View from the basilica

El Escorial & The Valley of the Fallen

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June 4th 2008
Today we booked a private guided tour of El Escorial & The Valley of the Fallen. Once Mikaley & Kyra were packed off to school our guides Penny & Talia drove us up to El Escorial, about an hour's drive from Aravaca in Madrid. The monastry, its gardens, and the view both up into the mountains behind and the sprawling city in the distance below are ... read more

Europe » Spain » District of Madrid » El Escorial

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Spain's powerful world empire of the 16th and 17th centuries ultimately yielded command of the seas to England. Subsequent failure to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions caused the country to fall behind Britain, France, and Germany in ... ... read more