Oviedo to Madrid

Thursday, January 15, 2026

We're leaving by 8:45 this morning so everyone is up and out early. The car only holds five people and all their luggage, so Jenny is walking to the train station while Ole drives the rest of us. That's not as awful as it sounds, she often walks to the station in the normal course of events. We get to see the sunrise, which is a treat and Jenny's photos of it are gorgeous!

Sunrise reflection

Jenny's sunrise series...

The parking building is small enough that Ole doesn't even need to take a picture of his parking space's number. He'll find the car easily when he and Jenny come home and it will be late enough that they'll appreciate not walking back.

At the station we realize that there is, in fact, a luggage scanner, so Stu can't bring home his pizza cutter! He bought one for Ole and one for himself and had them delivered here, but it looks like a weapon and for sure won't make it on to the train. Ole takes it back to the car and Stu will get it another time.

Cool artworks on the Oviedo station walls, just before I was told not to take photos!

Waiting by the tracks for the train (thanks Barbara)

We take the train and then the metro and it's a bit of a trick to get our metro tickets; but it all works out and when we get to Madrid it is pretty foggy and much colder than Oviedo had been. Glad I've got four layers! But I don't use my gloves or hat, so there's that. It's 7 degrees C (44 F)and the high will only be 8! When we get off the metro and start walking toward our B&B, I realize that we'll be staying right in the heart of town!

The Plaza Mayor, the principal public square in the heart of Madrid, on our way to the B&B

There's going to be a performance of "The Play That Goes Wrong"!

Open Sesame!

There's a magic code to open the door and when we get inside it looks more like a hotel than a B&B. But when we get to the fourth floor (Thank you Mr. Otis!) there's a hall way with several doors and our magic number also opens ours. Oh my goodness! It's huge! Three bedrooms with double beds and two sleep sofas, one of which is already made up and a full kitchen and two bathrooms!

Jenny captured this shot of Ole at work!

Cool shot, Barbara

We arrived around 1:45 and we have lunch reservations for 2:30, so we have just the right amount of time to get settled in and head out the door. The restaurant is walking distance (for the kids) and we set out, arriving at Marina Ventura right on the dot. We're shown to our table and peruse the menu. We're here for the paella, even though it is not really a Madrid dish, but you can't come to Spain without having it! There are many different forms and we choose two different ones, ordering servings for two, along with three different appetizers and, of course, wine. And coffee. By the time we're ready to leave it's five o'clock! Lunch is the main meal of the day in Spain and they take their time with it!

This is an extra that just shows up - crispy bread sticks and hummus.

Mom gets to approve the wine this time.

Breaded mushrooms with two different sauces

Brie and goat cheese with carmelized onions

Grilled veggies

Yet another delicious red wine and crusty bread

Paella One - with chicken, rabbit, pork, leeks, artichokes and green beans!

Main dish number two - duck and wild mushroom rice seasoned with truffle oil

It's a lovely restaurant!

Ooo! Free treats!

Fun window on our walk.

We have timed tickets to the Prado, which just means we can't go in earlier than our assigned time. Amanda spent a long time last night fighting with the technology to get earlier tickets for Stu and her; but we all wind up going together - who could miss any part of lunch?

You can't take photos inside the museum, so you'll just have to trust me, and everything you've ever read, that this is an amazing collection. You could never see it all in the three hours we spent there! But we made sure to see the Goya rooms and the Bosch exhibit. Listening to the kids discuss the finer points of what we're seeing astounds me. But Amanda has some sort of certification in museum management (I'll find out exactly what that is) and I never knew that Stu's favorite work is Goya's "Saturn Devouring his Son" (and he gets to see it!)! And Ole knows that St. Andrew the Apostle was crucified on an X-shaped cross!

It's still drizzling when we get out, and dark, but who cares? We're heading to a flamenco show but a lady Jenny finds tells us we're too early to get in, so we have coffee at an outdoor cafe right around the corner. When it's closer to entrance time we go to the front entrance; but when we arrive they don't have our reservation, even though Jenny has it on her phone. Nothing happens when they scan the QR code. We're entitled to a free drink and they shuffle us off to get those while they deal with others. Finally someone figures out that we're at the wrong flamenco show! Who knew there were two right around the corner and down the block from one another?

We scurry away and get there just at nine o'clock, the official curtain time. But it's Spain and we've plenty of time to collect another free drink, wine or sangria, and find a seat. This is so much better! It's a tiny little venue, down in a brick-lined cave, with seating for sixty or seventy at most. The seating is semi circular, around a tiny thrust stage with five chairs upstage and there are holders for our wine glasses! We just get settled with the MC introduces himself and tells us the story of flamenco with what might be actual facts?? He's so good at being funny in both Spanish and English and we're entranced before the show even begins.

Jenny caught this shot before we realized that we were in the wrong Flamenco show. But we got a glass of wine before we left!

The drinks here at the right show are much better and so is the venue!

The first performer is a flamenco guitarist and we're mesmerized. It only gets better from there! There is a cellist, a drummer, a singer and two dancers, one male and one female and the intensity is such that we're exhausted by the end of the show.

We're too wired to go home, and it's too early anyway, so we find a cocktail bar and order wild and bizarre drinks and munchies! We get invited to another bar, too, but that's a step too far. After that we stop at a Kebob shop because Ole and Stu still need one more thing in their tummies! We get home after midnight and I think we're all fried. I know I go straight to bed!!