Madrid Walks

Busy week! One of the BYU professors who’s conducted a study abroad in Spain before put together a list of “Madrid Walks” for us to do when we don’t have anything else going on. Basically, she walked through the city and wrote out an extremely detailed map of things that we can see and do. Along with that, she added the history of the place or interesting facts for us, and when we’re standing in front of or inside of the building, we can read the history of it and look for the details that she’s describing. It’s amazing! I cannot even imagine how much time she put into each one of those. So cool! On the walk we did today, we went through the heart of Madrid and saw a couple of ancient churches, la Plaza del Sol and surrounding historical buildings, la Plaza Mayor, a basilica, and also a cathedral. All in Madrid! This place is freakin’ loaded with things to do. I could spend months in Madrid and still not cover everything. After walking around and reading our different historical tidbits about different buildings, we decided to go in and tour the cathedral. We’ve seen a lot of cathedrals, but I’m still enthralled every single time I walk in a new one. They’re all so distinct, yet very similar at the same time. I liked this one because it was a lot more colorful than others we’ve seen. There were a lot of wall paintings with rich and vibrant colors, which is nice because it offsets the whitish-grey of the walls and the dark shadows. This one also had extremely high ceilings. It’s hard to imagine how they even built it! There was also a mass going on while we were walking through, which was great! I got some awesome close-ups of the… I don’t really know what he was. Bishop? Pastor? Archduke of Arabia? I have no idea! I guess I should brush up on my knowledge of the Catholic church. After about half an hour in the cathedral, we discovered that there was also a crypt on the other side of the cathedral where some famous lady was buried, but when we found out that you had to pay again to get in, we decided it wasn’t THAT worth it. Maybe if it had been someone I’d actually heard of. Right next door on the other side of the cathedral is the Palacio Real (or Royal Palace). Conveniently placed, if you ask me! The Palace was closed for the day, so instead we just walked around the gardens. Love those palace gardens! I wish I could have acres and acres of beautifully trimmed hedges and trees and flowers and fountains. Maybe in the next life… After the gardens, we walked a little bit further and found another plaza next to a big opera house. How I wish I could have gone to a show! I didn’t check, but I was guessing that tickets were a bit on the expensive side and probably sold out anyways. Oh well. It was still fun to sit outside in the plaza and enjoy the atmosphere! I had another moment where I realized that I was sitting in the middle of a plaza, in Spain, people watching and loving life. Aah! What a life! I’m amazed by everything I’ve been experiencing. It’s weird to think that being in this place isn’t magical to some most people because it’s everyday life. Kind of interesting to look at things when you seen them in that light! Afterwards, metroed and trained back home, dinner, Skyped/Facebooked (essentials to my day, of course!), then beddy-bye time!