Madrid

Our flight to South Africa included a 12-odd hour layover in Madrid. This ended up not being as bad as it sounds: both our flight from JFK and the next flight to Johannesburg were overnight flights, so we basically had the whole day to explore. Plus, Brigitte’s friend’s daughter graciously let her use her flat near the city center, as she was out of town at the time. This ended up being a very good thing, since most of us (and Riley especially) were pretty exhausted.

In the end, Elise, Riley and I ended up napping while David, Brigitte and Eric went exploring, guided by Angelea’s excellent recommendations and Eric’s obsession with seeing the football stadium (which apparently the largest, or newest, or in some other way most special ever). The museum at the stadium ended up being closed, but they found other entertainment at Ang’s favorite bar…

…and from a street performer who serranaded Eric.

A few hours later, they came back to the apartment (exhausted) for a nap, and Riley, Elise and I (somewhat rejuvenated) went out with Brigitte. By this time it was dark, and we could fully appreciate the city lights.

It was really cold, so Riley was bundled up in her lovely purple sweater (knit by her Grandma Brigitte) and hat (a gift from Will) and wrapped in my jacket.

Riley was pretty sleepy and took a nap on our way back to the airport…

…before riding with our bags as we braced ourselves for the next 11-hour flight to Johannesburg.