More touring of Madrid, Spain

     It was a BAD night.  We both had a “nap” until about 12:30 pm and then tossed and turned on the hard bed until about 4 am.  I then slept until about 9 and got up feeling really groggy.  Putting my earplugs in and listening to music on ITunes finally helped me settle down and sleep.  Yuck.
    We went to Starbucks for a light breakfast and then walked to catch the Madrid tour bus.  We have a three day unlimited off/on ticket so we can use the bus as much as we want to.  We got a little lost and found ourselves in “Opera” Square which was beautiful and full of locals walking on a sunny Sunday morning.  We eventually go to the tour bus which took us to the Prada Museum to see Velasquez, Goya and Rembrandt paintings.  These beautiful creations from the “Old Masters” were pretty dark and very religious.  Not really a favorite for either of us, but we had to see them since we were in Madrid.  We had a cheap, but very tasty lunch at the museum – I had a delicious jambon (ham) and queso (cheese) sandwich.  I am finding that a lot of the Spanish that I picked up during my three months of student teaching in Mexico City is coming back to me.
     After lunch we took the “Modern” loop of the tour bus.  The weather has become cool and rainy, but we saw a lot of the city.  Once again we went back to our hotel for a rest.  Then out to dinner – this time to VIPS which is sort of a nicer version of Denny’s.  A good, family restaurant.   Each time we go out I am trying a new beer – Dutch, German, and Spanish so far.
   We left the restaurant and took another evening stroll and spied on the many enthusiastic lovers in the park.  The sun is out again along with all the families and dog walkers.  We bought some ice cream at an outside stand and sat in the park for more people watching.  A perfect evening.
    My internal clock is doing better.  I actually got less tired as the day progressed – probably the café con leche.  I just love, love, love that coffee.  I didn't drink coffee when I was in Europe the last time.  Wow, did I miss out on something good.