Okay, so I went to Madrid this weekend! I had a really good time, but I was a stereotypical American, being that I had no idea where I was the whole entire time. The only time I actually had to use a map was when my friend Meta and I were walking back from shopping (yes I was shopping,) in the pouring ran, and had to look at a subway map to figure out where we were (I also stole a paper place mat, that had a map of Madrid, from a restaurant, but never looked at it, because that would be kind of odd to look at such a thing in public.)
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| Parque de Retiro: Somewhat reminded me of Central Park, especially this scene. |
Friday morning we went to the Prado, which was awesome! Oh, if any exchange students affiliated with InterHispania are reading this, I would like to clarify why I was carrying around a notebook and taking notes. I want to remember things, and since museums don't allow photography, why not take notes on all of the interesting facts and things that you see? I'm also a very serious person (sometimes) and really like to learn, so there you have it!
Anyway, I felt like I was reliving my AP European History class! First, we saw the portrait of the infamous, Bloody Mary, probably one of the more unattractive monarchs I've seen, but not as bad as Maria Luisa. Then there was El jardin de las delicias, by Bosch. And who got the question right about which panel represented Heaven, Purgatory, and Hell (but not correct in Spanish.) This chick!
In addition we saw Rubens, Velazquez's Las Meninas (of course), and Goya's realistic portraits of the Royal Family and 3 de mayo. At the Reina Sofia we saw Dali and Picasso's famous Guernica, which is HUGE, as well as some very eccentric, and haunting, silent movies.
Saturday we went to the Palacio Real, which is essentially the Spanish version of Versailles (mas o menos.) Because I took notes I can tell you all of the interesting facts about the palace. Here it goes!
- It was built in the 18th century by Henry V
- It is of Bourbon, Neoclassical, and Baroque styles
- Has over 2,000 rooms
- The walls in the ballroom are all covered with tapestries that have scenes from the Bible (or used for parties) because Queen Maria Mercedes died on the floor
- El Salon Trono, or throne room in English, has all of the Spanish colonies painted on the ceiling (actually not that interesting)
- The Queen and King lived in separate quarters: the queen's to the left of the throne room, the king's to the right
- It is one of the most original palaces in all of Europe
After lunch we spent the rest of the afternoon shopping, which was fun, except for the fact that Meta and I got totally soaked coming back from the hostel (and a little lost.) But, that evening was especially fun, because while everyone else was doing who knows what, Lizzie, Meta, and I went to see La Gran Budapest Hotel. I've only seen one other Wes Anderson movie, being Moonrise Kingdom, and was kind of of ¨weirded out" by it. I love La Gran Budapest Hotel, maybe because I couldn't understand enough of the dubbed Spanish to make a solid judgement, but I felt like because of my lack of understanding I could really enjoy the cinematography, which I don't think I really have ever done before.
All in all, I would really like to go back to Madrid. Although I was there for four days, I want to get an even better understanding of this grand city!
(PS- I have realized that of my 15 other blogs, that they are mostly about trips that I have taken. If it's all right with you, readers, I think I want to start writing a little bit about ordinary things: my walk to school, the little community I have formed, etc. I just don't want my blog to become another piece of spam mail.)
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