I've always had an interest in doing home exchanges. But, I never did it in Cuenca because, at first, I lived out in the countryside (most people want in-city accommodations), then when I moved in-city I had a B&B operation which is really not a conducive trade either.
I met a couple from Budapest who ended up buying a condo of mine in Cuenca. They told me about www.homeexchange.com. They've done several successful exchanges around the globe. The premise is: You have a place in city X. Someone has a place in city Y. You're interested in visiting city Y and it so happens 'someone' from city Y is interested in seeing your city X. Members on HomeExchange have profiles with photos of their home as well as a description of their home, the area, and of themselves. One party solicits the other via the website and proposes they do an exchange for particular dates. They either agree or not. Most times the exchanges are simultaneous, but they don't have to be.
That's it in a nutshell, or RDCV (Readers Digest Condensed Version).
It's an excellent means to see other places in the world, but at a reduced cost because it eliminates the expense of a hotel or Airbnb.
Here, in Europe, transportation is pretty inexpensive when you compare to traveling in the US of Trumplandia. The extensive network of trains is fast, frequent, and pretty cheap. Likewise, air travel is amazingly cheap, especially with so many discount airlines that exist here. On top of that, because I'm a legal resident of the Balearic Islands (Canary Islands qualify as well), the government of Spain provides a 75% discount on various modes of travel WITHIN Spain!!! That means, if I want to fly to Madrid and the normal airfare is 100 euros, my cost is reduced to 25 euros!! Can you believe that!!! Woohoo!!!
PS.....Dollars and Euros are almost the same in value. Euros tend to cost 10 - 15% more depending on the market on any given day.
So, back to my trip to Madrid. The airfare was 52 Euros...ROUND TRIP!!! On top of that, the apartment I stayed in was free because the owners of that apartment came to Palma and stayed in my apartment for the same period (5 nights). My only other costs were transport to/from the airports, subway pass, food, and any entrance fees to museums and such.
MY TRIP: as shown to you in 54 photos (of 90 taken) and 3 videos:
I got up at 6:30am for a 10:30am flight departure. Due to a storm passing through Madrid, planes couldn't take off. So we had to wait for our plane to come in. We finally pushed back at 11:45am, but only to end up waiting 20 minutes on the taxiway while a storm passed over us. Sitting on the ground, our plane was buffetted by the winds.
After an hour and 15 minute flight from Palma, I landed in Madrid. Madrid's airport is way outside the city...you can't even SEE the city when descending into MAD! Madrid has an excellent subway system. There's a line that connects each of the airport terminals to the center of the city. The system is on-time, rapid, smooth and very clean. They obviously put a significant amount of effort keeping graffiti at bay.
I rendevoused with my home exchange hosts at their airport check-in counter and we exchanged keys. Then I walked to the subway station stop and purchased my 10-ride pass for 12.50 via an automated kiosk machine. A subway 'ride' is defined as riding as many lines as necessary to get to your destination. Then, when you exit (come up out of the subway system to the surface), your '1 ride' is completed.
The subway station at the airport. Waiting for the next train!
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Incoming!!!
3 lines later and a 300 ft walk, I arrived at my home exchange apartment around 5pm. Hungry, I walked to a chicken rotisserie place on the corner and ordered a combo #2. It came with a whole (small) chicken, large fries, 6 small empanadas, 10 onion rings, and a large 2 liter bottle of Sprite.....for 10 Euro!!! How do they DO that?
On Sundays, just a few blocks from where I was staying, several blocks are shut down for the huge Flea Market. The particular neighborhood is chocked full of antique shops. Given the fact Madrid is a very old city, there's lots of opportunity to find some great antique and retro stuff.
A warehouse-like store selling really cool retro furniture.
Antique typewriter, phones, light sconces, press, irons, sewing machine all out on the sidewalk.
Love this multi-colored egg-shaped lamp. It's about 2 1/2 feet tall.
Street performers are always at open-air markets working for tips. Thought this guy was very interesting.
Typical old Madrid apartment building. Most, do not have elevators. I had to climb up 62 steps to access the apt I stayed in!!
Entrance to Plaza Major (pronouced My-Your). Funny, in a lot of Spanish cities, you'll find streets and plazas with the same names. Plaza Major in Palma looks almost the same, too.
On the square in the interior of Plaza Major. I took a panarama shot which caught the movement of a pedestrian...thus the chopped images of him.
Love Locks. A symbol of someone's undying love for another. They write their name and/or message on a padlock, then attach it to a railing (or fence, bridge, etc) so, theoretically, they can never be broken apart.
This is actually a scrim attached to scaffolding while the building is being worked on. It provides a nice, if not intriguing, aesthetic to the structure versus looking at the real constuction work. All of what you're looking at here is fake....painted on a scrim/cloth.
Another scrim covering the entire exterior of a building being worked on. Love the sense of humor.
Mercado San Miguel is a beautifully restored indoor market where dozens of vendors sell chocolates, tapas, cheese, wine, etc. VERY popular as you can see.
Cathedral Almudena
You might be wondering how old this cathedral is, especially since everything in Europe seems to be 400+ years old!! Would you believe this cathedral (below) is only a little over 100 years old???
The interior ceilings are very different than most typical cathedrals. They may be shaped similarly, but the colors and the way they were applied are very unique. It almosts looks like fabric or tapestries.
The other side of the cathedral, facing the Royal Palace.
If I'm not mistaken, the church purchased the old 'Mighty Wurlitzer' from 'Organ Power Pizza' in Pacific Beach (San Diego), Calif and had it installed here. Or....maybe it's from the old 'Lawrence Welk Show'. Can't remember.....
mmmwaaaahahhaaahhhahaa!!!
Next up. Yet another church. This one was just closing so I took a couple of quick snaps.
I had been killing time until 1:30pm when a highly recommended taco place was supposed to open for lunch. So, after I left the Cathedral Almudena, I hit the above church, then over a block or two to the restaurant. It was closed! Only on TUESDAY does it not open for lunch. Open for dinner at 8pm DAMN!!!
So, I hoofed it BACK over to the Cathedral Almudena and down a block to the 'Cripta de la Catedral Almudena' which is said to have 400 columns in it. Not hard to believe once inside!!! Opened in 1911, it was the first part of the overall cathedral project which wasn't finished until 1993.
Love the humor in some of the column motifs.
On the other side of the cathedral stands the 'Royal Palace of Madrid'.
A soccer ball for a light shade?
The Royal Palace of Madrid is the official residence of the Spanish Royal Family at the city of Madrid, but it is only used for state ceremonies. The palace has 135,000** square metres of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms. It is the largest royal palace in Europe by floor area. (Wikipedia)
** That's almost 1 1/2 million square feet!!!
Next I walked over to Gran Via. It's THE shopping street for the elite, where all the 'hot' stores are located. The square, along with the surrounding buildings and enormous flickering LED signs made me immediately think of Times Square in NYC.
I drooled over the architecture. Some of it Art Deco. The following photos are literally taken one building to the next building to the next building.
This building screamed 'WOOLWORTHS' or 'SEARS' to me when they were the grand dames of shopping in the olden days!
Hey!!! Some naked lady is shooting arrows off the roof of that building!!! Call Homeland Security!!!!
By the way, if you want to take a look at my Home Exchange profile and apartment, click on the following link:
Til next time...
Dano
I just love your post, and pictures on every blog you write. Thanks for sharing your beautiful experiences. I'm always looking forward to seeing them.
ReplyDeleteThis home exchange sounds really nice. I hope it works out well for you.
I just seen your apartment for the exchange program. You have a beautiful place. I would love to come visit you sometime.
ReplyDeleteGracie looks great ! Give her some love from me.
Great blog. Thanks Dano.
ReplyDeleteSome good cultural info and photos from Madrid Dano!
ReplyDelete