Madrid-Part 2

We took a high speed train from Barcelona to Madrid (about 4 ½ hours) and both Billy and I were able to sleep through some of the trip which helped pass the time. Fortunately our hotel is in the city center which makes getting around either a quick ride on the metro (underground subway) or a short walk. On our first day back we went to the Prado Museum and saw various works by artists such as Rembrandt, Velazquez, and Goya just to name a few. The museum also featured an artist by the name of Joachim Patinir. He was a 16th-century artist who was considered to be the father of landscape. After that we went back to the city center to Puerta de Sol and Calle de Acala which is a wonderful monument in the shape of an arch surrounded by a vibrant array of flowers. In the evening we had dinner at Sobrino De Botin. Ernest Hemingway made this restaurant famous. In the final two pages of his novel The Sun Also Rises, Jake invites Brett to Botín for the Segovian specialty of roast suckling pig, washed down with Rioja Alta. The décor appears to be just as it was in 1725, the year the restaurant was founded. You see an open kitchen with a charcoal hearth, hanging copper pots, an 18th-century tile oven they still use to this day for roasting the suckling pig (one of their specialties). Painter Francisco Goya was once a dishwasher here. There are four floors in the restaurant and Billy and I sat on the bottom floor (basically the basement), right next to the wine cellar.
On Sunday, we went to the Palacio Real De Madrid which is the royal palace of Madrid. The royal family does not reside there (they live on the outskirts of Madrid) and now is used for state events (in the early 90’sthe Middle East Peace Conference was held there). The Palace itself was enormous with a large courtyard in front. In addition to walking through the palace itself we also viewed an armory exhibit displaying the history of Spanish soldier’s armor. It is hard to imagine having to fight with all of the protection they had to wear. In each room in the palace the attention to detail was evident from the chandeliers, tapestries on the wall, and the furniture. Tonight Billy and I had tapas and sangria at the Plaza Mayor, which is a huge courtyard full of cafes. Tomorrow we leave for Rome and can’t wait.
We have updated new pictures in the Madrid photo album. Enjoy!