After a good night's rest last night I was ready for a much busier day in Madrid. I decided yesterday that I was going to take a guided tour of the city today to get a better feel for my surroundings, and it turned out to be a great decision. After a $2 euro breakfast of bread and juice (called "zumo" here but pronounced "thumo"), I walked a few blocks down Gran Via (Madrid's most famous street) to Trapsatur, where I joined about 20 other people from Spain and other European countries to take a panoramic city sightseeing tour, as well as a walk through the Royal Palace. Our guide, Elisa, spoke beautiful Spanish and it was fun just to listen to her talk. My accent is more from Latin America but after just two days the peninsular accent is starting to grow on me. We boarded a bus and drove around the city for about two hours, visiting north, south, east and west Madrid. We saw everything from the bull fighting ring to churches. I took several pages of notes and returned to visit many of the sights later in the afternoon. As I listened to Elisa, I learned that Madrid is about 650 meters above sea level and is one of the greenest European cities. It is full of trees, plants and flowers. I've walked up and down several pedestrian avenues that are shaded with trees. Spain is divided into 17 regions and is home to some 46 million people, Elisa explained. The city of Madrid is home to 3.5 million residents, while some 6 million people live in the Madrid region. Most stores in Madrid are open from 10 a.m. until 8:30 p.m. but I discovered today that, for some reason, most of the banks close at 2 p.m. I tried to change some of my U.S. dollars to Euros but arrived about an hour too late. Tomorrow, I suppose. We also drove past the Paseo de Prado and Retiro Park -- the two places I visited yesterday.
At the end of the city tour, we made a stop at the Palacio Real, one of the places I had wanted to visit since I started planning this trip a few months ago. Spain's Royal Family actually lives someplace else today and only uses the palace for roal ceremonies and dinners. The old castle (Alcazar) where the Royal Family used to live burned down in 1734 (on Christmas Eve) and then king Felipe V decided to construct the palace of palaces throughout Europe. Work began in 1738 and the palace was finished in 1755. Felipe V died before the palace was finished. Carlos III, the son of Felipe V, was the first king to live in the 2,800 room palace (one-fourth of the original plan, I read in my Lonely Planet book). We saw just 25 rooms on the tour. Inside were several Goya paintings, as well as a plethora of clocks. Elisa explained that Carlos III was an avid clock collector and that he filled the palace with these clocks. Unfortunately, we couldn't take pictures inside the palace, but it was absolutely stunning from the velvet wall covers to the paintings to the 215 clocks to the violins we saw that are still used for balls.
After the nearly four-hour tour city tour and Palacio Real tour, I walked from the bus terminal to the Museo de Jamon, famous in Madrid for its ham. After a ham sandwich, a cheese sandwich and a drink, it was time to hit the pavement again to see more of Madrid on foot. My first stop was at the Plaza de Espana, which is home to a large fountain and statue honoring Miguel de Cervantes, who wrote Don Quixote de La Mancha. We read a short Don Quixote play in Spanish IV that I am quite fond of, so it was neat to see this monument. There are bronze statues of Don Quixote riding his horse and Sancho Panza on his mule. Behind Don Quixote and Sancho Panza is the statue of Cervantes, who is overlooking the two bronze figures. The pictures I took here will come in handy next spring when we read and act out the play again!
Afterward, I wanted to go back to the bullfighting ring we had passed on the city tour so that I could get a closer look and spend some more time in eastern Madrid. It took about 15 minutes on the metro to reach the Ventas stop. As I exited the metro station, the first building I saw was the massive Plaza de Toros Monumental de las Ventas, which seats 23,000 people, Elisa told us during the tour. She also explained earlier in the day that from March to October there is a bull fight every Sunday. When Madrid celebrates the Fiesta de San Isidro in mid-May, there is even a bull fight every day, we learned. Built in 1929, the bull fighting ring's exterior is made of bricks and has ceramic titles. It's a Moorish edifice. When it's not being used for bull fighting, we learned they use it for concerts and the circus. I walked around the ring and tried to get inside to take a sneak peak but all the entrances were shut and the one person I saw wouldn't let me in ... que lastima!
Wanting to see more of Madrid on foot, I returned to the Gran Via area and started walking east toward the Plaza de Independencia and the Puerta de Alcala, one of Madrid's most famous monuments. Carlos III had it built in 1778. I spent the next couple of hours visiting other plazas, including the Plaza Mayor and Plaza de la Puerta del Sol. Just like in Latin America, Spain is home to a multitude of beautiful plazas where people are always congregated.
It was another great day around Madrid, and I'm feeling more and more comfortable here as I get to know the city better. The metro system is wonderful here and I had forgotten just how much of a luxury public transportation is when you visit a new place. I hope the pictures at the bottom of this entry come through so you can see some of the places I have mentioned from Day 2.
Tuesday, I'm off to Avila and Segovia for a day trip, and I'll return to Madrid late in the afternoon. Hasta entonces ... until then!
Monument dedicated to Miguel de Cervantes, who wrote Don Quixote de la Mancha. Cervantes is overlooking bronze statues of Don Quixote on his horse Rocinante and Sancho Panza on his mule at the Plaza de Espana
Wait, there wasn't any construction in Plaza Mayor? I don't think I've ever seen that!
ReplyDeleteWow! You've experienced a lot of Madrid in a short time. Back when the Palacio de Comunicaciones was still a post office I went in and bought a stamp. I didn't know which of the many lines to stand in but it didn't matter. They were all long and slow. . . but what a gorgeous Baroque building!
ReplyDeleteDon't forget to explore the Puerta del Sol area and some evening after 9 p.m. try a mesón or three. They are little clubs (good for sangría) on some side streets running off the Plaza Mayor.