Day 2

Saturday we woke up around 9am and had breakfast downstairs (buffet). I had membrillo - like fruit leather, but a bit more like jelly - and cheese, fruit, and pastries. So far I´m loving all the food here. : )
We saw more of Madrid - the Iglesia de los Jeronimos (beautiful old church near El Museo del Prado) and El Parque de Retiro (big park like Central Park with fountains, flowers, and statues).
In the park we stopped by a pond with rowboats and some fish, and a colosseum with nautical statues.
Nearby we stopped at an outdoor cafe for some drinks, and I tried ´mosto´, white grape juice with an orange slice.
Then we took a taxi back to our hotel. We then packed up the car, as the family had driven from their home in Vitoria-Gasteiz, which is in Basque Country, touching France.
We drove by wheat fields and little villages - everything is very dry and rocky - and arrived at our hotel in La Granja, a little town around a royal summer palace. Plenty of tourists, but not "touristy".
After settling in our rooms (I´m in one with Nuria, and the parents are in the other), we walked around town and the royal gardens. The palace is well-preserved and BEAUTIFUL; you can almost imagine horsedrawn carriages and servants going up and down the cobble-stoned streets.
After this - and lots of pictures - we went back to our hotel. We spent some relaxation time at the spa downstairs - in the suana, in a large thermal pool with jets, drinking tea - and then went out for dinner. We ate at Martinho, a very nice restaurant with typical Spanish food. We shared salad with tuna first, and then I had roast duck and little strips of fries (we chose from 3 things on a menu prepared by the hotel). For dessert we shared Pastel Rusa (pastry on top of pudding) and 4 kinds of ice cream: dulce de leche, yogurt, mandarin, and blackberry. Everything was excellent.
The waiter spoke English very well, and when he heard that I was visiting from the U.S. he explained to me the dishes we were eating, and also about the festival going on outside. It was a festival of magic, a Fiesta de Magia. We heard music and people in the streets, but when we finally left (very late) everyone had gone.
And so ended a wonderful day in La Granja. : )