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Capitals Old and New

November 03, 2008

To the many pieces of wisdom I have accumulated during my stay in Spain I must add the following: Don’t judge a city by its airport. I’ve passed through Madrid’s Barajas Airport almost half a dozen times now, and each time has served to reinforce how much I dislike it. What really irritates me is its sheer size: Decades of add-ons have left it a sprawling complex with no efficient means of getting from one end to the other. Actually, it reminds me of the airport in Miami, which is similarly disagreeable. Add to this a previously existing lukewarm attitude toward Madrid and you can imagine that my enthusiasm for visiting it was somewhat lacking.

Having actually had a chance to explore the city, I can unequivocally say that I was wrong: Madrid is definitely worth a visit. Allison and I spent two nights there last weekend and had a fantastic time. We flew down on Saturday morning, took the metro to our hostel in the very center of the city, and upon our arrival discovered an advertisement for a free walking tour of Madrid.

We looked at each other and said, “Why not?” So after quickly dumping our stuff in our room we embarked on the three-hour meandering walk through the heart of Madrid with an excellent English-speaking guide. I don’t think we could have made a better use of our time: Though we didn’t go into the sights, we saw them all and got a great narrative history besides. The Puerta del Sol, the Opera, the Palacio Real, the cathedral, the Plaza Major, the old Austrian neighborhood . . . all this and more under a stunning blue sky. Madrid has a majesty, an elegance, befitting of a national capital, a character I don’t think I would have seen were it not for the tour. It was worth every step.

After our tour finished, Allison and I went to the Prado, Spain’s most renowned art museum. I’ve heard it said that the Prado is Spain’s version of the Louvre. Having never visited Paris, I can’t say whether this comparison is accurate, but the Prado without a doubt has the most magnificent collection I’ve ever seen. And I really lucked out going with Allison, who is an art history major. There were specific works she wanted to see, and as we visited each one she told me about its history and symbolism. When going to a museum like the Prado, it’s best to have a plan: The collection is gigantic, and if you don’t know what you want to see you could spend hours wandering around without really seeing anything. That’s another piece of wisdom: Know before you go.

Our time in Madrid was abbreviated because we spent Sunday in Toledo, Spain’s medieval capital. If I warmed to Madrid on the trip, I was enchanted by Toledo. Set on a high outcropping of rock and almost completely surrounded by the Río Tajo—a sort of natural moat—the city looks remarkable even from the distance. But pass through the thick outer walls and you enter a different world, a tiny bubble of the Middle Ages preserved in the twenty-first century.

Dublin’s streets look like a perfect grid compared to the narrow passages between Toledo’s buildings, which twist, turn, merge, and separate without any reason whatsoever. But that’s part of Toledo’s charm. On every street, shops sell hand-crafted swords and damasquinados, metal plates, jewelry, and more imaginative pieces inlaid with intricate designs of gold and silver. Among the old city’s densely packed structures are a plethora of churches, synagogues, and even a mosque, reminders of when the three religions lived together more or less harmoniously—quite a feat in such close quarters.

Toledo seems to have more “sights” per square meter than even Madrid, but that’s not the main reason you go to Toledo. For one thing, trying to find most of the city’s points of interest is like embarking on an epic quest—map and compass required. And while the cathedral exceeds all expectations of grandeur and the other sights certainly merit your time, you should really go to Toledo to experience the city itself, this center of culture and energy in the desolate plains of central Spain. The city is truly special, a place not to be missed.

Capitals are reflections of national identity, of the face each nation wants to show to the world. Visiting a capital gives you a unique glimpse of a nation, and having visited Spain’s capitals—old and new—I feel like I have a better understanding of Spain itself. A fitting result of an excellent trip.

Photo 1: Madrid's cathedral
Photo 2: The Plaza del Oriente with the Palacio Real in the background
Photo 3: Madrid's Plaza Mayor
Photo 4: Toledo from the distance

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