We were feeling pretty flat after losing the wallet...so we decided to stay close to the hotel...so off we go to the local supermarket, which was shut (of course!) so decided to jump on the number 33 bus to the plaza mayor (no not plaza mayor..."platha may - or"!). I said to David "we'll just pop up to the platha and straight back to the hotel again" excepting that we were going to a shopping mall for some reason...so David said I run back and get the camera...I said no we don't need it cos we won't be gone that long (note to self: never never go out without your camera)...so we jump off at the bus stop where we thought the mall was and walked through a shopping mall that had not been completed yet...so we jumped back on the bus and tried to speak to some locals in the bus. In my best Spanish I asked a young girl where is the stop for Plaza Mayor. I was finding out real quick that the Spanish in Madrid do not speak English nor do they want or need to speak English...so she was not very helpful except to indicate that my Spanish was crap (May - or not Mayor!)...so we stayed on the bus because the bus didn't stop outside a shopping mall...so everyone else got off the bus and a lovely old lady indicated to us that we should too...so we got off the bus and followed everyone up the street.
So much for staying close to the hotel. Here we were at the Platha May-or and found ourselves in the midst of market stalls and eating places...yay!! Heaven!! We wandered around a bit and found ourselves watching a line of horses and riders making their way up the street...not only that but the last few horses were performing along the lines of the Spanish riding school horses, prancing, walking sideways, etc etc. They were marvellous to watch...then followed the "pooper scooper" cleaning trucks which were equally intriguing.
We had lunch and as we were sitting there the horses were coming back down the street, except this time they brought their friends including very very large bulls and cows "mit" horns, very very long and sharp horns although they were yoked together. If we moved onto the road we could have touched them...we didn't though.
Just when you thought that these cattle had finished passing by, there were more. This time not yoked, but single animals...huge animals, each with an enormous cow bell jangling ridiculously loud around their neck. The "running of the bulls" briefly ran through my mind as I watch these huge and magnificent animals pass by. What if they got spooked by the people with umbrellas lining the streets? Their "minders" didn't look to concerned as they walked in front of these enormous beasts. Even so, I stepped back behind the telephone pole as David very bravely photographed the event with his phone camera (because where was my camera - back at the hotel wasn't it???!!!) Following the cattle were lots and lots of Spanish people dressed in national costumes, resplendent in their colourful clothes...then the sheep came wandering by...just walking by...as sheep do! Then donkeys, goats, more people, then the horses...so many horses, beautiful horses (and the pooper scoopers!!!)
We must have stood there for 40 minutes or more, watching the marvellous parade and we were even a bit sad when they were gone! So off we went to find out what it was all about...Transhumanica, is a celebration held each year when moving the animals from the north of Spain to the south of Spain for the winter and they just happen to walk through the streets of Madrid on the day that we were there. Amazing and seredipitous and we even got the cold sore cream we went out for! What a great day...glad we didn't stay too close to the hotel.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P68DJ25eJkE this clip is in Spanish, but it gives you an idea of what Transhumanica is about. When the animals are in the streets..this is exactly where we were when we were watching the parade. The people were dressed the same as in the clip! No photos of course because we can't get the photos off David's phone...sorry! When we get home!!!
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