Sunday, August 1, 2010

The Spanish Capital


Tuesday, July 20th, 2010

Today is our last day in Spain, and our only full day to explore Madrid, Spain's capital city. We set out mid-morning with the Royal Palace of Madrid the first item on our agenda. The Royal Palace of Madrid, or the Palacio Real, is the official residence of the King of Spain in Madrid, but is only used for State Ceremonies. We spent a couple of hours touring the Palace as well as its pharmacy and armory before making our way across the plaza to the Cathedral of Madrid. When the the capital of Spain was moved from Toledo to Madrid in 1561, the seat of the Church remained in Toledo, so Madrid had no cathedral, which was quite unusual for a capital of a Catholic country. Plans for a cathedral were discussed as early as the 16th century, but construction of a Cathedral did not begin until 1879. Construction was then halted during the Spanish Civil War and did not resume until 1950 and wasn't completed until 1993. The Cathedral is very different from most of those we have seen throughout our trip, in that it is uniquely modern in its design and decor. After a brief stop at the Cathedral we made our way to the Basilica de San Francisco, which is located in one of the oldest districts of Madrid. The 18th century church is Madrid's largest and is still used today. Unfortunately the Church was closed when we stopped by, so we were unable to see its interior. Unable to tour the Church, we decided to grab a quick bite to eat from a nearby supermarket before continuing on.

After lunch we walked through the old center of Madrid known as Los Austrias, which is named such because this historical center was built during the reign of the Habsburg Dynasty. We eventually made our way to the Plaza Mayor. The Plaza Mayor is the most notable construction by the Habsburgs and is a large, rectangular plaza surrounded by arcades and accessible by nine entrances. During the time of the Habsburgs' reign the Plaza Mayor was used for bullfights, executions, and coronations. After strolling around the Plaza Mayor and the surrounding streets of Los Austrias, we headed back to the hotel for a rest before coming back into town for dinner.

After a rest we headed back for the area of Los Austrias to find a good Tapas restaurant to enjoy our last night in Spain. After some amazing Patatas Bravas, Pincho Moreno, and Croquettes we made our way to the Chocolateria San Ginés for some chocolate y churros, before heading back to the hotel to get some rest before our 7:00 a.m. flight tomorrow to Paris.

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