Thursday, August 31, 2023

Last night we went to bed at 8pm but I woke up at 1:30am. After a trip to the bathroom, I couldn’t fall back asleep. I’m sure I was still awake at 2:30 or 3am. Teresa woke me up at 7am.

We left the hotel room by 8:30 and meandered our way (I really need practice with Google Maps) to Chocolateria San Ginés for Spain’s traditional breakfast of churros with hot chocolate. They are open 24 hours.

The Chocolatería San Ginés is a café at Pasadizo de San Ginés, 5, in central Madrid, in a passageway close to San Ginés church, west of the Puerta del Sol. It has served principally chocolate con churros (hot chocolate and churros) since 1894. Coffee and cakes are also available.

The interior is decorated with mirrors and green wood panels, with green velvet seats and marble tables. The hot chocolate is served in Spanish style - thick, dark and strong - and the churros - deep fried batter, similar to a light, crispy, linear doughnut, cut to length by the staff - are served hot and freshly cooked, ready for dunking.

We walked a couple blocks away where Teresa found a dress she liked in a store called La Provenza. Supposedly they were closing after today so this dress was on sale for 29.9 Euros. Teresa didn’t want to carry it with her so she asked the lady to hold it for her.

We walked several blocks (probably like a drunken sailor) to Museo de Prado.

Across the street we stopped at a chocolate store called Vicens where Teresa bought some sugar free “chocolate” covered nuts.

I informed Teresa that Museo de Prado is one of the best art museums in the world. I got a senior discount and I also paid for a museum guide to be picked up at their gift shop. There are 3 main floors, numbered 0-2, go figure! We spent quite a bit of time on floor #2, the smallest of the 3 giving ourselves less time to visit the other floors. For lunch we each had a sandwich and a drink in their cafeteria.

I picked up my guide book, it was huge and heavy

and we walked back to La Provenza where Teresa got her dress. We returned to Dixie Bar where Teresa had their baked chicken again. I wasn’t hungry so I just had a Coke. Teresa said she was tired and I asked her how she could be tired when it’s only 10am in Colombia. 😊

We walked back to the hostel; legs getting pretty tired. 

This is Teresa at a bus stop on our way back from Prado to the hotel.

This photo is outside the museum entrance.

 She tried on the dress again, this time in heels, and walked to the lobby and when she returned she said it was too warm so she’ll gift it to her mother. 😊

We went around the corner to another restaurant where I had a decent skirt steak.

In the evening we walked around Plaza Mayor 

and found an interesting small market place a block away on the other side.

In the plaza there were guys selling these toys that you shoot up in the sky by rubber band and it floats back down like a helicopter. They were 4 for 10€ (Euros) but in the end we decided we had no one of the correct age to gift them too.

We were in bed by 9pm.

 

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