Is this the most beautiful city in the world?

And are these the most beautiful people?

“You see I've been through the desert
On a horse with no name
It felt good to be out of the rain
In the desert, you can remember your name
'Cause there ain't no one for to give you no pain”
- “A Horse With No Name” America

Dear Reader,

My first impressions of the city where I stayed (you’ll find out soon) were as follows:

1. Did all of these people walk straight out of Vogue magazine and into the streets?

2. Where do they buy their clothes?

3. How did their hair get so long and glossy? And where can I find their hair care products?

4. Is it in the water? What is it?

5. Who are these people?

Just an average street in Madrid

=»» These people are the people of Madrid, Spain and they are beautiful.

Just straight-up beautiful.

I swear any one of them could walk into a modeling agency without doing anything to themselves and they would say, “OMG. You’re the next it star. We have the perfect job for you! Can you start today?”

It actually startled me, how beautiful they were.

I thought to myself, “Janelle, you really need to up your game while you’re here. Get a leather bag. Follow someone around in a store and see what they buy and then buy that! Find out how to grow your hair that long.”

In front of Madrid’s Royal Palace (February is not a bad time to go because the crowd sizes are low and the temperatures are mild).

I thought I would think these thoughts in Paris last summer.

I did not.

In Paris, I thought, “How do these people smoke so much and still look so good?” and “Why do they think they are better than me?”

But the Spanish, well, the Spanish don’t have the same sort of air of superiority. They just seem flippantly unaware of their gorgeousness.

It’s almost maddening.

If I were them, I would get myself cloned.

In the Justicia neighborhood of Madrid. With the moon above, it was breathtaking at night.

As a city, Madrid is also stunningly beautiful.

The architecture is glamorous and stately.

For obvious reasons, it reminded me of Santa Fe, New Mexico (you know, because of the Spanish architecture? Should that have been a real surprise that I was thinking, “Wow, this place feels a lot like Santa Fe!” and yet it felt like a surprise).

The architecture looked to me like a wedding cake, newly frosted.

Even the sandwiches.

Now, you’re going to be like, “A sandwich? Why not paella? Why not something truly Spanish?”

I walked into a coffee shop, prepared for churros and chocolate, and saw what I thought were a dozen triple-layered frosted cakes wrapped in plastic wrap.

“What’s that?” I asked, like a little kid, pointing at the case next to the counter.

Peering inside, I saw that each “cake” was actually layers of finger sandwiches with the crusts cut off and delicate fillings inside.

You could get turkey and apple, or your classic tuna, a smoked chicken or pimento and cheese.

It was like the British had invaded Spain and left their sandwiches behind.

And each sandwich was a little less than 2 euros, making it a delicious and affordable treat for lunch, even in the heart of the touristy district.

Of course, there were also deals for buying them by the dozens and people bought them in packs of twenty or something like that.

Because, who doesn’t want a packet of a dozen crustless sandwiches to eat whenever you’d like? Come to think of it, I wish I could get some now.

An egg potato “tortilla” in Spain for breakfast - torrilla de patatas

What I have learned about traveling to cities is only one thing: stay in the city center. It’s the easiest place to get around.

Getting around the city center was walkable and the metro accessible except on Valentine’s Day which seems to be a holiday everywhere around the world, with large crowds sweeping into Sol, the city center square to watch … and I’m not kidding … people dressed up like oversized gorillas, a Mickey Mouse, a human transformer, or a troop of dancers from Brazil (who were eventually stopped from performing by the police), and women selling fragrant stalks of rosemary, or men pushing roses on every man.

Street performance in Europe is an art form in and of itself.

I’ve seen professional soap bubble artists create joy in squares, lights thrown up in the air and the painted statues that are actually people (I’m so concerned for their skin I can’t look).

But back to food … the food in Madrid is also decadent.

I have no idea how the Spanish look so gorgeous because between the ham and cheese and the churros and chocolate for breakfast there’s very little room for salad.

Madrid is only a short 8 hour bus ride (hahaha) from Lisbon or a quick, cheap hour flight (my choice).

It seems the further you get away from Portugal though, the worse the coffee.

The Spanish coffee was okay, more expensive, and the German coffee was weak, with a lot more milk added. (My advice: order a flat white when you’re in Germany).

Portugal has dark coffee, at good prices, and a delicious coffee culture that satisfies me.

Glad to be back.

A sunny day in Madrid with the botanical gardens behind me

Love,

Janelle

P.S. One of those moments when I asked myself, “Is this a sign?” while traveling is pictured below.

P.P.S. I’m still working on your travel itineraries! Don’t give up on me. I have the Lisbon ones outlined, and I’m working on one for Madrid and northern Germany and even some Montana ones. Now that I’m finally in one place for a little while and with a bit more time (lots has changed in the last two weeks) I’ll complete it. In the meantime, enjoy some churros and chocolate with me in Spain as a special paid member perk!