K & L's Travel Blog

Madrid, 1/11/2024

Our first full day in Madrid was a treat! Rather than head down into the city center, we continued exploring our neighborhood (Chamberí) and environs. Part of the plan is keep moving and stay in the sun, so we headed for the nearby Western Park. The local news is lit up about the cold temperatures, and it does look as though they got a dumping of snow up in Catalonia. Here in Madrid, it was chilly (35) but warmed quickly as the sun rose.

As we made our way past Moncloa and into the park, the sun came out and warmed things up. The frost evaporated in misty drifts. We walked down an allée lined with ancient plane trees and through trails enclosed with pines and spruce. I’d read of how the final days of the Civil War’s assault on Madrid had taken place here, but it was still sobering to see the old fortifications in place. We made our way past a disappointing and largely abandoned bird observation center consisting of aging signs, a padlocked blind and a pitched tent. 

The birds themselves were great. We saw parakeets (Monks) and magpies, raptors, huge pigeons and unidentified others. No need for the bird blind as they seemed to make their way towards us. We worked our way across the park to the Edel Café. We shared a ham & cheese bocadillo and had a couple of coffees. Then it was back into the park past multiple monuments (including one to a slain trans woman) and into an adjacent neighborhood, Argüelles. We’d eyed a Japanese restaurant for lunch, but we were full from our sandwich. We thoroughly enjoyed wandering through the streets, and were both struck with how the neighborhood seemed to have maintained a lot of the traditional stores (hardware stores, food stores, local bars) that Barcelona has slowly lost through the years. 

We paused at a park near our apartment where Kitty enjoyed the dog park and I tried out my Spanish while peddling in place. We spotted an upcoming production of Que Fue con Jane & Blanche? and vowed to get tickets. We basically have the dialogue from the film memorized, so figured it was a good choice for our first time at a Spanish theater.

Back at the apartment I did photo work and K slept. Then about 5:00 we headed out down the street to the Sierra Bar where they served tapas Old Style, meaning you buy your drink and get your food free. Thus far in our multiple trips to Spain we had yet to get more than free olives or nuts with drinks. We were delighted to have two house vermouths, rice with seafood, bread with cheese & chorizo, and mini-empanadas all for €6.20 (about $7.40). I was only able to pull myself away with the promise of returning again soon—maybe tomorrow?