Fiesta weekend!!

This past weekend Spain (an many other countries around the world) celebrated the day Christopher Columbus landed in the Americas.  Known in Spain as Fiesta Nacional de España.  My friend, Mary Ann was visiting from Prague as well as some colleague friends from Russia, renewing their visas.  After church we decided to head downtown.  Us girls were on our way to check out El Rastro market while the guys rallied the kids.  Good dads they are!
Ugh, was it ever jam packed downtown!
We had driven our van to church, so the thought was to let us ladies take the van and find a place to park.  Well, that took us FOREVER!  I drove through DOWNTOWN Madrid!  I am not talking just downtown, I mean the heart of it all!!  Right by Plaza Mayor, Plaza de Espana and even straight through Sol (although that trek came later in the day)!  It was crazy, but I did it and lived to tell about it!  Ha!  We were frustrated, tired and HUNGRY!  We found an available (although questionable and somewhat scary looking) parking garage and then stopped to get lunch.  We then headed towards the metro to get us to the market.
Wouldn't you know that upon our arrival to the market, all the booths were closing!!  I couldn't believe it!  We decided  to head to Plaza Mayor where I knew a great little jewelry shop called Tierra.

 I was taken to this shop by my friend, Mara a year ago when we visited Spain.  And it was a hit with Mary Ann & Olya!  We all walked out of there with a purchase.  The neat thing is, they greet you with a paper flower daisy.  And the girls working there are so helpful!  And after a purchase they give you a little gift and a small container of ice cream!  I love that store!!  And I will take many back there!  I bought a cute little wallet.  They put each item in a little cloth bag.  My gift was a cute, silk brown flower pin.  My items, minus the ice cream.  I ate it up of course!!

We then hit a few tourist shops and I couldn't resist stopping in The Body Shop.

 It's the UK's (although spread across Europe) closest thing to Bath & Body Works.  Not as many scents to choose from, but what they have is good!  I found me some Coconut Body Butter and I received a bottle of shower gel for €1 (I chose the pink grapefruit)!
After that we headed to meet up with the dads and kids (7 total kids, I might add)!  These kids get along so great!  Brennan had a bit of a tough time being the only boy, but he survived and the girls did their best to include him!
Since it was fiesta in the city it took over an hour to get home.  Several roads were blocked due to a parade and my GPS just couldn't get it in it's system that I couldn't go down a blocked road.  Ha!
Grr!  But, it was definitely a good time spent with friends!  I have no desire to get back into Madrid any time soon.  I'm kind of liking our little suburb life!!