Food Shopping in Madrid

Mercado de Puente de Vallecas

“¿Quién es el último?” I ask the group of people in front of the fruit and vegetable stand.

“Yo.” replies the woman with the bed head and dark tinted sunglasses. 

Every Saturday morning, Ixma or I have to do the food shopping for the week.  We take turns because food shopping is a daunting task that really stresses me out.  A lot of people tend to either get really dressed up to go food shopping or you find that the people have just rolled out of bed and have bed heads, like I usually do.  You have to ask to figure out who is the last on line because there is never an organized line, just a bunch of people in front of the stand.  I also get irritated because there are so many old folks who are obviously beyond retired on queue – can’t they do their shopping during the week?  Some stands have modernized and you can take a number but there are very few of those.  I can generally calculate how long I will have to wait till it is my turn according to the number of people ahead of me and the pinta que tiene (how they look).

Fortunately, we have a mercado de toda la vida just blocks away from our apartment. The traditional mercados in Madrid are usually under the same roof.  It is almost like a shopping mall only with food stand after food stand.  Our market was redone about 3 or 4 years ago so it looks nice and new.  It also holds a Mercadona where I buy the majority of my gluten-free foods even though most of them have sugar.

On a lucky day, the food shopping will take 20 minutes but that is rare.  Most of the time, going to the market is like going to a really boring movie or being in a really painfully, boring meeting because for many shoppers, going food shopping is like going to the psychologist for free.  Most can tell their entire life story in a matter of 15 minutes, the other day a lady in front of me was telling the fruit man about how she broke out in an awful rash and had to go to the ER – kind of takes your appetite away.

I don’t particularly like doing the food shopping because you have to ask for everything one by one and specify the weight.  I have never known how many tomatoes or apples are in a kilo, I don’t care how much the food weighs!  I am probably the only one who asks for a specific number when ordering my food.  I order almost the exact same food every week; 12 tomatoes, 6 apples, 4 sweet onions, 2 not so large zucchinis, a not too large egg plant, broccoli, squash, carrots, leeks, lettuce, mushrooms, asparagus, etc and whatever else is in season.  My coworker informed me that we are in the “epoca de mandarinas”; too bad I can’t eat mandarins anymore because they are really tasty, and they usually come from Valencia.  Alcachofas are also in harvest now and boy do I love artichokes.  Strawberries are up soon.  By the time I have placed my order, everybody on queue is staring at me.  I always feel like a complete moron that is on center stage who can’t remember their lines properly – “don’t mix up the words” is something I say to myself while I feel like saying to the open-mouthed crowd, “Sí, soy norteamericana y sí tengo un acento porque me quiere mucho!” (Yes, I am American and yes, I have a strong American accent because it loves me – get over it people!)  After I got that part done, I go to the meat stands – I order all that by the kilo or the number of pieces or slabs of beef that I want!  I usually pick what looks best, which my husband informs me, is not really the way to do it.  I like to make meatballs; I have improved immensely since my first fiasco when I used too much garlic, giving my albondigas the name ajobondigas (garlic balls).  I usually get a dirty look from the carnicero because I don’t like to get the already prepared minced meat.  I like to pick the red meat and pig I want, have them cut off all the fat and then run it through the machine that makes it look almost like spaghetti.  I only like it to go through the machine once, to top it off. 

I refuse to go to the pescadería because the man talks too much and tries to sell me the most expensive seafood they have.  Like the meat, I usually pick what I think looks best, which is really not the way to do it with fish.  You have got to look at the eyeballs and if they look healthy, the fish will be great.  The fish man’s large wife rings up the tab with her long press on nails as she is singing along to the MTV Latino that is blaring on the TV.  It is quite the experience.

We used to buy all of our vegetables from a man named Carlos but Carlos's veggies aren’t that fresh.  We started to notice that after only 2 days in the fridge, the poor veggies were wilting and according to Fruitcake, if it isn’t fresh, it isn’t for me.  It started to become a waist; we would buy the veggies and have to throw them out.  So, Ixma who has passion for food and booze took a stroll around the market and found a great stand. 

Our new veggie stand has great variety and they put all of the veggies in cute little brown bags.  The bags remind me of the brown bag lunch with the Sarah Bear stamp on it from my schooldays.  After they bag all of my goodies, I have them put everything in clothe bags, I am trying not to use plastic.  Most people go to the market with an old fart cart but I refuse.  I try not to buy more than I can handle.  I had an old fart cart in Israel and the wheels constantly fell off, making it more a hassle than comfortable shopping because the market is located up a hill so I would end up having to chase the wheel down the center.

The best market in Madrid is the Mercado de la Cebada.  It is located in La Latina. From the 15^th century up to the 20^th, it was a very important economic center.  You can find just about anything there.  Ismael and I go there on occasion to find fiori di zucca, baby corn and other yummy worldly treasures. 

Another mercado in Madrid is the San Miguel.  It is located right outside the Plaza Mayor.  It was just redone but they maintained its original structure.  It is quite lovely but it is no longer the typical market rather it is a place with fancy tapas and wines.  It is definitely worth a visit.

So, if you ever come to Madrid, make sure take a visit to a mercado de toda la vida, it is a very European experience.  If you plan to shop, make sure you bring a lot of patience and your old fart cart so you can fit in better!

Old Fart Cart

Teenybopper Books!!

I finished the first book of the Stephanie Meyer’s series during my lunch hours at one of my favorite cafés today. My friend, D, has all the other three novels to lend me but I just couldn’t wait to figure out when we would get together for some vinitos so we could make a book exchange and besides that, I am totally addicted, just like a vampire needs blood to survive.

So, I run through the square when the cafés is located and cross calle Genova and enter frantically into my favorite bookshop, Paisajes, which just happens to be only blocks away from my office, to buy the second book in the series.

I enter the store, almost flinging the door off its hinges, I hurry down the staircase to the “English” books section and I was looking for the books, my looking turned into desperation.

“¿Tienen ustedes los libros de la serie de Stephenie Meyer?” I ask the bookstore lady.

“Sí, los tenemos.  Están en la parte infantil.”  She directed me to the kids’ section of the bookstore.

“¿Infantil?!! ?”

“Sí, infantil pero no sé si vamos a poder encontrar los libros porque estámos con una mudanza.”

She must have seen the look of distress in my eyes.   The freaking kids’ section?  “WOW! I have hit an all time low…reading kids’ books and devouring them?” I thought to myself.

We walk back up the stairs and the orderly store was in upheaval.  She looked for a few minutes at all of the piles on the floor and finally asked one of her coworkers where the novels were.  They were probably the only novels left on the shelf.

“Aye, muchas gracias.  Es que no puedo creer que son libros infantiles.”  I said thanks and told him that I couldn’t believe they were children’s books.

“Bueno, más bien son libros juveniles y adultos.” He reassured me that they were books for teenagers and adults.

Despite the fact that I was rather humiliated, I shrugged it off, I even had great pep in my step back to work – I ask the door lady if she had heard of the books and her reply,

“¡Claro que sí!  Mi hija está leyéndolos.”

Yep, that’s it; her daughter is reading them as well.  I have always thought that there is nothing better than a great book and nothing worse than a crappy book that you are obligated to read for a degree.  Nonetheless, I cannot wait to start the second this evening and I will not cover it with a book cover for public reading – kids’ book, teenyboppers book or not!!

ATTENTION!! ATTENTION ALL SHOPPERS!! – Avoid Shopping till March…

Image from Massimo Dutti website
When to start avoiding stores during sales worldwide

I worked retail years back.  I worked at Ann Taylor.  I first worked at the “AT” at the Stamford Mall and then in hometown.  To this very day, I hate malls.  I didn’t really care for the job but being that I am such a cheap ass, I loved the discount and my co-workers.  Actually, I didn’t really like the job at all, being on your feet all day sucks and dealing with rude customers sucks even more.  I am so OCD, I never minded “sizing” the clothes nor folding them with a “folding board”.  Boy, do I have stories from that experience much like the story from a temp job in NYC with Thelma.

The sales started in Madrid on January 7^th, the day after Three Kings Day.  According to the Spanish papers, each consumer will spend about 85€ during the sales which is lower than last year.   I like to think of the sales as the time when it is best to avoid shopping at all cost.  The clothes are all picked, there are no sizes, people push and shove and I am convinced that this is a time when all of the evil people come out and clutter the stores.  It’s almost like SALE=Be an Asshole.  Awful.  I also find that I am a magnet for non-sale items.  If it is not on sale, I will surely adore it.

I went to one of my favorite stores during my lunch hours on January 7^th.  I ended up buying a couple of nice things that I don’t need.  I probably would have bought more stuff had I not gotten such bad anxiety from the fact that nothing fit due to the holiday bulge that seems to have made itself a home on my stomach and the fact that they had the heat on full blast – that’s a way to keep customers out.  I paid for my goods and decided that was about it for sale shopping for me. 

Well, I guess that it wasn’t about it for me.  I decided to hit the stores today and ended up having a total “AT” flashback!  First, I went into Zara and it was an OCD sufferer’s nightmare, so I dashed out of there.  Next, I went into Massimo Dutti and I noticed two sketch balls - they had a big El Corte Inglés bag and they were whispering.  I knew something was odd so I went to the other side of the store.  There were these lovely emerald green dresses hanging up, yes, they were from the full-priced new collection and I had looked at them just moments before, they robbed the entire rack!  Dirty Rotten Scoundrels!  Then they proceeded to walk gracefully out of the store and nobody bothered to stop them even when the obnoxious alarm sounded.  I remember at “AT” we had to zone and watch out for possible robbers and ask everybody who entered the store if they needed any help within a 30 second timeframe, just to let customers know we were there to serve.  I didn't say anything today so I feel kind of bad.  BUT I did rat out a drunk man stuffing tubes of toothpaste in his pants at the grocery store the other day - so that makes up for it right??

If you are hoping for a bargain, now is your time.  If you want to avoid not so nice people, not having to claw your way through the racks, watching items get stolen, frustration, wait till all the sales end and the new collections come out.  That would be March 3rd in Madrid. 

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Oops, I forgot!

I have this awful tendency to forget the irrelevant things despite the fact that I have a slight case of OCD.  I like to blame it on the supposed brain fog my autoimmune disease causes even though I have had this for years.  Luckily, in these extremely modern day times, I can put avisos wherever!  At work, I put them on my iCal and the event pops up according to how I set it (yes, I have a juicy iMac at work - I am spoiled).  At home, I write appointments and reminders on my recycled calendar (I have yet to buy one for 2011 and the one my best friend gave me with photos of her kids is adorable)...and to add to the mix, I put an aviso on my phone and the aviso is extremely loud, you can hear it throughout the whole office and the entire wagon of a train, just in case I forget or I am in a loud area and can't hear it.

So this morning, I put on my work coat, yes, just like party shoes, I have work clothes, play clothes, gym clothes, etc and as I reach in my pocket to see if there were gloves in there, I felt a key.

"No freaking way!" I think to myself as I look at the big 38 on the keychain.

After the half day of work this past Wednesday, I ran to the grocery store to get food as all stores where closed yesterday on the Reyes Magos.  In Spain, it is obligatory to lock up your stuff in a locker at grocery stores which usually cost 50 cents or a Euro.  To add to the chaos, I had ordered ribs to go and told them to be ready at 15:00.  I was in such a hurry that I forgot to reclaim my belongings.

This morning, I thoughtfully left Izzy a note to go and see if my stuff was still in locker 38 at Mercadona, he has the day off.

"¡No te jodas! ¿Cuándo dejaste las cosas allí?"

"El miércoles." I told him I left my stuff there on Wednesday.

"¿Crees, de verdad, que tus pertenencias van a seguir allí?"

Izzy, despite all of his ranting, went to Mercadona on his way to get his haircut.  Yes, I honestly thought my stuff would still be there and sure enough, it was!!  That would be because I picked Lucky Locker nº 38.  Izzy was a bit disappointed at the contents but whatever, ones' belongings are ones' belongings and so what if the bag I locked up only had a free deodorant from a trial a co-worker is involved in and a glass tupperware.  I got my things back and I am happy.

San Silvestre Vallecana 2010

So basically I have been at work all day and I have the “I am at work in body, still on vacation in spirit” feeling.  I have been reading blogs about people’s new year’s resolutions and those who don’t make resolutions and I tend to lean on the latter of the two.  I used to make New Year’s resolutions but then realized that why should I make a list of things that I want to do and more than likely won’t?   It only sets up for disappointment.  My list usually consisted of be a nicer person, lose 10 pounds, be more creative, travel more – can you spell B-O-R-I-N-G?  I am a nice person when I am in a good mood or somebody doesn’t piss me off, the pounds will eventually fall off (I have been eating too many tapas and drinking too much Ribera)….I am pretty creative when I want to be and I am always willing to travel should my budget allow.  So, no New Year’s resolutions for me.  Perfect!!  I have been trying to live my life at the moment for the last two and a half years and I must say, I have been having a great time. 

When I got to work today, I was the first to arrive but soon enough the cavalry trickled in with their “I have just been on the best holiday EVER” faces. 

“¡Feliz año Nuevo!” per usual, I opted not to give the two kisses (I try to keep it business like at the office but three co-workers managed to get the besitos out of the americana).

One of the major New Year’s Eve events in Madrid that I forgot to write about in my blog the other day is the San Silvestre Vallecana.  It is a 10 kilometer marathon that starts at the north end of Madrid and ends in my hood, Vallecas.  I have seen the runners since 2003, when I first took over my husband’s bachelor pad.  It is quite the event and each year there are more runners.  This year there were 34,000!  The race attracts not only real runners but also those who are enthusiastic to run a race.  I am still pretty shocked by the number of runners this year but I am even more shocked by the fact that there were minimal holiday lights in the hood this year, pathetic.  There are blue holiday lights sporadically strung on the trees and no holiday light banners (typical in Madrid); usually we have ones that remind me of Kwanza.  But anyhow, I have never thought of Spaniards as very athletic despite the fact that the football team won the World Cup this past year and all of the major triumphs of Rafa Nadal so it made me happy to see so many sign up.  The race is actually fun to watch due to the people that run in groups and wear costumes.  This year’s favorite was a group dressed as Pac Man and the ghosts.  Some do actually race to win or improve their time but many do it for pure camaraderie.

I had 2 friends run, one from Venezuela and a co-worker.  I managed to spot the Venezuelan but I didn’t manage to see my co-worker, Tony.  Since it was quite chilly out, I watched for an hour, took some photos and opted to send Tony a SMS saying that I tried to spot him and to wish him a Happy New Year.  He responded several hours later that he had run the race with another co-worker.

When Tony got to work today, he had a great big smile and wished me happy holidays, etc., he was so excited that I had seen the race.

“¿Dónde estuviste?” he asked.

“¿Sabes dónde habían los tambores y músicos, una manzana más por arriba a la derecha de la cuesta arriba al lado del metro Nueva Numancia.”  I informed him that I was a block up from the band, on the right hand side going up hill.

“Aye, ¡qué bien!” How cool.

So a bit later, as the office resumes their version of Camara Café, I hear others talking about how the last part was all up hill and they tried their best not to lose their pace.  Turns out 3 co-workers ran the race.  Most of my co-workers are pretty athletic and pretty competitive, most work out and if given the chance, they even compare cholesterol, which I find a bit disturbing.

Perhaps a “someday” resolution could be to run in the San Silvestre Vallecana!!!  Or to try and take charge of the Holiday decorating in Vallecas!!

**Pictures will be posted later!

Happy 2011!!

Puerta del Sol / New Year's

Happy New Year!  I hope that 2011 brings only the best of the best; laughter, love, fun, great company, exceptionally good health, etc.  11 is a great number, I have always liked it.  I was born in November and according to an astrology webpage, 2011 is going to be an exciting year for me and my fellow scorps, full of ups and downs that include lots of social activity.  I am not sure how well those pages can be trusted but they are always fun to read.  

Last night, Ismael and I celebrated the New Year at his brother and sister-in-law’s house in a town called Coslada.  My sister-in-law’s family was there; her mom, sisters and their husbands and kids.  It was a nice night.  I was the DD so I had to drive home which I found extremely scary being that I have driven about a dozen times in the last nine and a half years.  Ismael insisted on not only blaring the music but on turning on the windshield wipers to clean the windows and it made me extremely paranoid.  In Europe, there are tons of retondas and you have to get in the proper lane to exit. 

Last year, we rang in the New Year in Rome, which was amazing.  As we were walking across the Ponte Cestio (Travestere) Bridge, some Italians noticed that we didn’t have champagne and next thing we knew, we were drinking Asti spumante out of plastic champagne flutes.  Fireworks lighted the midnight sky, it was amazing.

Traditionally, we have celebrated the New Year with two dear friends who travelled to Israel this year.

In Spain, the noche vieja is a pretty big event.  Many chose to celebrate in the Puerta del Sol, the epi-center of Spain.  We went one year and we had a blast; it was Ismael’s first time celebrating it with all of the tourists!!  Traditionally, at midnight, you are to eat a grape with each of the 12 tolls of the bell.  The grapes in Spain usually have pits so you have to prepare your grapes in advance, take out the pits and some people peal off the skin.  After you have stuffed your mouth with the 12 pudgy grapes, you wish everybody a happy new year, which undoubtedly hinders your speech and sounds so funny, and then you follow that by giving a kiss on each side of the cheek which usually makes the grapes turn to mush.

Preparing the grapes

It is also a tradition to wear red undies.  I tried to figure out the origins of the red undies but didn’t find anything extremely relevant.  All of the lingerie stores sell them.  I sent my sister a pair of red thongs last year and when she opened the wrapped present her kids asked where the butt of the undies was!

Since I have eaten my 12 grapes and wore my red undies, I am now prepared for 2011!  However you chose to ring in the new year, I would like to wish you a Happy New Year and I only hope that 2011 will be everything that you hope for.