"Come back... home, come back... to the Nacional"
We know that returning to visit Spain when you live abroad can be a bit stressful and anything but a vacation. But there is still something special in boarding a flight whose destination is your hometown, in flying there with a certain nostalgia, in listening to the conversations of the passengers next to you and in landing full of illusions thinking about everything that you will do, everything you will eat and all the people you want to spend time with. We propose some practical advice so that, the next time you go to the city in the world that you think you know best, you can rediscover it and visit it in a different way... Because sometimes inveterate travelers need an extra stimulus to make someone else want travel to Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia or A Coruña when there are so many destinations to discover around the world.
- Dare to visit areas that otherwise you might never have gone. If in New York you have ventured with brooklyn , in San Francisco you have been convinced by Oakland and you don't wait for the time to come back to Los Angeles to visit East L.A.... why can't you do the same with your hometown? Venture to that neighborhood on the outskirts, or simply not so central, where you had only been passing through and for which you need a map and discover if it is true that they have some of the best patatas bravas in the whole city.
- Do some sightseeing. Yes, having to queue with the foreigners to enter the Sagrada Familia or the Picasso museum is not cool. But remember that if they patiently wait to enter some places it is not because they do (at least not in most cases). Allow yourself to enjoy some of the most charming places in your city as only tourists do and remember to what it owes part of its fame.
"Come back... home come back... for Christmas"
- Prepare your trip just as you would if you were going to any other place. I mean, document yourself. Read a few good articles from Traveler.es about the essential places to see or where to eat in the penultimate fashionable neighborhood, the latest fashionable neighborhood, the new must-see street or simply to find out that the gin and tonic thing is no longer popular so much and now his thing is to have a cocktail at the bar or terrace of some of the most in .
- Learn to look at your city with the eyes of a newly arrived visitor who discovers new things in every corner. Or, in other words, rekindle the fire of a passion that may have faded a bit over the years but can be intensified now that you see each other less. If you think your story is already too hackneyed, choose to seek the help of a professional therapist (also known as a citizen guide specialized in tours for natives). You will be surprised how many things you did not know about her or that you no longer remember.
The National Market
- We understand that going to eat some churros at the Christmas fair on Gran Vía or some tapas at Bodega Sepúlveda is a tradition that you like to respect every time you visit. But discover new places. Ask your friends to take you out and take you to the new hot spots in town. Only in this way will you discover treasures that are not so hidden, such as the El Nacional market or the Roca brothers' ice cream parlor.
- Although on the other hand do not forget to try to return to those corners that occupy a special place in your memory. Nobody will judge you for doing it (especially if you don't tell anyone). And it doesn't matter if you can no longer recite the order of the Eixample streets by heart. Just relax. wander around a bit , abuse Google as much as necessary and try to find again that little bar that made vegetarian food fashionable in the city, many years before Teresa Carles discovered kale for us.
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Rocambolesc, designed by Sandra Tarruella