El último día en Madrid, echo de menos la ciudad.

The morning started off great with a delicious breakfast at the hotel. Fresh squeezed orange juice, coffee, cereal (that I have not had the whole time I have been in Spain), and toast covered with orange marmalade. After we were filled to our hearts´ desire, we headed out to find the famous flea market, or mercadillo, that was supposedly not to far from where we stayed. We uncovered one of the less tourist and more local environment of Madrid, and I was glad that we headed that way.

For all you hat enthusiasts out there, this stand is for you!

Two euro scarves, the mercadillo proved to be dangerous for everybody! I have not seen prices this low anywhere in Spain.

Police, shopping? Otra vez, cuando está en España.

Without spending too much money, we were satisfied with our purchases and continued to our next tourist site, Plaza Mayor. This plaza has been functioning since the 1600s, but the current version of it was finished in 1790. It was here that many events happened throughout history. Bullfights, football matches, public executions, and "autos de fe", which was trials against people who did not have faith who were condemned to death in a public ceremony. I have learned about this in my Historia de España (Edad Moderna) class, and this is the picture my professor displayed to get a better image in our mind:

If you click on the image, you can get more detailed view of this painting.

Of course, that occurred hundreds of years ago, and it has a new feel now. The principle use of the plaza is for certain festivals throughout the year, and this environment is supported by having many restaurants all around the perimeter. 

Giant entrance to the grandeur of Plaza Mayor

Holiday decorations, although not ready since there is no "official" mark to start the season, except the first day of December.

King Phillip III, a very important figure in Spanish monarchical history. 

Paintings? Yes, there was a facade that was covered with paintings. They were very beautiful. 

Today in class, I watched a movie that had a scene based in Plaza Mayor, and I got was very happy that I had been to such a recognizable and historical spot of Spain.

While one of our group members was obtaining a better map of Madrid, I spotted Spongebob Squarepants, and I thought that a photo opportunity had arisen. As most of you know, I love the simplest, yet quirkiest little things such as this.

In my History of Spain during the Modern Age class, I have learned about King Philip II, and recently discovered that I took a picture of a statue that has some relation to what I am learning in class! Don Álvaro de Bazán, was a navy admiral during that time, and he was born in Granada. Who knew that I would live in such a interconnected history and culture!

The great thing about Madrid was that all the main tourist sites were sometimes not too far from another, and we only walked a bit from Plaza Mayor to get to the Almudena Cathedral and the Palacio Real. The construction of the cathedral started in the late 1800s, but was not finished nor consecrated until 1993 by Pope John Paul II. In recent years, the Prince of Asturias, Felipe, got married to the current Princess of Asturias, Letizia. The other side is Palacio Real, the royal palace that is massive, but more used for social gatherings than the actual residence of the Royal Family. Still, quite a spectacle for the eyes, as it was the first time that I have ever seen a "palace".

Being fans of Spanish literature, we set out to find the Cervantes monument in the Plaza de España. The plaza itself was nothing as great as the other plazas I have been to, but the statues, in my opinion, make up for it. The main characters of Don Quijote de La Mancha, himself and his buddy Sancho, are featured. 

Cervantes, in the background, with Don Quijote riding Rocinante to the left and Sancho on top of his mule on the right.

We are so clever

Another place of interest not too far away was the Temple of Debod, which is actually an ancient Egyptian temple. Wait a minute, how does that make any sense? After all, I am in Spain, very far away from Egypt. Well, when Egypt was constructing the Great Aswan Dam, there were several historical monuments that were  in this zone that the government wanted to preserve, so they gave Spain this monument as a gift of gratitude for helping them.

Just some hieroglyphics, I accidentally took it with flash and feared repercussions since the security guards were very particular with enforcing rules. Luckily, I did not get in trouble. 

Walking to all these sites made us very hungry, and we remembered passing a food market, called Mercado de San Miguel. This seemed like the best plan, and we discovered that it was filled with all kinds of delicious food stands and picked what we wanted to eat. Right after we ate, it started to rain and we decided it would be best to start heading to the bus station to take the bus back to Granada.

Very crowded, but this is normal of Spain. Personal space does not bother people here as much as in the United States. 

I got a mini-pizza and an empanada de carne for only three euro.

I also have returned from visiting Córdoba and Sevilla, but I´m backlogged with homework and other things at the moment. For now, be patient, and the blogs will be put up in the near future.