Saturday March 15
Atlanta
We left home around 11 made it to the OK cafe for lunch and then sat in Atlanta traffic for some 20 minutes but eventually got to the airport. The hourly lot was full, so we had to park in the park and ride lot. With 98 spaces left we eventually found a place to park on the roof. We took the shuttle, got checked in and through security by 3. The plane left on time, wheels up at 7PM. We missed waiting in the first-class lounge, but we soldiered on. Concourse E is very long, so we managed some 6500 steps.
Sunday March 16
We had a nice Comfort Plus seat, ate a mediocre dinner and settled in. Shirley had a good book and Paul watched the Conclave, which was very good. We managed to get a few hours’ sleep although it wasn't as comfortable as the pods in first class, but we managed somehow. The 767-400 landed 15 minutes early. We were through passport control, baggage claim and met our transfer driver by 9:00. Then, we made a no traffic ride to the hotel and checked in. Our room wasn't quite ready, but we had a nice coffee in the beautiful restaurant area of the Palace Hotel. By 9:45 our room was ready, so we unpacked and got settled in our room.
At 10:45 we left to the Basilica de Jesus de Medinaceli, home of a very famous statue of Jesus. We lit candles for our family and friends as we always do when visiting awesome churches.
After Mass we walked around the neighborhood looking for places we might like to eat and did some window shopping. We saw some really pretty items although most shops were closed. We did find a good looking menu at Lamucca de Prado and made plans to have an early dinner there. We then looped back to the hotel.
On the way back, as the clock struck noon and there were bells playing “Ode to Joy” across the street from our hotel Paul took a video took a few pictures. Then back to the hotel to rest and blog.
After a short rest we looked out the window and saw a nice sunny day with lots of pedestrian traffic. And so, we got our coats on and went for a walk in the park that is on one side of the Neptune Fountain. The Neptune Fountain was being restored when we were here in November. When we got to the end of the park away from the Prada, it started to rain – freezing rain!! little pellets of ice were bouncing off the pavement and off our heads. We returned to the Hotel.
Neptune unveiled
No sooner had we got to the Hotel when the ice barrage was over, and the sun returned. Paul re-tooled his outer-wear, and we were off again. This time we trekked into the city. It must have been lunch time, around 3, as all the small eateries were packed with people. The café, Lamucca, that looked empty at noon was packed, although the Maitre de found a deuce and we proceeded to eat.
Lamucca’s specialty
We ordered some tapas, and they brought out some extremely tasty and fresh bread with a pot of ground olives. The place was lively, and all ages were enjoying the food and conversation. After Lamucca we would our way back to the Palace past a futbal shop where we picked up Hazel’s requested gift.
The rest of the afternoon was spent under the beautiful stained-glass dome of the Palace restaurant where we reviewed the day and the plans for tomorrow.
The stained glass dome
Then, jet lag caught up. Seven PM saw us fast asleep
The view from our room
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