Spain Snippets: Hola Madrid!

The last 3 days, we spent in Madrid. Welcomed to a slightly colder weather compared to Barcelona, Madrid still had the same charm as Barcelona. It was more of a historic and traditional city as compared to Barcelona was my feeling. The evening we arrived, we took to heels to visit the Temple De Debod before sunset. It was a beautiful sight to witness this Egyptian temple. Post that we went to a local store to grab coffee and later in the evening went to Himalaya - An Indo Pakistani restaurant for dinner. Walked through the streets of Opera and Principe Pio and off to bed in our nice little apartment.

The following morning, we visited the Madrid Real palace and very many cathedrals. From there, I was off to Opera to meet my colleague from IBM, Sofia. It was so good to see Sofia. We have only worked virtually and interacted over phone but have never met in person. It was wonderful to meet Sofia. Sofia's sister also accompanied us and it was very nice talking to her as well. Both of them took me on a nice tour of the city, explaining the significance of each structure, monument, area and we I covered a lot of ground. Thanks to them. Post the walk, we stopped by at La Caluta and I was treated for a delicious Spanish lunch by Sofia. Sofia's brother-in-law who is a Psychologist at the University of Valencia also joined us for lunch. I must say, I had a great time meeting them and was really pleased by their hospitality.

Post that I did quite some shopping in some stores suggested by Sofia's sister and headed back home strolling through Gran Via, Sol and Opera. Later that evening, we decided to catch up with Clara, who was also in Madrid for dinner. Super fun evening ended with eating hot Churros at Opera by the night.

Next morning, myself and Shiksha set out on a walking tour to cover Metropolis, Retiro and the main Madrid Sol Centre. From there we headed to Plaza Mayor to meet Christina, who was also in Madrid for lunch. After a good lunch and some nice chat, myself, Irene and Shiksha explore more areas and neighborhoods on foot. Back home at 3ish, we vacated the apartment and were soon on the metro to the Barajas Airport, for a flight back to Manchester. Though it was a short stay in Madrid, we did quite a bit there. Spain was amazing. Though we couldn't cover Valencia, Costa Brava and Toledo as planned. But that's an excuse for us to get back in Spain again, may be in 2026 (Shiksha? :) I had an amazing time writing these posts, felt very nostalgic and it was like a quick recap of my Europe trip!