Madrid Continued...

So we got off the plane and it felt oh so good! It was so weird because it was so sunny! We had no idea how much we missed the sun until we got there... we felt like we were on vacation in 50 degree weather because it was so sunny compared to London. Very depressing but the complete truth. Anywho got thru customs and got into a cab to go to Zach's place. One smart thing I did was write down the exact address of Zach's place because we had no idea how to get there andddd didn't speak Spanish. I just handed him the piece of paper and we were on our way!! The cab ride was actually really entertaining. The guy was from Madrid,  born and raised. It was kind of like a game. Surprisingly, I was the one who talked to the driver and was translating for Meg and Lauren and then for the Spaniard. Meg has never taken spanish before and Lauren took it only one year in high school, so me and this guy bonded and made fun of them... at least I think we were making fun of them. haha. Well we got dropped off on a small, small side straight in the centro of Madrid. Zach's place was so nice!!! We had to get beeped in and then climbed marble stairs to his  apartment. There was a really nice kitchen, 4 bedrooms, a living room with a TV and a nice patio in the back. Every wall in the house was a different color too. It made it so European and fun! We dropped our stuff off and Meg, Lauren and I went to search for some food while Zach showered. We probably walked into 7 different restaurants and realizing it was not what we wanted. One place in particular we found a 50 euro on the ground and then booked it out of there!! We decided, instead of staying at Zach's, with 4 guys we were going to splurge and get a hotel room. The hotel room was 70 euros, so we each paid 7 euros in addition to the 50 we found. It was cheaper than getting a hostel and a block away from Zach's! Plus we had big comfy beds and a shower!! Things were looking up... after we checked into our hotel, Zach took us on journey around Madrid. First we went to this BEAUTIFUL palace and then to a cathedral right next door. It was nice because we didn't have to wear coats and it was so sunny!! (we probably said this 80 times haha). Then Zach took us to the "Plaza de Mayor" which is a really famous area in Madrid where there is entertainment and the cutest restaurants and shops. After we walked around there we took the Metro, which is like the underground subway to our hotel and took a 2 hour siesta. Literally, everyone in the city takes a siesta. People closed their stores down for a couple hours so they could go sleep. It was very odd, but well needed for the three of us.  After we napped, we went to dinner right by Zachs, which also was very entertaining because it was an authentic restaurant and the workers didn't speak an ounce of English and the three us were just the entertainment for the whole place... I was trying to go to the bano for insistence, and accidentally walked into the men's and when I realized this and walked out the entire restaurant laughed at me... haha. but anywho after that we went to a cute little bar down the street wear drinks were only 2.50. It was kind of like a hut and everyone was packed in really close together. We learned how much spanish men like blondes. We were standng talking in a group, and Meg and Lauren kept getting their hair tugged on my the spanish boys right behind them... they consider blondes a delicacy and nonstop say "rubio, rubio" whenever they see a blonde, which means "blonde blonde"! I found this pretty funny, probably because my hair wasn't getting tugged on. Anyways after we hung out there for a bit we went to El Kapital which was a club downtown that was 7 stories!!!! It was sooooo crazy. There were thousands of people there. Every floor was different too. There was a lounge one floor, a dance floor on another, entertainers on another, bars and just such a big, awesome place.  It was also entertaining because they played American songs, but in Spanish.  It ended up being a long night and we stayed there till 4am.... I guess that's normal for the people there. Zach said everyone stays out till 6 or 7am. We were being babies haha. That is probably why they take siestas everyday too. The next day we walked to El Parque de Independencia which was so big and beautiful. There were entertainers all around too and people selling things at stands. There also was a pond in the middle of it and a place where you could rent a boat and ride around the river. I wanted to do this but no one else did.... haah a lot of people were rollerbladding around or biking. I loved it. Then we stopped by el Museo Prudo which is famous art museum. Oh oh we stopped and got food and I ordered a banana smoothie and a oatmeal cookie... the lady thought I wanted the cookie in the smoothie so she blended the cookie into my smoothie. Haha she didn't speak English obviously. After walking around for 4 hours we headed back to the metro to go to the airport. Metro to the airport only ended up costing us 2 euros, which is unbelievably great!! No problems at the airport this time and our bus home ended up being there this time... it was a great day all around. I think we walked a total of 25 miles in 3 days and slept probably 6.. exaclty why Saturday night Meg, Lauren and I slept for 13 hrs. As much as it was such a disaster getting to Madrid, I am so happy we ended up going. I loved it and I loved how the city was so manageable and not as touristy as some places we have gone. Time for bed now. Buenos noches to all!