Madrid

 Travel

I bought a tourist travel pass, which is a bit like an Oyster card and you load your ticket onto it. It may not be the cheapest way to travel, but I find it the easiest. Be aware that the tourist travel cards work on calendar days, not hours (Athens does 72hrs from validation of ticket for example). The metro is pretty regular, there is the odd charging point and you also get full mobile/4G signal everywhere on the metro. 

Food 

As usual as a solo traveller I get poorer service in restaurants than groups. It does mean sometimes I will go to a big chain because it's faster and easier. I fitted in Paella and Sangria though, so all was not lost on local cuisine.

Palaces

There are a couple of palaces to choose from including Cibeles and Palacio Real. I didn't go into either but they are very grand from the outside. At opening time the que for Palacio Real was already quite long.

Palacio Real

Almudena Cathedral 

This is next to Palacio Real and from the dome roof you can see into the palace courtyard. I paid €7 for entry to the museum and dome, although entry to just the Cathedral is free. You can't take photos in the museum. There are laminated guides to explain what is there because all the labels are in Spanish. There are a lot of intricate and beautiful artefacts to see as you walk around. You can walk around outside the dome and the panoramic views of Madrid are worth the effort. The Cathedral itself is nice, I get the impression it's relatively modern.

Basilica San Francisco

This is free to enter, but I think has shorter opening hours than the Cathedral. The artwork inside is amazing and the ceiling is just incredible. It was absolutely worth the visit. 

Jardines del Buen Retiro

I bailed on going to the botanical gardens because I didn't want to pay the entry fee. However, the park is just behind it. The park has lots of paths and water features, including a boating lake. There's also lots of places to sit and eat in the park. Unfortunately the weather during my visit wasn't great, but on a sunny day it really would be worth a longer visit.

Sol

This is a very busy area, with lots of shops and restaurants. It has some significant statues, but is mostly shopping. Plaza Mayor is also another significant place to visit that's a short walk from here, with some grand buildings and historic importance.

Plaza Mayor

Prado Museum

Be prepared to que to get in, although it was a bit better earlier in the day. There is a free cloakroom - you can't take water in, but you can leave it in your bag in the cloakroom. I hid from the rain by looking at paintings for most of the day. It's a big museum with lots to see - from Picasso to Rafael and Rembrandt. I even discovered a copy of the Mona Lisa, so I learnt something too.

La Vuelta 

The final stage in Madrid involved 10 circuits of some of the main streets. I was stood in the same spot for several hours, all to see the cyclists fly past in a few seconds.

Sweet Space Museum

I found this through Google and decided to give it a try. It's in a quiet shopping mall and is a contemporary art museum on the theme of sweets. It has 10 rooms designed by different artists and you get given a sweet as you enter some of them. It's the kind of place that's good to go if you want to take selfies for your socials. Was different but fun to go to, so I would recommend it, but I think it would be better for a group rather than solo as the staff are very hands off.

Puerta de Europe

This is a pair of towers leaning towards each other, with a giant golden pole and a sculpture which are quite photogenic, although there's not much else nearby to do.

72hrs in Athens, Greece

I went to Athens as I wanted to visit the Parthenon and the Acropolis. I booked an EasyJet package, very basic airline but the hotel I chose was lovely. The Acropolis Hill Hotel has a roof terrace with a view of the Acropolis, which is lit up beautifully at night. It also has a pool.

View of the Parthenon from the hotel at night

I bought a 72hr metro ticket, which included a return trip to the airport. I found the metro to be a really good way to get around within the city. However, metro trains that run all the way to the airport don't run very often (around every 36mins). There is an express bus (X95) that would take you into Syntagma, where you could then take the metro, but I didn't take that route, so I can't comment on if it's any quicker. There are 3 metro lines and tickets need validating on entering and exiting. Some of the metro stations (including Acropolis, Syntagma and Evangelismos) have displays of ancient artefacts and excavations which are quite interesting, especially if you want to save a trip to the Acropolis museum. 

If you are aged under 25 you can try and get a reduced price ticket to enter places. They don't accept student cards, just proof of age. 

Changing of the Guard

Every hour at Syntagma, outside the Parliament building, the guard changes at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The soldiers dress in traditional military uniform and perform very ritualistic/traditional manoeuvres. It is worth going to see it as it is certainly interesting. On Sunday's at 11am there is a parade alongside the guard change, this gets VERY busy and the road is closed. If you want to see this I recommend going early to try and get a spot you can see the parade and ceremony from as it gets packed.

Acropolis Museum

Tickets are €15, which includes the museum and entry to the excavated part of the city underneath the museum. I found the museum to be very busy, but at the time I appreciated the air conditioning. It contains a recreation of the Parthenon frieze, which is in the British Museum and a lot of statues and artefacts from the Acropolis and that time in history. It was interesting to visit and you can spend as much or as little time looking around as you want. All the history and exhibit labels are in both Greek and English.

The Acropolis

The Acropolis site was cash only and the tickets are €20, it's a long walk up a steep hill with uneven ground, so something to be aware of if you have mobility issues. The site contains a lot of historical sites, including temples and a theatre (think Amphitheatre). It felt like a long, steep walk up, although there was a water fountain and a toilet up at the top. It was interesting to see the Parthenon and learn more about its history from all the information provided. Lots of bits of column lying around too. The top of the Acropolis is very exposed, so take water and sun cream.

Parthenon

Piraeus

I took the metro out to Piraeus and Dimotiko Theatro. I walked down to the port to look at the ferries which go to various different Greek islands. There were a couple of nice Churches and buildings, but otherwise I didn't find a huge amount to do there.

Church in Piraeus

Syntagma/Monastiraki

These two metro stops provide good access to shopping. There is a mix of high end retail shops and smaller shops selling souvenirs. One area is called Plaka, but there are lots of side streets you can walk down and plenty of places to eat. There is also a flea market and access to the hop on - hop off sightseeing buses. I found that I could walk around for quite a while and still pass historical sites in Athens, such as the Temple of the Winds. There were also a number of Churches in the area, including the Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens.

I recommend planning what you want to do in advance to make the most of your visit. I did the Changing of the Guard, museum and Acropolis in one day. This left plenty of time to explore other areas of Athens and still spend some time by the hotel pool.

Moon rise from the hotel