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Published: June 13th 2017
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Plaza de España
Plaza de España, popular tourist destination, is a monument to Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra ... I am I, Don Quixote, the lord of La Mancha! Geo: 40.4167, -3.70327
Don Quixote
Saturday, October 8, 2016
DAY THIRTEEN
This morning we headed to our final Tauck destination: Madrid. We took the AVE train in Preferente class for a rail journey (1 hour and 45 minutes) from Cordoba to Madrid, while Antonio, our Tauck bus driver, drove the luggage in our coach (6 hours) to the Westin Palace in Madrid. We bid him farewell in Cordoba, as we have local transportation in the nation's capital.
We were met in Madrid and shown the city's sights. First up was a stop at Plaza de España and its monument to Spanish novelist, poet and playwright Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. It includes a stone sculpture of Cervantes, which overlooks bronze sculptures of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza.
We were whisked through the Bourbon area, a district of gardens that includes the Prado Museum, Retiro Park and the Royal Botanical Gardens. We were shown the new Madrid and told about the old Madrid and its different periods of architecture: mudejar style, the elaborate plateresque style specific to Spain that is a sort of Gothic/Renaissance combination; and classic Hapsburg -- baroque and imposing. Our bus tour ended at Plaza Oriente, an oasis of manicured gardens and grand statues. We lunched at La Botillería, a Belle Epoque café.
We saw Madrid's main cathedral on our way into the Royal Palace, built on the site of a ninth-century Moorish fortress. It is comprised of 2,800 rooms (!!!) spread out over nearly 1,500,000 square feet, making it Western Europe's largest palace. It is elaborate and beautiful, comparable to Europe's greatest palaces. One room had a large collection of Stradivarius violins. They told us no photos so naturally I complied. I purchased a few postcards of rooms I didn't capture.
At 7 pm, Joe met us in the Westin Palace lobby to take us on a walking tour of Old Madrid.
Puerta del Sol has been the bustling heart of Madrid since the 17th century. It's Madrid's answer to our Times Square … huge meeting place where New Year's Eve is celebrated. Here are the bear and tree statue, the symbol of Madrid, and the pedestrian shopping havens of Calle Carmen and Calle Preciados. Here too is the Real Academia de Bellas Artes where Picasso and Dalí studied.
On to the Plaza Mayor. Built on the site of a 15th-century market, the plaza has served as a bullring, royal parade field, executioner's stage, and central meeting place.
Sidebar: The Spanish Inquisition was established in 1480 by Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile. It was originally intended to ensure the orthodoxy of those who converted from Judaism and Islam after the royal decrees ordering Jews and Muslims to convert or leave Spain.
Some 150,000 persons were charged with crimes and about 3,000 were executed.
We walked past, but didn't sample, Madrid's world famous Chocolateria San Gines ... not chocolate in a solid form, more of a "hot chocolate" that the Madrileños use for dipping churros (a light, crisp Spanish doughnut).
The area has, it seems, hundreds of shops and restaurants, including the world's oldest restaurant, Botin. It has served roasted suckling pig from its stone ovens since 1725. This is where we dined. I ordered the suckling pig (when in Rome … ) -- it was fine tasting but nothing to write home about. I find Spanish food ok, but uninteresting. They use very few spices and no sauces so everything is very bland. Not my preference.
It was a delightful evening though … perfect weather to stroll around this European capital.
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Pereira, Joe
non-member comment
This is really nice, not at all what I expected. Frankly, I did not know what to expect. I agree, Spanish food is just OK. Portuguese is food has more purity.