Madrid

Alicia left yesterday, which I'm still a little bummed about. I honestly could not have asked for a better travel partner. (Alicia, if you're reading this - I walked past many gelato places yesterday afternoon but could not bring myself to have any without you.)

Anyway, though it's a far cry from Sevilla, Madrid is beautiful - and the nightlife is incredible. One thing I love about the culture here is how centered it is around having fun - work seems to be a mere afterthought for many of the people I've met in this country.

Among the highlights:
- The photo exhibit at Caixa Forum
- The Reina Sofia Museum (which is free from 6-8 every night!)
- Seeing Carmen, a flamenco ballet show
- Eating real Spanish paella, which contains many unrecognizable species of sea creatures and is seriously difficult to eat considering how many things you have to de-shell (but is delicious nonetheless!)
- Finding pig legs and 2-foot octopuses at the Spanish supermercado El Corte Ingles

Tidbits about Madrid:
- The name Madrid is derived from an Arabic word meaning stream
- Toledo was actually the country's capitol until the reign of Philip II, who moved his court to Madrid. Soon after, he implemented a law forcing citizens with extra rooms to take in uprooted nobility and officials or pay an 85% tax; however, because the government couldn't enter people's homes to confirm the number of rooms they had (instead relying on the number of floors and windows), people averted this tax by building "casas de maliciosas" (hyperlink)