Sunday, April 5

Waking up after 11am the next morning, we forced our lazy bodies out of the hotel in time to walk up the street to Gran Via to a café, undoubtedly named by a few less than clever individuals. Here, at Café y Te, we enjoyed croissants and jam, smoothies, and who would have guessed, but café and te (tea). Sitting outside on the broad sidewalk of Gran Via, we welcomed the clear, sunny day ahead of us.

After “breakfast,” we made our way past the Plaza to the infamous Madrid Rastro. This is a HUGE open flea market that offers everything from leather purses to sunglasses to paintings and clothes to shoes and soccer scarves. We fell in love immediately, stopping only for lunch at 2:45pm.

I was anxious for Mom and Bekah to have their first Menu del Dia experience, as it’s a crucial part of Spanish culture to take advantage of. Just when Bekah had reached her cranky peak and suggested we give up and go for bocadillos, we spotted a perfect little café, once again, right outside the Plaza. The waiter led us downstairs into what looked like a low-lit cobblestone cave. For 14 euros each, we got an incredible green bean and shrimp salad, grilled chicken and French fries, sangria, bread and coffee. Not bad.

Rebekah was adamant about completing her Spanish siesta meal with a nap. Mom and I walked her back to the hotel and headed back out to try and tour El Palacio Real. Seeing as it had already closed, we headed next door to look around the cathedral. We had barely been there 5 minutes before the wave of exhaustion hit and we made the executive decision to head back to the hotel and join Bekah’s siesta.

Feeling fresh and alive once again, we wandered down Gran Via in search of a suitable place for dinner. We stopped at an outdoor café called Zahara where we got egg sandwiches and burgers. While mom and Bekah daintily sipped on their glasses of white wine, my sandwich came with a free huge liter of beer. Nothing like a huge beer to go with your eggs, right? After dinner, we walked down all the way to the end of Gran Via where it joins with Calle de Alcala and took this all the way to Puerta de Alcala. In many ways, Madrid had a feel much like New York, but for its broad streets and consistently older architecture. Strolling comfortable in the cool evening air, everything looked so beautiful all lit up at night. Mom had already found her favorite street in Spain.