Madrid Highlights and More...

I have a lot I could blog about Madrid but I think it might be a little boring to include every minute detail of the trip therefore I will cover the highlights…which will still be a long list. So I guess if you can't handle the heat just scroll down to the photos I posted a few days ago.

Wednesday:
got into Madrid at about nine and took a shuttle from the airport to Calle relatores*checked in at our hostel*made friends with Erici at the front desk*walked around and bought chocolate with churros

Thursday:
The Prado museum (Las Meninas, Las Hilanderas, and a ton of Greco/Velazques and Goya. This was a definite highlight and I would have loved more time there)*walked around central Madrid exploring and/or getting a little lost until we stumbled upon the Paella restaurant Erici told us about*ate Paella, a definite cultural experience. Kalyn was sure there were teeth in hers seeing as they don’t debone anything in the dish. It all goes in whole* walked around Sol and Plaza Mayor picking up a few souveniers to take home* saw the Palacio Real and toured the Cathedral next to the Palace* Enjoyed the Sun outside the Palace and took photos by the fountains and statues* Walked around Sol some more, bought shoes and some spaghetti which we made at the hostel (Great way to save especially when the food in Spain isn't even that good)*Then… drum roll cuz this next bit was a huge highlight…we went to casa patas and got half price, front row tickets for Flamenco which was the coolest experience ever*I left convinced that I would never settle for anything less than a Spanish flamenco dancing husband… also I wanted to buy the Flamenco music cd but I remembered how I was on a budget so I didn't

Friday:
Got up ate some of the toast at the hostel breakfast* my foot began to really hurt* went to the Atocha railway station and caught a train to Toledo* loved to see the Spanish country a bit on the train ride* Walked around/got lost in beautiful old Toledo* tried Mazapan (yum!)* went in the COOLEST huge old cathedral and decided that this IS and always will be my favorite cathedral…I might change my mind in Paris* Foot begins to really throb* ate lunch at McDonalds and tried the European mcflurry a.k.a. best shake I have had in a long time. No joke, they put American mcflurrys to sham* Saw the Alcazar and shopped for some Toledo damask jewelry*Caught a bus back to the train station and went back to Madrid* Stayed home and rested my foot* made spaghetti dinner again* chatted it up with Louis the Australian while the others went to check out the Carnaval celebrations* then they brought me back churros and chocolate as a treat*met our new roommate the touring Southern Californian Kyle (check out her blog)
Saturday:
woke up to a sore foot but determined to press forward* went to the Reina Sofia where my awesome friends pushed me around in a wheelchair* pretty much disliked the modern art but saw La Guernica and got to stay off the foot so enjoyed my time* Hit up the BK for lunch and had some bonding time with the girls* Walked to the Retiro* checked out a book market* saw some gnarly longboarders and chatted in Spanish with them*enjoyed and afternoon in the Retiro* saw some men playing tennis outside in shorts and my heart yearned for a racquet* Caught the metro to The airport and stayed there for nearly five hours before we got on our delayed flight back to London* As soon as I breathed in the humid, cold air and walked back along Bayswater I felt immense relief to be back* London has become home in a sense, I surely will miss it come May.

Sunday and Monday:
stayed at the center and rested my foot* Today went to pound land and sent my family chucherias* marvelled at the fact that the pharmacy here charges 23 pounds for archsupport inserts that would cost me five bucks in the states* realized that the UK is still pretty cool despite everything being so expensive* ate lasagna*enjoyed a Valentine's cookie decorating party at the Centre*procrastinated my Shakespeare Paper hoping it would just write itself* skyped Abby and mom* blogged.

Also…
If you want to check out some amazing recipes and food check out my mother's blog. Warning: you will salivate profusely.