Tourists in Madrid

Since we are spending so much time on the Metro, I should tell you the Madrid Metro is by far the best we have seen, clean, light, well marked, quiet and quick.  We are hugely impressed, as we are with the politeness of the Madrilenos, who hold doors and give us seats regularly.

We started yesterday by going to Atoche Railroad Station, a victorian era (1851) railway station with the requisite glass, ironwork and greenery.

It was a great place to have a coffee (which, Italian sensibilities to the contrary notwithstanding) is really better here), before moving on to our museum fix for the day.  We started off with a museum called the Reina Sofia, which now (finally) houses Picasso's Guernica.  I have seen it live before, in New York, but there is something wonderful about seeing it in Spain.  The rest of the collection was nothing to sneeze at either.

Immediately nearby was the Church of San Jeronimos de Real.

Although an old church, it was much simpler than the ones we have seen recently, with wonderful Stations of the Cross and stained glass windows, and romanesque architecture.

And then, of course, there was the Prado, with the El Grecos. the Velasquezes, the Goyas (to mention only the Spaniards).  We spent three hours there, and didn't begin to scratch the surface.

Again, no photo opportunities inside, but did find this statue of Goya outside (who, by the way, was apparently a dishwasher at the famous Botin restaurant before becoming a court painter), and below, a representative of the local fauna.

And, just walking to the nearest Metro station, the grand boulevards rival anything either Hank or I have seen anywhere in the world.

Friends Yolanda and Eduardo picked us up at 7:30 for an evening adventure (since I refuse to drive here at night, it might be the only one I get.  We went about 50 kilometres south, to an old town called Chinchon, known for its church, and bullfight plaza and castle, as well as the anise liquor of the same name made there.  The liquor was about all that we saw (although we did climb up a bit to catch a glimpse of the cobblestones streets, the church and the view).  We haven't had a real meal since we have been in Spain (since the restaurants don't open for dinner until 8 or 8:30, and I won't drive after dark, well, you can see the problem), and we enjoyed it thoroughly, with steak and their equivalent of short ribs and leg of lamb, and lots of beer and wine to go around (remembering that I wasn't driving, and a good thing too...).

I think our 7/8/9 rule (up at 7, breakfast by 8, leave by 9) rule is going to be honoured more in the breach than in the observance on Thursday!