Barcelona & N. Spain Day 14

Day 14 - Monday, October 8, 2012 - Morning Flight to Madrid; Sightseeing in Madrid on our Own; Farewell Dinner

“The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain” said Eliza Doolittle, but she was wrong. We woke to another rainy day in Santiago but as we were flying to sunny Madrid today we did not have to spend anytime out in the weather.

We had the luggage out at 6:30 and then went down to a special breakfast the hotel arranged for early departures. We said thank you to Javier after he had finished loading the bags and we were off to the airport at 7:35.

Laura explained the process for getting our boarding passes and checking our luggage. After getting our seat assignments and finding the gate, it was not too long before they called the flight to Madrid.

The Airbus 320 was full and our group sat all together for the 75 minute flight. We gathered at the baggage claim and then met our driver Jose for the morning and boarded the bus for the hotel.

On the way into the city Laura pointed out a few of the notable highlights. The rooms were not ready when we arrived at 11:30 so we stored our bags and took off to reacquaint ourselves with this capital city.

When we were here in 2004 we went to the Plaza de Toros, did much more detailed sightseeing, and spent an afternoon at the Prado. So today we had a great lunch at Vips, walked through the streets and parks, talked with people, and took photos.

It was an absolutely beautiful fall day. Although it was warm, 81° and the humidity was only 19%, it was a perfect day for enjoying one of Europe’s more beautiful capital cities.

We walked back to the hotel at 4:30 and were able to check into our room. When we opened the door the smell of tobacco about knocked us over! Vic went down to see if we could change rooms and the porter took us to try a room on the fourth floor.

It was much cleaner and no odor of smoke. Many of the Spanish still smoke, over 35% by their national statistics. Laura told us that before the smoking ban in public buildings, the percentage was much higher.

We settled into our new room and looked at photos and wrote a short journal for the day. The only other planned activity for the day was a farewell dinner this evening.

Our dinner was nearby at Galopin Restaurant. Laura gathered everyone in the hotel lobby at 7:50 and we walked the few blocks together to find that it was open only for us.

We have a 6:30 wake up call as tomorrow we fly back to Atlanta and then to Denver, arriving home to Monument late in the evening.

Accommodations: Catalonia Gran Via - - - Meal: B, D

Please see our Trip Evaluation -- Click Here -- A Complete Review of Go Ahead Tours: Barcelona and Northern Spain

Loved reading about your Spanish trip. We may return there in 2013

I have enjoyed following you adventures! Have a safe trip home. Love, Dee

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