We recently went away for a weekend trip to grand Madrid, the Capital of Spain. Madrid felt nicer, friendlier and a safer city than Barcelona, perched up in the mountains.
We arrive Saturday morning, and headed for the town centre Puerta del Sol, but firstly had to take Lisa to Madrid's famous shoe shopping strip 'Calle Augusto Figueroa'. Shoe stores lined both sides of this particular street, from moderately prices to the more expensive priced ones. On this occasion Lisa left empty handed.. or footed!
We then
then made our way to Puerta del Sol, considered the centre of Madrid, a busy intersection with about 6-7 road meeting at one spot, lined with many shops, Tapas bars, ice cream shops, a very special Bakery, and a momument of the "Bear and the (El Madroño) Tree" (The symbol of Madrid). The plaza was a perfect place for a good coffee and Gelato, and that is what we did as we sat there in the centre soaking up some much needed sun.
We then continued on through many streets, and lanes and ended up in Plaza Mayor, a Grand arcade (similar to that of Brussels). The Plaza Mayor, in the past, has been the center of festivities, bull fights, royal coronations and executions, today though, just plenty of tourists, sitting around, enjoying the food and drinks form all the surrounding cafe's and restaurants.
As we explored the city, we could not help but notice how many Tapas bars there were, you could
be forgiven for thinking that the people of Madrid eat nothing other than Tapas. Lisa and I searched long and hard for Madrid's famous Churros, a long donut covered in chocolate, but we came up empty stomached. It was very surprising not a lot of stores sold this since it was a popular sweet snack.
On Sunday we headed back into town early and went for a long walk, and explored Retiro Park, Madrid's answer to Hyde Park. The locals were out in force in the park, running, walking, roller blading, cycling, and just enjoying the beautiful day. There were many cafe's spread throughout the park, and would've been a perfect place to sit back, put your feet up, enjoy a cup of coffee, and just soak up the atmosphere.
The park had a huge pond where you can go to hire a row boat, plenty of shows, and buskers to make it an entertaining place to be. It was one of those perfect days where you could just find a spot in the park, lie down on the grass and soak up the sun, and pretend we were back in Sydney. As with all good things, the trip came to an end, and 2 hours or so later, we were back in cold and gloomy London.
Anyway, we wondered around the castle and had a look. Perched up high on the hill, you get a wonderful far reaching view of Windsor & Eton, and it was nice. As we walked around the grounds, you get to admire the grand architecture, and the solidity of the surrounding guarding walls. I heard (from the audio guide) that the wall in some areas would be solid rock 4m wide. Try and shoot a cannon ball through that Napoleon!
We had a tour through the Castle, seeing relics, treasures, monuments, and weapons, dating back 1000 years ago. The Castle is the oldest and largest occupied Castle in the world, and was built by William the Conquerer. It has been modified and fortified by the many Kings (Henry II, Edward III, Edward IV, Henry VIII) who lived here in the later years. It was an amazing experience to be standing on the very ground that all these past Kings and Queens have stood. (Sydney definitely does not have anything like this, Old Sydney town? ...pffftt!)
After spending about 3-4 hours exploring Windsor castle, we explored the surrounding area of Windsor and Eton (has a famous college, one that Prince William and Harry study at, and founded by King Henry VI in 1440). The town of Windsor was quiet, more laid back and relaxed, it's a nice place to live, and besides, who wouldn't want a neighbour like the Queen?
