(Spain) Vacation Day 3: A Once-in-a-Lifetime Day

Day 3 of our Madrid trip was probably the day with the fewest activities on paper, but without a doubt, it was the most special one so far.

We saw the Pope!

Not only did we see him, but at one point he passed less than three meters away from us. It only lasted a few seconds, but it was one of those moments you know you’ll remember forever. Out of all the things we had planned for this trip, seeing the Pope in person was definitely not something we expected to happen.

People waiting for the Pope to pass

We also attended the Mass he celebrated, which reportedly gathered around 1.2 million people. Seeing that many people gathered together was incredible in itself, but what impressed us even more was how organized everything was.

Entire streets were closed off for the event, attendees had to pre-register, and huge screens were set up per street so everyone could follow along clearly. The screens were not only massive but also surprisingly clear.

The part that impressed me the most was Communion. I kept wondering how they would possibly distribute Communion to that many people, and then priests started walking to different stations throughout the closed streets, allowing attendees to receive Communion without needing to crowd into one area. ANG GALING!!!

One of the many communion priests - the one under the umbrella. So before communion, you'd see white umbrellas spreading through the place!

The Mass lasted around two hours, and despite the size of the crowd, it felt peaceful and incredibly special.

I saw about 3 people who passed out, probably of the heat and maybe hunger as it was a 10am mass and people started walking to the place around 7am, maybe some even earlier. So not everyone was able to have breakfast. There was a lady just behind us who did too. But her family called for medic and another lady in front of us immediately rushed to go to them. But by that time, someone was also already assisting the passed out lady. 

After the Mass, we headed to Delica Bistro for lunch. It was an Italian restaurant, which means we still haven’t had a proper Spanish meal. Well… unless churros count. Haha!

This was sooooo good especially after being under the sun for hours

After lunch, we wandered through the Sunday market. I was hoping to find more handmade goods, but there weren’t as many artisan vendors as I expected. Whenever we came across something handmade, the husband would look at it and say, “You can make that too!” like the supportive husband he is. Then me in return would point at something and say "and you can make that!" hahahah. Mej mayayabang din.

The weather was a bit of a mixed bag. The breeze was nice and cool, but the sun during the mass was quite intense. Between the heat and all the walking, our energy levels were completely drained by the afternoon.

So we headed back to the hotel, took showers to cool off, and promptly passed out for a nap.

When we woke up, it was time for the glamorous part of travel: laundry. hahahaha

We did a load at the hotel while grabbing takeaway dinner. Ton got a kebab from Culto Kebab, and went to an Indian restaurant in search of rice. Apparently they wouldn’t let him buy just rice, so he ended up buying a meal as well. 

While waiting for the laundry, we settled into the lounge area near the laundry room. I spent the time working on a Design Team application and finishing a blog post for Printable Cuttable Creatables.

And then came one of the sweetest and most unexpected encounters of the trip.

I finally listened to a video message from Viv - the lovely lady I mentioned in my Spring Market blog post. In the video, she shared that she would be sending one of my cards to a telenovela actress.

A woman who was also waiting for her laundry overheard the message and started chatting with us. She had also helped us figure out how the paid laundry machines worked, which we appreciated!

She asked if I was from the Philippines and then asked if I was a Canva Creator.

I laughed and told her I wished I was, but that digital art isn’t really my strength - although learning it has been on my list for a while.

It turns out she is a Canva Edu Creator from Mexico. She initially thought I might be in Madrid for a Canva event or that I was some kind of artist because she heard bit of the video message about a card i made. We ended up chatting about Canva, creative work, and even tried figuring out whether we had mutual Canva friends in the Philippines.

A little while later, she returned from her room carrying Canva merchandise for me.

Eeeeek!!! Kakatuwa!

Canva goodies!!!

She asked if I was interested in becoming a Canva Creator. I told her I probably needed to learn a lot more first, but she encouraged me and said to message her when I’m ready.

After the laundry was finished, we finally redeemed our complimentary welcome drink coupons from the hotel. We sat outside with two glasses of beer and a cookie that we purchased from the hotel café.

The cookie deserves its own mention because it was really good.

We spent some time sitting outside, enjoying our drinks and chatting about everything we’d done over the past few days. It was a nice chill bonding with the husband.

Back in our room, we started packing for the next leg of our adventure.

Tomorrow, we leave Madrid and head to Barcelona.

Madrid gave us beautiful architecture, great food, unexpected shopping adventures, a new friend, and one unforgettable experience that we’ll be talking about for years.

How exactly are we supposed to top seeing the Pope from three meters away?

I guess Barcelona is about to find out. 

Here are random photos I took the whole day:

Lucky photos from our sitter:

And my junk journal mini stash for today:

Also linking here my previous vacation posts:

Day 1

Day 2

(Spain) Vacation Day 2: Churros, Primark, and Taking the Train Like Locals

Day 2 of our Spain vacation is officially done!

Our hotel reservation didn’t include breakfast, although we could have added it for €10 per person. After reading some mixed reviews, we decided we’d rather explore the local food scene instead. But most breakfast places around us didn’t open until 10:00 AM, so we enjoyed a slow morning in the hotel before heading out.

For brunch, we went to Zurch, a highly rated breakfast spot in the area. The place was beautiful, the food portions were huge, and everything looked great. It was a little on the pricey side, but we enjoyed the food.

After brunch, we wandered around the neighborhood and stopped by the Church of San Antonio simply because Antonio happens to be my husband’s namesake. The church was quaint and peaceful, with beautiful paintings covering the walls and ceilings. 

As we continued walking, we found ourselves at El Moderno, a lovely concept store filled with all sorts of beautiful things. It was one giant collection of “I want this, but I shouldn’t buy it” items. Haha! I decided that starting tomorrow, I’ll borrow a tip I learned from Kelly Bangs during her Japan trip: take photos of all the cute things I want to buy but don’t need, then print the photos later and include them in my travel journal. Much cheaper and it saves luggage space too! But just as much happiness brought.

We also stopped by Zara, but the store was massive - three or four floors and packed with people. I quickly decided that was a future-Ana problem and that I could always come back another day while we’re still in Madrid.

Primark, however, was a different story.

I happily made my way up to the third floor (the fourth was mostly for kids) because, well… Primark! I’ve loved browsing Primark ever since my first visit to one in London back in 2018. Back then, I bought shirts for family and friends for around ₱200 each. Prices have changed since then, of course, but what amused me was realizing that I now compare European prices to Saudi Arabian prices rather than Philippine prices. So technically, they are cheaper now because I'm comparing it to Saudi. Funny how living abroad changes your what's mahal and what's not perspective.

I managed to pick up a few things for myself, along with some gifts for family and friends. There were definitely more things I wanted to buy, but I exercised some self-control. Besides, it’s only Day 2. There’s still plenty of vacation left! Worst-case scenario, we can always end our trip with one final Primark visit in Barcelona. Hehehe.

After all that shopping, we stumbled upon a cute bookstore called Casa del Libro. Most of the books were in Spanish, but they did have a small English section. I’ve been searching everywhere for a physical copy of Freida McFadden’s The Dinner Party. Since it’s a choose-your-own-adventure style story with multiple endings, I feel like it deserves to be read in book form rather than on a screen. So far, I’ve had no luck finding it in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the Philippines, or now Spain. The hunt continues!

The first half of our day ended with smoothies and a donut from a bakery near our hotel called The Best Brunch and Breakfast.

Back at the hotel, we rested for a bit, finalized plans for the next few days, and video-called my family so I could proudly show off my Primark haul. Here's my haul excluding those we got for the hubby and our cat sitter:

Then it was time for Round Two of our day.

For the evening adventure, we took the train like locals. Hehe.

While exploring the city center, we passed by the Presidency of the Community of Madrid, where they were live-streaming the Pope who arrived in Madrid early during the day.

Next, we visited Chocolatería San Ginés, probably the most famous churros spot in Madrid. The churros were delicious, but what surprised me most was the chocolate. It wasn’t overly thick, which meant you could actually drink whatever was left after dipping. Very dangerous information for someone who loves chocolate.

We spent some time relaxing at Plaza de Isabel II before walking toward the Palacio Real de Madrid and the Catedral de Santa María la Real de la Almudena. Unfortunately, both were already closed when we arrived. It was around 8:00 PM, but there was still plenty of daylight outside, which continues to amaze me.

By now, we were hungry and ready for dinner. We headed to Mercado de San Miguel, fully intending to finally eat something Spanish. Unfortunately, it was incredibly crowded and a little too warm for our liking.

So what did we do?

We ate Japanese food.

In Spain.

At a restaurant just outside the market.

Hahaha.

The restaurant was called Yakitori, and we ended up having the entire place to ourselves. It was quiet, comfortable, and exactly what we needed after a long day of walking. One of the owners was Japanese and told us his family was from Kyoto. His grandfather was even the chef. It was like a little piece of Japan tucked into the middle of Madrid.

After dinner, we continued our walk through Plaza Mayor before finally grabbing an Uber back to the hotel.

We got back around 9:00 PM and there was still daylight outside.

As I write this, it’s now 10:00 PM. Whether we head out again for a late-night snack or simply call it a night remains to be seen.

Knowing us, both options are equally possible.

For now, I’ll sort through today’s treasures, admire my growing pile of junk-journal goodies, and rest up for another day of exploring. Day 2 brought us beautiful churches, shopping finds, churros, trains, unexpected Japanese food, and plenty of steps on our fitness trackers (hahah joke lang. wala kami nyan!). Not a bad way to spend a day in Madrid.

Oh but first,  I’m also sharing a photo of the “junk” I collected throughout the day for my traveler’s notebook. Hehe. Receipts, tags, brochures, packaging, and other random paper bits may not look like much right now, but will be nice once I start my journaling.

If you haven't read our Day 1 adventure, you can check it out here.

Until tomorrow! 

But wait, here are Lucky's photos for the day from our cat sitter: