How Many Miles from Here.................

The nice Brits who told us about the Bear also told us about this tile that shows the exact center of Madrid, the spot where all of the 185 KM to Madrid are measured from.  For some reason those signs always remind me of M*A*S*H -aka best show ever.

 

 

The Dry Hop On Hop off Night Tour!

After a quick siesta and a shower (for warmth) we were feeling much better and in our wellies we decided to do the second line of the hop on hop off tour and seethe city by night.  It was great and it was awesome to ride on the upstairs of the bus because the top was on and it had glass windows.  headed out for some dinner.  We ended up in a bar filled with locals and their mini beers - it really is slightly disturbing seeing men drinking tiny beers.  Also, it is so weird the floors are so dirty - filled with napkins just thrown to the ground.  They also like to give you these sausage samplers and Bridget took one for the team and tried one - yeah one and she was done. The waiter kept bring us more and then asked if we wanted something else since we weren't eating them - we tried to be polite and say no thanks but yeah he probably thought we were these crazy foreigners! Let's just say this day ended up 1000 times better then it started!!!
 

MADRID - 1 BRIDGET/ALEXIS 0

Friday morning Bridget and I decided to walk to the Prado Museum to get on the hop on hop off bus;  this was a bad bad bad decision.  It was BEYOND POURING and it was no match for our 3 euro umbrellas.  By the time we got to the Prado we were soaked, beyond soaked, you could wring out my shoes and Bridget's sweater - her hair was wet since her umbrella had a hole.  It was so serious that Bridget said that she would give up sangria for the entire week to be dry.  We decided to use the hop on hop off bus as our way to dry out and see the city; now if it didn't start leaking inside we would be better off.  After we saw the entire city we decided to get off at the first stop and go to the Prado museum but of course it started raining as we stood in line. At the Prado we had some hot chocolate and some lunch and o yeah looked at some art......full admission, we only did 1 1/2 floors but hey I did an art museum!!! Because it wasn\'t raining we decided to hop on the bus to go to the Royal Palace but because Madrid was against us that day our bus hit traffic and then broke down and after we got off it started POURING AGAINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN.  Seriously, we were beat down at this point.  We tried to get rain jackets and rain boots at H&M but we failed.........so defeated and beaten down we decided to go back to the hotel but instead ended up finding a shoe store that sold wellies for 15 euros and because we were so defeated I ended up getting a pair that were basically two sizes too small but hey we were desperate.  Then with a quick run to (another) H&M we had some socks (I love these socks!) and some mini sandwiches (and a sangria poured from a tap) we were starting to feel a little bit better. So yes Madrid you won the first round but there is always a second round.

March This Way!!!

When we were in Seville we would watch CNN (one of two channels in English) and quickly discovered that they were beginning to protest the government in Madrid and it was supposed get more intense as the week went on.............yeah, when we were supposed to be there.  When we got to our hotel we saw they were building some stage right outside our hotel door/right outside our balcony.  Well when were walking around we stubled upon a marc that was marching right toward our hotel...............lucky us!!!! It was actually just a teacher protest and it was super peaceful. The funny thing about it is that following them were street cleaners to clean up the mess as they walked.  It was still pretty cool to see it!

Later on in the week, Bridget and I were eating some AMAZING mozzerala sticks and looking out on the streets when we saw a human protest chain snaking down the streets................yeah that's normal for a Saturday nite at 11pm :).

Converted Happiness!!

As we were getting ready to say adios to Seville we checked the entire room multiple tomes, I think Bridget checked after me because she knows how forgetful I can be.  In the cab on the way to train station I had this horrific feeling that I left my converter at the hotel.  This was a tragedy not for the fact that I "borrowed" this from a friend years ago - we might not be friends anymore but I still had the converter - but because this was the only converter we had and we needed it for the iPads, iPhones, cameras, and most importantly the hair dryer!! After searching my bag on the train I realized I didn't have it.  When we got to the hotel in Madrid I asked them and they were so nice and went thru the drawer of left behind coverters and we thought we had a match..............Nope it didn't work!!! So then I went back down and asked them again and one fit............woohoo..........until we went to go put it into the wall and it popped out! Ugh it was a converter that would work in England! We went back down and there were no more left so we decided we would attempt to see if we could get one from the big department store.  We ventured up and thankfully we found someone who spoke English because our ten years of Spanish did not include the correct vocabulary, it also helps when you bring a plug with you to show them what you are looking for............we had success and happiness pure happiness!

 The converter that gave us false hope!

 Bridget trying to use the wall unit.............it was so weird and also looked like it sucked the air and was probably the weakest thing ever.  Thank god we got the converter because I don't know how much longer Bridget could have used this. 

Pure Happiness!!!!!!!!!

Hola Madrid!!!

After another 2 1/2 hour nap thanks to thenhigh speed train we said Hola (again) to Madrid.  I think our cab driver moonlights as  a tour guide because we got a little tour on the way to our hotel; he also might moonlight as a comedian because as he was pulling our bags out of the trunk he was like oooooooo wooooowwwww.  We then headed down to Plaza de Sol; this seems to be a big meeting/hang out point at all times of the day because it always seems busy.     

We saw people taking a picture with this statute and had no idea what it was.  I said to Bridget,

O this statute is also on the Starbucks Madrid Cup.  Well these Brits heard us and said o really?!?!? I was like yeah but do you know what it is? They said it was the symbol of Madrid.

 

 

We stumbled upon this random stage in the middle of Madrid;

it looked like some fashion show and

 tv interview..............who knows though!

 

We also discovered this super cheap sandwich chain, mini sandwiches and a beer for 1 euro each and sangria from a tap for 2 euros.................sign me up!

 

A good start to Madrid!!!