We took losing track of time to a whole new level during a short stay in Madrid. We could have been in a pretty hairy situation due to a silly mistake, but we acted and made the best of what options we had available. Things don't always go to plan especially on extended vacations and trips, and you just have to be able to be flexible and accepting to get through it. Day 1We flew in from Barcelona rather than taking the train, like we had in Italy, since the train was double the cost of a flight. This isn't always the case, but checking all forms of transportation can be a great way to save some money. Flights aren't always the expensive option; this flight from Barcelona to Madrid was only $53 and didn't require an additional bus or shuttle to get to our hostel. We simply got on the metro and were within walking distance of our hostel in no time. We had a bit of trouble locating our hostel, as there was another hostel with a similar enough name that our nav system mixed them up. We did eventually end up in the right place, Barbieri Sol Hostel, for $14 a night. Everything was bright and simple. We weren't at the hostel very often during the day, but we did make use of the completely empty and colorful terrace for lunch at one point. Our first day wasn't too exciting, and for the most part was simply getting our bearings straight and wandering around our immediate neighborhood, before venturing out towards Calle Grand Via. This street was pretty packed with people, restaurants, and shops. As we weren't really trying to shop, with literally no extra space for new clothes, we started looking at the restaurants all around us instead. Being on a budget, tapas became our preferred meal solution throughout our stay in Madrid. Who wants a full entree, when you can have 1€ to 3€ mini meals, with chorizo and brie? And tapas offerings were just about everywhere you looked. Txapela probably wasn't the most local, or authentic tapas joint around, but I've gotta say having a picture menu was incredibly helpful and convenient for a visitor, and pulled us right in when we saw it. (Txapela Yelp) 6 rounds of mini bites later, we were full, getting tired, and ready to end the night. We made sure to get back to the correct hostel and turned in. Day 2For what we thought was our only full day in Madrid (ahh foreshadowing), we signed up for another walking tour that we found through Free Tours by Foot, and we were lead around a ton of historical sites, buildings, and parks by our guide Colin. While this city is full of very rich history and culture, the info snippet from this tour that has clung to my memory ever since is about a horse statue that apparently ate birds. I apologize profusely Madrid, but this horse statue story is the only "factual information" I remember from this tour. But the story goes, this horse statue had an open mouth, and birds would fly inside and get stuck in there and die. But no one knew until some unhappy people destroyed the statue and little bones fell out everywhere, and freaked them all out. So when they rebuilt the statue, they sealed the horses mouth after years of bird collecting. It's weird factoids like this, that for some reason my brain believes are important to keep in long term memory. (Here's more about it) During the walking tour, there was an option to sign up for their Pub Crawl later that night. Switching back to our pub crawling ways after our "DIY" crawl in Barcelona, we signed up and spent some time back at the hostel. I honestly couldn't tell you how much we needed naps throughout this trip. We would be going nonstop for days on end, and then find ourselves with a gap of time and completely crash. Between the walking tour and leaving for the pub crawl, we got gelato, took naps, and stretched out on the terrace attempting to even our our horrid tan lines. And while it may sound like a waste of time, I think we needed all the boring breaks we could get. Tip AlertTake breaks. There will never be enough time to see it all, so get out your absolute "must do/see" list and then make sure you have some down time. If you're exhausted, you're not making the most of the trip and chances are you're ganna get moody. Also mid-day naps were some of our quietest times in the hostels. It's a block of time that most people are out an about, so you get the room to yourself with fewer noisy interruptions. Once rested, we went all out getting ready for the upcoming bar hopping adventure, aka I put on eye liner for the first time in weeks. The crawl was put on by Sandemans New Madrid Pub Crawl and took us back about $25. We soon realized that this was not truly a pub crawl, more like a club crawl. There was a pretty large group and a lot of mini groups forming within the crawl crowd. It got a bit awkward when we didn't quite fit into the little groups forming around us. And then the biggest smile burst in from Boston, and we became our own little team USA. I swear, Thurston buddy, you saved this night for us. We drank and danced our way almost right back to our hostel, which ended up being only a block away from the last club. We were walking back thinking it wasn't too shabby of a last night in Madrid. |
Barcelona, Spain |
Dublin, Ireland |
Costs*
Flight - $53
Hostel (3 nights) - $42
Pub Crawl - $25
Bus Tour - $20
Total
$140
*Not including food, sorry I couldn't keep track of how much all the noms were.
Hostel (3 nights) - $42
Pub Crawl - $25
Bus Tour - $20
Total
$140
*Not including food, sorry I couldn't keep track of how much all the noms were.