25th Anniversary Trip to Spain

Used the metro to get to our hotel.  It was very easy to use and very quick.

Hotel Regente is just off of the Gran Via, but is very quiet.  Hotel let us check in early (10:00 AM).  Showered and went to the TI on the Plaza Mayor.  Had lunch of enchilada español(potato omelete).  I had a beer with lunch, which was a mistake, asI wasn´t able to stay awake during the hop on hop off bus trip around Madrid.  Lunch was at a place on the Plaza Mayor at a restaurant with a bull fighting theme that Rick Steves featured in one of his shows.

Took the bus tour, which was bad for a couple of reasons.  First, I couldn´t stay awake, second, the bus was really crowded, and third, some of the equipment didn´t work.  Friday had been a national holiday, so there were many (spanish) tourists in Madrid, causing long queues for the bus.  We had to wait about 15 minutes before we could get a seat on the upper deck of the bus to see the sights properly.  The live tourguide in London was much better than the recording in Madrid.

Came back to the room for a short nap.

Did part of a short walking tour from the DK guide book, but got lost.  On our way to the Plaza de la Villa, we found a really great tapas place called Meson del Champiñion, specializing, of course, in mushrooms.  They were excellent!  Also had fried pimientos.  Lisa had sangria that she really liked and bought a small jug, causing several jokes about jugs.  Plaza de la Villa is very nice in the early evening.