{"id":1162,"date":"2025-07-15T21:06:14","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T21:06:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/?p=1162"},"modified":"2025-07-15T21:06:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-15T21:06:14","slug":"poolside-swaps-retail-stops-churros-on-top","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/15\/poolside-swaps-retail-stops-churros-on-top\/","title":{"rendered":"Poolside Swaps, Retail Stops & Churros on Top"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The beauty of having plans is that you can change them.  Today we were going to travel to the medieval town of Toledo. We realised late yesterday that the odds of us having the energy to properly enjoy the day trip with the temperatures expected to reach 37 degrees were slim. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So we decided to stay local. We found a municipal pool close by and spent the morning there instead. We really enjoy going where the locals are and this was definitely one of them. Taking photos was a challenge but we managed to get a few to keep as memories. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After dropping off our wet bags at our Airbnb and having a bite to eat, we walked Gran Via. Nikki had to behave herself as tomorrow we were taking a Ryanair flight and we couldn’t take any chances with bag weight. But it was fun exploring the brands and shops we don’t see at home. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We then walked to the Centro District for a ‘final day in Madrid’ dinner. I arguably had one of the best couple of ribs ever. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eating in this area was no fluke as Nikki wanted to try the world famous chocolate Churros at Chocolater\u00eda San Gin\u00e9s. They have been serving these since 1894!  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They were good, can’t say they compared to my ribs but Nikki said they were yummy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We then took a 10:30pm walk through the streets of Madrid to our ‘home’ for one last time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our time here has been amazing, but now it’s time to get ready for our next country. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Quick few lengths to check the arms still work <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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One of the swimming pools at Piscina p\u00fablica<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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If you know you know<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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On the lake in El Retiro Park <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Pre-dinner drinks <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Time for Churros<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Madrid at night. The Schweppes Sign <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The beauty of having plans is that you can change them.  Today we were going to travel to the medieval town of Toledo. We realised late yesterday that the odds of us having the energy to properly enjoy the day trip with the temperatures expected to reach 37 degrees were slim.  So we decided to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1167,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9,91,6],"tags":[106,97],"class_list":["post-1162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-royandnikki","category-spain","category-travelogues","tag-madrid","tag-spain"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3814-1.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8Ocy4-iK","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1015,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/05\/sand-sea-spanish-sporting-greatness\/","url_meta":{"origin":1162,"position":0},"title":"Sand, Sea & Spanish Sporting Greatness","author":"Roy","date":"9 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"Started the day with coffee and cove-spotting, then scored big with a peaceful early swim at Parc Mondrag\u00f3 \u2014 crystal clear water, pine tree shade, and Mediterranean magic. After lunch, it was game, set, match at the Rafa Nadal Academy, where we geeked out over tennis legends, flopped at an\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Roy & Nikki"","block_context":{"text":"Roy & Nikki","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_2911-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_2911-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_2911-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_2911-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1094,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/10\/goodies-gaudi-and-a-grand-finale\/","url_meta":{"origin":1162,"position":1},"title":"Goodies, Gaudi and a Grand Finale","author":"Roy","date":"9 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"This morning was spent transferring weight. From the bank account into our luggage.\u00a0 We made our way to Placa de Catalunya where after avoiding the pigeons (we both had bad\/good luck with them in Amsterdam), Nikki partook in some retail therapy (I also had to get a few necessities).\u00a0 In\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Roy & Nikki"","block_context":{"text":"Roy & Nikki","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3315-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3315-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3315-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3315-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1130,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/12\/adios-barcelona\/","url_meta":{"origin":1162,"position":2},"title":"Adi\u00f3s Barcelona","author":"Roy","date":"9 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"Today was a farewell to Barcelona. Our train was only to leave late in the afternoon so we spent the morning down at Barcelonetta beach getting every last minute of our time in this fantastic city.\u00a0 Our train trip to Madrid literally whizzed by, at times at 300km\/h.\u00a0 Straight away\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Roy & Nikki"","block_context":{"text":"Roy & Nikki","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3544-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3544-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3544-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3544-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2016\/10\/29\/why_eish_travel\/","url_meta":{"origin":1162,"position":3},"title":"Introduction : Why Eish Travel?","author":"Roy","date":"9 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"Welcome Eish Travel, the corner of the internet that will be chronicling\u00a0Nikki & Roy's travel experiences. We hope that you will stick around and read through our blog entries and\/or subscribe to follow us on our journey. To our friends 'tuning in' we hope you enjoy and we don't make\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Introduction"","block_context":{"text":"Introduction","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/introduction_roy_and_nikki\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Roy & Nikki","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/10\/Nikki-and-Roy-Ski.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/10\/Nikki-and-Roy-Ski.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/10\/Nikki-and-Roy-Ski.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/10\/Nikki-and-Roy-Ski.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":126,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2017\/07\/17\/one-last-look-at-paris\/","url_meta":{"origin":1162,"position":4},"title":"One last look at Paris","author":"Roy","date":"9 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"Today was a bit of a catch up day. \u00a0We also used it to have a final soaking of the Parisian atmosphere. Roland Garros\u00a0 Nikki putting on a brave face. Unfortunately the grounds and museum are closed for massive construction taking place on the grounds.\u00a0 Place de la Bastille -\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "France"","block_context":{"text":"France","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/france\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/07\/img_2895.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/07\/img_2895.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/07\/img_2895.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/07\/img_2895.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1110,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/11\/voulez-view\/","url_meta":{"origin":1162,"position":5},"title":"Voulez-View","author":"Roy","date":"9 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"A slow morning was necessary and a little sleep-in was just what the doctor ordered.\u00a0 With virtually nothing planned today, we went through things still on the list to do and decided to visit\u00a0 Montjuic.\u00a0 We landed up walking our way up the little mountain-hill after Google Maps let us\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Roy & Nikki"","block_context":{"text":"Roy & Nikki","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3429-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3429-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3429-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3429-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1162"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1162\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1171,"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1162\/revisions\/1171"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1167"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}