Kristin and I planned to spend a month in Spain in March 2020 and during this time make a few trips to the neighboring countries: i.e. Malta and Tunisia. Previously, we did a tour to various cities in Spain and Portugal, but there were a few Mediterranian cities we did not cover, including Valencia and Malaga.
We started in Madrid, Spain's capital city, and planned to continue to Valencia, Malta, Tunisia, a road trip to Malaga and two weeks in Malaga. But, new coronavirus outbreak was getting worse in February and March 2020, and we decided to surrender the entire travel schedule to God's sovereignty and keep our attitude flexible to His guidance.
My planned visit to the first city Madrid was made after my visit to Tbilisi Georgia, but this trip to Madrid had a few twists.
The first was the hick-up with TAROM airline via Vayama.com as reported earlier in the Georgia travel blog. I found out that there was no flight from Tbilisi to Madrid during the winter. As a result, my arrival in Madrid was delayed by one day.
The second twist came one day before my scheduled departure date to Madrid. Initially, I was supposed to stay at Danny Kim's house. One day before I arrived, I checked with him and he confirmed. Soon after the confirmation, however, he told me that a TV station decided to make a documentary of his family life and the filming was taking place at his house with his wife while I was visiting. Danny's wife Nikaela forgot about my planned stay and scheduled for the filming with the TV during my visit. So in a nutshell, I could not stay at his house. Fortunately, I was able to find a hotel at the last minute, not too far from his house nor too far from the airport, using Chase points.
The filming was about Nikaela's contrasting speed of life with her Ambulance doctor role and the mom who needs to slow down in taking care of her child who has Down syndrome. It was encouraging to see that the TV station was interested in making the documentary.
The third twist came on Sunday when Kristin was supposed to arrive at 1:10om. After her arrival, we were supposed to travel to Valencia together by an express train. But, she doze off at a lounge in Bangkok and missed the Qatar flight to Madrid via Doha. It was after midnight and I could understand that it could happen. Thus, we ended up staying one night in Madrid before we traveled to Valencia on Monday, not by train but by bus because the train tickets were all sold out while I was having breakfast. Oh boy...
When I arrived, Danny came to pick me up at the airport. He dropped me off at Hotel Dome Madrid. This hotel lobby was decorated with actual cars that must have been used for the auto racing, except the Rolls Royce. Other cars displayed were Alfa Romeo, Ferreri, Lamborghini, and Porche.
Also, the floor where I stayed in the hotel had a wall photo that was quite impressive.
On Friday, I invited Danny's family to a Korean restaurant for lunch because the kids were not going to school.
Afterward, Danny and I spent some time at his house to discuss how he may serve with SfK Ministries. Our conversation was cordial. On Saturday, I left him alone so the he may spend time with his family.
On Sunday, I attended a Hillsong worship service with Danny's family. I took it easy at the hotel after the worship service. Since I learned that Kristin would arrive late in the evening, I had to make a reservation for another night at the same hotel and also purchased the bus tickets online.
On Monday, Danny came to pick us up at the hotel and dropped us off at the Estacion Sur de Autobuses. Danny came with his entire family and Kris enjoyed a brief moment with Isaac.
A lovely family! - Jeffrey
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