Fifteen boys – thirteen in Year 9 and two in Year 10 – set off last Wednesday 18th March on a four day trip to Madrid. There was excellent camaraderie and they made the most of every visit. The group enjoyed the facilities at the accommodation, which was centrally located near Madrid’s main train station, Atocha.
Thursday began with a visit to the Bernabeu football stadium, which for many was one of the magical moments of the trip. Three hours were spent touring around areas such as the trophy room, the changing rooms and the press room. They even got to sit down in the very comfortable dugout and the presidential box. The visit ended in the gift shop when some spent their money on football strips. In the afternoon, boys formed groups to embark on ‘The Apprentice’ style challenge at a supermarket. A time and budget limit was set for them to purchase a list of items at the lowest price possible and make the most of their language and business skills. This was followed by a stroll along the most popular streets in the city centre where they could admire Madrid’s grand architecture at La Puerta del Sol and La Plaza Mayor.
On Friday, we visited one of Madrid’s many palaces, el Palacio de Aranjuez, situated in the small town of Aranjuez on the river Tajo about 40 miles to the south of Madrid. This 18th century summer palace is full of original exquisite furniture, so we did get an idea of how kings and queens lived. The boys were stunned by the octagon-shaped Arabic Room with walls covered in ceramic tiles decorated with Arabian geometric forms. The golden ceiling is very impressive because it has a beehive shape form. There are red sofas along the wall as this was used as a smoking room by kings.
The cultural day continued with a visit to Reina Sofía Museum of Modern Art. The group learnt about an unfortunate episode of recent Spanish history through Picasso’s huge anti-war masterpiece ‘Guernica’. Following the catastrophic Spanish civil war 1936-39, it was painted in only three colours with wall paint to depict the horror and banality of war, using as an example the horrific bombing of civilians in a small town in north east Spain called Guernica. The day ended with a stop at Mercado San Miguel, a place not to be missed if you want to sample a wide range of tapas and other Spanish delicacies. Boys were challenged to try something they had never eaten before. They had a go eating barnacles from Galicia called percebe (a type of crustacean), churros (fried doughnuts) and even oysters!
A rainy Saturday morning accompanied our stroll in the most popular park in Mardrid: Parque del Retiro. There, we saw the huge pond where madrileños love to row boats and go for a stroll on a Sunday. It would not have surprised one to find out that the stadium was their favourite visit. But less predictable was the fact that the most popular ‘magic moment’ was trying out new food in St Michael’s Market on the last night. They all appreciated the point of learning a language. By the end of their stay, asking for their room keys in Spanish at reception was an easy job. One of the boys commented that “most Spanish people’s English is better than mine”! Another noticed that “Spanish people like it when you try and speak their language” while a third wrote that “languages in general can open up a whole load of opportunities en el future”.
Many thanks to ‘Los Quince’, the fifteen boys that Mr Drax and Mrs Membrado had the pleasure to be with in the Spanish capital: Abdullah A, Harry B, Joseph B, Robbie B, Jamie CC, Simon C-L, Tom F, Jack H, Lucas H, Charlie J, Dan L, Matthew M, Alex M, Charlie S-E and Jack T.