Exploring Sunny Madrid

We spent our last day in Madrid outside, trying to soak up the last of the sun before heading back to London in the evening.

Our first stop was the Buen Retiro Park, which used to belong to the Royal Family until the late 19th Century when the public were allowed access. The park is the largest and one of the most popular in Madrid.

Near the Northern entrance to the park is a large artificial lake, with a large monument of King Alfonso XII overlooking the lake. The monument was erected by his mother in 1922 and is one of the prettiest parts of the park.

Because we had mostly seen Madrid in the late afternoon and the dark, we spent the rest of the afternoon visiting some of the monuments and buildings we had seen the previous night. Everything looked so different in the daytime.

The Alcala Gate, looking a bit like the Arc du Triomphe in the middle of a roundabout at the Plaza de la Independencia.

The Palacio de Comunicaciones, or City Hall

We wandered along Gran Via, one of the most famous shopping streets in Madrid. The buildings were amazing, with so many Art Deco features, and also lots of statues and interesting additions on top of each one.

We ended up leaving Madrid feeling like it's a city you really have to work hard at to uncover its secrets, and that it has a lot of hidden gems that aren't apparent until you really wander round and explore the back streets, but that it's definitely worthwhile doing so.

Visiting the beautiful town of Segovia and another Disney Castle

The next day we headed out of Madrid again to Segovia. Segovia is North of Madrid, about an hour by train. It's a beautiful Old Town surrounded by a medieval wall, and most famous for its huge Roman Aqueduct that is the first thing you see as you approach the town. The Aqueduct is the largest and best preserved of its kind anywhere in the world.

Segovia was extremely important in Roman times and, like Toledo, is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We got off the train to find it at least 10 degrees colder than it had been in Madrid. We were not at all prepared for the weather in only sneakers and light scarves. But we didn't come all the way just to hop back on the train, so we got on the bus and headed towards the Old Town.

A Day Trip by Train to Toledo from Madrid

For my birthday this year we headed back to Spain for some sunshine since it has been a long long Winter in the UK.

We tossed up between Madrid and Barcelona before deciding on Madrid because it wasn't as touristy and has lots of lovely towns nearby for easy day trips.

We arrived in Madrid late on Friday evening and headed straight to bed, as we were headed to the small town of Toledo the next morning so we had to be up early.

A Lazy Day in Prague

Our second day in Prague started quite lazily. We slept in quite late and had a long breakfast in our hotel which was delicious. We had a super king size bed which was so comfortable we had to drag ourselves out and into the city.

We had great weather the whole time we were in Prague. It was lovely and sunny, which was a nice change after freezing cold and foggy Vienna.

Exploring the Prague Castle and Christmas Markets

On our first day in Prague we woke up early and caught the tram up to Prague Castle, which is on a hill overlooking the city. Prague Castle is the biggest Castle in the world, and has been home to Kings, Roman Emperors and Presidents of the Czech Republic, it is also home to the Czech Crown Jewels.