nope, sorry all can´t make this one. Have a glass of wine for me and hope to catch up with you at the next lunch with MadridMan. Seasons greetings to all.

Too bad you can't make this one, Jamongris. Are you already committed to another holiday party? Probably so. In any case, I too am looking forward to seeing you again for the next MadridMan Lunch.

Another comment about this Saturday night's El Brillante Party with MadridMan in Madrid, look for me/us just inside the doors on the ATOCHA side. There's a back-entrance too which is up a level but it's totally open.

See some of you there! Saludos, MadridMan

It is a party but actually a family birthday one. Have fun.

Tomorrow night's the night! Looking forward to seeing you all there!

Saludos, MadridMan

This is the night! I'm taking my camera so sometime tomorrow I'll post some photos of the gathering. Remember, El Brillante has world-famous "Bocadillos de Calamares" (and cheap too!) so bring your appetite.

Saludos, MadridMan

After getting to park my car... right at the door of the venue, in the heart of Atocha on a Saturday pre-Christmas, unbelievable... I enjoyed a lot. It was a shame I had to leave quite early.
See you soon at other meeting, or any Tuesday at O'Neill's.

Party Follow-Up:

Good time. 9pm to 3:15am! We started at 9pm at El Brillante and stayed there for a good 2.5 hours. Most people were there early but some came later or left earlier. In total, we had 16 persons attending. Some message board members from "the early days" even attended and some came as a total surprise. After El Brillante we all went to a bar in Huertas called "Begin to Beguin" (a.k.a. "The Pirate Bar") which, from what we understand from more mature people whom attended the party, was that this bar is "de toda la vida" - one which has been around forever. We were VERY happy to ALL get a seat on the stools, tables, and/or cushioned benches along the wall. The drinks, "Caipariñas", some cinammon christmas drink, and beer were enjoyed by all. The music was a bit loud but we ALL enjoyed a very "family vibe" among us.

We stayed at the pirate bar until about 3:15am - a real shock for me since I usually bow-out by 1am. Everyone left feeling good after having had good, strong drinks, good conversation, good laughs, and having made good friends.

Below are a combination of member "neilstrauss"'s and my photos. I'll add more as people send them to me.



ABOVE, Left-to-Right at El Brillante: Olga, Cecilia, Isabel, Alicia, Rafa (stooping), Antonio, (the one eyeball of) Julio, Steve, Neil, Andy


ABOVE, Left-to-Right at El Brillante: Mario, MadridMan, Cecilia, Isabel


ABOVE, Left-to-Right at El Brillante: Antonio, Rafa (back of the head), Julio, Steve's eyes over Neil's head, Andy, Mario


ABOVE, Left-to-Right at El Brillante: MadridMan, Steve, David, Neil, Andy, Rafa, Antonio


ABOVE, Left-to-Right at El Brillante: Rosa, Olga, Alicia, Mercedes, JoJi, Cecilia


ABOVE, Left-to-Right at Begin to Beguin: Isabel (half-faced), Antonio in back, Cecilia, Alicia, Rafa, JoJi (behind Rafa), Olga, Andy (back of head), Steve, Neil


See ALL the photos (some good, some bad, lots of with "half-closed-eyes" or totally-closed-eyes - YOU know how it is. ) at:

http://www.spainiac.com/photos/mm/madrid/2006decmmparty/

Saludos, MadridMan

Hey! Great to see a few familiar faces there - and looking good too. Glad you enjoyed yourselves.

But ... MadridMan! That's a bit harsh calling Isabel - ha ha - I'll bet she wasn't the only one after all those drinks :hdspin:

By the way, you were missing the queen of closed eyes - Paloma (pim) is the professional at that particular expression.

Seasons greetings to you all.

Jo
ps - Antonio - you owe me 27 emails

Jo-Anne! GREAT to see you again here. I thought my "half-faced" statement might raise some eyebrows. In fact, Isabel was not "faced" at all ("faced" meaning "drunk"). She's REALLY nice and a has such a cheery spirit. I like her a lot.

On the walk home after the gathering I was saying that we missed message board member pim - but now she lives in Brussels (or is it Paris now? I forget).

Antonio is a busy, fulltime working man now so that's probably why owes you so many emails.

So what's YOUR excuse, Jo-Anne? You haven't attended a SINGLE "Party with MadridMan in Madrid!" Maybe the next time you come to Madrid we can AT LEAST arrange a "Lunch With MadridMan in Madrid" - these we have MUCH more often.

Saludos, MadridMan

Thanks for sharing the photos and info with the rest of the MadridMan family that could not be there!

Maybe one day for me, I see what happens next year!

Bill