Madrid was a welcome sight after a long, restless flight. It was a relief to feel the soft bed on our backs, the refreshing shower, and a cold drink. There was no time to waste. We immediately started exploring the city.
Hotel Riu
Hotel Riu was a good place starting point. It was located near one end of Calle Gran Via. Our first stop was at the twenty seventh floor and caught a glimpse of Madrid’s skyline. The Royal Palace of Madrid was in full view from our vantage point.
Calle Gran Via
Calle Gran Via (Great Way Road) was the 0.8 mile road in Madrid that was considered as the “Spanish Broadway”. Shops, hotels, and movie theaters were occupying both sided of Calle Gran Via.
St. Mark Church
The Church of St. Mark was almost right behind Hotel Riu. We could not miss visiting this Catholic Church and pay homage for the safe flight into the city. The church remains one of the old churches in Madrid.
Plaza de España
The Plaza was right across Hotel Riu . A very short walk from St. Mark’s Church. It was a wide plaza with a statue of Miguel de Cervantes facing the wide space. Landscaped spaces surrounded the statue.
It was with great determination that we started walking Calle Gran Via. It was easy convincing ourselves after the long and restless flight. Mercado de Los Mostenses, along Gran Via, was a hodge hodge of shops that kept the area busy 24 hours a day. We found the area too chaotic.
Plaza Callao
Plaza del Callao was halfway along Gran Via. There was a steady stream of pedestrian traffic that kept the stores alive. Its outlet was Calle de Preciados and continued in a southwesterly direction to Puerta del Sol. Shops were occupying both sides of Calle del Preciados. The marker for kilometer 0 in front of Real Casa de Correos, the statue of El Oso y el Madroño, and the Equestrian Statue of Carlos III can all be found at Puerta del Sol.
Plaza Mayor
The flow of people led us to Plaza Mayor. At Plaza Mayor, we found the frescoed building of Centro de Turismo.
We eventually started heading back to the hotel. Attendance to the evening meet up with our tour group important. It was the orientation for our upcoming travel across Spain.
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This brings back memories of when we visited Madrid a couple years ago. Puerta del Sol was under construction though so we missed out on that.
Everything was new to us so we were like gawking at everything. So much history and beauty in everything that we saw.