Daily Tapas Vol. 2

A recap of the last two days.

Today, had a nice late start to the day. More on that later.

Ate lunch in the Plaza Mayor. Not wanting to pay for a long sit down meal, I bought some empanadas at the San Miguel market and ate them on a bench in the square. Now that I think about it, probably overpaid on the food.

Watching the street performers in the square (and Sol) is interesting. Today, there was a headless man, three headed box, fat spiderman, several human statues, a variety of Disney characters in soccer gear, spongebob, and a guy holding another guy on a stand.

Back in Leganes, I wanted to visit the stadium for CD (club deportivo) Leganes, the local soccer club. I went in the evening because their team store is only open then. CD Leganes competes in the third division of Spanish soccer; the famous clubs like Real and Barcelona compete in the first division. So, they are a minor league team. The stadium is located in a more residential suburb of Leganes; my university is more downtown.

Outside of the stadium are public soccer fields. There were several youth soccer players practicing, I believe, before a match. They all wore jerseys matching the logos of the pro team, who sponsors them (except the other team). Closer to the stadium, the pro team was practicing in front of some casual spectators. I was able to gleam some ideas about soccer in Spain from this; probably enough for a separate article.

At the stadium, the ground was completely open. I walked around the stands for a little bit. Finally, I bought a team sweatshirt at the store for 10 eur, a good price for the item I know.

A note on Spanish drivers: some of the nicest I have encountered. At a crosswalk, if you are waiting to cross, the first car that sees you will always stop. Even if going full speed, the first car not already in the crosswalk will stop for you. Even for only one person. Some cars were going 60 km/hrs (do the math) and stopped for me. I have never had to wait more than a few seconds to cross an open crosswalk (ie not with a controlled crossing light).

Funny thing: all of the stop signs read 'STOP'.

You might wonder why I got such a late start to the day. Well, I went to my first techno club the night before. In Spain, you start clubing only after midnight. We finished after 6:00 am, when the first metro trains opened. It was really fun. Really fun. Really fun.

Side note, I love the 24 hour clock system. I have used it for several years on my watch.