindness and welcome you as their friend.
My experience at Gestamp has been a true testament to this, and I really can’t thank them enough. Working there has been an amazing stage in my life; though short, I feel like I’ve taken so much away from it. Not only have I had a taste of the kind of work that I hope will eventually become my full occupation, but I’ve learnt just how easy it can be to fit in with a new group of people, especially when they are so willing to accept you.
I’ve noticed that my tasks have been becoming more varied and challenging as the days and weeks have gone by, and my final task was translating a corporate Code of Conduct, which, due to its legal content, had to be handled with great precision. It’s only now that I’m reflecting back on things that I realise how much I’ve progressed since first arriving in Spain. I remember, as if in a dream, that very first day, struggling to communicate with my landlady on the phone and stuttering over a bit of small talk. Now I’m translating legal documents without a second of self-doubt.
This week, I also had to translate a press release on the rail accident in Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, which happened this Wednesday and is being called Europe’s worst train crash this century. I’d barely heard about it before I received a panicked message from my mum to check I was ok, which was very sweet but then again, also fairly unnecessary since I was neither anywhere near Galicia, nor had I been on any trains. Anyway, on a sensitive issue like this, I knew I had to get the tone exactly right - especially after the horrendous error made by Spain’s own Prime Minister by copying and pasting from another condolence message he’d addressed to China about the earthquake in Gansu on Monday.
On Monday evening, I had to rush back to make a Skype call with my future housemates, but on Tuesday I decided it was time to start making the most of my last week here and went into town with José after work. We took the train to the Salamanca district, which is known as one of the wealthiest in Madrid, with one of the highest real estate prices in the city, and is also home to some of the most expensive and exclusive shops. Though we were able to admire these from a distance, we headed to Zara for some retail therapy which was slightly more in our price range.
After emerging from Zara surprisingly empty-handed, I decided to split off from José to do a bit of tourism, making my way to the Puerta de Europa (Gate of Europe) or Torres KIO (KIO Towers), an iconic twin of office buildings constructed from 1989 to 1996. Each building is 115m tall, and they are inclined at an angle of 15°, making them the first inclined skyscrapers in the world. On the top of each tower is a helipad.
It took me a good twenty minutes to reach the towers on the metro, and only to stand outside and observe them for a few minutes and take a couple of photos. I’d made a couple of failed attempts at getting a picture I was actually in, using the self-timer on my camera, before a passer-by took pity on me and offered to do it for me. I expect the sight of a female tourist struggling on her own did look pretty sad.
Thursday being my penultimate day at Gestamp, we had a mini despedida (leaving party). I arrived at my desk to find a mysterious foil-covered object, decorated with well-wishing Post-it messages - which turned out to be a gorgeous cheesecake baked by Paula. It was so incredibly sweet of her to go through all that effort, and all of us headed to the kitchen to share it right then, despite it being 8.30 in the morning. The little kitchen soon filled with people, and after I shared out the cake it was time to say a word of thanks. Since I’d let slip that I was a singer, everyone had been asking for a song, but as I didn’t think breaking out into song was appropriate in the workplace, a speech would have to do. I was probably already known as the crazy young English girl through turning up in short skirts (the only ones I own), going out clubbing with seven guys, not to mention that momentous occasion when I walked around all day with writing on my back, so I didn’t want to add another reason to add to that image.
My speech was short and sweet; as is probably obvious from this blog, I admit that I’m usually quite keen on getting myself heard, but making a speech in Spanish in front of all my work colleagues had me surprisingly nervous. I was anxious not to make any mistakes that might leave behind the memory of me being well-meaning but slightly dim. In the end, I thanked everyone for their kindness, for making me feel so welcome and for making my experience at Gestamp such an enjoyable one.
That day, those who could make it came to a farewell lunch at Wok, a nearby Chinese restaurant. I’d originally planned to organize a meal and drinks on the Friday, or even the Thursday, but since everyone was going away that weekend and most already had plans for the Thursday, we did a lunch instead. In reality, I did nothing towards the arrangement of this plan, since I considered that the Madrilenians would know how best to organize things - so it was really nice of everyone to spread the word and sort everything out amongst themselves.
After work, I needed to get a little something to give the team the next day, to thank them for everything they’d done for me. There is a Corte Inglés just outside the Gestamp office building, so it was easy enough to pop in and buy a card and chocolates before making my way back on the metro.
The next day, being a half-day, passed by in a blur, especially with the constant reminders from Fatima of how little time I had left. At 1 o’clock, I got paid and said goodbye to Juan, the manager, in what was probably the longest conversation I’d had with him throughout the duration of my time at Gestamp. Then, with the rest of the marketing team (minus Jaime and Elena, who had gone on holiday), I had my photo taken in one of the conference rooms, against the backdrop of Leading the Change (the corporate intranet run by the marketing department).
José had the picture printed and put it in one of the company picture frames for me to take home, a lovely souvenir from my time there. I decided I ought to present the card and chocolates then, before everyone started to leave. Fatima opened the card and, to my embarrassment, read it aloud (I hoped there weren’t any glaring mistakes). To my relief, everyone seemed thrilled with the message, and I later found Fatima had taken a photo of it and posted it on Facebook along with our group photo, accompanied by some lovely comments.
Soon, people began to leave, and I said goodbye to David, Paula and Fatima before making my way downstairs with Maria and José. Maria was going the opposite way, leaving just José and me to walk the short stretch to the metro before parting ways. He told me again that I was welcome to come and stay whenever I wanted, and we talked about a visit in October, which is when the city is apparently full of people and perfect for fiesta - unlike right now, when it’s holiday season. I told him I would love to come, and I hoped I could; I was really going to miss everyone.
Since I’d been paid in cash, I decided it would be safest to drop the money back at the house before going out for the afternoon. When I got back, Marellia was in so we sat and had lunch together before I left for the metro again. I’d decided to go and see a few more essential Madrid things while I still had the chance - the Plaza de Toros de las Ventas (Bullring), the inside of the Palacio Real (Royal Palace), and Casa de campo, which is a huge park just south of the city.
Since the website said it closed at 6, first I headed on the green line to the Las Ventas, which is regarded as the home of bullfighting in Spain and is arguably the country’s most famous bullring. It is situated in the Guindalera quarter of the Salamanca district and was opened in 1931, and (much as I wish this weren’t true) is still in operation today. Despite being against the sport, I felt it was something I ought to see whilst in Madrid, even if I was a bit reluctant to support the practice with my entry fee.
As it happened, on the day I visited there was to be a concert that evening, as I was told by the security guard on duty. In fact, we ended up having a lovely chat, derived from the fact that he couldn’t believe I was English due to my high standard of Spanish - my second confidence boost that day, after a promoter giving out flyers had refused to believe I didn’t live in Spain.
Anyway, although it was slightly annoying I’d come all that way and wouldn’t get to go inside, it was enough to see the beautiful exterior and, at any rate, maybe it was a sign that I wasn’t meant to support the bullring by paying for an entry ticket after all. I had my picture taken by some passers-by and walked the whole perimeter before making my way back to the metro.
My next stop was the Palacio, which I’d read offered free entry after 6pm. However, when I arrived and asked the woman on the information desk, it turned out that this offer was only valid from Monday to Thursday and, in the absence of a student card, I would have to pay eight euros to get in. She suggested going to the comisaría to get a proof of theft document, but since I’ve already tried this with no results, I decided to give it a miss. I’d gone to the police office just outside work, not long after my purse had been stolen, to enquire if it had been handed in, but had had such a bizarre experience I decided I wouldn’t try again.
What had happened was this: the comisaría was located just inside the bus station, a fact that seemed slightly unusual to me, and therefore I spent a while wandering around trying to find it. Eventually, a guy approached me and asked what I was looking for. He told me I was standing right outside the station and that he himself was a policeman. He didn’t look much like a policeman but I could hardly say this to his face, so when he asked me to explain what had happened, I complied. He then said that I needed to go to the station at Chueca, where he would happily drive me. I have no idea whether this is the done thing here, but I didn’t feel like taking any chances so made my excuses and ran away.
Anyway, I decided that, without free entry or a student discount, the palace probably wouldn’t be worth the bother - especially as I’ve seen dozens of palaces worldwide and they are all basically the same. At any rate they take inspiration from other foreign courts, so seeing the palace of a particular country does not necessarily mean you are getting the opportunity to see some authentic native architecture and design.
For this reason, I went instead to the cathedral, Santa María la Real de La Almudena, which was just a couple of minutes’ walk down the road. Its construction began in 1879 as, since the transferal of the capital of spain from Toledo to Madrid in 1561, the city had been in need of a cathedral. It is was originally designed in a Gothic revival style and, due to the interruption caused by the Spanish Civil, was not completed until 1993. For this reason, it now has a Neo-Gothic interior which is refreshingly modern and includes chapels, statues and artwork from contemporary artists.
After visiting the cathedral, I returned to Ópera metro station and began the journey to Casa de Campo, a large urban park of more than 1,700 hectares, which was once a royal hunting estate. When I arrived at just after 6pm, the heat of the day was still almost unbearable, even in the shade of the tree-lined footpaths which went on for miles around. I hadn’t walked for much more than half an hour before I decided to make my way back; I might have stayed longer were it not for the heat and the worry of getting lost in the woods on my own. I decided that if I ever came back to live in Madrid, this would be the place I’d come to walk my dogs.
I spent the evening catching up and making plans with friends from back home, as well as cooking a mediterranean pasta (which I am quite proud of, considering it was basically for using up my extra ingredients), and watching The Breakfast Club on my lonesome. This morning was spent doing odd jobs like the horrific task of packing (or re-packing, as I’d already done a rough job when sending off my box). The good news is that whilst writing this blog, a plan has come in for this evening, which means my last night in Madrid won’t be spent in the house on my own after all.
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