uploading photos, little by little

i've managed to upload until week 2 of the great spanish trip, and if you want to see what happened, you can check out these multiply albums:

hola, madrid
my first full day in the spanish capital. started with a short walk around cuzco, followed by a meal at VIPS, and ended with an awe-inspiring performance of "carmen" by sara baras at teatro lope de vega on gran via.

reina sofia, atocha, and museo del jamon
featuring my first madrid museum, my first glimpse of the train station that would be the starting point of my journeys to toledo, barcelona, and granada. topped off the day with a meal at local joint museo del jamon.

madrid sightseeing extravaganza
a whole-day affair that started at puerta de alcala and ended with a delicious meal at las cuevas de luis candelas near plaza mayor.

plaza de espana
i ventured out alone, armed with only a smattering of spanish phrases. well, as it turns out, you learn to order lunch when your stomach is asking to be fed. i ended up ordering surtido de pates (i found out that "surtido" meant assorted, so my first plate consisted of a variety of pates that had me feeling so full when my second plate arrived), grilled chicken with potatoes, and cana.

andéncero
one of the places that i really enjoyed--a former metro station turned into a museum to tell of the history of the metro. it was half eerie and 150% fun.

museo sorolla
i've mentioned this place already, and the memory of my visit is still fresh in my mind. i actually went back a few days before i flew home, to buy myself a print of my favorite sorolla painting. now i'm all sorolla crazy.

el parque del buen retiro
too bad i only went there twice, but my first visit was enjoyable enough! i got to see a lot of the park while hunting down the palacio de cristal. i heart parks, and this one is no exception. people were taking in the sun, eating, rowing boats, some were even performing their breakdancing moves! it really is a pleasant retreat, as its name says.

toledo
the city of steel and religious tolerance (there's some irony in there somewhere) gave me my first taste of renfe, the spanish rail system. next time i go, i'm bringing home a replica of sting!

ikea mondays
foreigners will never get it, but we pinoys just have a soft spot for ikea, no matter where we are. susie and i spent two consecutive mondays eating swedish meatballs with lingonberry at the san sebastian de los reyes branch, since most tourist spots were closed on that day.

museo del prado
the album is an irony in itself. the location of some of the world's most famous paintings, and i only have three images of it on my camera. what was i to do, no photo-taking allowed inside the galleries. i was happy to see some works of bosch and velazquez, and will go back again for a second look.

madrid nights a la javi
an album dedicated to susie's brother, javier, who was our official nightlife guide in madrid. we never did get to join him until the early morning hours, but we always had fun wherever we went. every place he took us to had damned good food and drinks. check out his photos of spain at javierpernas.multiply.com.

scenes from segovia
one of my favorite daytrips! about a couple of hours away from madrid, segovia is known for its aqueducts, but will be remembered for its cochinillo. :D this album is just an introductory page for other segovia photos to come.