The train back to Madrid was fast and clean as usual. I was back at the hostel just long enough to drop a few things off and hit 100 Mantaditos for some food before I met my tour guide. Mantaditos are little 2 bite sandwiches. I didn't realize that take out was not an option so classy girl that I am, I wound up with tiny sandwiches wrapped in napkins in my pockets. Came in handy in a way. The tour I signed up for was a really small walking tour of myths, legends and history of the city. The tour was only me and a Maltese couple. The tour guide, Carlos, was great. He knew so many interesting stories. In Madrid they close Carnivale by marching down the street near the water to bury sardines. The story is that the king ordered sardines brought into the city for lent to encouraged Catholic citizens to not eat meat during lent, but fish instead. But this was hundreds of yearsbefore refrigeration so the fish rotted.he realized he couldn't feed rotten fish to his people so he ordered them buried. Hence the tradition.
We walked around the city for 2 hours with stories like that and then went to Giles to try the famous churros con chocolate. The chocolate is so thick you can rest spoon on it incomes with a huge pile of flavored churros to dip. It is pure decadence. So delightful.
After the tour I found my way home to meet my new roommates, 3 Argentinians. The boys were on their first Eurotrip and full of questions. They spent several hours hitting on the girl that works at the hostel to no avail. The guy next to me, who incidentally had taken my bed from the night before, was eager to share the special "mata" team like herbal drink he had brought with him. I have noises what it was but it requires a special cup and spoon type of straw. It looks like groats and tastes like bitter tea. I just hope it wasn't some mystery herbal drug, it had no effect so I guess it wasn't. This is why I shouldn't talk to strangers!
The guys thought I was fascinating until I went to bed and they realized I snore worse than all of them.then they spent a couple hours talking about me. Not so happy about that!