Meeting Eric & Maria / Moroccan Feast

Bryce's best friend's uncle happens to live in Madrid, and we endeavored to hook up with him and his family upon our arrival here.  Tonight, we finally got to meet Eric, and his Spanish wife Maria, at an amazing Moroccan restaurant ("kitchen in the desert") right near our flat.

Eric, Maria and our family dining casbah style

The company was great, and so was our meal. We had a plato del dia, which was a mostly vegetarian mix of couscous, hummus, baba ganoush, carrots, and veggies, along with some amazing chicken and lamb dishes.

Eric and Maria are raising their kids bilingual here in Madrid. One of their kids goes to a french school, so she is trilingual.  Eric's a venture capitalist, and is trying to promote investing in Spanish businesses, despite the economy.  According to Eric, there is a thriving black market economy here, which with a 20% unemployment rate makes sense, and may inflate the jobless numbers a bit.

We hope to spend at least one more day with them, and meet their kids.  It's great to have friends who are locals, to really get a feel for what Madrid is all about.