Travel tips and information about visiting Spain

MADRID – The city with a pulsating heart

The capital of Spain has long captivated the hearts of many and little wonder given its considerable cultural history.

As a country, Spain has a highly visible and much loved Royal family and their main home at the Royal palace in the centre of Madrid attracts visitors from not just Spain but all over the world.   Getting around Madrid is easy especially for those who want a bird’s eye view of the city and the ability to quickly ascertain where the main tourist sites are located.

If time is short and you want to see as much as possible,  hop onto the Tourismo Madrid bus and sit back and enjoy.  The open topped bright red double decker buses offer excellent value for money especially if you take the two day pass .  For one day it is €17 and two days is only €23.  There are two routes, one is the red route which takes you around all the historical and cultural sites whilst the blue route concentrates on the more modern sites such as the famous Madrid football stadium which is home to the well known Real Madrid Football team.  Whichever route you choose, you can hop on or off at will throughout the day and early evening.  Depending on the season you are there, the buses may start and finish a little earlier but they still give you enough time to see most of the city in a two day period. On sunny days its great to sit on the open top as it gives you a better vantage point particularly if you want to snap away with a camera. On inclement days, most of the buses have a closed in canvas roof to keep you dry and warm. On boarding the bus you are given a map clearly depicting the route it follows as well as earphones that you plug into the back of the seat in front of you, allowing you to listen to a detailed tour of the city in your chosen language.  For those that don’t speak Spanish, it’s certainly a boon.  The full tour, if you choose not to get off along the way, will take around 75 minutes depending on the traffic.  For my money, the best bet is to do the complete tour and note what you want to return to see and do later or the next day.

The architecture of Madrid is fairly unique in that it successfully combines the old with the new in terms of its design. Hardly surprising then that some of the world’s top architects are found in this vibrant city. Monuments, street side cafes, some of the world’s most famous art galleries and shops that will have even the most seasoned fashion fundi and gourmand drooling .

Seeing the historical centre of Madrid needs to be done on foot in order to take in the many cobbled squares. Breathtaking doorways, windows and statues seem to pop out at you from just about every corner  and its hard not to keep your finger constantly depressed on the shutter button.  The opera house, close to the Royal Palace, is home to some of the best performances you are likely to witness world wide not just from European performers but also from those further afield including the famed Bolshoi  Ballet.  For those born to shop one just needs to glance at the Spanish people to see how beautifully groomed they are and to realise that their pride in their dress is equalled only by their pride in their country.  From bull fighting to flamenco dancing, the Spanish are passionate people and it shows.   

Madrid which is home to around five million inhabitants  was so named by Mohammed the !st  and literally means ‘mother of the waters’. As with most major cities it is located on a river and despite the modern skyscrapers vying for attention alongside the more historical buildings, there is a calm and tranquillity which prevails through this city in the parks and gardens that are dotted around its centre.

Madrid whilst known to have its problems from time to time with demonstrations especially from the Basque movement,  is a surprisingly safe city – most likely due to the very obvious police presence.  So much so, that I can’t think of any other city on my travels where I have seen such a concentration of police. The flashing blue lights and constant wail of sirens is a reminder that the police really are there to protect you.  That said, the more staid mounted police visible outside the Royal Palace provide an air of control without any form of intimidation to the tourist whatsoever.

No visitor to Madrid should miss the opportunity to absorb some of the incredible cultural offerings this city has to offer.  When a city is home to the largest concentration of paintings in the world, it gives you just a small indication of how much  there is available to see.

Perhaps the most famous of all the art galleries is the magnificent Del Prado. Within its walls you will find some of the best and  most well known masterpieces of all time. Much depends on what is being displayed at the time of your visit, since there is so much that it is impossible for it all to be on display permanently.  Entrance to the general collection costs €8 – the standard entrance fee for most cultural attractions. Worthy of note is that on Wednesdays , many of these attractions offer free entrance to those with an EEC passport.  If you plan your day accordingly and fall into that category you can save yourself a fortune. Automated ticked machines are found directly outside the Del Prado museum which cleverly eliminates the need for queuing during the busier months .

Collections of Spanish, Italian, German, British, Flemish and French paintings can all be seen here and masterpieces by Rubens, Van Dyck and Goya will have the art lover gazing in wonder. Unlike many of the other European galleries where security prevents you getting too close to a painting, here at Del Prado they have personnel in each room who keep a wary eye out for those that are likely to overstep the mark. It makes for a more relaxed approach and one that is definitely more comfortable for the art lover.  Temporary exhibitions are also held at Del Prado but for these you will pay an additionql charge. Limited exhibitions such as one on Renaissance paintings that was being held at another Madrid gallery during my visit, attracted such an audience that queues had formed around the block already in the early morning despite the cold and rain of a February day. Be warned, in summer months when this city pulsates to a serious rhythm the queues could be a lot worse.

The Royal Palace of Madrid is one of six royal palaces located in Spain that is worthy of a visit for the culturally minded.  Its site overlooking the River Mancanates underscores the grandeur of this incredible 18^th century building. Its design and interior decoration is opulent in the extreme. Whilst Wednesdays is free entry here too for EEC passport holders, it may also be a day when many official visits and events are held which might cause it to be closed. Advance warning of this is not always available which can be a cause of frustration to a visitor. However a walk around the outside of the palace with the hustle and bustle of the mounted guards with their gleaming breast plates,  plumed helmets and beautiful swords  goes part way to making up for any disappointment.  Visitors are allowed to take photographs of them and mingle close by and if they wait patiently may be rewarded with a glimpse of a royal or official.  

Several hours are needed in order to go through the Palace properly but whether you decide to take a guided tour or do a self guide, you can still see the throne room, the Royal Chapel,  the private rooms of King Carlos II and the magnificent official reception rooms.  

No visit to Madrid would be complete without sampling a traditional plate of churros. A crispy deep fried long narrow snack which is often  accompanied by either chocolate or coffee for breakfast.  The highly decorated Café Vergara Bar, a short distance away from the palace in the historical part of the city fits the bill well and at only €3.45 it doesn’t break the bank.  The mirrored walls, marble floors and ornate cornices make the café a site of its own and a trip to the loo in the basement is a must do since you walk through the spectacular vaulted cellar to reach them.  Going hungry is not something that is likely to happen in Spain since their food is as an  important part of their culture as their palaces and art galleries.  The Spanish start work later than other European countries and eat lunch late too.  Between 2 and 4 in the afternoon you can still find restaurants open that offer value for money set lunches.  Business people return to their offices to work till around 7 pm  before invading the many bars that are to be found in  the city for their evening cocktail and tapas. Surprisingly this is often before indulging in dinner that won’t start until at least 9:30 pm in most homes or restaurants. The unsuspecting visitor will be hard pushed to find a restaurant with people in it before then.   Little surprise then that rush hour is generally between 9 and 10 the following morning.

Getting around Madrid whether by metro, bus or on foot is relatively easy, with streets being well sign posted often with traditional old tiles. Whichever way you decide to see Madrid just be sure to be ready for the culture fix of your life.

The choice of things to see and do in Madrid requires careful advance planning for those there for a short time, however for those with the luxury of time on their hands, there is one guarantee – you will never get bored.

A Monastery unlike any other

When does a monastery stop becoming a monastery and call itself a palace?  This was a question I found myself asking during a visit to what is undisputedly one of the largest and most lavish monasteries of its kind in the world.

Located to the north east of Madrid in Spain, sits a village called El Escorial. It is dominated by the massive San Lorenzo Monastery. The building alone of which covers an area in excess of eight acres. Perhaps most extraordinary of all is that the building of this massive site was started in 1562. A time when even contemplating a structure of this size would require phenomenal foresight, planning and ultimately execution. It should come as no surprise then that the first stage took nine years to complete,  utilising equipment that was basic especially when compared to today’s standards.  Phillip II of Spain certainly believed in making a statement and as the then King of Spain, Naples, Sicily, Milan and the Netherlands he had tremendous power as well as wealth.  In his time he was considered the most important European monarch of the century. What started out as a monastery eventually incorporated a palace to house the king and then a school and seminary.  With a massive library San Lorenzo monastery comprises some of the rarest and most extraordinary historic collections in Europe, if not the world.  Little known outside of Spain, it is slowly becoming a major tourist attraction,  although on arrival at the town of El Escorial, it does not exactly make it easy for the visitor to find their way to the entrance of the Monastery.  When a building is this large you would expect the entrance to be well sign posted but this is not the case since one is required to  park some distance away, you may find yourself walking around the perimeter of the building for quite a while before you know where to enter.  Be warned in rainy weather this may leave you more than a little wet! Once within its massive walls there are the obligatory gift shops and café in an effort to encourage the visitor to spend just that little bit more.  Although with  the standard €8 entrance fee it offers excellent value for the culture lover.

The architects of this massive structure were Juan Bautista de Toledo and Juan de Herrera. The former had studied under Michelangelo at the Vatican, so this gives some of idea of the quality and calibre of the work involved.  A visit around the palace and monastery takes about 3 hours depending on how long you wish to study the architectural drawings or gaze at the intricately painted ceilings and  walls in the Gallery of the Battles which is a mind boggling  55metres long and 10 metres wide. It’s matched only by the library in terms of size where some 40,000 works are still to be found despite it having suffered two major fires since its construction.  The frescoes painted between 1586 and 1593 clearly have a Michelangelo influence but it is perhaps the domed ceilings over the massive main staircases with their depiction of the glory of Spanish monarchy that makes one just gaze in wonder as to how long this must have all taken to complete and the sheer expense involved to make it happen. Today even the wealthiest people in the world would be hard pushed to have enough money to fund something such as this.  The opulent palace apartments, which are not always open to the public, give some idea of the richness of this era with the gilded finishes, intricately  hand carved wooden doors from Germany and ornamental cabinets and furniture. It is of a level rarely seen today. Perhaps most numbing of all is the realisation that this is just one of several palaces that were built around the same time when Spain was as it’s most powerful in world history.

One wouldn’t want to be a window cleaner in a place such as this with some  2,600 windows requiring attention nor, come to that,  a housekeeper where there are 86 staircases and 1200 doors given some indication of its vast size. The gardeners don’t get it much easier either with 88 fountains, and 16 courtyards to maintain.  Add to this 15 cloisters, 9 towers and the great Basilica which is home to not just one but two churches which are considerable in size.

The decorations within the Basilica are no less breath taking. Bronze candelabra, Italian sculptures, intricate wood work and magnificent organs lie within. As a monastery when services are held the public are not allowed to attend yet on can imagine what the sound must have been like when the full choir raised their voices in such a huge church. It must surely have been incredible. The Pantheons which were commissioned by Phillip II specifically to provide a burial place for Spanish monarchs are of a grandeur beyond compare. Located close too but not directly below the church  these massive vault like rooms are decorated in a 17^th century baroque style for the kings and queens whilst the area designated for the children was done in a more seemingly modern vein.  

Buildings of this type are from an era that leaves one both humbled and yet in awe of times gone by. For me I am just grateful I don’t have so many windows to clean even if it would have been nice to have a library to lose myself in on rainy days!

MADRID AIRPORT

Few people utilise Madrid airport as a get away to further flung places but I found myself doing just that recently when I flew to Johannesburg.  Madrid airport is home to Iberia airlines and proudly declares itself the official carrier of the President of the European Union.  With the link up that will shortly take place between British Airways and Iberia there will doubtless be some changes in motion but hopefully not to the airport which is a slickly run operation.

Madrid airport is modern, techno savvy and has some of the best facilities of any European airport. It offers two major terminals which are almost mirror images of each other. Good restaurants, excellent shops and a spa are just some of the things found within its walls.   An efficient underground train system runs between the terminals, a feature that seems to be rapidly becoming the norm in major airports like Zurich and Amsterdam – sadly Gatwick hasn’t yet caught up and one takes buses between the terminals which is not to be recommended in bad weather!

Living in France, we had decided to drive to Madrid from the Dordogne in South West France – the journey took a reasonable eight and a half hours but certainly is neither inspiring nor interesting unless you go quite a way off the highway in order to seek out some of the Spanish villages.

Arriving at Madrid airport we fortunately had left loads of time to spare. An aspect that proved to be seriously wise once we discovered that the long term parking was neither easy to find nor well sign posted. Add to this that nothing is signposted in anything other than Spanish certainly made for a challenge. Indeed getting information within the airport perimeter proved to be a combined effort of sign language and patience since despite speaking three European languages sadly Spanish is not one I have yet mastered!  The journey from the long term parking then involves not one but two buses – it may be free but lugging suitcases on and off buses several times is tiring even for the fittest of individuals. 

The airport itself is spacious and full of friendly Spanish staff who when not regaling you with tales of how they believe Spain will win the world cup football, proved to be efficient and smiling. At 11pm at night this is no mean feat – In line with many European city airports – the airport officially shuts down between midnight and 6am however we were on a departure at an inhospitable 0130am.  Despite finding it hard to believe that anyone would wish to eat dinner at 3am, the airline still dished up its stuff and then left you to sleep till 11am the next morning before proffering a stale sandwich in an elegantly designed slim line box.  It seems airlines these days are nothing if not creative!

One of my biggest surprises this trip was to discover that unlike most airlines that have a strict stipulation as to the weight of bags you can carry both in the hold and on board, Iberia are the opposite. As an economy passenger one is allowed to check in two bags of up to 23kg each. With a 46kg weight limit it is surely a gift to those who are either unable to travel light or wish to take some tins of their favourite foodstuff in their luggage. I was seen at the last minute packing tins of foie gras and chestnut puree for my daughter in South Africa.  The next surprise was the size of bags and roll ons  that are allowed in the cabin – some Spanish passengers appeared to have cases almost as large as their check in ones which were cheerfully waved on board and put in overhead lockers. It was an interesting discovery and one that makes one think seriously about travelling this route. How long this benefit will stay in force with the new BA link up, remains to be seen. Suffice to say that I can strongly recommend when travelling from Madrid airport that you go through passport control with nothing more than an empty suitcase and then fill up with goodies at the great shops without worrying about the quantity since taking it on board won’t be an issue unless the weight is seriously an issue.  I for one can’t wait to have an excuse to fly from there again but I will attempt to learn the lingo a little before doing so.  Adios from Madrid!