Saturday, September 11, 2021

Santander, Day 2 of 3

Walking Route: Apartment to restaurant and back, 3 miles

Our apartment is a spacious studio on a busy pedestrian street. It is okay, but a little noisy with the windows open. During the day, it's a bit dark inside, but last night, we had a lot of light coming in through a translucent glass front door. We found the shade for the door in a cupboard. It had been broken off the hangers, but Ken was able to get it hooked up enough so it should keep out most of the light from the street tonight.

We found a hardware store with duct tape, and then got our bikes boxed up. We did some research online. It looks like we will be responsible for loading our bikes on the train, and there is a limited area for large luggage at the front of each carriage. We are nervous about how the change of stations and trains in Madrid will go. But we are as ready as we can be! We downloaded and studied plans of the two stations in Madrid, and we have messaged with the driver we hired to transfer us from one station to the next. Worst-case scenario, we miss the second train and spend a night in the station, waiting for the next train. We've done that before; okay, it was 50 years ago, but even so, we can probably do it again.

Ken is getting very tired of the noise in the city--the clamor at the restaurant we ate in yesterday was hard on him. I am hungry for good seafood. Online, I found a seafood restaurant that was highly recommended for fresh food, beautifully prepared, with a quiet outdoor eating area and friendly, professional staff. Google said it was not busy around noon, so we walked over and had the most wonderful meal. It was perfect. And quiet.

Back to the apartment to catch up on bills and loose ends, book an apartment for Olot (north of Girona) for next week, and work on this blog. Our down days go quickly. Especially after a week without internet and cell service.