Laurie and I got back on the train for our station. On our way back we were checking out other hostels near the train station for our last night in Madrid. They were all expensive, so we decided that we would stay at the same plave where we are now.
We stopped at Pizza Hut for dinner. At other ones, they had specials that were goos, but not here. We stayed anyways. We met a couple from Fort Worth Texas, Gary and Ethel. We enjoyed talking to them and exchanging stories. Gary has been to Springfield where I live. He use to come up for the Big E every year because he had a booth. After I was pleasantly full we went back to the room. It was a little after 8:00.
December 5, 2003
Laurie and I stopped for drinks and something to eat before we caught the train. Laurie ordered potato salad and it was a large portion so I helped her eat it.
We caught the train to El Ecovial. There is a large royal monastery that Philip II had built. It took 21 years from 1557 to 1578 with a force of 1500 laborers. It is 8 acres, has 9 towers, 16 courtyards, 86 staircases, 1200 doors, and 2673 leaded glass windows.
We had a guided tour of the royal palace and the royal pantheon which is the burial place for the Kings of Spain. The pantheon was beautifully built with marble. The guide told us that the bodies are stored in a chamber for about 40 years before the bones are actually placed in the tomb. There were only a few empty tombs and I asked the guide what they would do when they ran out of tombs. She didn't know but they have quite a few years before they have to figure it out.
We were then able to tour the Basilica, library, and museums of paintings, architecture and tapestries. The tapestries amaze me the most with the detail especially since they were done close to 500 years ago. The architectural room was also interesting but most of the information was written in Spanish.
It was a cold, damp, and dreary day. We walked through the park to get back to the train station. We arrived in Madrid and it was raining. We decided to go to the movies. It opened at 4:00. We saw, "Love Actually" with Hugh Grant. It was a very enjoyable movie.
It was still raining when we got out. We weren't hungry for dinner because we had popcorn. We went back to the room. I read for awhile. About 8:00 Laurie and I went to a cafe and got a sandwich for dinner.
When I got back to the room I stayed up till 1:00 reading. I haven't been up that late in along time. It will be tough when I go back home and have to get up early and go to bed late.
December 6, 2003
We didn't know what we were going to do today. We had to wait to find out if we could stay in the hostel for two more nights. Yesterday the woman said it was full but to ask in the morning.
It was about 9:00 before we saw the woman to ask her. She said we could stay which was a relief.
The weather looked like it might be OK so we decided to stay in Madrid and walk around and go to some museums that were free today. We started walking and we came to a barricade and there were police. We found out that the streets were blocked off. Today is Constitution Day and Madrid being the capitol, all the streets to Parliment are closed because of all the political people coming. I tried to ask if they have some kind of celebration but I couldn't get a real answer. I dont think they understood.
With it being Constitution Day stores and museums were closed. That's when we decided to go to Toledo. We walked to the train. We had a little bit of a wait so we sat at a cafe and had something to drink. The train left about 10:30. We met a young woman from Wales. She has been in Madrid for 5 months teaching English to children of a well-to-do family. She only works from 5:00-7:00 at night. She leaves Spain right before Christmas. Her name was Michele and she was also going to Toledo. We told her that if she wanted she could join us.
We walked to the information and got some maps. The woman told us that places were closing at 2:00 because of the holiday. That didn't give us a lot of time. We weren't going to go in if things cost too much. We walked up and came to Santa Cruz museum which was free. This museum has a lot of artwork by an artist called El Greco. He lived in Toledo. The museum also had a lot of pottery from the 16th century.
I think the room that Laurie and I liked the best was where there was a display of current photographs done by young people from different countries. I was amazed at the pictures taken because some of them were done by kids as young as 10. They were really good.
We left this museum and walked some more. The streets are narrow and lined with lots of shops. We didn't make it into any of the other museums or cathedrals. We did enjoy walking around.
We walked back to the train station. I forgot to mention that the train didn't go all the way to Toledo. There must have been problems with the track. We had to take a bus for the last 13 kilometes. So we waited at the train station for the bus to take us back to the other train station to get the train back to Madrid.
We got off the train and it was sprinkling out. We stopped at the internet and by the time we left it was pouring out. The rain certainly doesn't keep people inside. The streets were filled with people. All of the streets had Christmas lights on and it was very pretty. I think the lights are the only decoration they do. I was told that people don't put up trees here. One thing I miss is hearing Christmas music.
Laurie and I went to McDonald's. I had a chicken sandwich. I couldn't believe how busy McDonald's is around here. It is a hangout for everyone. I guess especially because it is raining. This MsDonald's sells one thing here that they don't in the states, beer.
