Tag: Madrid

Madrid Day 3

This morning we had plans to go to our favorite Madrid breakfast cafe, Cafeteria La Austriaca. But when we got there they were closed. I assume that was because of Good Friday. So we went to another random spot and had a typical Spanish breakfast of bread with olive oil and tomato.

Pan con tomate

Then we went in search of a Churreria we visited on a prior trip. When we got there we ordered churros and chocolate for two. They arrived at our table steaming hot and sooooo good. We could see them being made behind the glass in the kitchen to our left.

Getting ready for my first bite.
Churros being cooked

Today we went to the San Fernando Fine Art Royal Museum. It’s an art museum very near our hotel that was listed on the New York Times list that I mentioned yesterday. I can’t believe we’ve never been there! It was wonderful.

They had an exhibit of Goya etchings and the original plates that the etchings were made from.
They have four floors of paintings by Spanish artists
Including this painting of George Washington
Almost all the signs were in Spanish and English
When we were done at the museum and our feet were sore we found a nearby tapas bar and had a snack.

We went back to the hotel to rest and relax then about 9 we went out for tapas for dinner.

Lots of people were out enjoying the evening.
We had really good octopus at one place where we stopped

On our way back to the hotel the Good Friday procession was happening. There were bands, two human powered floats and soldiers on horseback. When we left the parade was still going on and it was after eleven.

There were lots of stops and starts. This horse stopped right next to us for about five minutes
We were near the end of the route and the people carrying the float looked tired.

To see tomorrow’s blog post click here.

Madrid Day 2

We had a very productive first full day in Spain. We started by doing laundry. While the clothes were washing we had coffee and pastry nearby. Then while the clothes were drying we had second cups of coffee at a different place. We almost always have breakfast included at our hotels so it’s a change and kind of fun to go out and find a place.

First breakfast
Done with laundry

Madrid is a beautiful city. In the last several years all the building facades have been cleaned, the city center has almost no cars, AND it was a beautiful sunny day with temperatures in the high 60s. It’s amazing how sun improves your experience of a place.

We’ve been to Madrid multiple times over the years so we have seen most of the must-see sites. But the New York Times recently published a Google map of its recommendations of things to do in Madrid. I went through the list and found a few good ideas of new things to do and see.

So Thursday afternoon we went to the Teatro Real (Opera House). The ticket price included an audio guide. The whole visit was wonderful. The Teatro Real is directly across from the Royal Palace with a beautiful garden in between the two. Highlights of the tour include the view of the Royal Palace from inside the Opera House, the view of the stage from many different levels of seating and the multi story foyer surrounded by Lebanese cedar pillars.

Scale model of the Teatro Real. The red part on the map in the background is the seating and the blue box to the right of the seating is the stage.
Looking out at the Royal Palace from inside the Opera House.
The foyer from the fourth floor. The pillars are wood.
The stage from the very top and the very back.

It was such a beautiful day to walk. There were a lot of people out but we finally found a place for coffee.

Flowers in the plaza between the Teatro Real and the Royal Palace
Coffee
In Puerta del Sol

To read the blog post for Madrid Day 3 click here.

Pravets, Bulgaria to Madrid, Spain

We had to set an alarm for 6:30 this morning so that we could have breakfast, checkout, drive an hour to Sofia, fill the car with gas, return the rental car and catch the 10:40 plane to Madrid.

A combination of confusing car return instructions and Google Maps suggesting ‘shortcuts’ put us on some very bad roads as we tried to find the right place to return the car but we finally did it.
It was interesting to see a lot of American Air Force planes parked on the tarmac as we taxied to the take of runway.

We had so many grey and chilly days in Bulgaria that it was fantastic to see the sun when we got to Madrid. It was also really nice to be able to read the street signs and understand some of the language. We’ve been to Madrid so many times that it almost feels like home.

Looking down Gran Via from our hotel
We had jamon, sangria and wonderful bread and olive oil at Museo de Jamon.
Then we had cañas, olives, and patatas bravas at Cervecería Alemana

To read our blog post about our second day in Madrid, our first full day click here.

Madrid day 2

Today we wanted to get a relatively early start so we could have breakfast and then arrive at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum soon after they opened at 10.

Breakfast at Oskar Cafetería

The Thyssen Museum was wonderful. It took us about two and a half hours to walk through their collection and we moved fairly quickly. I took a lot of pictures. These are just a few of them.

This painting, by Henry Lewis, painted in 1847 is of the falls of Saint Anthony on the Upper Mississippi. We looked the falls up and they are in Minneapolis and look nothing like this now.
For many years this portrait was identified as George Washington’s cook and was attributed to Gilbert Stuart. Recent studies point to the painter being of the circle of Sir Joshua Reynolds and the subject being a man from Dominica.
A Renoir painting called Wheatfield painted in 1879

From the museum we walked back to the hotel with a stop for coffee on the way. Back at the hotel we played a few more rounds of cards and rested for a bit.

On the way to dinner we walked through the Mercado de San Míguel.

Mercado de San Míguel

We ate dinner at a restaurant called Las Cuevas de Luis Candelas. The restaurant is in the cellars under the Plaza Mayor. It’s been there since 1949. We each had roasted suckling pig with rice. It was delicious. We had a great conversation with the people at the table next to us. It was a man from Texas, a woman and her son from Belgium and an older woman from Morelia, Mexico.

Dinner
Cochinillo

Brian and JoAnn fly home tomorrow morning. So this ends a phase of our trip. We have had so much fun traveling with them. We are already strategizing about our next trip together.

As I sit in our room writing this, the moon is coming up over Madrid and we have great view of it from our window.

Moon over Madrid

!

Madrid

I slept for twelve hours last night. And I was only awake for a bit in the middle of the night. That should help with the jet lag!

It was about 11am when we finally went out to breakfast. We went to a great place we’ve been before, La Austriaca, I’ve told myself I will take fewer food pictures this trip but we shall see. It hard when there is so much that is so good. This morning we had more of the great food that makes me think of Spain.

In La Austriaca for breakfast
Coffee, fresh squeezed orange juice, Tortilla Español, and a pastry all for less than €10

Then we went to the museum of Romanticism.

Inside the Museo del Romanticismo

After a coffee break we walked around a bit enjoying the beautiful streets. We both remarked on how clean the buildings are. Then we saw a sign about the exhibits and viewing platform in the Madrid city hall. The Palácio de Cibeles is emblematic of Madrid.

The Palácio de Cibeles used to be the Post Office. Now it’s Madrid City Hall.

Inside the ere were several art exhibits and we really enjoyed the view from the observation platform at the top.

Our hotel is just a couple of blocks behind us.
This is one of several art installations. This is all by the artist Mar Solis.
The tile in the stairway of the building

For dinner we went out for Tapas. Every time we are in Madrid we go to Cervecería Alemana. It was recommended to us by a good friend who was here around 1970. The bar is about 120 years old. It’s always good too.

Cervecería Alemana
Our table.