A Walk Around Madrid, Spain

　Since the event in Madrid lasts two days, I’ll save that story for after the second day is over—for now, let’s go for a walk around Madrid.

　Huge buildings and wide roads that feel very European. People coming and going under a fairly hot sky. The bustle is relatively calm. Everything is so spacious that it never really feels crowded, and even around the museums and the royal palace there’s no sense of being stuck in a crowd. The hearty middle-aged men drinking together on terrace seats in broad daylight, doing who-knows-what with their lives, really make it feel like being abroad.

　ANIME RAMEN。

　Japanese food, with its strong image of being safe and high quality, is extremely popular. Still, apparently even the locals are skeptical of places that feel this blatantly like they’re cashing in on it. I mean, they’re even using NARUTO so boldly.

　A plaza. More or less the center of Madrid.

　A stylish shopping street that has become a tourist spot. This place, as expected, is absolutely packed with people. There’s no real need to go out of my way to visit fancy shops, so I just look from outside.

　By contrast, an ordinary shopping mall used mainly by locals. It feels very much like a “town,” and is incredibly relaxing. Apparently some popular local shops can be found in places like this.

　The lighting in the meat section is strangely pink. Unlike in Japan, there’s hardly any pure white lighting, so when this kind of harsh fluorescent color suddenly appears, it really stands out. Meat-colored.

　The church in front of the royal palace. Daytime in Spain is long, and it’s still bright even in the 7 p.m. hour. It seems that locals start going out around 9 p.m., when it gets cooler, and as someone whose days and nights are reversed, I find myself wishing Japan would make late nights the default too.

　The royal palace. If you aim for a certain time, you can get in for free. Apparently it’s one of the largest in the world.

　The city seen from the royal palace.

　A merry-go-round appearing inside a shopping mall. Quiet and nice.

　Seeing a bed standing so openly in the middle of the city feels like a glitch, which makes it funny.

　Overall, it feels very safe, and the people are friendly too. That said, several shop staff warned me three or four times, “Be careful in Barcelona, it’s full of pickpockets.” I’ll be heading to Barcelona later as well, but what on earth will happen?

　A drink made by making red wine easier to drink. I’ve forgotten the name, but the color is beautiful, and this is what I keep ordering whenever I drink alcohol.