Day 1 and 2 - Madrid

Monday started early with breakfast at the Cracker Barrel off Green Mount Road.  Rosalie followed us up, as she was still here from Mother's Day, and after we ate we drove to her house where we left the car (pretty nice!). We got to the airport 2 hours early, but that was no problem as we took our time and we were in no rush.

Ok, before I get to the story at airport security, I have to back up to this morning about 8am.  Spain has been forecasted to be REALLY hot, so I knew we'd be pretty sweaty and with all the walking it can get a bit miserable. So I was googling how to stay comfortable and people were recommending a powder called Anti Monkey Butt.  Well, we were laughing at the name and I had seen it before, so Guy googled it and it could be found at Walmart. He said he'd make the run for it in the morning. So sure enough, as I was getting ready, he headed out for the purchase. Ok, ladies, we all know that we have to buy more embarrassing stuff than men and they are not used to it like we are. So of course he couldn't find it and not one but TWO young girls asked him if he needed help. He said "I'm kind of embarrassed to say the name, but I'm looking for Monkey Butt".  The girls said sure! For kids or adults?  He said "Kids...no just kidding - adults". So he comes home telling me the story and he was obviously mortified.  -- So now back to the STL airport security gate. As his bag goes through the xray it gets pulled for review. The officer asked Guy if it was his bag and he said yes. So he followed the officer over as he opened it to discover his bottle of Monkey Butt had been the culprit. So not only does the officer say "It's your Monkey Butt that is the issue", he says it 10 times! The TSA guy told me he wasn't going to confiscate Guy's Monkey Butt and he is just laughing and saying it over and over. Again Guy is mortified. I thought it was hilarious!

The flight to Philly was uneventful and we had about 50 minutes to take the bus to terminal A and get a bite to eat. We grabbed a slice of pizza and scarfed it down as they were calling for boarding. About 5 minutes later they told everyone to take a seat because the plane had a mysterious odor that they couldn't identify. Yeah, let's just start weirding me out before I even get on the plane! So in about 15 minutes they asked us to go to another gate because they were putting us on another plane.  GOOD! We were supposed to leave at 6:30, but it was about 8:15 before we boarded. Really this is good for us.  We needed to sleep, but the later we took off the better chance of getting some rest (for Guy). Knowing the flight was less than we were used to, I went ahead and took my Xanax in the airport so I wouldn't be too sleepy when we got to Madrid. By the time we got on the plane and I got buckled in, I was already having trouble keeping my eyes open. So I immediately blew up my pillows, put in my ear plugs and got ready for the night. For those of you who didn't read my Tuscany blog from last year, you can't appreciate the pillow story, but I had read this fabulous recommendation from a traveler who bought cheap beach balls and blew them up and stuck them inside a pillow case. I put one against the window and the other one toward Guy. I stick my head in the middle and viola! my head is snuggled in and doesn't move. Plus Guy can use the one on his side for a pillow. Last year the flight steward died laughing as I was blowing them up because he said I looked like Dolly Parton. ;-). He said he was going to take a picture of me, but I don't know if he did or not. So this year, I was fast asleep within 15 minutes of take off. However, when Guy woke me for breakfast and the stewardess came by, she did tell me she was quite intrigued by my system and was going to do it next time she flew. I said, "Yep, just cheap beach balls". She said "Like at the Dollar Store?"  Yes ma'am - cheap and FABULOUS!

From the Madrid airport we caught a cab into the city. Not really knowing what to expect, I was a bit surprised it was just very big city-ish. Our hotel is nicely located central to most of the tourist sites. When we checked in (about 11:30am) luckily our room was ready. The hotel just celebrated its 100th birthday, so it is quite grand and lovely. The hallways and rooms are generous in size but the elevators are like cracker boxes. We are on the 2nd floor! SCORE! So I'll not be visiting one of those claustrophobia traps. -  So a doctor once told me to help with jet lag do NOT take a nap, but push through the day and get a good nights sleep that night. Well, that just doesn't work for us, so we took a nap (4 hours) and then went out to explore the city. We got a bite to eat at a bakery and sat at a beautiful fountain to enjoy the sun and smells. We strolled up and down the streets and did some window shopping. I have my eye on a necklace, but it is a close walk from the hotel. I can't make a purchase on the first day!! So after trying to get ourselves oriented with the map, we headed back to the hotel for another short nap (only 2 hours this time). Guy woke me at 8:30pm for dinner and he had found a restaurant close by on Trip Advisor that was a short walk from the hotel. We stopped by the concierge for better directions and she said it was a great choice but without reservations we probably couldn't get in. So we had a backup plan and would at least make reservations for tomorrow night. The name of the restaurant was Gastromaquia Taberna De Tapas. We found it pretty easily and when we walked by it was a hole in the wall on a somewhat sketchy street. There were only 4 people inside and we thought we must be at the wrong spot. But the owner was at the door and saw our instructions from the hotel and said we were at the right spot!  Lucky for us it is a week night which is slower and a big festival starts tomorrow, which will make the city crazy (hmmmmm).

So now for the review...it was amazing! The menu was in Spanish only, but the owner (Hugo) translated it all to us. He was so nice and was quite the talker. All the tapas were meant to be shared, so we ordered guacamole with plantain chips, goat cheese with honey and basil, asparagus with balsamic reduction and cheese, then our protein was pork kabobs. Not just any pig he said, but "locally raised black pigs that feed off of acorns and sleep in a barn". How could you say no to that? For dessert he gave us no choice, but brought out a frozen mojito with rum on top. He said it was good for the digestion. It was pretty yummy and refreshing. We were stuffed. We had quite the conversation with Hugo and he told us about the tough economic times the young Spaniards were having. He was lucky his business was successful, but they are now only open for dinner since all the architects and other building companies were fading away, as did his once thriving lunch business. He asked us how we found out about them and we told him Trip Advisor online. He said Trip Advisor is the reason they were still in business. Interesting.

So back to the hotel we walked briskly because the air was cool and there was a bit of a breeze. I stopped for a few photos ops and came back to start the blog. If I've forgotten something I'll add it tomorrow, but day 1 and 2 just kinda blur together. We are 7 hours ahead and with all my naps today I'm frighteningly wide awake at midnight. So after a hot shower I may have to medically induce sleep. Hopefully tomorrow we will start to get on track. Again it is supposed to be a beautiful day and we are going to take a city tour! And as usual, I've uploaded a few pictures to Picasa, but for some reason the link doesn't show up in my blog feel option list until several hours later. I'll try again after my long hot shower and see if they appear. If not I'll attach them first thing in the morning. (Update: looks like they loaded. Someone shoot me an email if you can't see them)

 Thanks again for all your prayers for safe travels. Love you all!