El Gato

Last day blues, compounded by mini-annoyances. The Thyssen museum closed on a Monday; and the Lomography shop (yes yes, I know I can get that online, but we don't have a shop here, so I wanted to have a gander at all the different stuff) not open till 11am, a full hour after we'd pitched up (because of the aforementioned closed museum). So, to the dreaded bus tour....

Except it actually turned out to be pretty good, taking in the ornate buildings properly, and passing an hour and 45 minutes minutes rather agreeably. By which time the Lomography shop was open (yes, I did buy something) and after which we headed to the Mercado San Miguel for the second day in a row for something to eat. Once again a cracking way to spend time over lunch.

But it was all too brief and we were once again thrown into the grasp of of EasyJet for carriage back to these grey and slightly chilly shores. And potholes. So many potholes. Y'know, for a country supposedly on the verge of economic ruin, they manage to keep Madrid's streets incredibly smooth...

Anyway, the cat (sort of) welcomed us home, having been looked after by friends while we were away. And then caught a mouse that I had to rescue. Madrid: we will be back. So much we still have to see, and that relaxed vibe is ebbing away too quickly. Adios. Vamos Rojas!