Madrid is exceedingly hip. We spent a few days there with our friends Pam and Josh before our week in Morocco, and we returned for a few more days on our own. We stayed near the Malasaña and Chueca neighborhoods, which are full of vintage shops and great restaurants.
A lot of these streets feel just like the Mission or Hayes Valley, but there are some not-so-subtle reminders you are in Spain:
Madrid doesn’t have a lot of famous, picture-worthy landmarks, but the whole city is just really pretty to look at, especially in autumn:
We crossed off several of our must-see-before-we-die paintings, including Guernica and Bosch’s The Garden of Earthly Delights. Reina Sofia has one of the most impressive collections I’ve ever seen, and Guernica was totally worth all the years I waited to see it. I really wanted to walk through this installation and ring all the bells:
A few final pictures as we say hasta luego to Madrid:
This bear trying to eat strawberries from a tree is a symbol of the city. J’approve. Even though strawberries don’t grow on trees I admire the bear’s effort.
Toast with tomato and olive oil is my new favorite breakfast.
This cat was creepy.
