My Trip To Marvelous Madrid

In October 2000, I decided to explore the Spanish culture.  As you know, this often starts off with a travel agent.  She suggested Madrid to quench my wanderlust. 

  

A DELTA flight took me to Atlanta and then another to Madrid.  I landed at the airport bleary-eyed after overnight plane travel.  I was then taken to the hotel where I promptly fell asleep. 

I woke up in the afternoon to take a half-day bus tour of the city.  This convinced me that Madrid is splendid.  It is an amazing matrix of old and new architecture, buildings that are 500 years old and buildings that have been well maintained.  The promenades are wide and the landscape along them is spectacularly dotted with fountains, sculptures and horticulture.  Fortunately, each day was sunny, 75 degrees and picture perfect.  Mornings and evenings got cold enough to need a jacket.

This is a city that never sleeps.  Bustling with tourists and Spanish zest for life, midnight feels like midday.  One is overwhelmed by so much to do and see.

The next day, I decided to walk along Gran Via to Del Prado, their world-famous museum.  Unfortunately, the paintings and other items bear captions only in Spanish, no English is provided.  I hired an English speaking guide and proceeded to learn a little about the 16^th century Spanish painters such as Jose de Ribera, Diego Valazquez de Silva, Francisco de Goya etc. 

After spending the morning at Del Prado, I walked to Puerto Del Sol (Gateway to the Sun).  This is the most famous city square where many celebrated streets of Madrid meet.  Tourists are seen bustling around its modern cafes, pastry shops, shoe stores, book stores, newsstands and of course, souvenir shops. 

Then I walked along such beautiful roads such as Calle de Alcala, Calle de la princesa and others whose names escape me now.  I saw a marvelous achievement of architecture, city planning, preservation of history and spirit of human existence.  I also visited a bull fight, which left a bad taste in my mouth.  By the way, they told me that eat the bull after it is killed.

For the uninitiated, Spanish food is almost completely meat based, so beware.  While getting cash (1 dollar = 180 pesetos) from ATM’s was no problem, language was a barrier.  I spent two days walking on the city streets and kept filling with awe at the amazing variety of sculpture and architecture.  It seemed like no two buildings were alike.  At night, the fountains would light up and deck the city like a jewel-laden bride.

I took a day tour to Escorial to see an old monastry.  Here the powerful form of Santa Cruz, the Holy Cross, about 300 feet tall, overwhelms your senses once again.  In the afternoon, I visited Toledo, the capital of Spain until King Philip made Madrid the capital in 1560.  Tagus river encircles the granitic rock on which Toledo stands.  I was very impressed by the history and architecture of this old city, that is so well preserved.

On the last night, I took in a show of Flamengo dancing.  By this time I was sleep deprived but exhilarated from the richness of experience.  I came back to the Queen City, with fond memories and appreciation of a completely different people.  Therein lies, I hope, the essence of life!

This post is written by Dr. Ron Virmani. If you like this post don’t forget to share.

A Bi-cycle Journey By Dr. Ron Virmani

I woke up to the sound of pouring rain. It was pitch dark outside. Today was the day of bike ride of my life.

It was 5AM on September 23, 2000. I felt unsure that I should undertake the 106 mile bike ride that day with the weather conditions like they were. But then I thought about the other riders who must have signed up to participate in this MS150 event. Every year, more than 1000 bicycle riders participate in this grueling two-day event. In these two days, they pedal approximately 150 miles to the beach.

Having done this ride several times in the past, this time I had signed up for the specially challenging “Century Loop” on the first day. Which meant logging 100 miles, 106 to be exact this year.

I decided to take the “plunge”. I put my “hybrid” bicycle into the Subaru station wagon and drove to Weddington Elementary School, the starting point of “Century Loop”. I have been riding a “hybrid” or “cross-training” bike because its tires are thicker than a racing bike and have less chance of going flat. But of course, it makes for a ride not so fast as on a racing bike.

As if the heavens were listening, the rain tapered off and by 7 AM, the official start time of the bike ride, it had stopped raining but was still overcast. And dark. So the officials delayed us by about 30 more minutes. At 7:30, we started pedaling our way to the Myrtle Beach.

Every 6 to 10 miles, there was a rest stop. One could stop for a few minutes, take a snack, fill up water bottle, and use the Porta-Potty. It turned out to be a beautiful day for the bike ride. Some drizzle on the way was actually welcome as it cooled us off.

In this ride, everybody goes at their own pace. There is no race. The object of the MS150 event is to raise money for the charity of fighting the disease of multiple sclerosis.

I consider myself a middle of the road rider. By 2 PM, I had made it to the lunch stop, which was about 70 miles from the start. At 5 PM, I reached Florence. This is where all the participants stay overnight. I was exhausted after the 9 and a half hour ride, but still happy with myself because I have not ridden that much in one day in the last 30 years.

MS150 organizers make excellent arrangements for the participants. Hundreds of volunteers put in amazing amount of work to make the ride a success.

On the next day, we were right on top of our bikes at 7 AM sharp. Today, there was only 81 miles to ride. I made it to North Myrtle Beach High School by 1 PM. A pretty young student handed me my medal for completing the ride. While I have done many outdoor activities, I shall remember this particular event for a long time because it was a really long ride in two days. I hope to entice other enthusiasts of bicycle riding into this event.