2000 years, 2 countries, 2 passports: Rome & Madrid, Jan. 2015
Mar 1st, 2015, 07:55 AM
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You're welcome, TDudette. 
Where are the other Santa Teresa sculptures?
Day 7 - Madrid!
We woke early to get to the airport on time for our 9 AM flight. We had booked a car through Sleep in Italy, but some wires got crossed somewhere and at 15 minutes past our pickup time we decided it was best to just walk to the piazza to grab a cab. A few minutes later, we were on our way to Ciampino. As we drove through the city, we said our goodbyes and promised our return.
We had some time to kill at Ciampino (which, by the way, has really stepped up its game in terms of food/shopping offerings - they’re doing a whole big remodel) and so grabbed a cappuccino for breakfast and a sandwich for the plane since we’d be arriving in Madrid around lunch time and would need some extra time to find our hotel.
The boarding process went without incident, except for the Italian family behind me that kept inching closer and closer until the woman’s purse was lodged in my shoulder blade. They were trying to squeeze past us. Because, goodness knows, it’s going to help so much to get TWO PEOPLE closer to the front of the line. I rolled my eyes and just let them go. I mean, ultimately, it’s not worth fisticuffs.
Two and a half hours later, we arrived in Madrid. And, let me just tell you, Barajas airport is HUGE. And also confusing. After following signs for the metro for about 20 minutes, we finally got on the blasted thing and made our way to the center of the city. We had to switch one time before finally getting off at Tribunal and walking to our hotel, the Hotel Liabeny. This hotel was great - fantastic location, nice staff, clean, well-appointed room - and also, since it was the off season, VERY reasonable. We stayed for less than $100 a night.
After we dropped off our things, we decided to head to the Mercado San Miguel since it was close to the hotel and our hastily-purchased guidebook said that you could wander the market eating tapas and drinking wine or sangria. Sold! We sampled: the vegetarian paella, some sangria, a huge plate of olives, queso de cabra on toast, two glasses of wine, a cheese puff thingy, and some crocche’ for a total of 36 euro.
In a food-induced state of euphoria, we saw a cathedral that I cannot remember before going back to the hotel for a much needed nap. A few hours later, it was back out into Madrid which, surprisingly, was much colder than Rome. Don’t know why I wasn’t prepared for that, but I wasn’t, so of course I had to buy a new hat. We had researched vegetarian restaurants in Madrid, knowing that the definition of vegetarian in Spain sometimes means it doesn’t have beef in it (although we’d had a good experience at lunch at the market after asking specifically about the food contents) and found one called Yerbabuena that was quite near the hotel, so that is where we decided to have dinner. We had a bit of time to kill before the restaurant opened at 8, so we took a walk near the Palacio Real and through the nearby gardens. Beautiful, beautiful sunset views of Madrid and the surrounding countryside.
Finally we were ready for dinner and were really looking forward to it. Can I just say that Yerbabuena should be renamed to Yerbamala? First, we arrived at about 8:15 and the waitstaff looked irritated that we were there too early. I know that’s an early hour to eat in Spain, but if you don’t want us there until 9, then don’t open until 9!! We got seated, and it took forever to get menus. Again, I’m familiar with different standards of service, but Italy totally nails the hands-off, no-rush approach to service. Spain made me feel a little bit like there were no hands at all.
They brought us a little amuse bouche, which was seriously the best part of the meal. It was a little salad which was quite tasty. We also got a dry bread roll, which I realized when I got the check we were charged for (1 euro each). I’m going to get charged for bread, I want you to tell me and I also want it to TASTE GOOD. I wouldn’t have minded paying 1 euro for decent bread, but this was like a dried up old shoe.
We ordered soup first, since it was cold. We decided to try this local bread soup (sopa castellana), which was really quite possibly the most revolting thing I’d ever ordered in a restaurant. Tepid (at best), flavorless broth with two pieces of toasted bread floating in it - topped, inexplicably, with alfalfa sprouts as a garnish. (Which, by the way, were a garnish on EVERYTHING we ate. Apparently if it’s vegetarian it must have alfalfa sprouts, even if it makes no sense?) I would have sent it back to ask for it warmer if I wasn’t certain that it would have take four years to get it back.
The second course came. R ordered the risotto with greens and I ordered…actually, I blocked it out. I had to look at the menu online for quite awhile before I remembered what it was. It was moussaka. The risotto was almost as bad as the soup. The rice was NOT the consistency of risotto at all and the greens were not blended in. Virtually flavorless. The moussaka was better than the risotto, but that’s not saying much. Too much béchamel and over salted and, in contrast to the soup, blazing, inedibly hot. Oh, and of course, both dishes had alfalfa sprouts on them.
After we ate, it took another year to get the check and we left. 40 euros for the worst meal I’ve had in years. I do not understand why this place gets the high ratings it does. It’s the worst expression of vegetarian food. If I were a meat eater and I wanted to check out vegetarianism to see what it was like, this place would turn me off of the whole idea of vegetarianism forever. Yes, it was that bad. Maybe they had an off night, I don’t know, but all in all I would advise everyone to avoid this place. We had an easy time finding veg stuff at the market and it was a MILLION times better. And cheaper.
In order to erase the memory of that unsatisfying and unfulfilling meal, we decided to find the chocolateria San Gines, which was literally right around the corner. Basically a historical monument to deliciousness, this place has been cranking out churros y chocolate for over a century. The line went out the door and we almost gave up, but it appeared to be moving quickly and boy did it. They have this down to a science. You wait in the line, you get your ticket, you find a table, and they bring you your churros and chocolate. We got two orders of both (churros and chocolate) for 8 euro.
Oh my god. I was worried. The last time I had churros and chocolate in Madrid, it was too sweet and cloying and the churros tasted like oil. These churros were a revelation. Crispy, perfect, and not tasting or even feeling oily. The chocolate was smooth, creamy, and not overly sweet. I am basically drooling right now thinking about them. This experience was the exact opposite of Yerbabuena. Quick, efficient, and absolutely delicious.
Finally satisfied, we walked back to the hotel, huddled up against the chill night air, and made our plans for day 2 in Madrid: the Reina Sofia.
Where are the other Santa Teresa sculptures? Day 7 - Madrid!
We woke early to get to the airport on time for our 9 AM flight. We had booked a car through Sleep in Italy, but some wires got crossed somewhere and at 15 minutes past our pickup time we decided it was best to just walk to the piazza to grab a cab. A few minutes later, we were on our way to Ciampino. As we drove through the city, we said our goodbyes and promised our return.
We had some time to kill at Ciampino (which, by the way, has really stepped up its game in terms of food/shopping offerings - they’re doing a whole big remodel) and so grabbed a cappuccino for breakfast and a sandwich for the plane since we’d be arriving in Madrid around lunch time and would need some extra time to find our hotel.
The boarding process went without incident, except for the Italian family behind me that kept inching closer and closer until the woman’s purse was lodged in my shoulder blade. They were trying to squeeze past us. Because, goodness knows, it’s going to help so much to get TWO PEOPLE closer to the front of the line. I rolled my eyes and just let them go. I mean, ultimately, it’s not worth fisticuffs.
Two and a half hours later, we arrived in Madrid. And, let me just tell you, Barajas airport is HUGE. And also confusing. After following signs for the metro for about 20 minutes, we finally got on the blasted thing and made our way to the center of the city. We had to switch one time before finally getting off at Tribunal and walking to our hotel, the Hotel Liabeny. This hotel was great - fantastic location, nice staff, clean, well-appointed room - and also, since it was the off season, VERY reasonable. We stayed for less than $100 a night.
After we dropped off our things, we decided to head to the Mercado San Miguel since it was close to the hotel and our hastily-purchased guidebook said that you could wander the market eating tapas and drinking wine or sangria. Sold! We sampled: the vegetarian paella, some sangria, a huge plate of olives, queso de cabra on toast, two glasses of wine, a cheese puff thingy, and some crocche’ for a total of 36 euro.
In a food-induced state of euphoria, we saw a cathedral that I cannot remember before going back to the hotel for a much needed nap. A few hours later, it was back out into Madrid which, surprisingly, was much colder than Rome. Don’t know why I wasn’t prepared for that, but I wasn’t, so of course I had to buy a new hat.
We had researched vegetarian restaurants in Madrid, knowing that the definition of vegetarian in Spain sometimes means it doesn’t have beef in it (although we’d had a good experience at lunch at the market after asking specifically about the food contents) and found one called Yerbabuena that was quite near the hotel, so that is where we decided to have dinner. We had a bit of time to kill before the restaurant opened at 8, so we took a walk near the Palacio Real and through the nearby gardens. Beautiful, beautiful sunset views of Madrid and the surrounding countryside. Finally we were ready for dinner and were really looking forward to it. Can I just say that Yerbabuena should be renamed to Yerbamala? First, we arrived at about 8:15 and the waitstaff looked irritated that we were there too early. I know that’s an early hour to eat in Spain, but if you don’t want us there until 9, then don’t open until 9!! We got seated, and it took forever to get menus. Again, I’m familiar with different standards of service, but Italy totally nails the hands-off, no-rush approach to service. Spain made me feel a little bit like there were no hands at all.
They brought us a little amuse bouche, which was seriously the best part of the meal. It was a little salad which was quite tasty. We also got a dry bread roll, which I realized when I got the check we were charged for (1 euro each). I’m going to get charged for bread, I want you to tell me and I also want it to TASTE GOOD. I wouldn’t have minded paying 1 euro for decent bread, but this was like a dried up old shoe.
We ordered soup first, since it was cold. We decided to try this local bread soup (sopa castellana), which was really quite possibly the most revolting thing I’d ever ordered in a restaurant. Tepid (at best), flavorless broth with two pieces of toasted bread floating in it - topped, inexplicably, with alfalfa sprouts as a garnish. (Which, by the way, were a garnish on EVERYTHING we ate. Apparently if it’s vegetarian it must have alfalfa sprouts, even if it makes no sense?) I would have sent it back to ask for it warmer if I wasn’t certain that it would have take four years to get it back.
The second course came. R ordered the risotto with greens and I ordered…actually, I blocked it out. I had to look at the menu online for quite awhile before I remembered what it was. It was moussaka. The risotto was almost as bad as the soup. The rice was NOT the consistency of risotto at all and the greens were not blended in. Virtually flavorless. The moussaka was better than the risotto, but that’s not saying much. Too much béchamel and over salted and, in contrast to the soup, blazing, inedibly hot. Oh, and of course, both dishes had alfalfa sprouts on them.
After we ate, it took another year to get the check and we left. 40 euros for the worst meal I’ve had in years. I do not understand why this place gets the high ratings it does. It’s the worst expression of vegetarian food. If I were a meat eater and I wanted to check out vegetarianism to see what it was like, this place would turn me off of the whole idea of vegetarianism forever. Yes, it was that bad. Maybe they had an off night, I don’t know, but all in all I would advise everyone to avoid this place. We had an easy time finding veg stuff at the market and it was a MILLION times better. And cheaper.
In order to erase the memory of that unsatisfying and unfulfilling meal, we decided to find the chocolateria San Gines, which was literally right around the corner. Basically a historical monument to deliciousness, this place has been cranking out churros y chocolate for over a century. The line went out the door and we almost gave up, but it appeared to be moving quickly and boy did it. They have this down to a science. You wait in the line, you get your ticket, you find a table, and they bring you your churros and chocolate. We got two orders of both (churros and chocolate) for 8 euro.
Oh my god. I was worried. The last time I had churros and chocolate in Madrid, it was too sweet and cloying and the churros tasted like oil. These churros were a revelation. Crispy, perfect, and not tasting or even feeling oily. The chocolate was smooth, creamy, and not overly sweet. I am basically drooling right now thinking about them. This experience was the exact opposite of Yerbabuena. Quick, efficient, and absolutely delicious.
Finally satisfied, we walked back to the hotel, huddled up against the chill night air, and made our plans for day 2 in Madrid: the Reina Sofia.
Mar 1st, 2015, 08:12 AM
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Day 8: The Reina Sofia y mas churros
We woke up at what was a late hour to us and, leaving the hotel at around 9 AM, we walked out to find the streets of Madrid almost completely deserted. This city stays out late at night and sleeps in late in the morning.
We found a bar open nearby (Bar Reynar) and it was one of those old-school kind of places that is filled with only regulars. We got a couple of cafe con leche and a tortilla sandwich. The sandwich was absolutely delicious (and huge!) and the cafe was delicious. We ordered two more coffees and sat for a bit, soaking up the atmosphere. A gigantic sandwich and four coffees was 10 euro.
Fortified, we headed to the Reina Sofia by walking along the Gran Via and down the Paseo del Prado. We arrived shortly after their opening time and the museum was relatively quiet for a Saturday. (16 euros for two tickets) After about four hours at the museum I was fading, so we called it a day on art and found a nearby spot for lunch, the Mercado San Anton. We arrived and I saw that the closing time had been 30 minutes earlier, but we walked in anyway and hoped for the best. Though the market stalls were closed, the little restaurants were still open so we felt very lucky. We found a Venezuelan spot (R’s family is Venezuelan, or half of it is) and enjoyed four glasses of wine, 2 orders of vegetarian arepas, the pisto manchego and a plate of olives for 22 euro. Yum!
Afterwards we walked back to the hotel and did a bit of shopping on the way. We also might, just might, have stopped for more churros and chocolate.
We were going to rest up because we were meeting R’s cousin for dinner. They arrived at 8 and then had to look for parking for almost an hour, so that meant we were heading out to look for food during the prime Madrileno dinner rush. After looking at a few crowded spots with a wait, we ended up at Shi Shang, an Asian vegetarian buffet. It was…okay. Lots of fried stuff and meat substitutes and pretty low on actual vegetables, all things considered. But, I found enough and it was fine, just not what I would have wanted given my choices. It was 49 euro for all four of us - buffet and drinks. Meh.
We grabbed a few pastries for breakfast on the way home and fell into bed, exhausted. Tomorrow would be the last day of our vacation and we needed to rest up.
We woke up at what was a late hour to us and, leaving the hotel at around 9 AM, we walked out to find the streets of Madrid almost completely deserted. This city stays out late at night and sleeps in late in the morning.
We found a bar open nearby (Bar Reynar) and it was one of those old-school kind of places that is filled with only regulars. We got a couple of cafe con leche and a tortilla sandwich. The sandwich was absolutely delicious (and huge!) and the cafe was delicious. We ordered two more coffees and sat for a bit, soaking up the atmosphere. A gigantic sandwich and four coffees was 10 euro.
Fortified, we headed to the Reina Sofia by walking along the Gran Via and down the Paseo del Prado. We arrived shortly after their opening time and the museum was relatively quiet for a Saturday. (16 euros for two tickets) After about four hours at the museum I was fading, so we called it a day on art and found a nearby spot for lunch, the Mercado San Anton. We arrived and I saw that the closing time had been 30 minutes earlier, but we walked in anyway and hoped for the best. Though the market stalls were closed, the little restaurants were still open so we felt very lucky. We found a Venezuelan spot (R’s family is Venezuelan, or half of it is) and enjoyed four glasses of wine, 2 orders of vegetarian arepas, the pisto manchego and a plate of olives for 22 euro. Yum!
Afterwards we walked back to the hotel and did a bit of shopping on the way. We also might, just might, have stopped for more churros and chocolate.
We were going to rest up because we were meeting R’s cousin for dinner. They arrived at 8 and then had to look for parking for almost an hour, so that meant we were heading out to look for food during the prime Madrileno dinner rush. After looking at a few crowded spots with a wait, we ended up at Shi Shang, an Asian vegetarian buffet. It was…okay. Lots of fried stuff and meat substitutes and pretty low on actual vegetables, all things considered. But, I found enough and it was fine, just not what I would have wanted given my choices. It was 49 euro for all four of us - buffet and drinks. Meh.
We grabbed a few pastries for breakfast on the way home and fell into bed, exhausted. Tomorrow would be the last day of our vacation and we needed to rest up.
Mar 1st, 2015, 08:28 AM
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Day 9: The Prado and Pimientos de Padron
We again woke relatively late (was Madrid rubbing off on us?) and ate our pastries in the room before heading out on the search for coffee. We found a place open on the Gran Via and had a couple of nice cafe con leche for the not-so-nice price of 10 euro. Meh. It was worth it to sit and sip.
We arrived at the Prado without incident and bought our tickets (28 euros for 2 tickets) and a couple of audio guides for the main museum and the special exhibits (12 euros for 2). After lots and lots of days of traveling and museum-ing, we more or less took the “highlights” tour of the Prado’s permanent collection before moving on to the special exhibits. We also had a lovely snack at the Prado cafe (a million times better than the Vatican cafe - wow). We had gazpacho, a pasta salad, some bread, some fruit, and drinks for 17 euro. Pretty reasonable and delicious.
We headed back in for a few more hours of art before finally realizing we were both mentally and physically done for the time being. After heading out of the Prado, we went back to the Reina Sofia to pick something up from the bookstore, but on the way decided to pop into a little “northern” spanish bar for some tapas…and thus began our unintentional tapas crawl which lasted the rest of the day. At this bar, we had a couple glasses of white wine, some other food I can’t remember, and a plate of pimientos de padron.
You guys. I can’t even with these peppers. Simply cooked by being pan fried with oil and then dusted with coarse sea salt, they were a revelation. We devoured the entire plate. I wanted to eat them every day. I dream about them now at night. (I’ve found a reasonable facsimile in Shishito peppers, aka Korean twist peppers, which I can make at home. You’re welcome.)
Tipsy and peppery, we stopped by the bookstore before heading to the Cava Baja for some more tapas. Here, we had a few glasses of sangria, a plate of olives, some mushrooms (which had sneaky ham in them, darn it) and toast with goat cheese and caramelized onions. Holy cow you guys. That toast was amazing. 19 euros for all that.
To keep the tapas train moving, we went back to the mercado San Miguel, where we ate more paella, drank more wine, and sampled a number of other tasty little treats before finally realizing we were stuffed to the brim and could handle no more. (32 euro)
That sums up where we were overall in terms of the trip: Stuffed to the brim and able to handle no more. We crammed a whole lot into nine days. I don’t want to say that it was too much, because I would have struggled to leave any of it out, but it was definitely exhausting in the best possible way. This is what happens when you bring someone new to a city that you love - you want to show them absolutely everything. Editing yourself becomes and impossibility. And that’s how it was for me to take R to Rome. Madrid was new to both of us, so I think we felt less of a push to see everything, because we didn’t know everything. Which was probably for the best - if we’d continued the pace we had in Rome into Madrid, I think we both might have collapsed!
Overall, the trip worked out very well for us. We headed back to the Madrid airport the next morning a bit early - and thank goodness we did! When we check in, we were advised that our gate was a full 30 minute walk from the ticketing desk. That airport is not for the faint of heart.
Well, there it is. Another trip report - and I’m already looking forward to the next one!
We again woke relatively late (was Madrid rubbing off on us?) and ate our pastries in the room before heading out on the search for coffee. We found a place open on the Gran Via and had a couple of nice cafe con leche for the not-so-nice price of 10 euro. Meh. It was worth it to sit and sip.
We arrived at the Prado without incident and bought our tickets (28 euros for 2 tickets) and a couple of audio guides for the main museum and the special exhibits (12 euros for 2). After lots and lots of days of traveling and museum-ing, we more or less took the “highlights” tour of the Prado’s permanent collection before moving on to the special exhibits. We also had a lovely snack at the Prado cafe (a million times better than the Vatican cafe - wow). We had gazpacho, a pasta salad, some bread, some fruit, and drinks for 17 euro. Pretty reasonable and delicious.
We headed back in for a few more hours of art before finally realizing we were both mentally and physically done for the time being. After heading out of the Prado, we went back to the Reina Sofia to pick something up from the bookstore, but on the way decided to pop into a little “northern” spanish bar for some tapas…and thus began our unintentional tapas crawl which lasted the rest of the day. At this bar, we had a couple glasses of white wine, some other food I can’t remember, and a plate of pimientos de padron.
You guys. I can’t even with these peppers. Simply cooked by being pan fried with oil and then dusted with coarse sea salt, they were a revelation. We devoured the entire plate. I wanted to eat them every day. I dream about them now at night. (I’ve found a reasonable facsimile in Shishito peppers, aka Korean twist peppers, which I can make at home. You’re welcome.)
Tipsy and peppery, we stopped by the bookstore before heading to the Cava Baja for some more tapas. Here, we had a few glasses of sangria, a plate of olives, some mushrooms (which had sneaky ham in them, darn it) and toast with goat cheese and caramelized onions. Holy cow you guys. That toast was amazing. 19 euros for all that.
To keep the tapas train moving, we went back to the mercado San Miguel, where we ate more paella, drank more wine, and sampled a number of other tasty little treats before finally realizing we were stuffed to the brim and could handle no more. (32 euro)
That sums up where we were overall in terms of the trip: Stuffed to the brim and able to handle no more. We crammed a whole lot into nine days. I don’t want to say that it was too much, because I would have struggled to leave any of it out, but it was definitely exhausting in the best possible way. This is what happens when you bring someone new to a city that you love - you want to show them absolutely everything. Editing yourself becomes and impossibility. And that’s how it was for me to take R to Rome. Madrid was new to both of us, so I think we felt less of a push to see everything, because we didn’t know everything. Which was probably for the best - if we’d continued the pace we had in Rome into Madrid, I think we both might have collapsed!
Overall, the trip worked out very well for us. We headed back to the Madrid airport the next morning a bit early - and thank goodness we did! When we check in, we were advised that our gate was a full 30 minute walk from the ticketing desk. That airport is not for the faint of heart.
Well, there it is. Another trip report - and I’m already looking forward to the next one!
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