On Saturday I fly to Madrid, Spain for a Spanish language study abroad program. I'll be there for 5.5 weeks (until August 8th) and I'll have a bit of freedom over the weekends and the last ~three days I'm there.

We'll be going on trips through the program to Toledo and Sogavia, and we'll be seeing things like a flamenco and other stuff too that hasn't yet been revealed. But, I don't know much about Spain and I'd like to do things on the weekends when I have free time. I'd also like to not spend too much money, but I'm open to ideas.

So, any suggestions TL?

endy

Switzerland8970 Posts

June 29 2011 07:38 GMT

I could eat Tapas everyday until I die. Jamon Iberico cured ham is clearly the best in the world.

If you can, visit all the main cities of Andalucia, they are the most interesting in Spain in my opinion. Alhambra Palace is awesome.

wherebugsgo

Japan10647 Posts

June 29 2011 08:13 GMT

Nice. Andalusia is southern Spain, right?

What tapas were your favorites?

endy

Switzerland8970 Posts

June 29 2011 08:34 GMT

On June 29 2011 17:13 wherebugsgo wrote:
Nice. Andalusia is southern Spain, right?

What tapas were your favorites?

Yes it's southern Spain. Most interesting cities are Sevilla, Cordoba, and Granada.

My favorites tapas are :
chipirones en su tinta (baby squid cooked in their ink)
jamon iberico, (best cured ham in the world)
chipirones a la plancha (lemon and parsley baby squid)
solomillo al whisky (pork tenderloin in whisky sauce, typical from Sevilla)

Cr4zyH0r5e

Peru1308 Posts

June 29 2011 09:36 GMT

Out of curiosity: Is this the Spanish 4 class at UC Berkeley?

Sevilla is, indeed, a beautiful place to visit, if you do have the time and money to get there from Madrid...

EDIT: Nvm, apparently with this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madrid–Seville_high-speed_rail_line, it shouldn't take you too long to get there--though, lodging and miscellaneous costs might still present an undesired burden.

Also, found this on google; might be interesting to you.
http://madrid.costasur.com/es/cosasquehacermadrid.html

St3MoR

Spain3256 Posts

June 29 2011 09:49 GMT

I suggest you bring money for icecreams and stay under a rock during the day, it's that hot.

Cr4zyH0r5e

Peru1308 Posts

June 29 2011 10:03 GMT

Hahaha, man I remember a friend from sevilla showing me a street thermometer displaying 48 degrees C (which is around 118 F).
Yeah, completely agree with the above.

Jukulmolder

Spain254 Posts

June 29 2011 10:38 GMT

On June 29 2011 18:49 St3MoR wrote:
I suggest you bring money for icecreams and stay under a rock during the day, it's that hot.

Couldn't agree more.

Mythal

Spain108 Posts

June 29 2011 11:39 GMT

I'll also suggest you to visit Barcelona if you can afford it. There's plenty of monuments and nice places to visit there (such as Sagrada Familia, Parc Güell..). No one I know who has gone there has regretted it

. You have also beaches and a nive party ambient during the nights! I've never been to Madrid so I can't tell you what to visit there :/

And yes, Andalusia it's also a nice place to visit, mostly Granada and Sevilla I would say. Later you should also go to the beaches there on the south, they say they're awesome.

chipirones en su tinta (baby squid cooked in their ink)
jamon iberico, (best cured ham in the world)
chipirones a la plancha (lemon and parsley baby squid)
solomillo al whisky (pork tenderloin in whisky sauce, typical from Sevilla)

A good tapa I also recommend you are "Patatas Bravas", they are sooooooooooooo good...Apart from the tapas you should also try sangría, spanish wine and a thing called "Calimocho" which is red wine (cheap one of course) mixed with Cocacola.

Be prepared for the heat and the sun. Andalusia and Madrid get very very hot on summer!

Have a nice experience!

wherebugsgo

Japan10647 Posts

June 29 2011 12:19 GMT

#10

On June 29 2011 18:36 Cr4zyH0r5e wrote:
Out of curiosity: Is this the Spanish 4 class at UC Berkeley?

Sevilla is, indeed, a beautiful place to visit, if you do have the time and money to get there from Madrid...

EDIT: Nvm, apparently with this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madrid–Seville_high-speed_rail_line, it shouldn't take you too long to get there--though, lodging and miscellaneous costs might still present an undesired burden.

Also, found this on google; might be interesting to you.
http://madrid.costasur.com/es/cosasquehacermadrid.html

Great guess: I'm actually taking Spanish 3, but yes, it's Berkeley's Madrid program.

I'm currently on my phone, but I'll be sure to check that out as soon as I can!

To the suggestions that I get ice cream and stay under a rock to avoid the heat, indeed, so I've been warned haha. I suppose there's an easy solution:

Voy a tomar una siesta todos los días

wherebugsgo

Japan10647 Posts

June 29 2011 12:22 GMT

#11

Also, patatas bravas=fried potatoes?

What's the difference between "papas" and "patatas"?

Mythal

Spain108 Posts

June 29 2011 12:31 GMT

#12

On June 29 2011 21:22 wherebugsgo wrote:
Also, patatas bravas=fried potatoes?

What's the difference between "papas" and "patatas"?

They're not completly fried, is like a mix between boiled and fried... Dunno how to explain it, but they're awesome, with it's slightly spicy sauce and a beer, they make the perfect tapa for me!

Papas it's the familiar/slang way to say patatas. In fact, there's no difference between the two words, other than the degree of formality you want to use. Personally, I don't ever use the word papas.