espana

Home to bull fights, Don Quixote, flamenco dancers, tapas and last but never least, Real Madrid. We came and went in four short days, but what a fantastic stay we had. Let me begin in Madrid, the capital of Spain and the place where Kent spent two fun-filled years of his life.

Kent took the metro or walked as a young elder, so we drove around like this for awhile before we found the temple. At least we got to see some real life Madrid neighborhoods and not just tourist areas. Lots of bread shops and joggers. Yes, joggers.

We finally made it to the the Madrid Temple.

Like all temples, it was lovely. I like the straight, simple lines.

I'm not sure when we pulled this out, but it really helped. There was a map of the entire northern region of Spain in the back of the rental car, but we didn't find it until we were about to go to France. Oops.

Disneyland? Not quite.

It's the Plaza Mayor, the center city plaza in Madrid. Apparently, every town has one in Spain.

And like most plazas, there was a statue as well.

I can't remember who that is on the horse. Someone related to Queen Isabella I think.

Oh, and of course there were weird street entertainers, including these random heads.

The streets of Madrid.

This is where all roads in Spain begin. That's what Kent tells me anyway.

We visited "El Prado" where we got in for free by chance and saw some works by Murillo, Velazquez and Goya. The Garden of Earthly Delights by Bosch was on exhibit there and it was interesting to see in person. It is one of the few paintings I remember studying in Humanities (probably because it's so bizarre).

We also stopped outside the Museo del Jamon. That was pretty amazing as well. Nothing like hundreds of pig legs hanging from the ceiling.

That night we made it to a Real Madrid game. Kent's dream come true.

We were two rows from the field. Kent went big on those seats.

And HE made sure we stayed in our seats and didn't make it onto the field.

Our treats during the game....

Their treats during the game. Everyone pulled out a jamon y queso sandwich during halftime. Much better for you than our potato chips and gummy candies.

So glad we were able to watch Real Madrid. I've decided soccer is much more fun to watch in person, but I don't know how often we'll be able to make it to Bernabeu Stadium.

One day in Madrid wasn't long enough, but it I guess it gives us an excuse to go back.