Another European Vacation

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Today we are off on a 45 minute train ride to the beautiful city of Madrid. Madrid is the capital and largest city in Spain with a population in the city of roughly 3.3 million and with a metro area population of almost 6.5 million. Madrid is best known for its great cultural and artistic heritage but also boasts some of the liveliest nightlife in the world. On arrival at the main train station in Madrid Allison and Patrick purchased train tickets to Malaga for the next day. Unfortunately tomorrow they will be leaving us as the following day they fly back to Canada. We have had a wonderful time traveling with the two of them and they will be missed.

After the train station we found a coffee spot in a pretty area where we enjoyed the view of the lovely architecture which is so abundant in the city. Then we headed off to see a statue Allison had heard was on loan to the city. After accomplishing that we headed for lunch and found a nice crepe shop. From there we wandered through the busy streets to Plaza Sol before reaching the popular Plaza Mayor. Plaza Mayor was named at the end of the Spanish Civil War and has been used for public execution, crowning ceremonies, bullfights, Inquisition trials and diverse fiestas.

Our last stop was the San Miguel Market which is more of a foodie place than a market. Here we enjoyed a sangria as we took in the fun and lively atmosphere of the place. The stalls offered a great collection of unique tapas, wines and beer. Patrick tried sea urchin tapa and a crabcake. We then slowly made our way back to the train station and our ride home. In the evening Allison and Patrick organized their backpacks for their departure tomorrow.

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