We got a great night's sleep last night and woke up fresh and ready for a new day today! The secondday is always the hardest! I was proud of everyone for making it through without complaining! Today, I we walked about 15,000 steps! We started our day with a wonderful breakfast at our hotel. Then, we rode the bus over to the Royal Palace.
The royals have not lived here since the 1930's, but the palace is still very functional. One of our favorite rooms (if we had to pick one) was the dining room! The dining table was set for 50 guests and is regularly used for dinners with heads of state! It was truly magnificent! We were not allowed to take pictures in that room. So, I encouraged everyone to purchase a book in the gift shop so they could have visuals for later!
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The couple in the center is JuanCarlos and his wife. Juan Carlos was the King of Spain until he abdicated the throne to his son, Phillip the 6th, who is pictured on the right. When this portrait was made, he was not married, but he is now married with two children.
I was most impressed by the silk walls in almost every room. The silk is still replaced every 25 years! The palace is 1 million square feet!!! We were also very interested to learn how much the different European countries "intermarried" to form alliances. I already knew that, but it was amazing to put some of the pieces together that tie France and Spain and Austria together. For example, Kimg Phillip V was the grandson of France's beloved Sun King, Louis IV! Marie Antoinette's sister, Marie Carolina marrie King Charles III who was the King of Naples.
From the palace, we took a bus tour of the city with our local guide, Bertha. She pointed out several important statues and buildings along the way. We drove past Kilometer Zero which is a famous spot because it is the beginning of the six main roads in Madrid. From that spot, you can look up to see the clock tower where Madrid celebrates New Year's Eve each year. This square is also the place where the tradition of "12 grapes" began in 1909. There was a surplus of grapes that year. So, farmers brought all the grapes to the celebration and convinced people they would have good luck if they ate the grapes....and so the tradition began!
Next, we passed the Madrono statue which is the symbol of Madrid. It is a bear eating from a tree. So, we took time to take pictures with him...including some with our Texas symbol, an Armadillo which we have named Jose.
Next, we passed through Puerta de Alcala. This was one of the entrances to one of the 5 gates which once surounded the city. The center entrance was for the king. The next two entrances were for carriages, and the outer entrances were for everyone else. This gate still has markings (bullet holes) from Spain's civil war.
Next, we visited the Plaza de Torros where bull fights are still held during the month of May and first week of June. The "festival" reminded me of the way we celebrate rodeo. However, the bulls are actually killed during the bull fights. Some of us feel silly that we never realized that, but the whole idea is that either the bull or the fighter dies. We were told that only one bull has been spared by a fighter since 1929, and that was because the fighter said he was a better fighter than himself. So, the bull lived out a full life on a farm outside of Madrid. Guess what the bull's name was,,,, Fernando...like Ferdinand, the Bull! Now, we all want to watch the movie!
(the bullfighter menina)
Yesterday, we learned about a few very famous artists in Spain...Velasquez and Goya. Goya was famous for his "black paintings" which are very dark and grim because of the time he lived in during a war.
Velasquez painted one of Madrid's most famous paintings...Las Meninas. So, Madrid has been taken over with about 80 statues throughout the city of "las Meninas". Each one is painted differently. Some look like they are sponsored by companies while others look like an expression of the culture.
After lunch we enjoyed a Flamenco show. It was an incredible cultural experience...complete with Sangria for the adults and other fun drinks (or water) for the students! Miriam even gave us a little Flamenco lesson before we went in....."pick the apple, eat the apple, throw the apple"!
We had plenty of free time to roam around Plaza de Sol in the afternoon, and then we went to a dinner of Tapas with Tuna. (Tuna means music....not fish!) Our meal was in an old dungeon that was once the waiting area for prisoners waiting for their execution in the nearby square/plaza. The tapas were a five-course meal. The musicians were similar to a mariachi band but with different costumes and instruments! The Spanish version of a Mariachi Band? Marina, our hostess, loved us and had a wonderful time dancing with the boys, whom she gave no choice but to dance...the entire song! They were great! As we left, she insisted we must have a lollipop!
We came straight to the hotel after dinner, and I think I may be the only still up because the hallways are silent! We have a 5:30 wake up call in the morning because our train to Barcelona leaves at 8:00. We are having a wonderful time! Thank you to everyone who made it possible for each of us to come on this trip. I promise you made an investment that will last a lifetime!
Until tomorrow...
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