We made our first real trip to the grocery store today so that we can cook at the apartment. Curt picked up a couple of things on our first day, but we’ve been so busy that we didn’t make it back to the store until today. Well, to be honest, yesterday we did try to find one of the few grocery stores that were open on Sunday, but we were not successful. It was interesting to note that a lot of the items that we picked up from the store today were Italian. Apparently we are going to eat like we are in Italy if we can’t actually be there! The prices were actually very reasonable, especially for produce. 

We ventured to one of the cinemas today to see Maleficent (Maléfica). We did not have a chance to see it before we left and saw that it was playing at one of the theaters in town that shows American films in English (versión original) with Spanish subtitles. We enjoyed the movie and also learned a little bit of Spanish during the process! The cinema had a family package that we were able to utilize for a little bit of a discount and the prices for popcorn and drinks were cheaper than in the U.S. 

One thing that I have found very endearing about Madrid is that the citizens seem to be very kind to children. Numerous times when we’ve traveled on the Metro, adults have offered to give up their seats so that Griffin could sit down on the train. On most occasions, the offers have come from older women or women that had their own children on the train. Usually when we’ve experienced this courtesy in the U.S. or Italy, the fellow passengers were male, so this has been quite a surprise. 

After the movie, we made the first meal at the apartment that wasn’t cooked in the microwave. It’s probably a good idea not to use the microwave too much as it usually trips the breaker and shuts all the electricity off in the apartment! It was a little challenging to cook a couple of things at the same time with the tiny space that we have in the kitchen. There isn’t an actual oven, just the microwave and two stovetop burners. There is very little counter space and just a few pots and pans, but I managed to cook some ravioli and french fries. I know, the two items don’t go together at all, but I was craving french fries and didn’t think Curt and Griffin would let me get by with serving them only fries for dinner! (And no, the ravioli was not out of a can!) Here is a picture of our kitchen (it’s basically in a closet):