09-03-2025 Walks

Had a decent enough sleep, waking up several times in the night but patching together about 6 hours or so of sleep (<>). We got up around 7:00, had breakfast in the Airbnb, and had time to chill before heading out to a scheduled tour of the Royal Palace at 10:15. We started over there around 9:20 and got there in about half an hour. Waited for a bit before they let us in (metal detectors), but we were still early for the day. The palace walk-through was interesting, saw a cool crown and scepter, some Stradivarius stringed instruments, and the throne room. Ann said the guided tour lasted over two hours, so I'm glad we didn't take that. We walked through at a casual pace and didn't pause too long along the way. Got out and walked around the plaza to see the forested area adjacent to the castle grounds. Then we paid 7 EU to go up to the top of the cathedral, which was worth it. The views were pretty good, but the cathedral itself wasn't so special. It was just recently consecrated, we think by Pope John Paul II. After that, we walked a long way to a not so great (for me) lunch at a restaurant in the Barrio de Las Letras. I was tired from the walking, so we decided to walk back to the Airbnb for an afternoon siesta. Stopped to get some milk and cookies, and here is probably where Ann's map got mixed up. We ended up walking all the way over to the Puerta del Sol plaza before she realized we weren't going to the right location. She turned us around, and we retracted our steps for about half of the way back to the flat. I was even more tired after that. Had a nap when we got back, then read some and chilled out for a while before we decided to walk to the Temple of Debod to view it in the evening. We stopped to eat ice cream for dinner on the way. Unfortunately, it was closed (summer hours) by the time we go there, although we did see some nice park areas by this building. Walked back, through Plaza de España on the return trip, stopping at a Uniqlo store on the way for Ann to buy a replacement sweater for the one she lost in the Toronto airport. Lots of people strolling along the Gran Via on a nice summer evening. Got back to the flat and did a load of wash before bedtime. You.see a fair amount of smokers here on the street. It is a typical west European city, with perhaps more plazas than others. Did a load of wash when we got back, and that was the evening.