Vacation Recap Part III: First Taste of Madrid

Upon our return to Madrid, Lola, Edu, Rafa, and I did a little bit of adventuring. I’d only spent 1 night in Madrid before leaving for Alicante, so there was a lot to see. I also wanted to make sure that I didn’t see stuff that Daron specifically said he wanted to see, so I had to choose carefully.

We started out the way anyone going to a major European city should: walking! As I was still excited, fresh, and not about to keel over from exhaustion, the walking was not too much to handle. I’m sure we walked several miles the first day. We walked through their immediate neighborhood, and I saw a local market that was soooo cool. Of course, they say it is no big deal, but I really loved it. Each counter is independently operated, and there is competition inside (i.e. 2 fish guys, or 2 bakers).

We continued our walk, and soon entered a more “down town” area where I saw lots of cool monuments:

• Puerta de Toledo Edu commented below to tell me that it is actually ”Puerta de Alcalá”!! Thanks Edu!        a monument that still shows damage from bullet holes
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• Fuente de la Cibeles- A 18th century monument featuring the goddess of nature being pulled in a chariot by two lions. I liked this one a lot!
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I’ll take this moment to say that the Madrid subway system is impeccable. It is clean, cool, friendly, and easy to navigate. I <3 that subway.

The next day, we went down near the Prado Museum and then into the Botanical Gardens. Please endure this brief picspam of the beautiful flowers.

Ahhhhh, I love the flowers.

Anyway, that afternoon Hubs arrived. The next morning, was the TENNIS SHOWDOWN!

Daron is a serious tennis player, and upon discovering that Edu plays too, he immediately knew that they’d have to play at least once in Spain. We got to the court, and Daron found out that the “hard court” surface was actually slick as hell, and it was a new experience, for sure. Edu held his own, and certainly hits the ball hard, but in the end, D was victorious. The final score involved some numbers in some order, but what is important is that Lola and I were exceptional ball girls, and held that match together. haha.

The next day (or maybe that day, I can’t remember) we did some more awesome sight seeing!

I loved going to Plaza Mayor in the center of Madrid, near Rafa’s place. It was cool to see all the old shops, and streets that really are like going back in time. I was NOT a fan of all the damn mimes, though. I do NOT like those dudes who act like statues. I mean, I was squealing like a baby. DO NOT WANT.

While down town, we also got to see kilometer zero (the historical center of Madrid) and the Bear statue, which is not as big as I thought. (The photo is from another day, but is a better shot of the bear)

We also saw the Royal Palace, which was absolutely amazing. I can’t believe that a place like that is within walking distance of their house! The gardens surrounding the place were beautiful, and I really loved the hedges.

Isn’t that precious? Edu and Daron holding hands in that last picture?! (haha, optical illusion, but it would be hilarious if it were true)

Anyway, the sights in Madrid were spectacular, and Madrid has climbed the ladder to become maybe my favorite “big city” in the world. It is beautiful and the people are amazing. I loved being able to walk around and feel completely safe and at ease. Everyone was kind, and while there was the occasional vendor, it was great to say “No gracias” and for them to just grin and walk away. That oppressive and invasive type of solicitation just wasn’t there. While it was a big city, it didn’t stink, and it was clearly well cared for by the people who call it home.

We’re about to set off for Paris, and I’ll just say that NOTHING about the Paris trip went according to plan…

Up Next: Paris-Not all its creped up to be

If you missed part 1 or part 2 of my vacation recap, just click the link to read about it.