Due to going to bed so early the night before, we were up by 5am. But neither of us had slept great. We talked in bed for an hour and then went back to sleep till 9. At least Rusty went back to sleep. I stayed up and listened to him snore.

Once we were up and feeling somewhat human again we walked over to Puerto del Sol. I loved this square! It was such a fun, busy place.

Lots of streets in Madrid had these shade coverings.  It was so nice!

 We grabbed a Palmera for breakfast and then continued our walk to Centro Centro. Or Palacio de Cibeles. I never really could come to a conclusion on which name was the most correct. We heard them all!

This was definitely my favorite building in Madrid. First of all, it’s beautiful! Second, how can you not love that “Refugees Welcome” banner strung proudly across a city building. It made my heart swell. It felt so open and inviting.

Going to the top provided some really fun views of Madrid’s red rooftops and helped orient us to the city.

I thought the Cibeles Fountain, a Roman Goddess on a chariot pulled by lions was pretty awesome.

Madrid was HOT! It was in the high 90’s and we were sweltering. We decided to seek some shelter from the sun in Reterio Park. What a lovely space!! It was well maintained, clean, quiet, and uncrowded. We loved strolling through the tree lined lanes and napping on the park benches. There was a fun little man made pond where people were rowing little boats. And there was the beautiful Palacio Crystal.

Today was my day to feel jet lagged 🙂

Rusty needed a bathroom and surprisingly I didn’t so I sent him searching while I explored this beautiful rose garden. It was so tranquil.

On our way to Parc de Reterio, we walked past the city gates. I love thinking about how much history surrounds this place. Speaking of….I overheard an an American teenager say into her phone, “Siri, is America older than Spain?” 😂😂

Lunch was at El Brilliante. None of the food in Madrid blew us away. Partly because our stomachs were still getting used to the time change and felt a bit queezy, partly because food was pretty bland. I wanted to try the famous Bocadillos Calamaris and it was ok. Glad to say I did it once but I wouldn’t do it again. Rush was just glad there was ice in his coke!

On our way to the Prado we stopped at Ciaxia Forum vertical garden. I loved this! It was a HUGE wall and every square inch was covered in plants. It was so fun to see! I think vertical gardens are just the coolest thing!

The Prado was one of the best art museums we’ve ever been to. We loved every minute of it. Museums in Madrid have free hours most days, which I think is such a cool thing. It didn’t work or for us to use free hours at the Prado, so we coughed up the entrance fee. It’s hard to pay for something you know could be free!

Two of our favorite paintings at Prado were Bosh’s “Garden of Earthly Delights” and Goya’s “3rd of May.” Can I say again how glad both of us are to have taken art history in high school? I am making that mandatory for my kids.

We weren’t really feeling up to dinner, but we were feeling up to more Churros and Chocolate. Churreria Chocolaterie seems to be the second most recommended place to get churros next to San Gaines. So we decided to give it a whirl and then decided which was best. San Gaines wins. These were good, but not as good as yesterday.

Now for the most relaxing part of our trip….The  Arab baths at Hammam Al Andalus Madrid.  Due to a scheduling snafu on our part, we almost didn’t get in!  And there was only one massage spot left.  So Rusty, being the gentleman he is, let me take it.  The baths were underground.  The air was humid and the lighting low.  There were 3 pools.  One freezing cold, one warm, and one hot.  There was also a sauna.  90 minutes of pure heaven.  We spent most our time in the warm pool, but took dips in the cold and hot too.  Laying in the sauna felt sooo nice.  We didn’t take any pictures, but I pulled a few off their website.  I liked the baths, but Rusty LOVED them.  I think it was one of his favorite things we did.

How cute is our hotel? All the buildings in Madrid and Barcelona have these cute little balconies. We scored big time with our hotel. It was €62/night, was in a great location and had an AMAZING shower.