Madrid Day 2
Our Monday was pretty well shored up in advance so Monday morning we headed for the Reina Sofia art museum and the Royal Palace. A short metro ride had us in line at the museum right on time. I'll admit I got pretty frustrated at the museum as they wouldn't let me in unless I got rid of my tripod that was attached to my backpack. Apparently, there were lockers we could use in the coat check room and since I didn't have any cash based Euro they were kind enough to tag it and put it on a shelf. Sufficiently mellowed mood enabled,we entered the museum and spent about an hour there and particularly enjoyed seeing Picasso and Dali works. Admittedly, I'm more a history buff than an art enthusiast though the concept of imperialism and exploitation bothers the hell out of me. I really enjoyed the Royal Palace. Interestingly, they were more chill with the camera equipment. We took a lot of photos where we were allowed to in each and both really enjoyed watching the docents scold tourists (sometimes quite aggressively shouting “delete, delete, delete!!!” at people). After the tour we went for our first Menu de Dia at El 5 de Tirso and I can’t exactly recall what we had but the food was good and the service was quite good as well. We found that most of the time our lack of Spanish wasn’t a serious impediment and that the staff was very patient with us.
Well fed and surging with energy we pressed on with a short walk to Plaza Mayor which is one of Madrid’s many open public spaces. It’s a major stop for tourists and was, not surprisingly, quite busy. We didn’t stay long as it was crowded and, honestly, it’s just a square. The architecture is cool but there’s not much there. After the plaza we sought out Chocolatería San Ginés which is a VERY famous institution in Madrid where they serve churros and chocolate. The chocolate is like hot chocolate but a little thicker. You dunk the churros in the sauce and eat it. Good stuff! Lots of “influencers” and nearly impossible to get an unobstructed shot of the building and doing so will test the limits of your patience.
After finishing at the chocolateria we kept on walking and ended up at the Catedral de la Almudena which is a rather large, grandiose church near the Royal Palace (which we didn't realize at the time) and since there didn't seem to be a cost to go in we went inside for a few moments and we (okay mainly me) continue to be impressed (and frankly, disgusted) by the opulence of such buildings. I appreciate the architecture but can't help wondering how much good churches (and religions) could have done over the centuries if they spent more time (and money) actually helping those they claim to benefit. Just a thought. Either way, the building was cool-especially the ceilings. After we finished at the church we headed back towards the hotel which was a pretty short walk of less than 20 minutes. We probably ate somewhere and for the life of me I can't remember where that was. Old age rules.
