Arriving at Madrid Airport. It looks pretty new and clean..
Getting to the baggage claim area...
Arriving at our Novotel hotel room... It is not located in downtown, but 15 mins away from town, so it is still relatively convenient.
The typical Novotal style... Chic and Basic...
The toilet.. We love taking pics of toilets.. hahah
Getting dinner at a cafe in town... Zahara Cafe...
The Spanish waiter..
Seafood Paella! Check out the look on Kevin's face! Obviously he can't wait to sink his teeth in! hahaha...
Close up shot of our favourite Spanish dish! YUMMY!!!
The clock tower at Puerta del Sol, the heart of the city.
The metro station.. underground shops and stalls in the background. Reminds us a little of Shanghai whereby they have lots of shopping in the underground metro station too...
The train is here..
The highway of Madrid.. Looks like Singapore's TPE or AYE? hahaha...
In the metro train... Not sure if the train is new, but it looks relatively new and clean, compared to other European metro trains, which may be dirty and badly vandalised...
Madrid Plaza de Toros - The Madrid Bullring! Ooh-hoo~!!
The bullfighter and the maiden?! heheh...
Statues depicting bullfighting scenes
The Bullfighter Kevin! Hehehe... He has certainly subdued the cow in me at least! hahahah...
Joining the Bullring tour! Follow us to check it out!
Remembering the glorious bullfighter!
Kevin in the bullring! As the bullring doesn't hold bullfighting daily, at times, they will rent out the venue to hold concerts or shows. And there we see people setting up the stage for an event.
Me sitting in at the grandstands comfortably... hehehe...
The "Box" Seat! hehehe.. That is only for VIP to watch the Bullfight!
The names of champion bullfighters in the past...
If you understand Spanish?! hahaha.. This guy was one of the greatest bullfighters in history...
A scene from the bullfight... Typical Spanish tiles with drawings and paintings...
Posters of bullfighting scenes...
Standing in the safe area behind the scene... Keep yourself safe from the bull! During times of energency, the bullfighters will actually jump into this area to prevent getting hurt.
Me squeezing myself in between... hee..
Have you seen a female bullfighter?! I ate Bovril when i was young, does that helps? hahahah...
The "dress" (cape used) by the bullfighters... Don't look at it like it is very simple, that "dress" weighs about at least 5kg as the bottom is sewed with sandbags!
That's the red cloth we always see and the guide is holding the sword used in bullfighting...
Kevin at his turn to kill a bull! Oh by the way, for your info, the bulls which are killed after the bull fight are sent to restaurants for the meat to be cooked and served. No wastage at all.
Me holding the "dress"! Look at my face, it is not light at all k! About 5kg leh!Hahah...
Alright, end of Bullring tour and we are headed to the metro to our next destination! ;-)
Back in town at Puerta de Sol
The statue at the Sol
Kevin and his favourite "lamp post" pose... (Courtesy of his good friend Jenn) Hehehe, he thinks he filming Bollywood movies...
A very traditional Spanish pastries store!
A traditional Tapas Bar and Restaurant
Check out all the various meats!
See those meats hanging above me! ahahah...
And check out a whole wall of meats! Gosh!
A busker on the street... admired the lady for getting herself all dirty and muddy...
Plaza Mayor, Madrid's City Square
Kevin embracing the Spanish air!
Passing the Plaza Mayor
Traditional barber anyone?
Check out this antique chair! hahah...
The oldest restaurant in the world - Botin.
Old antique cash register in the restaurant
Check out the restaurant and its cave-like decor.. Really very old and traditional... heehee
The setting in Botin restaurant. This restaurant has been established for almost 300 years. So don't play play!
Sitting down and waiting to be served... We were given a seat right at the corner with hardly room to manouvere....
Decor of the restaurant on the upper level
The traditional kitchen! The chef at work on one of the specialties of the shop - roast suckling pig in traditional stove!
And of course the very old and authentic hot stove!
Another setting of another part of the restaurant.. different themes come together under Botin...
Serving us our soup for a start...
Yum yum!
The renowned dish of Botin - Suckling pig! Botin is also famous for roasted lamb joint.
We tried another dish, Rice with Squid in squid ink
Great food, great place. "Great" pricing too by the way.. 80 plus Euros for the meal in all, hahah..
Courtyard near the palace with an old church - Casa de la Villa
A typical Spanish street sign...
Using typical Spanish painted tiles.
Kevin posing in front of a church.. Hmm.. ok, i think he is growing with all the Spanish cuisine we are eating... hee..
Madrid Royal Palace from afar...
Street of Madrid
Church of Nuestra Señora de la Almudena facing the Royal Palace in Madrid
Entering the sacred ground...
The sound organs in the church..
The church interior
The details on the door of the church
Posing at the Royal Palace of Madrid
A cathedral just opposite the palace.
Close up shot of the palace. We couldn't enter as the palace was closed that day.
The garden next to the palace
Me posing at a fountain
Kevin's favourite - stadium tour. Hahaha.. Arriving at Real Madrid's famous Santiago Bernabeu Stadium!
Interior of Santiago Bernabeu
Kevin - the soccer fan with a naughty T-shirt... Haha..
At the stadium highest point of the South Wing Third Circle
REAL Madrid!
Nonchalant Kevin... hahah.. of course, this is not Liverpool.. hahha..
The Real jerseys of the past
The trophies
The players...
A whole cabinet of trophies! ahhaha..
Soccer... Ignorant me...
The glories..
Check out this interesting trophy in the centre. Like a chimney...
The soccer shoes.. of soccer players..
One of the richest football club in the world... hahaha..
Compared to Barcelona's Nou Camp, the Santiago Bernabeu is really new and luxurious...
At the grandstand
Kevin at the team's dugout...
Us! Playing a fool as usual...
Kevin goes solo..
The dressing room
The jacuzzi, even the visiting team section has one!
The shower area
Wash area
Injured? Please lie down
The press room.. and that's all folks for the stadium tour... hahha..
Busker in town
Street protest in town.. Done very interestingly though..
El Oso y el Madroño - (The Bear and the Strawberry tree - a favourite morsel of bears in Spain).
The Plaza Mayor at night...
Night scenes around Madrid
A long queue at the Monasteorio de las Descalzas Reales. Sadly we didn't get a chance to enter, as opening hours were limited and you can only get in by their guided tour, and by 12noon, there were no more English guided tours. What a pity...
So snap a picture of it at least for remembrance sake... Though we didn't get to see the interior of this 16th century convent.
Walking in town and we came across this building with a church monument in between which caught our eye..
The busy traffic in Madrid...
Check out the sewage cover, which has the symbolic Madrid bear logo on it too!
TheMetropolis of Madrid
Shanshan enjoying Madrid...
Prado Museum Madrid, houses some of the best and most sought after paintings of the Renaissance period, the Thyssen Museum which focuses on Western Art (mostly private collections)
Sorry, no time to go in already. so catch a pic quick in this wet weather!
Tapas time before we leave Madrid for Barcelona!
Yum yum yum! The dish on the left is known as Patatas Bravas. It is fried potatoes with a spicy tomato sauce. Typical tapas dish you will find in Spain..
La Puerta de Alcalá - Arc in Madrid
A gigantic artistic structure in town
At the Madrid airport again... It is really quite new and nice... 
Going to fly to Barcelona next!
There's our flight to Barcelona on Vueling (budget Spanish airline)!Goodbye Madrid... Hello Barcelona!
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