Madrid

I was reluctant to go back to Spain after my previous trip 18 months ago when I visited Pamplona, Zaragoza, and Barcelona. The only thing I enjoyed was the food in Barcelona, nothing else. The endless apartment blocks, dirty streets, and general lack of interesting places to visit made me think I would never return to Spain.

However, lured by a cheap flight, I made my way to Madrid last weekend, giving the country one last chance to impress me. Thankfully, Madrid was nothing like Barcelona, it is architecturally beautiful, there are many great parks worth visiting, the food was generally good, cheap drinks were in abundance, and I had a great time.

The first night was a bit of a disaster as we arrived at the hotel after 1am. We went out to experience Madrid's famous night life but the smokey bars and drunk people everywhere meant we didn't stay out long.

Saturday started with a bus tour to see the major sights and get an idea of what the city has to offer. The Prado Museum, Gran Via, Royal Palace, and the many beautiful plazas were amazing.

Lunch consisted of bar hopping where we enjoyed various tapas and cheap Rioja wine. Patatas bravas, croquetas, and tortillas are popular and my favourites. I'm not much of a drinker but who can turn down a glass of wine for 1.50 euros or at the most 3 euros. I think I was drunk the entire 48 hours I was in the country!

I then had the most delicious cake of my life at an unbelievably popular cake shop at metro Sol. It was so light and creamy. Who knew the Spanish could make cakes 100 times better than the French?

An afternoon siesta was followed by more, you guessed it, tapas and Rioja, with the odd glass of Sangria thrown in for good measure. I don't really like Sangria (does anyone) but hey, when in Rome...

Sunday saw me head back to the famous cake shop for an incredibly delicious chocolate croissant type thing. I briefly considered moving to Madrid based solely on the presence of this shop but I know that would seriously hinder any attempt I might have at losing a few kilos, so moving to Madrid is out of the question.

More sightseeing and a little shopping was followed by more eating and drinking. Lunch included a little paella and an incredible egg and potato dish, which is a local speciality. It's surprising I can even remember what I ate as it was washed down with an entire bottle of wine, shared with my husband, of course, and then a shot of some kind of liquor. How I managed to catch my plane after all that, I'll never know.