Monday 10th July 2006 11:30:00 PM DAY 7: Madrid -> Cordoba Mondays are usually treated as the worst day of the week. I thought this only applied to people who have to work, sadly the spell worked on me too even when I was just travelling... Having finished off the rest of the Danish pastries for the 3rd consecutive day, I had come to realize the fact that even stuff as good as Danish pastries could also taste so awful too... (especially where there was no fridge and oven for the pastries) I only had to check out the hotel at noon so I could buy some time in the morning to do some real tour of the city (and also some shopping!) Shang told me there was a Real Madrid Shop in Sol and I could try my luck there for some Zidane's souvenirs. So I started my journey there but the lazy Spanish had not yet opened the shop at 21:00. So I decided to do some sightseeing around the city. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The sightseeing was brief... I walked along from Sevilla metro station to Banco de Espana metro station where Plaza de Cibelles was. There sat the landmark of Madrid... A statue of a lady sitting on the carriage being drawn by 2 lions... in the middle of a fountain.... so that the lady could wet herself all the time, how wonderful! The lady turned out to be Cybele, a goddess of caverns and mountains, walls and fortresses, etc.. The two lions were actually a couple called Atalanta and Hippomenes, who were turned into lions by her after having sex in one of her temples. ![]() ![]() Enough about Mythology, I moved on to a archway called Puerta de Alcala, which liked all other monuments, was erected basically to show off. (Actually it was supposed to improve the looks of eastern Madrid and took 9 years to build.) ![]() ![]() Finally I arrived at Camper. Yes, the shop that was famous for "bowling" shoes. In the stores, for the first time in my trip I met tons of Chinese... most of them were gals shopping happily and crazily. One even bothered to stack all her bounties (about 6-7 shoe boxes) on the counter and took a photo of them (with her, of course) ... only to be yelled at by the store manager! Finally I arrived at Camper. Yes, the shop that was famous for "bowling" shoes. In the stores, for the first time in my trip I met tons of Chinese... most of them were gals shopping happily and crazily. One even bothered to stack all her bounties (about 6 to 7 shoe boxes) on the counter and took a photo of them (with her, of course) ... only to be yelled at by the store manager! ![]() ![]() As the price was not too attractive (most shoes were over HKD1000 anyway) and I was unable to accustomed to my fellow 同胞's behaviours, I left the shop like a whirlwind.... and decided to try my luck again back in the Real Madrid shop at Sol. The store was finally opened! It was a lot smaller than the one over in the stadium... guess what? I saw a group of Hong Kong people for the first and the only time in my entire trip.... it seems that they joined a tour and this was their free-time shopping. Two girls were busy IDD-ing their relatives at home asking for help as the T-shirts for all the famous Real Madrid stars were all sold out. (Of course the two girls wouldn't recognize any names but Beckham..) Other uncles were also happily scooping T-shirts and other souvenirs from the shelf, like as if it was a supermarket sale. I finally found what I wanted, a key chain of #5 Zidane. (If I knew he had headbutted last night, I would have bought more of his stuff!!) and went for queueing. The same two girls were in front of me busy doing the tax reclaim. They were almost finished when suddenly the uncles and aunties tried to "push-in" by giving all of their dozens of "victory trophies" to the two gals in front. Gosh! No one was behind me in the queue at that time and they just couldn't wait for one person! How typical~ As I really had to go back for the hotel for check-out before noon, I "politely" asked them to "let" me go first and I finally managed to reclaim my original queue position. ![]() ![]() After checked-out, I headed straight to Atocha train station again. With my yesterday's reconnaissance I had no problem in locating the AVE ticketing office. But what I saw in front of me was totally shocking! What was an empty hall last night was now full of crowds, queues and chaos... locals, foreigners, baggages and security guards were everywhere. Those queues were so "deviated" (from straight lines) that I could not see which counter they originated from. Above each counter there was an electronic signboard stating which type of tickets it would serve. Sadly I didn't understand any of it (it would be too costly to guess otherwise!) so I struggled my way to the information kiosk right in the middle of the crowds. Having battled through waves and waves of people, I finally found my oasis.. oh! I need to get a ticket before I could consult the oracle! Luckily the queue was short and I was served very soon... The oracle said through her crystal ball in perfect English that out of the 20+ operating counters in the hall, only 3 counters would sell today's tickets, and the others were all reserved for "Advance tickets"... and guess what, ALL the people there queueing were actually queueing for those 3 queues!! Having bid goodbye to the oracle at the kiosk, who could already foretell my future: "I would miss the next train inevitably" (The time was 12:30 and the next train was at 13:00); I immediately tried to queue up. It was not a question of finding the shortest queue. (even a Mathematician would not be easy to calculate considering the curves, the spirals, the no. of last minute push-ins and the split-ends) The difficulty was to find the end of any queue! Finally I was "comfortably " settled in a line then the next problem arised. The queue did not move..... roughly it took the ticket officer at the counter 10 minutes to serve one passenger. Time was ticking... At 12:50, a counter at the far end opened up and the display said '13:00 Seville'... Everyone on that side immediately rushed to that counter. I was on the other side and I thought by the time I struggled myself through the crowd, the counter would have closed, and I couldn't resume my position in my current queue... (That was the problem of traveling alone) So I waited in the original position patiently.... 13:00 train was gone! I waited and waited and finally I began to see the counter (ie head of the queue), but then I also started to feel how loooooong each passenger took. I was thinking maybe I would miss the 14:00 train as well. Suddenly the counter next to the one I was queueing opened up and this time it was for all the passengers going for the 14:00 train to Sevilla. Without a second thought I immediately kissed this queue good-bye and rushed to the newly opened counter. It took me less than 3 minutes to get a single AVE ticket from Madrid to Cordoba! (EUR 52.10, economy) While waiting at the queue, besides chatting up with Mr. America at the back, (who taught me how to read the sign with his Mexican Spanish) I came to the following conclusion: There were two fundamental problems of this ticketing system: 1) There were over 20+ counters and only 3 counters were serving 95% of the people. So most of the time the 17+ counters were just idle. What's more ironic, the 3 counters were selling today's trains tickets which were more urgent than tomorrow or any advance tickets! 2) These 3 counters must be queued. (single server, single queue system) All the other counters could get a ticket and wait for the number to be called. (ie multiple server, multiple queues system) Any primary school student could pinpoint the problem and could provide a solution straightaway. I was sometimes really amazed on what the Spanish were thinking! ![]() ![]() As time was running out, I immediately proceeded to the departure area. The security control there was just like that in an airport. You had to pass through a metal detector, and the baggage must be x-rayed. Finally I was on board the fastest train in Spain, the AVE! AVE, Alta Velocidad Espanola, is the Spanish fastest train that can go up to 300km/h. As I haven't been to the French's TGV or the Japanese Shinkansen before, I deliberately paid the premium to try this out. The train was very quiet and smooth, but not as fast as I thought. I got a "table" seat, i.e. two people were facing another two people, with a table in between. It was a bit cramped so you could actually play footsie with the person opposite you if you really wanted. Each passenger was given a pair of headphones so they could stare at the small TV at the top of the ceiling (like what the planes had back int he 80's- ONE TV for all!) [The movie was Bourne Identity, in Spanish, of course] There were no train attendants walking around so if you wanted anything, you had to walk around the carriages yourself. ![]() ![]() Perhaps the only advantage in a train compared to a plane was the luxury to eat while standing. T284here was a buffet carriage for you to order your food and drinks and you could stand there for your entire meal if you really did not want to sit with the others. As I haven't been to a train with a separate buffet carriage before, I could not wait to try out the food there... Oh! nothing of great interest... just microwaved sandwiches, drinks and alcohol... so I boldly ordered a Bocatta from the blackboard. The bartender then spoke in Spanish (supposed to be question in which I could not answer), seeing that I did not reply, she quickly served someone else.. (The ordering process was just like in a pub where there was no queue and you just found a free spot on the counter in front of her, sticked out your finger (not the middle one) and grabbed her attention) Seeing that I was speechless, a gentleman next to me helped me by translating that she was asking me what I would like the bocatta to come with. (ham, egg, cheese, etc) and I chose tortilla (egg) This tortilla bocatta actually told me that the main ingredient in tortilla was supposed to be eggs; and not potatoes as we were forced to believe from the tortilla we bought from the supermarket in Barcelona for the first meal... and this tortilla bocatta actually tasted a lot better! This buffet carriage or cafeteria did not have any seats, so basically you either went back to your seat or stood there eating. There was also a public phone for you to use if you were really bored in the journey. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Since I couldn't get a window seat (and the train was really full) so I decided to put my attention to somewhere else (and the Spanish Bourne Identity really wasn't too appealing... So I took out my PMP (personal media player) ........what else is more suitable than watching 電車男 on a 電車? Too bad there was no Miss Hermes in this train! ![]() ![]() The AVE arrived at Cordoba at 15:42. Having learnt from the painful lesson in Madrid, I immediately went to the ticket office and bought the ticket for tomorrow and on the day after. Although now all the schedules were now fixed, but at least I didn't have to worry about queueing for any more tickets for the rest of my journey! There was no tourist information at the Cordoba station, so there were no directions given (and no maps) and what's worse, this time my hotel was not so conveniently located. So I went to the bus stop and hopped on Bus No. 5 (EUR 0.95) that looked slightly promising. During the bus journey, a Spanish lady was very nice and actually told me where to get off and got off with me(!) and actually told me where to walk after that. (I doubt she got off the bus just for me so I think that was a mere coincidence... but people down south were a lot friendly than the people in the large cities.)
By the time I arrived the hotel it was 17:00 and I was really tired. As I had to leave in the next morning (10:00 train!), I only had about 5 hours (before dark) to check out the sights in Cordoba, which meant I had a lot to do! The hotel room was small but the toilet was big and the decoration was better than the first two I had been. It was also the cheapest @EUR 22 per night for a single room. However the cheap price came at a cost: it was very far from the main sights... it took me about 10 minutes to reach the river bank. On my way down I visited the supposed-to-be a very romantic Roman bridge "Puente Romano"... but it was under rennovation and the whole bridge was covered up! ![]() ![]() So one sight down, a few more to go! (so I thought naively) I then went to the tourist information near Mezquita and I realized that Alcazar and all other Jewish Synagogues were not open on mondays! Luckily, the main dish of Cordoba - the Mezquita was still open until 19:00. So I quickly hurried along inside. (EUR 8) Mezquita was a Mosque that was converted to a Christian Church. The other famous hybrid I had been was Hagia Sofia in Istanbul, which was original a church converted into a mosque. ![]() ![]() Mezquita was like a landmark in Cordoba and usually the main reason to visit Cordoba was to see this church. It was famous for the stripped arches and pillars (which are made of jasper, onyx, marble and granite, salvaged from the original Roman temple on the same site) throughout the building. Together with the dimly-lit atmosphere and the emptyness, it gave me a bit of an eerie feeling. Not many traces of a mosque was left behind in this church except the mihrab. There was an orange tree courtyard (Patio de los Naranjos) outside and for the first time (I think) I saw oranges grown on trees. I also saw a group of beautiful Japanese girls touring the place, just as sharp and lovely as the oranges... too bad I forgot my Japanese except "konnachiwa" and "yamete"! Damn! ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() One good thing of staying inside Mezquita was the really cool temperature inside. When I came out, the sun was doing his job again and I felt like the air-conditioner had suddenly stopped working. As all the other buildings were closed today I had no choice but to do some streets roaming. I roamed past the Jewish Quarter (La Juderia). It was an area characterised by the settlement of many tiny 2 to 3-storey white houses with narrow alleys. They like to grow a lot of flowers on the balconies so it would be quite pleasant to walk (if you didn't get lost). I especially looked for the famous flower street (Calleje de las flores).. it was supposed to be a street where numerous flower pots were hung on both sides of the exterior walls of the houses, making you feel like you were walking amongst a forest of flowers........... Well, I had the map with me, I had a working compass. After walking back and forth many times I still couldn't find such a street. Finally, I peeped into an opening (that I had passed through so many times) and there I found the street sign... a "street" was certainly not the right word! It was just an opening (about 10m) into a courtyard. There were a few flower pots hung on the outside wall on both sides of the opening. I must admit that the photographer who originally took the famous photo that got me attracted did a really, really good job! ![]() ![]() Still, the Jewish quarter was not without its merits. There were a lot of restaurants with very nicely decorated patios (courtyards) and the prices were cheaper than in the big cities. I thought I would first go back to the hotel first, and came back later for the 3-course dinner. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() On the way back to the hotel I finally found an internet cafe (that was still opened)... I quickly went in and checked my email for the first time in my entire trip! Viola, Air Iberia, the supposed to be the biggest airline in Spain, partner of the OneWorld alliance......... told me that due to the pilot strike my flight from Granada to Barcelona on the 13th was postponed to 16:00 on the same day. As I also had a connecting flight from Barcelona to London on the same day at around 16:40 I didn't think taking that postponed flight at 16:00 could make the connection somehow. At that time the Iberia office was closed and if I went to their office in Sevilla tomorrow I would have wasted half a day. So at the end I made the painful decision of buying another ticket on a different airline (Vueling).... We all know that the earlier you book the ticket the cheaper it is. So the price I paid for that ticket at Vueling was EUR 100 more than my ticket at Iberia, even after the refund!!
I just managed to book the ticket before the internet cafe shopkeeper chucked me out (they closed at 21:00) but my mood was so foul that I did not want to go back to the Jewish quarter for a nice meal. So instead I took a 3-course meal at a local restaurant nearby, which was surprisingly good! Cafe la Glora was like a traditional english pub, with one side serving drinks, and the other side with tables and seats. For 10 euro, I got the appetizer (egg & bacon in garlic and olive oil), main course (oxtail), dessert (chocolate pudding) & a glass of Sherry. Both Sherry (Jerez) and Oxtail (Rabo de Toro) were the speciality in Southern Spain and they tasted good. Sherry was sweeter than normal red wine. [For those who read comics, "Sherry" reminds me of the character in Detective Conan] ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() So that really made my day and all the worst things came up on one day: 1) Queued for two hours for a train ticket. Because of that I had the shortest time ever in a city. Arrived at 17:00 and left at 09:00 next morning. 2) Almost everything was closed in Cordoba today and for those that didn't have an opening time, they were under renovation. 3) I lost 100 Euro just like that! Should had used it in gambling, at least there was a chance it would pay back! My foot prints: Plaza de Cibelles, Puerta de Alcala, Sol, Estacion de Atocha (Train Station), Puente Romano, Mezquita, La Juderia, Plaza Tendillas Stay: Gracia San Martin Hotel Cordoba, (EUR 29, single room with breakfast) ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ||