The trainhotel Francisco de Goya is an easy way to get to Madrid from Paris. Howver, the staff only speak Spanish, and so I almost got myself thrown out for not having a Eurailpass, something that I do possess, except John and I are on a joint Saverpass ticket. It could have been a cold night in Poitiers.

Howver, because I met a fellow Canadian in my compartment all´s well that ends well.

She had been born in Argentina, and thus spoke fluent Spanish, so she sorted out the problem quickly. She was travelling with her Lebanese boyfriend in France, Spain and Lebanon before returning to Canada. (Hooray for immigration! Go Canada!)

Madrid is a beautiful city, and John and I showered and changed before leaving our hostel for tapas, the traditional meal of the madrileno. We wound up each having an empanada made with tunafish and pastry (delicious) and a bottle of Rioja wine. This put a dent in the day´s budget, so we went in search of groceries and found a lovely little place where we bought sandwich fixings, pop, wine, yogourt and other things for dinner.

We then napped and spent the evening discussing our future plans and also gazing outside at the Plaza del Sol. We then watched a World Cup qualifer between Spain and Lithuania, which Spain won 1-0, and went to bed. It was a day that recharged batteries.