Last Day in Madrid

It happened.

Our time in Madrid was coming to an end.  

The last day was a good one.  The kids were up earlier than usual and Alisa had helped get them ready for another run into Retiro.  We got out the door earlier than usual and the crisp autumn weather was more late summer than early fall.

We got back to the apartment and had a chance to talk a little more with JuaJo (pronounced "Wa-hoe" for Juan Jose), the maintenance man/door man/jack of all trades for the apartment building.

The boys really liked talking to JuaJo every day.  He and Joey had a routine with Joey practicing his basic Spanish every day.

Joey: "Como estas JuaJo?"

JuaJo: "Muy bien, y tu?"

Joey: "Muy bien!"

JuaJo: "Me allegro."  (That makes me happy.)

Sammy would chime in with "Gracias!" or "Conocias!" (we have no idea what that means) as they talked.

JuaJo would often give them lollipops and today was no exception!

Everyone took it easy that afternoon with a big afternoon planned.  

We met up with Alisa near Plaza de Cibeles around 5pm who had a very nice send off from ETSI.  Joey, also an intrepid novice photographer, took his small camera up to a bride who was being photographed in her wedding dress, and snapped a few shots while we waited. The bride seemed very entertained.

We'll have a post soon unveiling Joey's blossoming portfolio.

We walked up to Puerto del Sol and Plaza Mayor in the afternoon sunlight.  The Puerto was  as active as always.

We went for a slow amble through the main pedestrian walkways.  Lanna was insistent about doing some walking on her own, which allowed us all to really enjoy the scenery since she was slower than molasses on a cold day (the role usually reserved for Sammy who seemed quite spritely in comparison).

We made our way back to Plaza Mayor and had a nice dinner while enjoying the spectacle of the plaza.  It was wonderful to think about briefly being a part of the history of the Plaza. 

We met a group of four from Lyon, France and Alisa had a chance to dust off her French!  They were charmed by Lanna and the boys (who had done exceptionally well this entire meal!).

After the meal, the boys introduced themselves to Spiderman Gordo (which interaction deserved its own post).

We took some last pictures on the Plaza before heading out.

As the sun set over the Plaza, we walked out and enjoyed the view of the last rays of the day hitting a tower outside of the Plaza.

Walking back, we luckily found a lively pathway that I had never known about before.  It's a nice walk through a very lively area, packed with restaurants and, to the boys delight, ice cream and popsicle stores.  This area is also called Barrio de Las Letras as in the 17th century, some of the most notable Spanish authors lived there.

It was pleasant to think about Cervantes strolling through this same area 400 years ago and to hope he had the same pleasant combination of invigorating music, the aromas of spiced meat while surrounded by many others enjoying the same atmosphere.

Between the buildings, the thread of the blue sky was slowing turning pink.

The walk back was beautiful and pleasant.  We had a chance to see many of the monuments at night, seeming more impressive in the dark than during the day such as the Puerto de Alcala.

When the kids were finally in bed, I went back to our terrace one last time.

It was so pleasant to feel the warm breeze while listening to the echoing sounds of people talking, the clinking of silverware, and being able to smell the restaurants 6 floors down creating dishes.  It never mattered the night, it was always like this here.  

I looked out and saw the giant Spanish flag lazily waving in the Plaza de Colon with Joey's favorite building behind it, the Torres de Colon.

I waved back and went back inside.  It was time for bed before a busy day to pack up and head out to Barcelona.

Meeting the Legend

We did not realize it, but we had only brushed with greatness during our prior visits to Plaza Mayor.

On our last full day in Madrid, we found ourselves in Plaza Mayor again, savoring the sensory overload of this historic square.  And on this last full day, the boys would meet greatness.

While we were having dinner, I thought I saw a flash of blue and red, a patroller of the square, keeping its citizens safe.

I had to look again to be sure.

Yes!  It was who I thought it was.  And I felt safer immediately.

It was Spiderman Gordo.

For at least 4 years he has been a force in Plaza Mayor assisting its visitors and citizens every day.  A short documentary captures his commitment:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucf1Tz4lljQ

Joey and Sammy tentatively approached him with a small token of their awe and appreciation.  They were rewarded with personalized crime fighting lessons!

Lesson 1:  The Ready Position

Lesson 2:  Balance is key

Lesson 3:  Flying in the air

Lesson 4:  How to collar criminals

Before he left them the most important lesson of all, he gave them his calling card should they ever need him.

Above all, the boys learned the importance of maintaining good personal health and flexibility to help them succeed. Joey appears to be an apt pupil while Sammy is still in too much awe to be ready for this great power and great responsibility.

A Farewell to Retiro

Parting is such sweet sorrow.  

In the days leading up to leaving Madrid, the nostalgia built up for me.  If we were to spend the entire time in Madrid, I would have been happy. 

However, we had some other exciting adventures coming up, so I would have to bid my farewell to Retiro.

The kids and I had two fantastic days strolling through all parts of the Park.  They discovered playgrounds we had never known and continued to enjoy them, especially in these quiet fall days when everything was virtually empty.

There's a beauty and serenity there which is so special and I tried to explore and drink in all I could.

We went to some of the more wooded areas off the main paths and enjoyed the scattered benches in the dappled sunlight enjoying a snack.

We went back to the Crystal Palace (which I completely failed to mention in my prior post singing Retiro's praises).

Joey found a sprinkler and ran through it several times, coming back with dewy hair and a wet shirt.  Despite his sodden shirt, he continued to run joyfully around.

Sammy communed with the weeping willow.

And the kids went on the slide one last time.

The morning excitement proved to be too much for Lanna, who passed out shortly before our farewell lunch. 

As we slowly strolled out of Retiro, there was a lively quartet playing a rousing song I didn't identify, but it reverberated across the lake and followed us all the way to the underpass we had used so many times before to get back home.

It was a fine send off for our beautiful final days in Retiro.

Return of the Double Decker Bus!

The weekend, as noted by Alisa earlier, had been off to a pretty terrible start.

Fortunately the boys felt much better the following morning (aside from Joey testing his stomach out with some water and a bite of banana which his stomach promptly ejected onto the living room floor).  He pulled through quickly as they had a restful morning reading.

As the boys and I recuperated through the weekend, Alisa was the last woman standing. On Saturday night she, too, succumbed to General Franco's revenge.

Sunday was a better day and the kids and I were able to get out to enjoy another beautifully sunny day in Retiro Park.  We also had a chance to catch a puppet show!

And so, on Monday morning, they were ready to return TO THE DOUBLE DECKER BUS!

Having a full day under our belt, we were seasoned pros, walking to the stop at the top of our street and jumping on.  

We joined a few crew of ardent double decker bus fans and were relegated to the bottom level for the beginning of the ride.  

We decided to go to the Temple de Debod first.  Egypt had been so grateful for Spain's role in preserving the Egyptian temples in Abu Simbel they had this temple deconstructed, transported, and rebuilt in Madrid.

The boys liked it because it was surrounded by water and had a long pathway you could run on.  When they posed for this picture, they were Egyptian liones, guarding the gates of the temple.

We also had a chance to walk in the shade, watch a model shoot, and enjoy views of the Royal Palace through the trees.

Then we hopped back on the bus, crammed back in the bottom level.  Fortunately literally everyone on the bus wanted to see the Royal Palace and exited.  We ascended to the top and enjoyed the crisp air and great views!

The next planned stop was the Atocha Train Station, Madrid's equivalent to Philadelphia's 30th Street Station (where, as far as we know, no Amish boy witnessed a gruesome murder and had to be protected by Harrison Ford):  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090329/

We had to walk a bit to get to the Atocha Station.  We did enjoy a Museum (a Museum that I'm sure is the only one on Earth that Alisa's mother would not go to):

And then we had a chance to enjoy the view of Atocha and the Agricultural Center which surround the Rondo de Atocha.

Inside we wandered around looking for trains.  We did eventually see them after going through a gigantic greenhouse wing, filled with verdant plants and turtles.

It's hard to tell if there were more plants than turtles there but it was close.

Turtles without full sunlight:

Turtles with full sunlight:

Sammy really enjoyed seeing so many turtles.

All the kids enjoyed having some palmeras (one chocolate covered) as we rested after exploring the Atocha Station in the balmy greenhouse area.

They were a bit of a mess afterwards but that's to be expected.

Lanna did some walking and the boys did some running and we all were jazzed for a return to the apartment.

After a well deserved rest, we had a plan to catch ROUTE 2 and meet Alisa up north.  

The plan was largely successful and we enjoyed the top again! (Lanna enjoyed the headphones but was stopped before actually swallowing them).

We were reunited with Alisa at ETSI and they eagerly told her about their day.

We enjoyed an early dinner and then Alisa, Joey, and Sammy rode the bus one final time as Lanna and I hoofed it back to the apartment.

I reveled in only having one kid who was firmly strapped to my chest, allowing me to walk at a normal pace.  We enjoyed the view down the main avenue Recoletos and stopped to enjoy some views, like Plaza de Colon.

Despite all the stops to enjoy the walk, knowing this would be the last time I'd see this part of Madrid, we still beat Alisa and the boys back to their bus stop.

And here they are, leaving the DOUBLE DECKER BUS!

Another amazing day on the DOUBLE DECKER BUS.  

General Franco's Revenge

It started off as such a nice idea for a Wednesday. I suggested to Jay that he and the kids meet me for lunch at a nice Italian restaurant that a colleague had recommended. We agree to meet at 2, a typical Spanish lunch time. I arrived first, and although the weather looked somewhat ominous, it wasn't raining yet.

A few minutes later Jay and the kids arrive, with Lanna sleeping peacefully in the stroller. Unfortunately, the restaurant was down in the cellar. So I took Lanna out of the stroller and carried her downstairs as she was waking up. Fatal mistake 1.

The waitress showed us to a nice table, and just as I was sitting down, Lanna threw up all over me. Well, mostly on my shirt and on her shirt, but it was enough. I was too shocked too do anything more than hold her away from me as she threw up again. Apparently she had had milk and grapes prior to coming to the restaurant.

If I had been the waitress, I would have swiftly showed our family the door. But this woman was incredibly kind. She brought extra napkins, both to the table and to the women's bathroom as I tried to clean us both up. She even entertained Lanna while I tried to figure out what to do with my shirt. I wiped it off, but the smell was still overpowering. I had a full spare change of clothes for Lanna in the diaper bag, but alas I was left with trying to form a shirt-like structure out of a cardigan.

It was rough, but something that becomes a funny memory and a good story. But then it got worse.

Friday afternoon, we went with my colleague Andres and his family to the Madrid zoo. The attractions were elephants (including a baby) and pandas, neither of which we have in Philadelphia. We also don't have a raccoon in the zoo, although they do patrol our neighborhood after dark. Anyway, the afternoon was lovely except that Sammy started complaining that his stomach hurt. I wasn't too worried, even though he refused a generous popcorn offer from Andres' daughter, because Joey's general "I'm tired" statement is always that his stomach hurts. In fact, he sometimes informs us that his stomach has been hurting since January.

After the zoo, we drove back home and Jay put Sammy right to bed. Jay himself went right to bed, since he also said he was not feeling well. I fed Joey dinner (Fatal Mistake 2) and put him and Lanna to bed. I then sat down to do some work. 

Around 11:30 PM, I heard Sammy crying and went in to see him. After a few minutes of comforting, he threw up partly on his bed and partly on himself and partly on the floor (but not on me!). It was a rough hour or so, with trying to clean everything up while trying to prevent Sammy from becoming hysterical. But he only threw up one more time and then Jay was feeling well enough to bring Sammy into our bed (near the edge) and rest. 

As we left the room, I looked over at Joey and said, "Thank goodness he is okay." I barely made it back into our bedroom when I heard Joey crying that he threw up. And since he ate dinner, his was a doozy. It tested the limits of our tiny washing machine. Poor Joey really got the worst of it. I slept next to him and he did an amazing job of getting the results of all the other episodes into a bucket. 

I spent the next day in fear, as no illness has ever left me untouched. By evening I was still feeling fine. By 2 AM, not so much. Although it was no fun, I was grateful that at least we weren't all sick at the same time. That would have been impossible.

Hopefully that's the worst illness to hit us this trip! We've seen a few scraped knees and bonked heads, but our only other major injury so far was earlier in the week when Joey fell out of bed and go a black eye. We're not sure how he did it... but since then we moved his mattress to the floor. 

DOUBLE DECKER BUS DAY!!!

Long before coming to Europe, the boys knew of the legendary DOUBLE DECKER BUS.  They has enviously looked at pictures their mother had taken of them while she was in London.  Once landed in Europe, they have been rather pre-occupied with double decker busses.  

Finally, their day on the double deck bus had arrived.

Both greeted the day with enthusiasm.  When asked where they wanted to sit, they were both quick to reply.

“On the top level!” exclaimed Joey.

“On the bottom level!” shouted Sammy.

Having siblings is always a great introduction to compromise.

On the way to the bus stop, they witnessed a brief military parade march through Plaza de Colon.  Were they impressed?  No, they had a DOUBLE DECKER BUS to ride!

Once the tickets were obtained, we dutifully waited at the station.  The boys scanned up the busy road, looking for a double decker bus.  They entertained themselves with a few cement mixers and local busses.

And then, its red paint glistening in the mid-morning sun, came the DOUBLE DECKER BUS.

We had agreed to start on the top level and so we found two seats, cramming the boys into one and Lanna and I in the other.  

Then the bus started to move.

For those of you who are parents, you can appreciate that moment when your child’s eyes light up, filled with joy and wonderment.  

This was one of those moments.

It was fantastic.

Lanna and I had some fun too.  

The bus did provide excellent views as it rumbled past Plaza de Colon and shortly after that, Plaza de Cibeles.  It took us down Gran Via and provided a nice site for me, full of memories the last time I was in Spain, back in 2000 with my family.

The boys were delighted.  They were also fascinated by the fact we were given headphones and they could listen to 16 different languages!  

It was a relaxing and entertaining ride with the goal to stop at Plaza Mayor.

We exited without too much trouble and then walked into the Plaza.  It was beautiful as always and teeming with activity.

There were also a handful of characters there, such as Fat Spiderman (please note his Fat Spiderman sidekick) and THE GUY WITH NO HEAD!

Sammy was less than enthusiastic about meeting someone without a head, so he hung back while Joey posed in front of the Casa de la Panaderia in the Plaza.  And as Joey was posing for his photograph, he appeared to be in some telepathic symbiosis with THE GUY WITH NO HEAD (which is pretty impressive or pretty sad, depending on how you look at it) and they posed independently but similarly.

Sammy was eventually coaxed over to join in the picture, but you can tell he doesn’t trust THE GUY WITH NO HEAD.

Fortunately the GUY WITH NO HEAD rambled off on his own and we could get a few other pictures to capture the Plaza with all of us.

After that we sat down for a nice Spanish lunch and the kids did very well.  It got a bit dicey towards the end but nothing some churros couldn’t fix.

The menu was pretty intriguing, but in the end none of us wanted any coffee with scum or a pitcher of bleeding.

With the sustaining lunch powering us on, we walked to Puerto Del Sol and awaited the return of the double decker bus.  

This time we did ride on the first level and Sammy seemed pretty pleased, however, not as pleased as Joey who still was exploring all the language options.  Sammy was likely making sure everyone around him had the appropriate number of heads.

The bus had a stop near the apartment and we came back to let Lanna get some sleep (she had passed out after the churros).

However, the day of the DOUBLE DECKER BUS was not over!  This had a second route and we were excited to take this second route in the afternoon.

We made the walk back to Plaza de Colon and awaited the return of the bus.  It didn’t take long and we went again topside.  Lanna was invigorated and tried her hand at navigation.

We went to the north and by the Santiago Bernabeu Soccer stadium, home turf for Real Madrid and can hold over 80,000 of their fans.

As the bus was less crowded on this leg, the boys were able to get their own seats.  They promptly began giving their own tours.  (This was on video and can be made available if you’d like to see this.  Joey, per usual, is incredibly verbose.  Sammy, per usual, is pretty unintelligible saying “Conicias” on multiple occasions).

This route was shorter than the first and we soon found ourselves back at the apartment.

It was an epic day and the boys were pretty elated to finally have the chance to ride the DOUBLE DECKER BUS.