Living It

In some bar in a ship with tables made out of barrels that have lighted dioramas inside. Mine is a mountain ski scene.

Took Easyjet from Madrid to Lyon. The Easyjet check in was horribly inefficient. And they charge you 20 euros to take check in an extra bag, but they don’t give you extra weight allowance for it. Makes no sense. The flight itself was ok.

If it was later in the day I’d try one out. On my way to Lyon, France.

My junior year at Berkeley, I spent my spring semester in Madrid as part of the Skidmore / Tufts abroad program. I took classes at the Universidad Autonoma and the program center, and I lived with a single mother who lived by the Noviciado subway stop, which was very convenient.
 
Bar Noviciado, which is right at the entrance to the subway, was a frequent stop for a quick bite or a drink. They had my favorite patatas bravas in the whole city, and I consumed an endless amount of them and tortilla española there. Anytime I’m in Madrid, I’m compelled to drop by, and I was very pleased to see my old bartender still there after all these years. Last time I visited, six years ago, he recognized me and we chatted, but I didn’t see a flicker of recognition this time and I didn’t bring it up. Unfortunately the frier was broken and they couldn’t serve patatas bravas. I did have a couple cañas though, and next time I’ll be sure to have some pimientos.

At Atocha train station earlier today. They turned a former train hanger into a lush biosphere. Nicely done.