Friday, October 7, 2022
We were in need of an art fix that did not include the fat baby Jesus, thus we were in search of Madrid's finest modern art museum.
This was the obvious choice
Since the admission was free for the four of us as we are all 65 years old or older, it was also an economical sojourn too.
Another large museum with
large arcades and . . .
. . . art even in its shadows
The Reina Sofia is an eclectic collection of art from all sorts of mediums from the start of the 20th-century to today.
Salvador Dalí
Spain's Prime Surrealist Artist
Joan Miró
"Man with a Pipe"
José Durruti was a hero of the
Spanish Anarchy Movement
of the 1930s
He was an accidental victim of "friendly fire" and died at the beginnings of the Spanish Civil War.
A sketch of a typical Spanish Civil
War arrest and execution
"The Invisible Man"
I've been in lots of cafés in Europe
over the last 14 years but have never
seen anyone dressed like this
I've got to get out more.
A French movie poster
made its way into the museum
Pablo Picasso's Guernica
The Reina Sofia's most important work of art, it is Picasso's mournful tribute to the people of Guernica who on April 26, 1937 were killed when bombers of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy at the request of Franco's Nationalist forces.
Many died on this market day in this small village in northern Spain's Basque country, a town with no military targets.
It was done just to see how accurate these bombers could be in attacking an area of Spain that was strongly aligned with the Republican cause.
No pictures of any kind are allowed in this part of the museum that holds Guernica, so I complied. The photo above of this deeply moving and gigantic work of art was downloaded from Google Images.
José Maria López Mezquita
"Chain Gang"
Julio Romero de Torres
"Conscience at Ease"
I'm not sure how at ease this
young boy is by his surroundings
A delicate bronze Spanish Doña
That woman is making
CHURROS!
A photo of Mr. Criminal
Laurie liked this cigarette ad
turned art work
Pablo Picasso
"Woman in Blue"
In his youth, Picasso did some amazing realistic art.
Hermen Anglada Camarasa
"Sonia de Klamery"
Exquisite.
We took a short break and enjoyed
the Reina Sofia's garden
Of course, there was art there as well
Laurie with Joan Miró's
"Moonbird"
I really like this anonymous
bust in a random hallway
This one too
The Reina Sofia Museum was definitely worth the price of admission and a nice break from the 19th-century art that we've seen earlier in the France, Italy and Spain.
We roamed . . .
I've always liked this building
near Puerta del Sol
We were back in Plaza Mayor for
a drink and a nosh
On the Plaza Mayor, the bullfight themed
La Torre del Oro Bar Andalú was the choice
And a GREAT choice at that!
Hey, that's my birthday!
Long story short, this date was another bloody day between the King and his people back in 1822 in Spanish history.
After noshing, the shopping
renewed with VIGOR
Lots of stores on Plaza Mayor
selling all sorts of eclectic items
An empty bar at midday with lots
of trash on the floor
Spaniards can not understand why anyone would pick up a napkin once it is soiled when it hits the ground so they just leave them there.
Thus, it is said that the more napkins on the ground, the bettrer and more popular the bar.
Cool building in the La Latina area
Our hotel host pleaded
with us to try the nearby
1902 Chocolateria y Churreria
So we did for our mid-afternoon fix of rich chocolate and warm, crisp churros.
Here the churro batter is made in a flower form.
Our hotel host did not lead us astray.
We headed back to the hotel to
get some rest before having one last
meal and stroll in Madrid
At about 7:30 pm, we started our leisurely walk to Plaza Santa Ana for another fun evening of tapas dining and people watching.
We passed this store window
that merited a closer look
Lots of silver and . . .
. . . lots of copper too
This nice looking restaurant was
right next to the cooking ware store
The view of one end of Plaza
Santa Ana when we arrived . . .
. . . and the view of the other end
of the Plaza Santa Ana
The lighting would make these two buildings look much different when we left after dark.
Federico Garcia Lorca
One of Spain's most famed writers
Laurie's view while dining
They provided us with some amazing
tapas and great tinto de verano
Just before our latest feast started
To say that we were happy with our meal and our service is a great understatement.
Now for the walk back to the hotel amid gorgeously up-lit buildings and thousands of pedestrians enjoying a Friday night stroll.
This Plaza Santa Ana building
looked totally different at night
So did this one
The Love Couple
Same spot with our two other travelers
One last look at Plaza Santa Ana
Grand edifice along our walk
Puerta del Sol is safe as long
as the Tio Pepe sign is lit
Friday was another truly wonderful day on our Adventure.
What can I say about our
new lifestyle?
Tomorrow we take the morning high speed train from Madrid to Barcelona. The Adventure continues, stay tuned . . .
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