Spring break time, again. We were looking for a warm and sunny vacation near us. Reed had heard many wonderful things about the islands off of Spain; the Canary Islands. In researching these islands, it sounded like a perfect place for a vacation -Spring Break 2013.
MADRID
We decided to fly to Madrid, stay a few days to check out the sites and then head off to the islands to meet with Reed's family for some fun in the sun.
Why Madrid? Well; we learned that not only is Madrid the capital, but it is also the largest city in Spain. As a matter of fact it is the third largest city in Europe; behind London and Paris. Madrid, being a large and old city, possessed some wonderful landmarks; Royal Palace, Teatro Real, National Library and many museums. So a quick stop in Madrid would allow us to absorb their culture.
Madrid was a rather easy flight from Turkey and the kids are use to flying all around the world. So this time I took the kids by myself and met Reed, who flew from a business meeting in the US, in Spain. We landed safely and were able to find Reed with no issues!
Waiting for the flight and as usual the boys are playing electronics
Our first outing in Madrid, walking to the Prado Museum, we noticed that most of the buildings were very tall. Then, we saw the great paths for pedestrians to easily walk all around town (In Turkey the pedestrian walkways can be difficult). We were very excited with the location of the hotel and the ease of walking to all the sites...... BUT the tall buildings made it difficult to navigate North/South. Also a lot of the streets curved causing further confusion in our directional skills, but we had maps. So anyone should eventually find their destination by using the maps, right?!?! OK, OK- we had to ask for directions several times because we were really lost.
Typical alley/ street with walking paths
FYI- it was early in the morning; therefore, it was not crowded
It was easy to walk around town
View from our hotel of the skyline- notice many buildings
We had big plans about what we were going to see and do in Madrid. So we started our day off at the Prado Museum. Historical information; Prado Museum was designed in 1785 but did not open to the public until 1819. Its purpose was to support and display to Europe the Spanish art to gain notoriety and interest. Since then, the museum has expanded and become a very popular tourist site.
We loved this museum. Most of the paintings in this museum were Christian works of art from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. I thought it was ironic that we were touring this museum on Palm Sunday. So viewing all these marvelous painting depicting the life of Christ on Palm Sunday was extraordinary. We saw paintings from known famous people; Rembrandt, Goya, and Raphael and some new wonderful Spanish artists; Ruben, Van Dyck and Juan De Juanes. Our family had a great time walking around this large museum viewing the fascinating paintings and other forms of art. We agree that this museum is a great place to tour.
Van Dyck's interpretation of Palm Sunday
Another painting from Van Dyck- Jesus being crowned the crown of thorns
Raphael's painting of Jesus falling on his way to Calvary
Juan De Juanes - The last supper (One of my favorites!)
We were not able to take photos inside the museum, so all the above pictures were obtained from online websites. This small sample represents the wide range of paintings that illustrated the life of Jesus throughout the museum. They were breathtaking and amazing.
Reed started to feel pretty crummy while touring the museum from a cold he was fighting. AND he had major jetlag on top of it, so after lunch we went to the hotel for a nap. Well, Reed was out for the count so we did not tour any other sites. BUT the kids and I went to a café in the hotel and played cards. We had a blast drinking wonderful coffee and hot chocolate.
Nate and Sam working hard to put me out of the game
Connor and I- Notice the hot chocolate in the lower right corner
So that evening we were on the hunt for a restaurant and here are some of the pretty wonderful sites that we saw walking around downtown.
Typical statues in courtyards throughout the city
People performing on the streets
This performance amazed the boys
The royal palace
A park near the palace
The old Teatro Real
We had a blast in Madrid. We were not able to see all the things we had on our list, but we got a taste of the city and their culture. We all agreed that their coffee and ham were absolutely fantastic. This short stop was definitely worth it.
