BLOGG#31 TWO GALLANT YOUNG SPANISH MEN

We have been here in this wonderful city eight days and have been busy finding our way around it-a city of four million.  Yes dear readers I am in love again.  Unlike Barcelona where we aced the complex transport systems, we can't get a handle on it here, so we spend hours with a map walking, finding our way about. The great outcome of this is that we are constantly discovering delightful surprises- tiny tucked in sleepy squares. old silent churches and of course extremely ornate solemn vast buildings- and  daily adventures. The day of this adventure started very well. We started it by having a cappaccino at the Library Coffee shop- a iny intimate place with comfy chairs and piles of cast off books collected over the years from previous english tourists. I found a delightful book on Gertrude Stein which I eventually bought. This place is run by a beautiful charming young woman.She is not part of the adventure though definitely part of our surprises. The day progressed as usual- hours spent in a wonderful art gallery or museum, the difficult choice of where to have our Tapas and wine and getting lost and found again.  Now dear readers don't think the tapas are the same thriughout Spain. no, here in Madrid you get an appetizer gratis while you wait for your wonderful tapa.-usually chips or olives-my favourite and once tiny fish eggs eaten with a spoon- delicious. As we were wandering our way home we found a theatre that was putting on an operetta that evening.I am not an operetta fan- opera is my thing- but hey why not? so we got tickets.  On the way to the theatre that evening we passed hoards of young men and women all going in the opposite direction, shouting and waving red streamers and wearing red shirts. We decided it must be a political demonstration and finally stopped two young men to ask what it was about. Our spanish is limited and so was their English  but we all tried with gestures and eventually I heard world cup "Ah'I said 'Football' and we all put our thumbs up  The Madrid team had beat the hated Barcelona team and they were now coming back to Madrid right now.  We were all delighted-I am not a football fan- and congratulated them profusely.  At this one of the young men became serious and said  "thank you" and solemnly bent low over my hand taking the tips of my fingers graciously and kissed his own as only a gallant spaniard can do. He  did the same to my friend and waved at us and happily ran off- a young football fan.  Well dear reader there was a silence and then my friend said "wow" we must have a tapa to celebrate this great event.- and so we floated up the street to the nearest tapa bar. The operatta was fine we did not understand much of it - a complicated love affair- but it had flamenco dancing and strumming guitars.