Couchsurfing And The Prado Masterworks

I arrived in Madrid after a tiring 8 hour bus ride. We stopped every 2 hours for toilets and food though. Snow covered the ground 2 hours outside Madrid. I took the metro to meet Yair, my couchsurfing host in Madrid. As we chatted, he effortlessly cooked up a great ravioli dinner. When not playing Swedish chef in the kitchen by night, he is a software engineer. Between working in an Irish pub, and school, I barely saw his roommate during my stay.

On my first day, I set out toward Retiro Park. It was a short walk north from Yair's place, and I eventually came upon a big artificial pond complete with paddle boats. I sat on a bench and listened to an accordion player. It´s the type of park where people walk their pooches, stroll romantically (even in the cold), sit and enjoy the sun, or in my case, write. I imagine it is packed in summer, especially on the weekends.

From the park, I headed toward the Prado Museum, the main mission for the day. It was one of the best museums I´ve visited. The collection includes lots of masterpieces, but isn´t overwhelming like the Louvre. I recognized quite a few pieces from my college days, including:

• The Annunciation by Fra Angelico (beautiful in person)
• The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch (hard to miss, it is so close to the entrance!)
• Self Portrait and Adam & Eve by Albrecht Durer
• The Third of May, 1808 and Saturn Devouring His Children by Francisco Goya (the local hero)
• Madonna of the Fish by Raphael

In the evening, I worked on the blog and later joined Yair and his two friends, Pablo and William, for beer, Nicaraguan rum (and Coke), and tapas at a bar near his apartment. Unlike the fancy tapas I paid for in Barcelona, the ones we got were free with the drinks. As a result, they were more low brow, but I still found it amazing that bars serve anything beyond peanuts for free!

Dave Lee

Dave is the Founder and Editor in Chief of Go Backpacking and Feastio. He's been to 66 countries and lived in Colombia and Peru. Read the full story of how he became a travel blogger.