Day 40 an extra day in Madrid

Thanks to a delayed flight out of Santiago, we are in Madrid for another day. Iberia Airlines had some computer issue which delayed us being checked in and boarding the aircraft. Their system was completely down and the gate agents had to hand write boarding passes. This caused a 45 minute delay in our flight which was enough for us to be denied boarding of our connecting flight. Even though we were still at the ticket counter 30 minutes before the flight left.

So, Delta booked us on the same flights for Wednesday, and helped us find a hotel. The hotel they suggested is near a shopping mall, so we spent the afternoon shopping. Or basically Lori spent the afternoon shopping. I went along to warm a few mall benches. 😐

I guess the mall is one place exempt from siesta time…. while the foot traffic was less, it was open which is different than the more rural parts of Spain.

Aside from the store names, it looks like any other mall. Including many recognizable brands Starbucks, H&M, Zara. Zara incidentally is a brand started in Spain that has made its owner the 2nd richest man in the world.

One benefit of shopping malls is food options. While the food has been great here, most restaurants offer similar menus, so it was nice to have options. So….we had lunch at a replica Ribs restaurant, and dinner at Mickey D’s….ahhhhh comfort food!

Looking forward to being home soon.