Madrid, Spain was our first stop after New York City. I'd been there years ago on a trip with my sister, grandma, and aunt, but my memories of Madrid were vague at best... We only spent a day or two in Madrid before flying to Italy, but we did get to explore a bit.

I tried a traditional vermouth (fortified wine - basically spiced wine) at a tapas bar in downtown Madrid. Restaurants open for dinner at about 9 pm and close around 1 or 2 am. I remember hearing about this last time I was in Spain, but it's not an exaggeration. Dinner is typically very late.

Here, we see Michelle trying the iconic dish, paella. On my last visit to Spain, paella and flan were server at nearly every dinner on the 10 day tour. It turns out that it comes from Valencia, but is often associated with Spain in general.