On my walk I came across the symbol of Madrid, which is a bear climbing a madrone tree (fruit tree). This image is represented on the city's flag and in the city crest.
Mini-bus! Some of the streets and areas in Madrid are so thin and narrow that they developed these mini busses to be able to navigate the smaller parts of town.
I stopped off for breakfast at Gaudi, a local tapas cafe in the Bourbon Madrid part of town.
I went with the usual - cafe and a mixto sandwich (ham and cheese sandwich).
The anchor of Bourbon Madrid is the large Parque del Retiro, a large park that is used by locals and visitors to relax and take ciestas throughout the day. The park used to be the palace gardens and still maintains a regal feel and appearance. After my quick bite at the tapas joint, I took a leisurely stroll through the park.
Across from the park is the Puerta de Alcala, a large multi-arch granite structure that used to serve as the gateway to the city.
I was told the Puerta de Alcala was better at night so I went back to make sure I saw it under the moon light.
Entrance to Parque del Retiro. With endless shady knolls and benches, the park is one of the most popular places for relaxing in Madrid.
Within the park is the Pleasure Lake with a half-moon colonade featuring a statue of Alfonso XII occupying one side.
Madrid is home to several world-renowned museums including the Museo del Prado and the Museo de Thyssen-Bornemisza. The Prado features the world's greatest assembly of Spanish paintings including work from Velazquez and Goya, along with work from some of Europe's most recognizeable names such as Rubens, Raphael, Titian, and Caravaggio. The Thyssen-Bornemisza is equally impressive with paintings from Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso, Cezanne, Manet, Gauguin, Degas, and more.
Museo del Prado is in a neo-classical building designed in 1785. It opened as a museum in 1819.
I obviously couldn't take photos inside the museum so all I get to show is the front of the building.
After walking the four floors of the Prado museum and taking in the wide variety of work, I decided I most enjoyed Rubens' work because of the intense color he used.
The Thyssen-Bornemisza was originally the private collection of Baron Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza and his son Hans Heinrich.
The Thyssen-Bornemisza collection was installed into Madrid's 18th-century Villahermosa Palace in 1992 and officially sold to the nation a year later.
In Spain Taquilla = Ticket Window
After the museum tours I made my way west to the other big park in the city, Parque del Oeste. It is home to the Templo de Debod, the Egyptian temple of Debod. It's not as pristine as Parque del Retiro but still has great views.
The Egyptians gave the temple to the Spanish to thank them for helping save and retore it after a major flood.
The park sits on top of a hill that overlooks the western part of the city. It is said to be the best place in town to watch the sunset each day.
I worked up an appetite on my personal art and park walks so it was time to get some grub. I read that along with having an endless amount of tapas restaurants, Madrid also has some of the best wine, cheese and cured meat stores. So, for a late lunch/ early dinner I decided to visit a couple of the better cheese and wine shops in town and buy a few things to create my own make shift tapas feast. The area of Salamanca, a higher end part of town is said to have the better stores so I took the 15-minute walk north to see what I could find.
Stop one was Mantequerias Bravo in the Salamanca district, which is considered to have one of the best selections of wine, cheese and cured meats in the city. I bought a wedge of a rich and creamy cheese and a package of sliced iberico (cured pork).
Dried pig legs hanging on the wall is a common site at tapas bars, restaurants and stores across Madrid.
They pull the legs down, trim the fat and start slicing and serving thin pork bites - they are so delicious!
From there I bounced over to the Mercado de la Paz to get some fresh produce.
And finally, I set up shop at a little tapas place outside the Mercado de la Paz so I could order a beer and a tortilla espanola.
Apple, iberico, cheese, tortilla espanola, bread and a beer. Time to feast!
Madrid's social life revolves around an endless array of cafes, bars and summer terraces. They are perfect for winding down, relaxing and people watching. There is a wide assortment of cafe and terrace styles. Some are higher class and have nice chairs, tables and umbrellas and are located on main thoroughfares. Others are more old school and tucked away on side streets. While some are located within bigger plazas where there is three or four cafes all lined up together. Weekday evenings in Madrid consist of visiting your local watering hole to sit outside as the sun goes down.
These are higher end outdoor cafes along the Paseo de la Castellana, a main road near the affluent Salamanca district.
Plaza de Santa Barbara had four or five different cafes and tabernas that were all packed.
On Tuesday night I met back up with Rocio and Maria for some food and drinks on the terrace of Palacio de Cibeles.
The Palacio de Cibeles terrace overlooked the Plaza de Cibeles where Spanish soccer fans celebrated each of the national team's major trophies - Euro Cup 2008, World Cup 2010 and the recent Euro Cup 2012.
And if enjoying the Spanish cuisine wasn't enough I actually
got to meet one of the innovators and legends of Spanish cuisine, José Andrés. Mr. Andrés is an
internationally-recognized culinary innovator with restaurants in Washington,
D.C., Las Vegas, Miami, LA and more. He
was named “Outstanding Chef” by the James Beard Foundation in 2011 (the Oscar's
of the culinary world). I met him in the elevator on my way to dinner and we
got to talking and he was asking me about my Euro soccer excursion. He's a Barcelona
fan, but didn't blame me for making my way to Madrid for a Real Madrid match as
it's a great atmosphere.
What a great way to wrap up an amazing visit to Madrid. The city offers an unmatched combination of history and character with modern style, cuisine and flare. The people are kind and welcoming and they definitely know how to enjoy themselves. I had the pleasure to meet and hang out with some of the nicest, hospitable people in Maria, Rocio, Javi, Andres, Marco and more. Their warmth and generosity made all the difference. Muchas gracias.
Wednesday is a travel day. I'll be taking the 8am train from Madrid to the north of Spain to a beach town called San Sebastian, where I'll spend four days laying on the beach and eating some of the finest food in the world. San Sebastian is located in the heart of Basque Country, which is globally known for its cuisine. So in short, I'll be on the beach and eating world-class food for four days...me gusta mucho!
Holy crap! Jose Andres?!?
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