It rained … on our last day in Madrid

This is a late posting.

We had a very nice breakfast at the hotel then went up to our room and I spent some time trying to catch up on my blip postings, as well as packing ready to check out.  We left our bags at the hotel and walked towards the Mercado San Miguel with some diversions on the way.  Once again, everywhere was packed with people enjoying themselves. As we reached Plaza Mayor it started to rain, very lightly but enough to be annoying.  We managed to squeeze ourselves into the market, which was jam packed to the gunwales with people eating, drinking, talking, having fun.  What a happy atmosphere there was.  We squeezed our way around the various “stalls” admiring the beautifully-presented food - so much choice!  Having admired all that we could, we returned to the hotel, collected our bags and went looking for the Brown Bear Bakery for a coffee and a sandwich.  It was quiet and peaceful after the pandemonium of the market so we were able to sit in peace and enjoy our snack.  We then made our way to the station and waited patiently for our train to Córdoba, where we had to change for Granada.  Another coffee was called for to fill in the time.  Eventually it was time to go up to the platform floor, check our bags through security and board the train, which departed on time at 17:35.  It was a fast, comfortable non-stop trip and we arrived in Córdoba one hour and 44 minutes later.  We just had time for a rather uninspiring snack before it was time, once again, to go through security and wait for our train to Granada, which duly arrived and left bang on time.  We arrived in Granada at the prescribed time of 21:57 and walked outside to wait for a taxi.  We didn’t need to wait long and were soon on our way to Monachil.  Our friends have both had/have Covid, so we sat out on the terrace a couple of metres away while we had some crisps, apple pies and a drink, of course.  It’s a long time since we’ve seen one another, so there was a lot to catch up on.  Before we knew it, it was midnight and definitely time for bed.

I am still way, way behind responding to lovely comments and dipping into blippers’ journals.  There hasn’t been much spare time.  Apologies if I don’t catch up for a while.

The blips today have a big emphasis on food - breakfast at the hotel, some beautiful little patisseries on the way to the market and at the market itself - as well as two last buildings and inside the station.