This morning: the first day of class. (What nitwit decided to hold instruction on a date the rest of Spain considers a holiday?) Being the inaugural session, a bunch of us got tested for level placement. An hour-long exam. Good thing I'd cracked the books for a while yesterday or I would have been roadkill. As it was, they threw all but one of us in a class together anyway, and I can tell you we are not all at the same level. The upside: I came out of the day feeling like I've actually learned some Spanish in my time here, especially compared with the other male in the class, a 60ish attorney from Chicago with an outrageous American accent and some serious distance to go with the language. In addition to us, the class consisted of two young women from Germany, a woman from Hungary, a woman from Belgium. An interesting group.
The streets of Madrid were basically deserted on the way to school. When I stepped outside at the class break, just after 11 a.m., a few humans had been flushed from hiding to stagger slowly down the sidewalks. After classes, around 1 p.m., the city was abustle with Spaniards out enjoying a beautiful January day. Shopping. January and August are major sales months here ("¡Rebajas! ¡Rebajas!"), something the locals seem to consider a national sport. Add that to today being the final day of the holiday season and the general vibe was very alive, nice to be around.
When I emerged from the Metro into the mid-afternoon light in la Plaza de Chueca, I found a crowd of people standing around in front of Angel Sierra, the bar/tapas joint situated immediately across la Calle de Gravina from the plaza -- food and drinks in hand, talking quietly, soaking up the sunlight. Appearing content, sedate -- mellow even, befitting the day.
It's a quirky little establishment, Angel Sierra, around for many decades, with owners smart enough to preserve its old-world look -- the exterior done in dark wood, the signage in faded gold letters on black background. The name: 'sierra' means either saw (as in cross-cut and hack) or mountain range -- I'm assuming here it refers to mountains, as the idea of Angel Cutting Tool makes no apparent sense. Along with that name, painted in letters of a style of some antiquity above the front of the establishment are the words "Sidra, Champaña" (Cider, Champagne) and "Refrescos Espumosos" (Foaming Refreshments). Foaming refreshments! Is that a peerless bit of advertising phraseology or what?