Christmas in Madrid

The time is just flying by here in Spain.  So many places to go and visit and historic places to take pictures of.  The lights at night have been a splendid reminder that it is indeed Christmas today!  Allow me to recap the last couple days for you.

The last couple days have been adventurous to say the least.  We have spent our time in various areas of Madrid.  Madrid is a massive city with many interesting little areas to investigate.  This time we were able to find the tourist center in the Plaza Mayor which  made our personal walking tour more efficient.   Having the kiddos with us on this historical tour has made our approach very different than the past adventures we have created for ourselves.  I distinctly recall various occasions where we would spend one day in a city and see all the major sites as we power walked through the popular districts.  We often took the quick picture and ventured off to the next site.  Now, we spend a tremendous amount of time getting from one place to another.  It has taken us 2 trips to the historical center to see half of what we want to see.  But, viewing the journey from the kids eyes has been fascinating.  We have seen things we may have missed because Princess wants to stop and pose for a picture.

The Plaza Mayor (the main plaza) is a popular place to hang out and enjoy tapas and drinks.  We expected that since we were heading there on Christmas Eve Day, that it would not be as busy, but we were very wrong about that!  There were people everywhere!  There were vendors shooting bubbles out of bubble guns in an effort to draw in the kids.  Sponge Bob, Santa and Smurfette were also in attendance at the Plaza.  People were walking around with funny hats and crazy wigs.  The tapas markets and bars were packed with people.  It truly was the place to be!  It was a little hectic for our liking however, so we ventured off to find alternative locations to entertain us.  We tried to wander through a tapas market, but it was so full of people it was difficult to walk through with the stroller.  The kids were getting tired so, we traveled back to the hotel.  It was time to get ready for church anyway.

Yes, even though we are on vacation, we still went to church.  We found an English Candlelight Service at a small church just a few kilometers from the hotel.  The people were friendly, there was Sunday School and their choir was great.  We sang out of hymn books, which I have not done in years, and the message was excellent.  (More on that in a post later today).  It was nice to be at church on Christmas Eve as that is part of our family tradition.  It would not have felt like Christmas without it.

This morning the kids gave Hubby and I the best Christmas present.  They slept past 8:30.  It is quite possible that they just thought it was still night time because the hotel room has black out blinds.  Once they woke up however, it was straight to the presents.  There was no real surprise for the kids as they were with us when we bought their presents.  Dimples was kind of oblivious still, but Princess knew exactly what was in each thoughtfully wrapped box.  Once Princess was decked out in her fairy costume, we decided to head back into the Old City to explore some more.

The weather could not have been better.  It felt like a beautiful fall day, leaves crunching under our feet, the sun beating down and warming the air around us.  With it being Christmas Day, many of the shops and restaurants, museums and other historical sites were closed, but we could still see the outside of them.  We wandered around, found some impressive cathedrals, monuments and fountains.  Today was the day of the fountain.  Pretty well everywhere we looked there was a fountain.  Princess really likes fountains so we had to stop at every one we found.  She was feeling particularly photogenic as well today, so we could not leave until she was done taking pictures.

The final place we visited today was Retiro Park.  It felt and looked exactly like Central Park in New York City.  There were people busking, artists painting, people selling things and puppet shows.  It was a nice place to be, and there were a lot of people walking, biking and running around.  We walked through the park, the kids played at the various playgrounds we located and overall had a great time!  We eventually headed back to the hotel as the kids were starting to fade...

When we originally planned this trip, we were having a tough time deciding whether we should stay in Barcelona or Madrid.  We are very happy that we decided to stay in Madrid.  There is so much to do here ranging from parks and shops to historic and modern areas. 

Super Busy Tapas Market in the Building!

Plaza Mayor

Princess and her fountains...

A candid moment of Hubby and Princess

Family picture with a pretty fancy fountain.

A rare moment where Dimples posed for a picture.

Playing in the park.

Dimples and Daddy checking out the sunglasses.

Princess driving daddy in the train.

Although I have not mentioned the shopping that we have done, it has been a great place to pick up some things that we cannot get in Egypt.  Since the voltage in Spain is the same as in Egypt, electronics have been high on our list of things to purchase here.  There are some very high end malls, and then there are some awesome Outlet Malls and of course I have mentioned Ikea.  So, our bags will be a little fuller when we return to Egypt, but, the kids will have some new clothes that fit well and mommy will have a few kitchen gadgets that she has missed greatly!