Day 6. Thursday 13 March.

Probably still a bit jet lagged as we were both wide awake at 0500.There was a fracas somewhere close by during the night & a barking dog! So an early start -T googled possible destinations for the day: how about a really good coffee & then a market visit (desperate for some fresh chili, garlic & coriander in very small quantities). Perhaps the San Miguel Mercado would have some? Then maybe a little vintage moment at Magpie Vintage (seemed to be close by). Finding a hole in the wall called Santa Kafeina proved a major walk, backwards & forwards & actually going into a coffee shop where a long queue had formed (pastries & bread looked fabulous) & tapping the shoulder of the guy ahead & asking for confirmation of Kafeina. Yes, he knew it & said it had good coffee & pulled up a map that showed its location only 300 metres further along. Well, we walked another 500 metres, still not finding it, till D pulled out his phone map. Sure enough we’d missed it , first time. Just one guy & an espresso machine & a few stools. The coffee was pretty good too – certainly the best we’d had in Madrid so far. 

Revived enough to tackle a museum, so  onto  the metro to the Museo National Centro de Arte Reina Sofia. The guy staffing an information booth directed us to the tickets….queues of school-age teens deterred our plans, despite the guy saying it didn’t look too busy! Shows how small town we are! A post-coffee issue is locating a toilet. There are none at metro stations…finding a Starbucks or McDonalds seems to be the go. The central station was nearby, which had been commented on favorably on yesterday’ tour, so why not have a look at the inside? Renos are happening to the grand entrance so we ventured down a side lane to arrive in a station where thousands were on the move. The ‘open space’ was probably worth the crush but we decided against joining any queue to investigate a train ride to Toledo. 

T had seen adverts for day excursions by bus, so perhaps this would be a better alternative than the train – to be followed up later. D did a fine job with phone map taking us to the Mercado San Miguel (just past Sol) but what a scene! No way was it be the fresh produce we were expecting…it turned out to be a sort of multi-provider eatery, with customers standing or sitting on stools shoulder to shoulder snacking on (expensive) small plates & wine/beer. A hasty exit into the adjacent plaza & our first ‘tapas’ venture delivered a vino each with a small bowl of packet chips: we were gobsmacked by the chips, assuming they were the ‘potato’s plazas’ we’d ordered but later a bowl of hot potato wedges covered in a slightly spicy mayo arrived – D at least was satisfied. A ‘not gourmet’ moment, but thankfully we’d managed to get a translation ahead of ordering some huevos that saved us from actually ordering eggs, with potatoes or chorizo on the side!

Somewhat revived, D steered us to the Cathedral de Almudena: no queues here but we’d struck siesta at the crypt. 

Around the corner to the Palacio Real…again, queues, so we peeked at the entrance, bypassed the Royal Art Collection (still siesta) & took in the view over the cypresses (D remembered how the Aussie bloke on yesterday’s Big Bus tour had complained about the cypress gardens blocking the view of the Palace). 

Enough for today, so head back to the metro station Opera. Getting there wasn’t too difficult, but we found ourselves on the wrong train (it was just a shuttle back and forth between two stations, so we hadn’t travelled far) but must have looked like lost sheep for a kind shepherd just stepped in unasked & guided us to a couple of helpful station attendants who explained our mistake.

We needed some essential ingredients for tonight’s self catering, so headed to Carrefour Supermarket, to be again disappointed by not being able to purchase small amounts of garlic or chilies at local supermarkets – if they were even available. Perhaps we’re spoiled by the range and options the big supermarkets give us? Having come across a couple of small vegetable shops on our first night stroll we decided to check them out. The first we came to had exactly what we needed, served by a very accommodating woman, through sign language and guesswork. We were somewhat startled when she produced a significant box of chilies, with much shaking of our heads as we indicated that we wanted just one. With a slight shrug she took one out of the box, and indicated that of course that was understood: no one would buy a whole box. Duh! In addition to getting our produce, we were taken by the range of tomatoes offered – and even more taken by a closed shop we passed on our way home that only sold tomatoes.

Magic moments:

#1 – The chili selection interaction.

#2 – Not so much a single moment, but the kind responses we’ve had so far on this trip from strangers, like the coffee queue and the train interaction today.

Although we have missed out on a number of attractions/points of interest due to renovations or crowds, this hasn’t really spoiled the overall experience. Madrid has been wonderful, an elegant mix of palaces, apartments, monuments, public buildings, fountains, and when we’ve interacted with locals it has invariably been friendly and helpful. Easy to get around, and feeling safe at all times.

Dinner: Chicken Desparado with chilies, asparagus, garlic and coriander, with Los Molinos Tempranillo 2023.

Day 5. Wednesday 12 March.

A good night’s sleep and we awoke to a bright sunny day but with a forecast of rain in the afternoon. After breakfast of gazpacho and Spanish omelette, we decided to make the most of it and take the metro into the Parque del Buen Retiro and perhaps a bit more if the weather was kind. 

The first task after breakfast (and doing the washing) was to manage the Madrid metro system. We walked to the closest subway, Canal, where a very kind assistant, who claimed she had a little English but had quite enough, ran us through the simple process of getting a rechargeable train ticket for 10 rides, after which we caught the #2 line into the Parque and wandered around the gardens for several hours. We. Had planned on visiting the Crystal Palace, but it was closed for renovations until 2027. The Jardines de Cecilia Rodriguez had potential – but the roses were just budding at the start if the season.

We caught sight of the double-decker buses, doing the tours of Madrid, so decided to check it out.

On our way there dropped in to the Museo de Prado, which was showing an El Greco exhibition: it was closed (we think for a temporary break). Then stepped into the Iglesia Parroquial San Jerónimo el Real de Madrid: perfect record, it was closing too! Quickly ushered out by the priest.

There were two tours on the same ticket – as it turned out they cover some of the same ground. As we’ve found in other cities, this was a useful way of getting an overview. After the tours walked into Sol, the main shopping precinct and from there onto the metro to Canal.

At the end of the day after a fair bit of walking (12.6K steps) we caught the train back to our accommodation, picking up some supplies for this evening‘s meal, plus of course a reserve of wine. As it turned out, the weather was kind all day. Very cool here but sunny and no rain.

Magic Moments

1: the bird feeder/ photographer in Retiro

 2: The family exiting their car at the green traffic lights near plaza de Cibele (centre Madrid)…no rush…no pressure – kids, luggage & oops… a couple more bags from the back seat! sang froid (or whatever the equivalent is in Spanish). Other traffic not impressed.

Dinner: Chicken Little Patricio with zucchinis in a sweet red wine jus with a Castillo De Haro Rioja Crianza 2021. (Jus ingredients – cummin, onion, leak, red wine, vinegar, raw sugar, salt, pepper, water, inspiration)

Day 4. Tuesday 11 March.

Not much can be said about 15 hours stuck in an airplane. The food was better than the first leg, so that was a plus. Some sleep, and D watched all of the episodes in Series 2 of Reacher. We were picked up by our pre-arranged taxi and delivered to the apartment. A lot of use of WhatsApp  with the apartment management over payment, access codes, keys, parking, payment….but all very civilized and hence resolved easily. By this time we were totally whacked so decided to do a short loop from the apartment with a small shopping trip (that became just that bit bigger, and not just because of the beer, champagne and red wine). As we were about to enter the very narrow lift a couple joined from next door. We crammed in – both neighbours were tall Americans, and he was huge – over 6.5 feet at least and about as wide in the shoulders: well put together. D made a crack about being in the lift with Reacher: did not get a response. Oops.

Drizzle on and off but not enough to be off putting. 

The afternoon dragged on: “what do you mean it’s only 2 o’clock?” A late walk around the area and a leak and potato soup for supper and then off to bed early – although 7.30 here is 0330 in Australia, so perhaps, until we adjust our body clocks, it was a very late night. Whatever. 

Dinner: Potato and leek soup with baguettes and a Senorio de Los LLanos Tempranillo 2021

There was virtually no rubbish, no broken glass, no ‘loud offensive behaviour’, very little advertising…At around 3pm we’d had enough, made our way back to Tung Chung, popped inside the mall to use a bathroom (flushing was out of action at our hotel), we’re very conscious of the expensive ‘labels’ scene on the higher levels, got the S1 back to hotel. Feeling desperate for a beer, we walked thru the tunnel to the airport in search of a reasonably priced bar establishment…they apparently don’t exist in the airport! Got three 500 ml Heinekens, a packet of chips & a Peking Duck wrap in a convenience store to consume in our room- at a reasonable price: the whole bill was less than the cost of one small hotel beer (and the beer cheaper than in Australia). Airport bars seemingly don’t exist & there are virtually no cafes!

A slow afternoon waiting for the right time to walk the 5 minutes to the airport.

First hurdle was checking in. The self-serve kiosk couldn’t process D and directed us to the assisted check in counter. Bonnie took some time trying to get us both processed, eventually giving up and calling or her supervisor. Seems the system wouldn’t accept that our tickets didn’t match our passports – both tickets missing our middle names. That had’t been an issue leaving Sydney so watch this space leaving Barcelona in 3 months! First security check – via a ‘token’ was OK, but the second check using facial recognition required a manual check for D. Then a trek down several escalators to board a fast train, to then go up several escalators to arrive at our departure gate….to find out that departure was delayed, but that the Australian pilot Chad would try to make up time.

Next post – Spain.

10 March. Day 3.

A quiet day in Hong Kong planned with a short shuttle ride down to Tung Chung the ‘outlet center’ where we’d been told there were shops & cafes. But the timings were inconvenient and the concierge advised that the S1 bus would take us there for eight Hong Kong dollars so we decided to do that – D had some small change left over from a Defence trip about 15 years ago (of course). 

Soon enough we were on the bus, transiting via the airport terminals Cathay headquarters, the aviation fuel tank farm and a couple of other places, we arrived at Tung Chung  station, akin to bussing to Woden Interchange but on a very much larger scale.  Having avoided the horrendous costs of breakfast in the hotel, the next step was to look for a coffee and some breakfast, but that was not so easy and in the end we bought a beef bun, two bananas, two yogurts, and an apple in a supermarket which sold a vast range of packaged/prepared food (hot & cold). Yogurts weren’t really useful, at that stage, because we did not have a spoon. We ate our bun outside and got a coffee from one of the bakery cafes: David had a umami scroll, which tasted fishy (seaweed) and Trish had an apple and raisin scone. This is not a cafe culture but patrons & staff were young, well-heeled in Western style & appeared to be enjoying a ‘western processed food scene’. 

From there we decided to walk toward the water and follow a suggested historical trail, but  without any indication of distances – it was a ‘discovery thing’. 

We climbed stairs & followed paths through gardens, across footbridges and past housing estates (multiple tower blocks). We found ourselves in the old fishing part of Lantau, passing through a ‘suburb’ or area called Chung Hau, complete with alleyways/workers’ cafes, small businesses and very old waterfront housing (the stuff of a culture disappeared) in the old fishing zone (now it seems to be the construction workers’ lunch spot & maybe the eating zone for the older style housing blocks). 

The  day was surprisingly very warm so we paused in shade within an estate & used foraged  spoons to eat yogurt. Here we saw kids (middle eastern, perhaps Pakistani, definitely not Chinese)  playing cricket outside the apartment tower. This seemed a world apart from the Tung Chung scene. 

Suspect action – perhaps Sri Lankan?

Then we followed the trail toward the estate that claimed to be a public art space…it was an estate which had installed a variety of installations. The estate struck us as a ‘suburb’…an area of many skyscraper apartment blocks.

 The estates have schools & small shopping outlets, central playgrounds,  sitting areas and covered walkways. The demographic was far less well heeled than at Tung Chung & there were no Westerners. We found about 6 art installations all referring to the link between  past rural/ natural  settings & the current urban neighborhoods. Here there were all ages, kids in school uniforms, some women in middle-Eastern garb, ‘ordinary folk’ without the glamour of the Tung Chung set. The apartment block estates had washing lines outside the windows, old aircon units & there were rusty old bicycles abandoned and chained up, filling up the designated bike racks, signage for dog owners, ….but all was otherwise so clean & orderly.

8 March. Day 1.

IWD and Sal’s birthday, so we started with a breakfast at Space Kitchen in Phillip. Well, it actually started at 0930, after some time doing final clean ups. Jo dropped us off at Jolimont to catch our Murrays bus to Sydney, after navigating the street closures and detours caused by the light rail extension. Bus dropped us off at International Departures, where we caught the shuttle to the Holiday Inn Express. A short walk, finding a small green belt near the hotel, then a beer, a glass of wine with lasagne and pizza and off to bed.

Room was small – adequate but very quiet.

9 March. Day 2.

Needless to say, a night of light sleep until the first alarm (of 7) went off at 0445. Shuttle to airport, checked in to then discover our main bags wold not go straight through because of the 30 hour stopover. But check in and immigration checks otherwise quick and easy. Then just a wait to board.

Exit from the plane and airport was quick and easy (apart from a slightly anxious wait for T’s case) with a sort  5 minute walk to the hotel for another quick and easy check in. After a wander around the complex, a swim and sauna. Dinner was an underwhelming selection (sort of an Asian tapas) and including a couple of beers – a steal at $HK184 – about $AS 37. We decided then that we wouldn’t eat or imbibe at the hotel again.