Madrid - Day 1

Explored a bit of Madrid today.  Started it all off with a walk in El Park Retiro.  This picture above is from the subway stop for the park.  It kinda depicts the activities in the park.  Only missing the yoga people, but maybe at the time it was created yoga wasn't in style.  

This park seemed very similar to central park in New York.  It had this big lake and this nice monument on the other end.  There were gigantic fish in the lake as you looked out you would see this stream of water moving around like you know somethings there but not sure what.   Anyway earlier in the day than when this picture was taken there was a bunch of people in row boats, some were going in circles others seemed to get the hang of it.

These two guys were guarding the back entrance to the monument.  You can't tell from the picture but when you walk up on it they almost seem like they are leaning back and napping on the job.

 In the park there was also a green house.  It didn't house any plants any more just some very strange art.  The outside was much more pleasant to look at.  The trees are something to note here. They look like pine trees but they were growing in the water and they also loose their needles and change colors in the fall.  Don't recall every seeing a pine tree looking thing like that.









This is a side view of the greenhouse.  One thing i always find neat about some places in Spain is the tile work they have on some of the buildings.  Not sure if this particular instance is the Morish influence but i know other places are.

So as in other city parks around the world you have all the locals hanging out.  This was two old guys sitting on a bench starring at a chess board listening to music.  Another older gentlemen also walked up to us while we were resting on a bench and was happy to realize we were tourists that spoke spanish.  He chatted about where he was from and other things and then got into politics.  Guess they don't like politicians here any more than we do in the states.

Always need to get one of those fountain pictures.  Found this gargoyle rather interesting with the water shooting out of his mouth.  I forgot to mention just how hot it is hear in the summer.  It was actually 100F in Madrid today, and although not very humid it was more humid than phoenix.

So after the park we had lunch with family and then went out for an afternoon drink.  On our way we walked by the Palace.  I guess Obama made an appearance here today.  No one has lived here I'm told since the current kings grandparents.

Next to the palace is the Cathedral.  I guess it was not always a cathedral it was just a church but it was destroyed during the civil war in the 30s and it was finished being rebuilt in the last 20 years or so.  The mix with modern and the attempt to look old just didn't do it for me.  Although there is color in old churches this was just different.  The first picture you can see the stain glass is all modern.  The second isn't quite so bad. 

                             

This is a market in town where they use to do all their fresh shopping.  I actually remember going to one of these when i was a kid to help my uncle get fresh fish and vegetables.  Now i guess its a bit of a tourist trap.  It was more like a glass oven today but the architecture is neat.

In the center of madrid in La Plaza del Sol is Km number 0.  Everything from this point out goes up in miles.  So i guess no matter where you are you know how far from madrid you are.

This is just a local bake shop that decided to get creative with their bread.  Snail anyone.  Oh that was something in the market place they did have some so called delicacies.  So i have heard of caviar which is the fish egg stuff you can eat.  Well apparently whatever the noodle looking thing was it was basically tad pole or baby fish.  Ill have to take a picture next time it was very odd and i would say no thank you I'd rather not try it.