Day 20 - Madrid - Templo de Debod y Teleferico de Madrid

 We are adopting the Spanish schedule, going to bed late and waking up late. We had our usual late breakfast of eggs, baguette, and yogurt. We left the house and walked to see the Temple of Debod, Daniel's pick after doing his research of things he wanted to do in Spain. On our way to the temple, we found the monument to Miguel de Cervantes which is Plaza España, a must see if you had a Spanish literature teacher who made you analyze Don Quijote for a whole high school year. The kids agreed that Madrid basically a large collection of important buildings, parks, and museums. Gregory usually says, "Oh look, another statue of a dead person."

After taking pictures and remembering my awesome Spanish Literature Profe Fernandez, we continue our walk to Parque del Oeste to see the Temple of Debod, which is an Egyptian temple dating back to the 2nd century BC, which was transported to Madrid in 1968. The temple was donated to Spain by the Egyptian government to save it from floods following the construction of the Aswan Dam and as a sign of gratitude for the help provided by Spain in saving the Abu Simbel temples.

After resting in the shade for a while because it was extremely hot (only tourists were out, the rest of Madrid was napping) we walked to the teleferico (aerial tram) to see Madrid from above instead of walking in the heat. It is something that we wouldn't ordinarily do but the kids really liked it. I don't know what it is about rides, that all children and teens love it! You have to pay 6 euros per adult and 5 for children for a round trip ticket. The aerial tram transported us from the edge of the Parque del Oeste to the center of the huge Casa de Campo Park. We had a stunning view of the Royal Palace, the Almudena Cathedral, the Manzanares River, and much more. In Casa de Campo, we walked to a shaded bench where we had our picnic. It was very agreeable and peaceful. After hanging out there for a while, we took the tram back and then we were trying to decide if we should take the metro, the bus or Uber home. Walking was out of the question, it was just too hot.

On the way to the bus stop, Gregory saw El Corte Ingles, which is like Nordstrom. We decided to stop there for a drink. The air conditioning felt like heaven and we headed to the cafeteria. The boys stayed there (with the free wifi) while Sunshine and I went downstairs to do some shopping. Gregory is a very lucky man because neither of us enjoys shopping much. I remind him of this whenever we pass an expensive boutique. Sunshine and I browsed the clothes then we looked at each other and said: done? Done! We went upstairs to pick up the boys and then walked the rest of the way home. The heat had died down and the boulevard was shady.

We made our usual stop at the grocery store and then came home to prepare dinner. We were going to go out for a drink but we are just too tired. I honestly miss having my own home to rest. I like that we are squished together in the tiny family room but at the same time, I miss having some privacy, some alone time.

Tomorrow is our last day in Madrid. I'm not sure if we are doing something in the morning but I doubt it. We don't want to see more museums and we have to pack up and take the train to Barcelona.

Need a good selfie? Ask a teenage girl!


Don Quijote and Sancho Panza



The Temple of Debod, sans water












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