Out to El Escorial

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Headed out of Madrid this morning for the 45 minute bus ride Northwest to the little town of El Escorial. A beautiful day, but a bit overcast, and the wind and clouds only continued to build as the bus wound through a beautiful, little mountain range. By the time you hit El Escorial you're right up against these really rocky and rugged peaks, and it's noticeably nippier than in Madrid. A nice change, but I wasn't expecting it.

I came to El Escorial because it has an absolutely massive royal palace that actually looks more than a giant fortress and prison. This place is technically the Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo, but most just call it El Escorial. It was here that the Roman Catholic Church had its dreaded headquarters during the Spanish Inquisition during the 1500s, and also housed some of the most famous and powerful Spanish monarchs, like Philip II. It was a nice place to tour, but truly stark and austere. Definitely a complete turnaround from the Royal Palace back in Madrid. At El Escorial nothing but white walls and, if there are paintings, they're very subdued. You get the feeling walking through the place that it would've been horrible to have actually lived there. Like you could never get comfortable, or have the lurking suspicion that someone's always watching you. I guess it was built simply to assert brute force and power, not really elegance or beauty.

Got back to Madrid in the late afternoon, had a coffee, and decided to take advantage of the free Prado evenings - every night it's free for 2 hours. And the nice thing with the Prado, it's so massive there's always something you didn't see. Probably go back tomorrow as well, and maybe the next night, too.

Tomorrow it's actually another day-trip, off to Segovia.

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Photos

Massive El Escorial
More a prison and a fortress than a palace. A huge, huge place.

Another View
See part of the rugged mountains in the distance. Really a nice location.

Some of the Gardens
Gardens circle the back of the place.

Dungeon Stairs
Very little beauty here. Heavy stone that you feel like is crushing you. All about a show of power.

Better Mountain View
Shows you a bit better the nice location of El Escorial.

Escorial Basilica
Complete with its own massive church. Mass was actually going on when I visited. Nice touch.

Towards the Mountains
Rocky and rugged.

Heading Out
On my way back to bus station.

Pretty El Escorial Town
Part of the actual town. Full of families out for a Sunday stroll.