Epic Honeymoon - Day 25 - Madrid

Parque de El Retiro, Madrid

Our breakfast visit to San Gines went ahead as planned, and we took in some lovely calories to get our day started. For about €8, we got two coffees and a serve of 6 churros with hot chocolate, so the prices are quite reasonable, also. The churros were delicious – less sweet than what gets served up in Australia. Definitely stop by when you visit Madrid, but come early or be patient – seating is limited!

When in Spain, breakfast like a Spaniard!

Being a Monday, we had lined up our schedule to visit the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, which is free between 12pm and 4pm on Mondays. The line was quite staggering once we arrived, but that was simply because the gate wasn’t yet open; once it did, everyone moved inside without delay.

Congress of Deputies, and it's fearless security.

Lining up to enter the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum.

The museum has 3 floors, housing an extensive collection of art, covering many styles and periods. There are some well known works here, as well as plenty of lesser-known. As I have mentioned in previous posts, I’m not much of an art aficionado, but I can appreciate highly detailed, real-life works that could be mistaken for a photograph. That’s just me, though! There are some superb works to see at this museum, so I recommend a visit – if you can go on a Monday, great! Otherwise, it will set you back €12.

A little van Gogh.

Henry VIII of memetic notoriety.

Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum.

We took a light lunch at 100 Montaditos, just outside the museum. It’s essentially a Spanish chain fast food restaurant, which offers 100 different kinds of mini sandwiches, all for €1 - €2, and sides similarly priced. Definitely a good option for a budget meal that will fill you up; we had 3 sandwiches and some nachos between us and were more than satisfied.

Lunch at 100 Montaditos.

Heading to the east of the Museum, we took an afternoon stroll through the Parque de El Retiro and enjoyed the Spanish sunshine. The park itself is nothing out of this world, but it is designed quite pleasantly, with leafy avenues and manicured trees. 

Pretty in Pink.

Parque de El Retiro.

Parque de El Retiro.

Parque de El Retiro.

Towards the south end stands the Palacio de Cristal – which I suspect is actually made of glass (haha). It’s quite a beautiful building, reflecting and refracting light through its mostly-clear exterior. Inside, there was some kind of art exhibition where various names were written in water on the ground; I only briefly read the pamphlet, so I’m not sure the story behind the names, but I think it was something to do with political prisoners. In any case, it was cool how the water sits and stays in one place to spell the names; physics of friction at work!

The fountain outside Palacio de Cristal.

Inside Palacio de Cristal.

The art installation inside the Palacio during our visit.

We walked to the north end of the park and up Calle de Serrano, which is famous for high-end shopping. In another life (or maybe later on in this one), we might have browsed a few more shops. For now, they’re a little bit out of reach. In any case, I have personal reservations about spending huge amounts of money on things that are only expensive because of a word or symbol that’s on them, and not because they are innately higher in quality. But hey, that’s just me!

Pro-Spain supporters amid the Catalonian independence uprising.

Puerta del Alcalá

Around 6pm, we met up with an old friend Avy had from her time at English school in Brisbane, back in about 2002. Nacho was there at the same time, and is a local of Spain, so we made the effort to catch up for a coffee. He coerced us to try some Jamon Serrano, which is known to be “melt-in-your-mouth” quality. And truly, it was tastier than the jamon that had accompanied our paella on the first night. Greasy and smooth, you can almost feel it dissolving the moment it touches your tongue.

Meeting up with an old friend from English School.

Jamon Serrano - the rolls sort of ruined it, but still very nice!

Get out of the big smoke on Day 26!