One of those days

Annaleigh:

I will be in Spain for two more nights. I went on a tour that was three hours. I saw paintings.

Autumn:

Today had been one of the days of this trip that I was most looking forward to. The same company through which I had booked last night’s walking tour also offered a children’s tour of the Prado, and I couldn’t wait to take it. The owner of the company, Almu, was going to be the one giving the tour, and I had read such amazing things about her. She has a doctorate in Art History but worked with children as a docent for many years, and she also has two young children of her own. All of the reviews said that she was patient, kind, completely relatable to children, and able to teach little ones about art in a completely engaging and appropriate way. This morning I took Annaleigh down to the Prado and excitedly waited for Almu’s arrival.

The reviews were spot on. Almu was amazing! She explained paintings and themes in such an incredibly understandable way, and it is clear that many kids could easily get hooked on her every word. Unfortunately, my child, as wonderful as she is in many ways, has a pretty short attention span. Almu worked tirelessly to bring her into the conversation, and we even took occasional breaks - including once to get a cookie from the cafe - but Annaleigh still struggled with the tour. I was apologetic, explaining that we sometimes even leave theaters in the middle of movies for the same reason. She completely understood, and I still came away from the tour feeling as though I had learned a lot that I could in turn share with my own students. In any case, I highly recommend Almu and her company. She does adult tours, too. Here is the link to her website: www.acrossmadrid.com.

By the time we left the Prado it was lunch time, and Annaleigh wanted to go back to the apartment for lunch rather than out like I had offered. I was still frustrated by the tour experience and she got angry with me when I refused to let her have a second piece of candy after she ate her sandwich. Thinking we needed a change of scenery, I got us back out of the apartment and on our way to el Retiro, which is kind of like Madrid’s version of Central Park. I had planned on seeing if we could rent a rowboat in the pond, but we never made it that far. Annaleigh was still cranky, and didn’t want to do much of anything after we left one of the park’s playgrounds. This was the extent of what we saw in the park:

On our way back to the apartment, Annaleigh got a nosebleed. This is not uncommon for her, but is still not something either of us look forward to. We sat down on a bench and applied wipes to it (I was out of Kleenex) until it stopped and she was all cleaned up. By the time we returned to the apartment yet again, we were both pretty worn out. I called for some quiet separate time to give us each a chance to regroup, and then we went back out for ice cream. That was probably when the day finally started to turn around.

While we were eating, Annaleigh told me that she tried really hard in the museum, but that long activities are hard for her. She also rattled off some of the things she learned from Almu, like how black clothes with a white shirt in a painting were a sign of wealth, as were books, and how many people who did own books often owned just one: the Bible. She also talked about how Velázquez chose to paint the king and queen in the mirror in Las Meninas. Then she told me that her favorite painting was "the one where the table changed directions depending on how you looked at it" (she means this one, for which Almu had her move from one side to another to see how the perspective was different). It turns out that she was listening! Thanks again to Almu for getting through to her.

My only other plan for the evening was dinner, which were arepas that we picked up from a local arepería and brought back to the apartment. I know they’re Colombian and not Spanish, but they were quick and inexpensive and we both agreed that they were delicious. 

Now Annaleigh is sleeping and I am continuing to reflect on this day. I knew I wanted to paint an honest picture of how it went because I think that one of the worst things about social media is they way it tends to make everyone else’s life seem perfect, even though perfection is unattainable. Even on this amazing, once-in-a-lifetime trip, there was bound to be at least one "off" day. Back when we were eating ice cream, Annaleigh asked me what my favorite part of our trip was. I told her that it was hiking from the lighthouse back into town in Santander, and then I asked her the same question. She said that it was a tie between the beach, climbing the tower in Salamanca, and going to camp. I think that the fact that she couldn’t pick just one experience highlights that she really has enjoyed herself. Tomorrow is our last full day in Spain, and I’m determined to end our journey on a positive note.