Puerta del Sol

A full day in Madrid as I don't know if I'll ever be back this way again! (Though just in case I placed my foot at km zero, which is supposed to mean you will come back!).

A trip on the Metro with our guide Pau, and a walking tour of the city with interesting facts shared (including a dramatic telling of the Garrotte form of execution that happened in the Plaza Mayor as late as 1975) and a group picture at the place in Madrid that the Camino starts!

After eating the infamous churros and porras Pau recommended with chocolate, I broke away from the group and toured on my own for the rest of the day.

Jumped on the "Hop on Hop Off" bus and did the whole loop, before planning my stops.

First stop the Prado, an art museum with incredible works by such artists as Rembrandt, Ruben, Diego Velazquez, and their famed Francisco Goya, and his paintings of May 2nd and May 3rd. He was not my cup of tea, but this gallery (which appears to have been in existence since the 1800s) has the largest collection of his work.

My next stop was the Park (whose name I forget) with an ice cream and a nap on the grass in the shade to combat the 28 degree heat,

My third stop, was to the Plaza Esperanza, where I visited the market, but did not buy anything (though I did look closely at some gold hoops).

From there it was back to Plaza Mayor where I had hoped to recreate Keltie's picture, but didn't feel comfortable giving anyone my phone, so made due with a photo of my beer and olives (which I did eat) and a photo of the exterior.

Met members of the group at the Mercado Market for supper ( a lobster croissant, a chorizo sausage in pastry, a palmera for dessert and two glasses of rose), before heading on to our Flamenco show.

The Flamenco💃🕺 was lovely with incredible music and dance (and dodging sweat from the last performer!).

A bit of an adventure to find the Metro and fell into bed with over 20,000 steps! A good day!Les mer