I started today at the crack of dawn, determined to get to the lavandaría to get my clothes washed. It had been a few days and although my clothes weren’t beginning to smell, I was down to my second string apparel. The brochure for Wash n Dry stated that they were open from 7.00 am so I charged down to beat the rush (I still didn’t think that there would be many there at 7.30am when I left Hostal Goya.) On arrival the place was completely shut up. 7am- 11pm 365 days a year the brochure claimed, it was near 745am when I was outside. I waited and waited, went for a coffee and waited some more. At 8.15am I dragged myself back to the hotel, with my pile of clothes to plan my next attack. ... read more

After a sleep-in (by my standards) I decided I would Valencia’s fresh food market the Mercado Central. Situated only five minutes from the hotel the market is THE place for locals to buy their fresh produce. The market is open Monday- Saturday and if you want to taste the real Valencia I recommend a visit and mingle amongst the locals and curious tourists. From its fruit and vegetables, fresh fish and cured meats (including the ever present jamon) this market has the lot. Of course there are lots of oranges on sale (at less than 1 euro per kg) as well as other regional produce. I decided to buy some clementines - a fruit that we don’t seem to have in Australia. They are similar to a mandarin though their skin is probably tougher. The fruit ... read more

Yesterday (Wednesday) I took a trip out to the historic town of Segovia. I caught the train from Chamartin Station in Madrid and the journey takes only 35 minutes. It was cloudy and very cold on arrival - about 5c at 1030am. The train to Segovia was fantastic, very comfortable and incredibly fast. Once at the train station at Segovia you need to catch the local bus to the centre of the town. They tend to run the buses at the same time as the RENFE trains arrive. The first thing you see when you hit the old town is the Aqueduct, typically the most recognized symbol of Segovia. It was built at the end of 1st to early 2nd century BC by the Romans during their occupation of the Iberian Peninsula to bring water from ... read more

Wandering down Gran Via towards Puerta del Sol I noticed the most extraordinary of sites. Even the icy wind could not prevent hundreds of Madrileños queuing for tickets in one of the richest lotteries in the world. "El gordo" - the fat one. To call it a national obsession would be a pretty accurate statement. Apparently the prize pool is worth more than $1 billion and the jackpot is usually divided amongst thousands of winners. The lottery, broadcast live on TV started in 1812. I momentarily considered buying a ticket, however to wait in a queue as long as the street was not something I really wanted to do! Walking past the queue in the Gran Via I headed down to Puerta del Sol and the Spanish shopping institution El Corte Ingles to buy a small ... read more

Dinner tonight was with Paul and Mark at the Blueprint Café - a restaurant east of Tower Bridge, sitting above the Design Museum with great views of Tower Bridge and the city. The menu, whilst not extensive, was certainly an eclectic mix of ingredients and styles. With interesting entrees such as sardines on toast with a fried egg and haddock fish cakes with aioli we were expecting our taste buds to be tantalised this evening. I ordered the sardines, toast and egg and was not disappointed. An incredible blend of textures and flavours, the soft egg yolk with the grilled sardines was sublime. Mark and I both ordered the Fegato alla Veneziana - Venetian style liver, for the main dish. It was the most melt-in-your-mouth liver I had ever eaten. Paul ordered baked lamb with artichokes ... read more