Spain Day 6 - Exploring Madrid With Cristina

Each day of our trip to Spain is more wonderful. Today was very special because we were able to explore Madrid with Cristina! We started our day early on the bus and the train to explore Cristina's hometown!



Our first stop was Estadio Santiago Bernabeau, the stadium of the famous Real Madrid football team, which is considered the best soccer club in the world. We toured the entire stadium, seeing it from the highest seats and from the players seats, exploring the locker rooms and the press rooms. It was an amazing experience for us all!







After our tour, we had lunch near the stadium, and had a great meal of pintxos (sandwiches).



After lunch, Cristina had to go to work. We headed downtown to explore as a family. We started at Plaza de Colon, an expansive square named after Christopher Columus. The square has the largest Spanish flag in the country and three monumental slabs designed to symbolize the ships that made the voyage to America in 1942.





We also went to Museo Arquelogico Nacional, which just recently reopened after a 3 year renovation. It is a beautiful museum with famous finds such as the Lady of Eiche, the ashes of the dead, and Roman mosaic floors. The kids got in trouble for climbing the statues outside!



We then headed back to Old Madrid to meet Trisha's friend Jose from UCLA. Before meeting Jose, we had a couple of adventures including trying Torrijas, which are slices of milk-soaked bread that have been fried and laced with cinnamon and sugar. They are only available right before Easter. We had our torrijas at the famous Mallorquina. Yummy!



We then went on a hunt to see the most famous guitar shop in all of Spain. Our hunt ended at the shop of Jose Ramirez, who has made guitars for Eric Clapton and many more.



We met Jose and his new puppy, Curra, near his home in the La Plaza de La Villa and went on a tapas and cervezas crawl, which included stops near the Palacio Real, Gran Via, and Chueca.



We then met up with Cristina's family. And they treated us to a special night of Flamenco at the famous Corral de la Moreria. The dancers, guitar players, and singers were amazing. The show didn't start until 10 pm. Canyon made it until the end (amazed at how many steps these dancers must get in) while Presley hung on til about midnight. A truly amazing experience. Cristina's mama (our Spanish grandma) took the kids home while we went late into the evening around Madrid. Wow!