Hola Espana

The bear and Strawberry tree
is the symbol for Madrid.

I hope my high school and college Spanish teachers do not read this blog for they would be terribly disappointed.  The most common phrases I used during our escapade to Spain were "Donde esta del Prado?",  "No hablo espanol" and "No gracias".  I was thankful for the prevalent use of my only language English.  The only time we found ourselves limited by the language was when pork broth and fried anchovies were served for lunch.

Kevin is holding the "Boqueros Fritos".
"Frito Lay" or "Deep fried anchovies"? 

Other than the anchovy lunch experience, we thoroughly enjoyed the Spanish food.  I was thankful to spend some time with an old friend who directed us to some places to eat and tapas to order.  Overall, we had fantastic wine and tapas in the evening as well as cafe, chocolate and churros in the morning.

My friend, Dawn, and me after a fantastic meal.

Brie cheese and pork chops, shredded pork,
crab cakes, tomato, mozzarella and pesto
(Plaza Santa Ana)

Shredded crab, diced pork, fried chicken
with the best Sangria
(La Latina)

Chocolate and Churros
(aka breakfast)

Despite being a city of about 4 million people, we were able to see much using the metro and a good pair of walking shoes.  Our favorite site was the "Plaza Mayor" where we saw a Flamingo dancer, painters, and several street performers.  The "Palacio Real" was also quite impressive and seeing the "Cathedral" lit up was absolutely stunning.

Plaza Mayor

Road in front of Palacio Real
(see the palace to the left)

Palacio Real

Cathedral

Retiro park and the Prado museum were also highlights.  Walking through the park brought a sense of peace and serenity as the familiar melody of "When the Saints go Marching in" streamed through the trees.  Though not the most sophisticated art critics, we stood in awe of the work of Rembrandt and decided that the classic Spanish artists (ie Goya and Velazquez) were okay.

DMV??

Toledo was the capital of medieval Spain until 1560 and is located approximately 74 km southwest of Madrid.  It's a popular day trip and is known for its steel with many shops boasting of swords, coat of arms and chain mail.  We were reminded of the United States DMV as we waited in line for train tickets, but the wait was well worth the purchase of a sword.   Our visit to Spain was complete.

Don't mess with the best

Spain was a wonderful country and made for an excellent beginning to what we hope will be many more excursions to Europe.  If we return to Spain, we'll certainly have to practicar espanol or perhaps it'll be off to France next, parlez vous anglais?