Apr 7, 2010: "I just thought it was a monkey"

I didn't sleep well last night, or the night before. It's really frustrating, and it makes me crabby. I'll be really glad to get back to Bangor, and "my" bed. Getting up this morning was not fun. I really don't like mornings.

After breakfast, we walked to the Reina Sofia museum, where we met Kat and Lauren. Students get in free, which was awesome. It had a lot of paintings by Dali and Picasso. I got to see Guernica, which we talked about in my Spanish class a few years ago. When we were done at the Reina Sofia, we split up. Kat and Lauren had limited time, since they were only here for about a day and a half. So they left to go wander, while Melisa and I went to the Prado Museum, which Kate' recommended to me. I really liked the art there--it was very pretty. And I was actually familiar with a few of the artists, which I did not expect.

Then, Melisa and I went on a mission to find Chocolateria San Gines, which Hannah suggested. There, we had chocolate and churros. They were pretty good, though I can't say I was that impressed. I haven't had much fried food all semester, so the churros were a bit overwhelming. But I do love chocoalte, and it was fun. After that, we wandered through some shops, etc., just exploring and wasting time. Melisa and I were both really excited to come back and nap.

My nap was really good...I actually slept for a few hours. I'm still tired, and looking forward to crawling into bed tonight. After our naps, we both showered and repacked. Everything fits surprisingly well in our bags--I was surprised.

The new visitors at our hostel are really loud, and ALL teenagers. One of them had this noisemaker--they sell these noisemakers all over Madrid apparently. I sounds kind of like a chipmunk, or a cartoon character. I told Melisa that whoever made them really sucked, and her response? "Oh, I just thought it was a monkey." She hadn't really been paying attention, and was actually pretty serious. I had to remind her that we are in Spain, not Brazil. I can't imagine there being lots of wild monkeys here--or even tame ones, really.

For dinner, we were craving either pasta or pizza. We ended up eating at a restaurant called "Nebraska." My pizza was ok, but not my favorite. It was four cheese, and one of the cheeses had a strange flavor. I had flan for dessert--more traditional food. It was good, but I think I prefer gelato. I miss Italy!

After dinner, we returned to the hostel. We checked our email, Facebook, etc. I'm really tired, but not sure I'll be able to sleep. But I don't feel like sitting on Facebook, waiting for people to come online. Soon I'll be back in Bangor, with my own computer and everything :)

Tomorrow, we are sleeping in and having a late breakfast. Then, we are going to el Palacio Real, and El Retiro park again. We have to be at the airport around 7, which gives us plenty of time to explore and relax. We'll be landing in Bristol, and staying at the airport until our train leaves the next morning. I'm tired of trying to sleep in airports. I'll be so glad to be travelling soon!