Farewell, Madrid

Last Day in Madrid

We enjoyed our last day in Madrid by getting intentionally lost in the city. It was a drizzly day, but it didn’t slow the city down one bit.

We ate lunch at a casual chain called Rodilla, where we grabbed sandwiches and salads. It’s a very Madrid kind of place—simple, quick, and surprisingly good, especially for a chain that’s been around since 1939.

After lunch, we walked through the park, starting near Moncloa and heading south toward the Temple of Debod for another visit to this cool Egyptian temple. (I described this in a previous blog). 

We wandered through the streets as the sun began to set and the rain finally let up. The city seemed to come alive even more, with the streets filling quickly with people heading out for the evening. Madrid really shines at night—it’s social, energetic, both historic and electric at the same time.

We got churros and chocolate again (because obviously), and just enjoyed those last glimpses of this wonderful city before heading back to our hotel.

Adiós, Madrid. We had a wonderful visit in your vibrant city.

 

Segovia

Segovia

Our next day trip was to the mountain town of Segovia. On the high-speed train, it only took us about 30 minutes to arrive. The train station is a bit out of town, sitting somewhat awkwardly in the middle of a field, so from there you grab a bus and head into town.

The first thing that greets you is one of the things Segovia is famous for: the Roman Aqueduct. Built in the late 1st or early 2nd century CE, it carried water from the nearby mountains into the city for nearly 2,000 years. What makes it especially remarkable is that it was constructed without mortar. The massive granite blocks are held together purely by precise engineering and gravity. It’s incredibly well preserved, and honestly, it feels surreal to be standing next to something that old that still looks so intact.

We walked through the old part of town within the medieval walls, wandered briefly into the newer sections, and then made our way back through the narrow alleys of the former Jewish Quarter.

We grabbed empanadas for lunch and ate them in the shadow of the cathedral, Segovia Cathedral. Built between the 16th and 18th centuries, it’s one of the last Gothic cathedrals constructed in Europe. It’s sometimes called the “Lady of Cathedrals” because of its design and position overlooking the city.

After lunch, we headed to the Alcázar of Segovia. This castle is rumored to have inspired Walt Disney’s vision for Sleeping Beauty’s castle, and once you see it, that rumor feels very believable. Its shape is especially unique, with the front jutting out like the bow of a ship over the valley below.

The Alcázar has a long history as both a royal palace and a military fortress. It was originally built in the 12th century on the site of a Roman fort, and it later became one of the preferred residences of Castilian monarchs. In 1862, a devastating fire destroyed much of the interior and roof. The castle was restored in the late 19th century in a more romanticized, neo-medieval style, which is largely what you see today.

Our tour took us through several rooms, including halls lined with suits of armor, a throne room, a dining hall, and the Hall of Kings, which features statues of Spanish monarchs along with their coats of arms and brief histories. We also saw the armory, which houses an impressive collection of medieval weapons.

We then climbed to the top of the tower, which was absolutely worth it. The views stretch out over historic Segovia and the surrounding valley, and you really get a sense of how strategically positioned the city is.

After leaving the castle, we headed north out of the medieval walls and down a steep path into the valley below. We walked along the Eresma River for a bit, then backtracked and made our way to the Pradera de San Marcos, a beautiful meadow with one of the best views of the Alcázar. From there, the castle looks even more like a ship, perched dramatically above the landscape.

Behind the meadow sits the Church of San Marcos, a Romanesque church dating to the 12th century. A bit farther out is the Church of the Vera Cruz, built around 1208 by the Knights Templar. Its 12-sided (dodecagonal) structure is unusual and symbolic, possibly inspired by the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. 

Rather than head back along the river, we kept going west and visited another church at the base of a granite cliff, the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fuencisla. This sanctuary dates to the 16th century and is dedicated to the patron saint of Segovia. We were able to go inside, and it was quiet and peaceful—a perfect place to pause for a moment.

As we left, we noticed a path climbing back up the ridge where Segovia sits, near the front of the Alcázar. Of course, we had to explore it, and it led us to another breathtaking viewpoint.

From there, we needed to head back to the train station, so we followed Google Maps down into the valley and up the other side along a road on the southern perimeter of town back toward the aqueduct. We were in a bit of a hurry, which was too bad, because the valley between the road and medieval Segovia was lush and green, with a well-maintained walking trail winding through it. There were multiple access points leading both up to the road and back into the old city. It looked enchanting, and I would have loved to spend more time there, but due to time restraints and not wanting to get stuck in a potential dead end in the valley, we just enjoyed the views from above.

I was trying to describe this area to a friend who had studied here in 1998, but she said she always went by the river and didn’t recognize what I was describing. That sent me down a bit of a rabbit hole.

It turns out this area is part of the Valle del Clamores, near what’s known as the Puente del Piojo. In medieval times, a road ran through here, but over the years it became neglected and overgrown, essentially turning into a forgotten backyard of the city. In the early 2000s, Segovia undertook a major restoration project, cleaning it up, landscaping it, and adding trails, benches, and access points. Today it’s a well-used green space that feels both natural and thoughtfully designed. Brilliant.

That discovery led me to another realization. It’s kind of wild how much Spain has changed in a relatively short time. Following the end of Francisco Franco’s dictatorship in 1975, Spain transitioned rapidly into a democracy, joined the European Economic Community (now the EU) in 1986, and underwent massive economic and infrastructure development. Social changes came quickly too. For example, until the mid-1970s, married women in Spain still needed their husband’s permission for certain legal and financial activities, including travel. The pace of modernization over the past 50 years has been remarkable.

I digress. Thirty minutes and a whole lot of Googling later, we were back in Madrid.

We ended the day at a French-style set menu restaurant—steak frites, salad, and a trio of desserts—and then walked through the now-familiar neighborhood back to our hotel, surrounded by a couple thousand other people enjoying Madrid at midnight.

 

Biking in Madrid

Biking in Madrid

Today, we rented bikes to explore some of Madrid’s green spaces. Madrid is a brilliantly laid-out city. The central hub is densely populated with vertical housing, and many of the streets are narrow, which naturally keeps traffic slower. On weekend nights, many streets are even closed to cars altogether, creating kilometers of winding, gloriously pedestrian-only space.

Surrounding the heart of the city are several notable green spaces. To the east is El Retiro Park, with a large lake and manicured gardens at its center and more natural, wooded paths toward the south. The Royal Palace of Madrid sits to the west of downtown, framed by carefully designed gardens like the Sabatini Gardens and Campo del Moro. Farther west is Casa de Campo, which was once royal hunting grounds and is now a sprawling, semi-wild park with kilometers of biking and hiking trails. There’s also a forested green belt wrapping around the northwest part of the city, giving Madrid an impressive balance of urban life and nature.

We rented bikes near the museum district and spent an hour riding around Retiro Park. The park was packed with people, locals and tourists alike, enjoying the sunshine. Near the lake (the Estanque Grande, which dates back to the 17th century and was once used for royal boating spectacles), a trio of musicians played music so good we initially thought it was being piped in from speakers somewhere.

After exploring the park, we headed west, passing behind the palace to ride along the Manzanares River. Riding through the streets of Madrid was a little more harried than we expected—many roads didn’t have dedicated bike lanes, so we were sharing space with cars. We were also slightly deceived by the elevation change between the main part of the city and the river. Madrid sits on a plateau, so getting down (and back up!) is no joke.

Once along the river, we picked up the Madrid Río path, which is a beautifully redesigned green corridor built over what used to be a major highway. It’s one of the city’s best urban renewal projects, with bike paths, playgrounds, and bridges designed by notable architects.

We followed the river into Casa de Campo. The park is massive… we barely scratched the surface. (For perspective, it’s over five times the size of Central Park in New York.) We discovered there’s a dedicated bike trail that loops around much of the park, and in retrospect, or maybe for a future visit, just riding within Casa de Campo might have been a more relaxing experience. I wish we’d had more time there. Fun fact: because it used to be reserved exclusively for royalty, the park remained largely untouched for centuries, which is why it feels much more rugged and wild compared to Madrid’s more manicured spaces.

After an uphill ride back into town (okay, I may have walked my bike up a few blocks… ), we returned to our hotel for a little rest before heading out for date night.

Grant had planned a surprise, and it was brilliant—we went to see Los Misérables musical! He got us seats in the fourth row. The theater felt more like a Broadway-style house, intimate and narrow rather than massive, and our view of the performers was incredible. They used the newer staging that debuted in recent years (we’d only seen it once before at Segerstrom).

The entire production was in Spanish, but we know the show well enough that it was easy to follow. One interesting detail: Jean Valjean’s prisoner number was changed from 24601 to 23632 so that each digit could be pronounced with a single syllable in Spanish, keeping the musical phrasing intact. It was a phenomenal show.

Afterward, we went to a restaurant that felt very Alice in Wonderland—without explicitly saying so. The dishes arrived on whimsical plates with playful presentations. We ordered tapas-style and had fun trying a variety of flavors, ending the night on a perfectly magical note.

 

Avila

We are headed out of Madrid today toward the medieval town of Ávila.

We started our day by grabbing food to go from Honest Greens (what? It’s good, cheap, and healthy!) and headed to the train station. Our train trip on Renfe took about an hour and a half. On the way, we passed through El Escorial, with the Monastery of San Lorenzo visible in the distance, along with colorful Spanish villages and stretches of countryside. We traveled through the Sierra de Guadarrama, climbing to over 4,000 feet before dropping back down to about 3,700 feet in the town of Ávila. The scenery shifted from dense forest to rocky mountain terrain, and it was a really beautiful ride.

From the train station, we walked about 15 minutes to the walls of Ávila, the historic part of the city completely surrounded by medieval fortifications. We walked inside the walls past a church and a few restaurants, then made our way to the visitor center to head up and walk along the top of the famous walls.

The walkable section is a little over 1.7 kilometers (just over a mile), and it offers incredible views both inside and outside the city. On one side, you look in over the old town with its churches, hotels, restaurants, shops, and homes. On the other, you see modern Ávila stretching out beyond the walls. We climbed several towers for even better views and listened to audio guides along the way that shared history and legends tied to the spots we were standing in.

The walls of Ávila date back to the 11th century and were built after the Christian reconquest of the city. They are some of the best-preserved medieval walls in all of Europe. The entire wall system stretches about 2.5 kilometers, with 88 towers and 9 gates. They were built not only for defense but also as a symbol of power and protection. One of the most famous gates, Puerta del Alcázar, still serves as a main entrance into the old city today. Fun detail: the stones used to build the walls were taken from nearby Roman ruins, so parts of the structure are even older than they look.

Bonus: it normally costs 8 euros to walk the walls, but between 2:00 and 4:00 PM, it’s free, so we lucked out on timing.

After walking the perimeter, we went back down to ground level and wandered through the center of the walled city. Looking around, there was everything you would expect in a small town, but most things were closed. A few souvenir shops were open, but you could tell that once evening hit, different areas would come alive.

In Spain, there is definitely a rhythm to the day. Late afternoon, especially between about 5:00 and 7:00, can feel very quiet. Then later in the evening, closer to 8:00 or 9:00 PM, the streets fill with people as everyone comes out to socialize. Wide pedestrian walkways fill with tables, and when it’s cold, outdoor heaters pop up everywhere. Restaurants spill out into the streets. In Madrid, a big city, there is always energy, but at night it feels like the entire city is out and about.

As we walked through the quiet streets of Ávila, we could see signs that night would bring people out here too. Stacks of chairs and tables lined the sidewalks, and menus were posted outside doors that were still closed, waiting for dinner service to begin.

We did pass through one square within the walls that had a restaurant open and a decent number of people enjoying an afternoon snack, but most of the streets we explored were calm and nearly empty.

We exited through the opposite side of the walled city and walked down to a park along the Adaja River. There was a path that followed the river for a while, which we took. It was peaceful, with the sound of rushing water and birds, and some of the trees were just starting to blossom. From parts of the path, we could look back and see the full stretch of the medieval walls rising above the city, which was such a cool perspective.

Ávila is also known for being the birthplace of Saint Teresa of Ávila, one of Spain’s most important religious figures and a major reformer of the Carmelite order in the 1500s. The city has a strong spiritual history, with many churches and convents packed inside the walls.

 

We made our way back to the train station, stopping at a grocery store along the way to grab snacks for the ride back. Two chocolate croissants for 0.50 euro each and a couple of sodas for 0.80 euro each. Things are so inexpensive here compared to home!

The train ride back was relaxing, although it got pretty dark shortly after we left Ávila.

Back in Madrid, we headed out for dinner. Tapas again. We love being able to order a few different things to share. The price is always reasonable, and everything is consistently delicious.

Tonight we had fried eggplant with cranberry aioli, patatas bravas, and house-made ravioli with goat cheese and spinach.

We are back at our hotel “early” and we are hoping to relax a bit and actually get to sleep by midnight. Lol. Wish us luck!