Litz still heard voices, but, somehow, she had been able to manage them. That was her thought while she was sit at the bus stop on the way to the airport. A pair of jeans, a light backpack, her old sunglasses. The feeling of adventure came up again and she felt in the mood for some good American soft rock music. She put on her headphones, carefully selected the album she wanted to listen to and relaxed all along the journey.
She would be in Madrid for the first time, but she was not new to Spanish culture. The mess at the airport after her arrival and the loud voice of the people didn’t surprise her at all. She was surprised instead by the great English spoken by a girl at THC Latina hostel, where she had booked a single room at. The girl was extremely helpful: she gave her tips on where to experience the best of the city according to different budgets.
Litz headed to the local market to grab a quick lunch. She had become more attentive on how she spent her money and she tried to have fresh and healthy meals. Her lunch was a tostada with salmon and light cheese and some still water. She sat alone with a sad face at a bench in front of the mercado. “It’s the wisest choice” she told herself, while noticing an elegant and well-dressed woman sitting at the next bench. The inner tables of the mercado were noisy and crowded. She was alone and she didn’t want too much of attention.
She had planned to go to the Prado and she went there quite prepared. Litz loved art and she could spend a whole afternoon in an art museum. However, she had only a couple of days and she wanted to explore Madrid as a local, so she headed straight to the masterpieces and to a few other paintings she was really interested to appreciate in person. Thanks to technology, in fact, any painting can be now appreciated behind a screen from almost anywhere. Her fast and furious selection included: Saint Catherine by Yáñez de la Almedina, Saint Cecilia by Grammatica, Saint Sebastian by Ribera, Vulcan’s Forge by Velázquez and Departure of Charles of Bourbon for Spain, seen from the Harbour by Joli.
She went out of the museum and relaxed going shopping along the Gran Via. She bought a present to herself for having been able to travel alone again after a long time: a pair of neutral coloured 100% recycled linen trousers by Mango, a famous Spanish premium brand. That night she would meet an old friend of hers and she appreciated to appear good-looking.
Sean had worked with her many years before at a non-profit organization in South Africa and he was now settled in Madrid. He had a job with lots of responsibilities and looked very accomplished, still he was very easy-going. She enjoyed his company. They had nice sangria at a bar in the city centre, then walked through the most stunning plazas and ended having a traditional Spanish dinner at a cozy little restaurant. She could feel at ease with him, he was very well mannered. He brought her back to her hotel and offered to keep in touch for networking.
Litz woke up late the next day and headed soon at the café in front of her hotel. Breakfast had always been her favourite meal of the day. Espresso was horrible. She sipped it fast, trying to disguise how bad she felt about it and instead concentrated on her weekly issue of The Economist. People passed by the street in front of her, she watched them with a distract eye behind her vintage sunglasses. After checking out a few meaningful numbers and laughing at the comics, she went to spend some alone time in nature at Queen’s Park. Green made her mind steady and her anger positively channelled.
She drank a fruit smoothie as a light meal because it was pretty hot during the day. Then she went to see the Chueca district, the famous LGBTQ+ friendly neighbourhood in Madrid. Nothing special, according to her modest opinion. Colourful flags, nice people around, bars full, lots of gentrification. She supported the cause and was glad to have been there. After applauding the imitation of Michael Jackson at street dance, she arrived at Café del Art in Centro to have dinner. She sat at the big shared table and ate a wonderful tostada de aguacate with a couple of light blond beers, while listening to good music. When Phil Collins’ version of “True Colours” was playing, she got emotional.
Happiness was important, after all.
