A walk through Madrid

Plaza Mayor

Egyptian Temple

Group at Plaza Mayor

Yesterday we  went on a tour of historic Madrid. It was so exciting for me because I have been learning about this stuff since freshman year of high school and I finally saw it in person. First we met with our tour guide at La Plaza del Sol which is what they also call el kilometro cero (the zero kilometer mark) because it is the exact center of Spain. From there, we walked around and saw the house where La Plaza Mayor, an interesting monastery, the oldest bar in the world, the Royal Palace, and so much more. La Plaza Mayor is a huge court that was once a place where they held bull fights for the king and public executions of criminals. Today people walk through, there are some shops and cafes where people can eat and drink. The monastery is really interesting because the nuns have taken a vow to never see anyone or be seen so they stay there and raise money by making amazing dulces (sweets) and you press the doorbell and say "quiro dulces"...they let you in and the nuns are behind this window that you can't see through.. you drop your money and they give you these famous dulces they make.

I have to go to the "oldest bar in the world" in the world again too! It's called Botín and it closes down on Thanksgiving day every year and serves Thanksgiving dinner! Not exactly my tradition but close enough and I'm excited to see what it's like.

Today we saw an Egyptian temple. Didn't really get the story behind it but it was definitely interesting to see. Tomorrow we are going to check out the market, like a flea market.
More exciting stories to come! Hasta Luego!