When you and your significant other both turn 40 within a week of each other, you have an excellent excuse to take a great trip. We looked for somewhere sunny and warm, with lots of outdoor activity and places to run, great food and wine, not too long of a flight, and somewhere that isn’t a crowded party scene. Spain was an easy choice. Our primary destination is Mallorca, where we will celebrate our birthdays at a beautiful resort in the quiet countryside on the east side of the island, but since we landed in Madrid and neither of us had been, we decided to spend a night there first.
What am amazing city!
Excellent food, exceptionally good weather, lots of beautiful parks, adorable boutiques, and so many happy people. Seriously, is it all the sunshine? The people in Madrid are really so nice and friendly! My favorite part of the city is how many gardens we saw. They are everywhere – even climbing up the buildings!
Tuesday: 9AM-Midnight
After an overnight flight from Washington DC via Philadelphia, we landed in Madrid at 9AM on Tuesday. There was a little traffic heading into the city at rush hour, but 45 minutes and 30 euros later we were at The Hotel Wellington. A great hotel in a fantastic neighborhood, it is home to the largest organic rooftop garden in Madrid. The owners appreciate the importance of having your own urban garden to create excellent meals, which is so cool! The hotel location put us right next to a beautiful running park and some excellent restaurants with great plant-based options. I was warned that Spain isn’t particularly vegan-friendly, but so far I have found the opposite to be true. Jon and I are both glad about this, as I can get very hangry when not fed.
As every seasoned traveler will tell you, the best way to fight off jet lag after a long overnight flight is to immediately get on local time. Have a coffee, take a shower, and start your day. Whatever you do, do not sleep! After checking into the hotel and being shown to our room at 10:15, we slept until 3PM. Oops.
The nap was refreshing, and left us with one evening and one morning to explore before we would return to the airport the next afternoon. Hungry and now more awake, we ventured out and stopped at a tapas restaurant near Plaza de la Independencia. We shared patatas bravas and grilled vegetables, and each had a glass of Rioja, which I hadn’t meant to order, but when I requested Pellegrino the server heard Rioja. Sometimes not speaking the language works out for the best. Cheers!
We weren’t far from one of the best rooftop bars with iconic views of the city, and it was almost time for sunset, so we made our way over to the Tartan Roof on top of the Circulo de Bellas Artes. On the way, we passed by La Venencia.
For those who love history: it’s a sherry bar once frequented by Ernest Hemingway. The interior hasn’t changed since the Spanish civil war, and there is about 70 years of dust on the bar bottles to prove it. Not being a fan of sherry, and not wanting to miss the sunset, we only peeked inside. It’s definitely worth a visit if history, Hemingway and sherry are your thing. We arrived at the Circulo del Bella Artes and paid a few euros to ride a shaky elevator to the top. The view was as promised!
After sunset, we stumbled onto Puerto Del Sol: a popular square with many restaurants and beautiful architecture.
There are so many of these beautiful squares throughout Madrid. We would have liked to stay longer, but starting to fade again, we took a taxi back to our neighborhood, rested, and went to an excellent local Italian restaurant for dinner. Jon is still talking about the gnocchi, and I had a great plant-based, gluten free pasta and vegetable dish that I wish I could have again right now. I definitely recommend Ornella, not just for the food, but because they also have a garden growing on the wall!
Thanks to some more Rioja with dinner, we fell asleep easily despite our long nap earlier.
Wednesday 9AM-1PM
Jon and I were up and ready to run by 9AM. One of my favorite things to do when visiting a new city is to go for a run outside. There is no better way to get a feel for what it might be like to live in a city, and it’s a great way to see some beautiful places. Luckily for us the hotel is only a short walk from the beautiful El Retiro Park. We first stopped for a quick juice at Bump Green, a super cute restaurant that serves organic and plant-based food.
Madrid seems to be a very active city, and there were runners all around El Retiro Park. We decided to run through the park and try to make it to the Royal Palace. The thing about running in a new city while traveling is that that it’s not really about the run. It’s about seeing new things while doing one of your favorite activities. You are not going to set a personal record while stopping to check things out and take pictures, and accepting that part is the key to enjoying it. Our run turned into a walk, and our walk took us all over the city for 3 hours.
Here’s what we saw:
- The Royal Palace. Is it bad form to visit a palace in sweaty running clothes? It didn’t stop us, and it was definitely worth a visit. We arrived right at 10AM when it opened, paid 10 euros and breezed through the self guided tour.
- The Mercado de San Miguel market. Amazing food selection and a really cool interior!
- A quick stop at Mitsura Ice Cream for breakfast. They made an acai bowl with almond milk for me and we split a green juice, which I loved, and Jon said didn’t taste as much like freshly mowed grass as other green juices. Trust me Mitsura, that’s a big compliment.
- We walked past the Botanical Gardens, which look beautiful, but didn’t have time to go in. If I were to visit again I would make this a priority.
A quick shower, a mild panic when I couldn’t find my wallet (It was in the bottom of my bag. It always is.), and an invigorating ride to the airport with a speed limit defiant taxi driver, and we were back at Madrid Airport. Terminal 4. Ready for our next flight, but not before this amazing plate of vegetables. Seriously, why are airports in Europe so nice?
Next stop: Mallorca!