I did not dance flamenco in Spain but I savored fado nights in Portugal

A thick curtain of raindrops tries to hide the beauty of Madrid from us the moment we arrive in the city a little before midnight. But no amount of pouring can steal the allure of Madrid from two travelers who have palpable excitement, let alone resolute will, to reconnect with Spain. Despite the heavy downpour, and the imminent winter weather, my friend Luis Espiritu and I discover the capital city of Spain is alive â€â€Â throbbing in delight; awash in both bright and subdued neon lights and flooded with a flurry of people who, we are told later on, habitually deny Madrid the moment to sleep even in the wee hours. We soon find out, as we step out of our hotel in the posh Calle Alcala, no one in this city wants to put out the kliegs of the night. Locals and tourists alike party big time from midnight to 8 o’ clock (sometimes until 10 a.m.) the following day in tapas bars and restaurants where the young ones and the young once fire up their zest for life. This scene repeats every day in Madrid. No, make that not only Madrid but everywhere in Spain.

The whole of Spain, according to Heather Hand, our Insight Vacations tour director, is less pulsating in daytime, particularly in the middle of the afternoon where almost everybody takes the seemingly compulsory siesta and long lunches that seem to take forever. A semblance of revelry is felt again in the air around 5 p.m. when most of the shops re-open. And life takes its whirlwind course again for the Spaniards.

But Spain (as well as its neighboring country of Portugal, which we also visit during the tour) is not all about nightlife. While probably a sizeable percentage of Spaniards are sleeping in daytime, we, on the other hand, are up and about in discovering its charms.

The City of Toledo, for one, is a breathtaking sight what with its narrow centuries-old cobbled streets dotted with quaint houses with little gardens by the windows. A visit to this city that is known for its exquisitely fashioned swords is incomplete without looking at â€â€Â whether in appreciation or bewilderment â€â€Â El Greco’s most famous painting, "The Burial of Count Orgaz," that is safely housed in Church of St. Thomas, near the 13th-century-old Cathedral of Toledo.

Spain was under Moorish rule for 800 years. Nowhere else in Spain can one find the greatest expression of Spanish-Muslim art than in Alhambra in Granada, the capital of Moorish Kingdom of Spain until the defeat of the Moors in 1492. The Alhambra is simply magical. No wonder it is listed in the book 1,000 places to see before you die.

Another place "to see before you die" is the Mezquita in Cordoba where three religious influences â€â€Â Moorish, Catholic and Jewish â€â€Â are held side by side. With hundreds of columns made of onyx, jasper, marble and granite and a cathedral right in the center, La Mezquita is truly a mind-blowing architectural delight.

I must say, however, that Seville tops my favorite city in Spain because I see there my family name "Tenorio" written everywhere â€â€Â atop a quaint shop, in a panaderia, in an ambulance, in the arch of a cemetery, even in oxygen tanks and LPG tanks. I feel at home here, I tell my group even if Celestino, our local tour guide, explains to me that the image of a Tenorio in Seville is someone who is not content with one partner or lover.

Seville breathes art. At every turn, one can find the most diverse artistic styles, legacies of the city’s past that make Seville one large open-air museum. Consider these: The 15th-century Sta. Cecilia Church that houses the tomb of Christopher Columbus and the grand Retablo Mayor made of pure gold and peppered with imajens made of ivory and speckled with diamonds, rubies among other precious stones.

The beauty of Seville’s culture can also be found in its food and wine. Luis and I with our newfound friends enjoy eating out at night as we savor one tradition that unites Sevillians: the tapas or the art of eating small portions of dressed salads, cured meats, prawns, olives, snails accompanied by a glass of Spanish wine or cerveza.

In Seville, too, we watch a flamenco performance where Spain’s best male and female flamenco dancers combine feelings and passions in an artful obra that they have mastered for 20 years of practice. I have the desire to go up the stage and try flamenco but I am coy. Instead, I allow myself to be lost in the pomp and pageantry of the dance. Then later on, Luis and I with our friends in the tour group get lost again in the many tapas bars in Sevilla where we allow ourselves to be giddy and a little bit intoxicated.

If the Sevillian flamenco is not for me, then, perhaps, I make a mark in Lisbon, the capital city of Portugal, where, during our fado dinner, I dance the night away. The fado is actually a dinner held in a quaint restaurant in Lisbon that serves authentic Lisboa cuisine where everything is a little bit salty â€â€Â or is it only my taste buds? Anyway, while we are having dinner, a chanteuse regales us with her songs â€â€Â her voice soft and serene, mystical and melodious. The scene on the makeshift stage is at once solemn and sacred only to be betrayed by an upbeat, electrifying song and dance numbers from a group of young and old Portuguese. The amiable waiters and waitresses move to the pulsating traditional Lisbon beat as they enjoin the diners to dance with them. Without prodding, I stand up and take one waitress to the dance floor. Her name is Minerva, she’s about 50. She tells me later that the performers are her relatives. And the waiters and waitresses in the restaurant are her sons, daughters or siblings. Her family owns the establishment. And fado dinner is the traditional Portuguese way of entertaining their guests. They themselves give their personal service to make sure their guests are satisfied. And service to them is spelled with love, warmth and grace.

With the fado night I am already content. But Lisbon is waiting to be discovered. Be mesmerized at the ancient Tower of Belem or ogle at the gigantic Monument to the Discoveries. Better yet, say a prayer at the Basilica in Fatima, where one’s plea to God seems to be heard at once.

Amazing indeed are Spain and Portugal for their artistic and cultural riches and their deep religious influences. I cannot wait for my return.

(For more information, please call Rajah Travels, the general sales agent of Insight Vacations in the Philippines, at 523-8801 to 07 or 894-0886. For inquiries on KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, please call 887-1202 or 887-1144. You may e-mail me at bumbaki@yahoo.com or my.new.beginnings@gmail.com.

Have a blessed Sunday.)