Day 1 in Retrospect

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Very disorienting day. We touched down in Madrid at 11:00 Madrid time, which is 2:00 am Kelowna time, without having slept. We got through customs, made the long walk to the airport metro station, bought metro tickets, and took the metro to the Plaza de España. According to the tourist bumf the Plaza de España “is one of Madrid's largest and most popular squares. On a sunny day it is filled with street vendors, tourists and sunbathing locals”. It's also ringed by metro exits. Our hotel is about 5 mins walk from the Plaza de España metro stop, if you exit on the correct side. We did not. After we circumnavigated the park and found our hotel it was about 12:30.Linda waited for the room to be ready while I went for a walk in Parque de la Montaña which, despite the name, is no more than a tiny hill. After check in we had a four hour siesta, then a walk to to Plaza de Sol area, stopping thrice for beer and snacks (it's hot). Did a little shopping in the el Corte Inglés supermercado for wine, rum, and cheese and then took the metro back to Plaza de España . Exited at a different exit which was even further from our hotel than the first time, and went back to the hotel. Collapsed before midnight, and awoke at 4:30 (me) and 6:30 (Linda). This cannot go on! We must get our bodies used to Madrid time.

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