Tag Archives: Madrid

Spain

A whirlwind trip through some of Spain’s amazing cities

Madrid

We met our friends Dan and Kathy from Canada in Madrid. From there we did a tour of some of the most beautiful cities of Spain. We of course began our adventure in Madrid. We walked the city centre exploring the architecture, food and culture of Madrid. 

Dan in front of a Bocadillo restaurant in Madrid

Ibérico de bellota, is a type of ham, the ¨bellota¨  refers to the acorn-rich diets of free-range Iberian pigs. It is considered one of the best type of ham in Spain.

Shelley, Kathy and Dan in front of the oldest restaurant in the world ¨Botin¨ located in Madrid.
View of the Palacio de Comunicaciones in Madrid
The front of the Royal Palace of Madrid

We decided to take a break and try some Madrid tapas. 

Dan enjoying tapas in Madrid

Toledo

The following day we took the high speed train to Toledo.

Kathy and Dan at the Toledo sign

The city of Toledo represents the essence and soul of Spain.  There are beautiful historical landmarks that are located throughout the city. Toledo was declared a Historic-Artistic Site by UNESCO in 1940 and later, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986 for its extensive monumental and cultural heritage.   It has a rich and long history and  dates back to the fifth century BC.  In 193 BC, it was taken by the roman empire and remained an important city. During the ages Toledo was known for the quality of the weapons it made for the Romans.

Store front in Toledo selling assorted swords and knives.

We went into the ¨Iglesia de los Jesuitas¨ a beautiful 18th-century baroque church.

Iglesia de los Jesuitas in Toledo Spain

We explored the church and even went up the tower and onto the roof area. 

From there we could see the spectacular views of Toledo and the surrounding area. 

View of Toledo Spain from the roof of the Iglesia de los Jusuitas

We had a wonderful day in Toledo exploring the many sites and historic areas.

Barcelona

The following day we took the high speed train from Madrid to Barcelona. The train speed was as fast as 300 kilometers per hour during the trip. We arrived in the heart of the city and began exploring the second largest city in Spain. 

We went to the Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família, known as the Sagrada Familia basilica. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is  an extraordinary cathedral. It is the largest unfinished Catholic church in the world. Designed by the Famous  architect Antoni Gaudí,

Barcelona Cathedral

 

Dan in the base of the Sagrada Familia church

We went to see the Güel park which was built from 1900 to 1914. It was designed by the same architect Mr. Antoni Gaudí that was in charge of the construction of the Sagrada Familia Church. The Güel park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984. It is one of the large green spaces in Barcelona, ​​with more than 17 hectares. We walked throughout the park admiring the unique designs of the walls and walkways. 

entrance area of the Guadi Park in Barcelona
The Entrance to the Güel park in Barcelona
One of the stone walls along the walkway in the Güel Park in Barcelona
Stone pillars of the bridge section in Güel Park
Shelley towards the top of the Güel park with views that overlook Barcelona

After exploring Barcelona for a few days we were off on the train again this time to Alicante

Alicante

Alicante is a historic Mediterranean port city with a long rich history.  The history of Alicante spans thousands of years. The first settlements in the Alicante area were made by Iberian tribes. Since then the area has been inhabited successively by Greeks, Romans, Muslims, and Christians. Today Alicante is a bustling city of over 320,000 population. 

Kathy and Dan near the entrance to the Castillo de Santa Bárbara in Alicante

We explored the city and walked the beautiful coastline of the Mediterranean sea enjoying the kilometres of white sandy beaches.

Kathy, Dan, Shelley and Ray on the beach in Alicante
Kathy and Dan walking in the Mediterranean sea in Alicante
Kathy and Dan leaving their mark on the shore of the mediterranean Sea.

Over the next few days we explored the city at a relaxed pace. We walked the promenade. It was decorated for Christmas and there was a very large nativity scene on the promenade.

Kathy and Dan at luceros plaza in Alicante
10 meter hight Nativity scene on the promenade in Alicante
Dan and Kathy on the Promenade in Alicante
Dan and Kathy in front of an old  Ficus Microcarpa tree in the Canalejas Park in Alicante.

We explored some museums which were quite unique. The Fogueres Festival museum was very special with different fogueres on display.

Kathy and Dan in the Fogueres Museum in Alicante

We went to the Castillo de Santa Barbara and explored this historic castle.

View of the Santa Bárbara castle from the waterfront of Alicante.

The medieval castle is a historic landmark and was built on the top of Mount Benacantil. The views of the mediterranean Sea where amazing and the colour of the water stunning.

View from the top of the Castle of Santa Bárbara in Alicante
Partial view of the castle and the mediterranean sea
Kathy and Dan with some Knights of the Castle of Santa Barbara
Kathy, Dan and Shelley on a section of the castle of Santa Barbara

Kathy in the lookout on the top of the Santa Bárbara Castle

Kathy on the lookout tower of the Santa Bárbara Castle in Alicante.

While in Alicante we enjoyed trying a few of the traditional Spanish restaurants and walking through the fresh food markets.

Dan and Kathy at one of the Spanish restaurants in Alicante
Guadalest

After spending time in Alicante we took a few day trips around the area. The first trip was to Gaudalest a small village anchored in a small valley. Gaudalest was declared a Historic-Artistic monument in 1974. It is known for its ‘castle’, which is literally hanging on the edge of the cliffs.

Kathy and Dan looking out over the Valley in Guadalest

We did a day trip with our friend and tour guide Filipe to a town called Novelda.

Novelda

The day began with a tour of the Mola castle which stands 360 metres above sea level. The castle was built in the late 12th century by  Islamic occupiers. The castle was originally a polygonal layout with eight square turrets jutting out from the outer wall, although only four still survive today.

Dan, Kathy and Shelley with Filipe explaining the history of the Mola castle

We climbed the steep narrow stairs inside the towers reaching the top of the tower. 

Narrow and steep staircase within the Mola castle

We also could see the remains of the 12th century layout of the castle from the rooftop.

View of the remains of the rooms within the 12th century castle

We could also see the church Shrine of Mary Magdalene .

View from Castle of the Church Shrine of Mary Magdalene
The church Shrine of Mary Magdalene in Novelda

We explored this amazing and unique church. Work began on the church in 1918 and was completed in three phases.  The architect Jose Sala Sala, who is a native of Novelda, he dedicated the church to Mary Magdalene, the patron saint of Novelda. 

The outside is made of stone, brick and marble with a similar style to the Sagrada Familia Church in Barcelona.

Outside walls of the church

The main entrance archway is made of large sections of marble and is quite  impressive. The marble organ system which is still under construction is made completely of marble. The three main marble pipes are mounted above the entranceway of the church. 

Shelley and Dan at the entrance area of the church

After visiting the church we finished our day by visiting the Bodega Casa Cesilia which has a great restaurant.  We enjoyed a great meal and then toured the winery.  

Casa Cesilla winery in Novelda

It was a great way to end our day.  Over the next few days we relaxed and enjoyed home cooked meals and some quiet time in Alicante before heading back out on our next adventure. 

“Las cosas bonitas se aprecian mucho mejor en compañía de amigos”

 

Spain

Oldest restaurant in the world in Madrid

We were in Madrid and exploring the streets when we came across the restaurant called Casa Botin. It is known as the oldest restaurant in the world and was founded in 1725. This is according to the Guinness Book of Records. 

Shelley Kathy and Dan outside of the oldest restaurant in the world Botin in Madrid

It was featured on several documentaries and was listed by Forbes magazine’s as third place of the world’s top 10 classic restaurants. It is renowned for its delicious suckling pig. 

We took a look at the outside of the restaurant and noticed a mockup model of the interior of the restaurant in the window. We stopped and checked out the layout of the nearly 300 year old restaurant. 

The Botin Restaurant model layout

Inside the restaurant was packed with patrons and it was very lively with lots of laughter and chatter..

We decided to ask on the off chance that we could get a table for dinner, even though we did not have a reservation. We were greeted by a friendly waiter who after looking for a few minutes found us a table. We were very fortunate to be able to be accommodated and had a table on the second floor. We walked along the main floor past the kitchen area which as we looked in we could see the wood fired oven and an array of meals being prepared.

The Botin restaurant wood fired oven
Suckling pigs and preparing area inside the kitchen area.

So upstairs we went for a meal at the oldest restaurant. We ordered several different meals including the suckling pig. We had some wine and enjoyed the amazing atmosphere of the restaurant.

Ray and Shelley at the Botin Restaurant in Madrid
Kathy and Dan at the Botin Restaurant in Madrid

 After enjoying our very tasty meals we mentioned to the waiter that we had seen a documentary on the Botin Restaurant. He was very friendly and we even were given a quick tour of the lower area of the restaurant which was quite interesting.

Dan walking down the stairs into the lowest level of the Botin restaurant in Madrid

Shelley, Kathy and Dan in the basement level of Botin Restaurant in Madrid

Down in the lowest level of the restaurant we could see the old curved brink walls of an ancient wine cellar. You could almost see the history come out of the walls. Earnest Hemingway was a regular at the Botin restaurant along with many other celebrities over the centuries.   It was truly a great experience to see and have a meal at the Botin restaurant.

“Disfruta cada día y la vida”

Spain

Telefonica museo

We went to the Museo Telefonica which is located inside the beautiful national Telefonica building in Madrid.

National Telefonica building in Madrid

The entrance which was free is at the side of the main building. We went into a lobby area which had a small model of the Telefonica building on display.

Shelley beside the model of the telefonica building

We took an elevator up to the top floor and explored the exhibit which was a history of the phone company in Spain.

Display of different phones that were used over the years.

Ornate telephone used in early 1900’s in Spain

There were exhibits of different pieces of equipment that was actually used in Spain.

Telegraph decoder of morse code which was used until 1950.

The telegraph decoder was used in Spain beginning in 1875 and was in use until 1950. The importance of the telegraph decoder was its ability to instantly decode into printable and readable text messages from morse code. This particular telegraph decoder was used to send news of the movement of Spanish soldiers during war.

Breaker switches and circuit wall which was in actual use at the telefonica company

This switchboard was used in connecting different customers manually.

After exploring the history of the telephone in Spain we went to the third floor to check out the digital exhibit. This exhibit was truly unique and very enjoyable. It is divided into three different parts. The first section called “Black Waves: Lost, Immersed, and Reborn” which is the largest part of the exhibit. When we entered the exhibit it was truly spectacular. There were large digital waves throughout several different large rooms.

View of the digital waves throughout the exhibit.

We walked through the rooms and were immersed into the 3D digital art.

Shelley and Ray in the 3D digital exhibit

The telefonica museum was an interesting spot and the 3D digital exhibit was very enjoyable.

“Hasta luego y que tengas un buen dia”

Spain

Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia

It was a rainy day in Madrid so we decided to go to the National Museum of Art to see some of the exhibits which included Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso and H.C. Westermann.

Entrance to the Museo Reina Sofia

We explored the museum which had many different exhibits. We explored some of the ones which were of interest to us. The first one we went to was the cubism exhibit which featured some famous Spanish artists, including Salvador Dali and Pablo Picasso.

Bust and Pallet, (1925) Pablo Picasso

Face of the great masturbator, (1929)- Salvador Dali

Some of the exhibits were quite unique and interesting, in particular we enjoyed the Horace Clifford Westermann exhibit.

Ray looking at some of the HC Westermann exhibits

He is known for his folkloric sculptures and works on paper with playfulness and humour,

We saw some interesting pieces that were very unique including the “Memorial to the Idea of Man If He Was an Idea,”

Memorial to the Idea of Man If He Was an Idea, HC Westermann

We looked at the different pieces and some where quite interesting while others were simply strange.

Antimobile (1966) HC Westermann

Shelley “just missing the bullseye”

“In God we trust” HC WEstermann

Robot by HC Westermann

The Museum was well worth the visit and we enjoyed seeing the different styles of art on display.

Ray in mirror art

It was a great way to spend a rainy day in Madrid.

“Hasta luego y que tengas un gran dia”

 

Spain

The Chicote museum

We went to check out one of the iconic and original cocktail bars in Madrid called the “Museo Chicote”. It is located on the Gran Via and was formerly known as Perico Chicote bar. It opened in 1931 by Pedro Chicote, who was a former barman of the Ritz Hotel.

The outside of the bar was unassuming and had a modern look.

The facade of Museo Chicote bar in Madrid

We went inside and immediately it felt like we had stepped back in time. The inside of the Museo Chicote had some interesting features. On the right side were small booths with moulded chairs and in the centre tables and chairs.

View of the interior of the Museo Chicote bar in Madrid

The rear of the bar had some red velvet curtains with an old style pay phone mounted on the wall.

Pay phone at the rear of the bar

We sat down at one of the booths and took in the decor as we enjoyed a cocktail.

Shelley sitting in one of the booths.

The Chocote bar was one of the first cocktail bars in Madrid. It is known for the many famous people that have spent time in the bar. On the wall behind the bar there were pictures of some of the famous people who visited the bar.

Photos on display behind the bar

We took a closer look at some of the photos and came across some famous people including, Salvador Dali, Rita Hayworth, Bette Davis, James Stewart, Sofia Loren, Earnest Hemingway and Many more.

Picture of Rita Hayworth (top) and Bette Davis (below) in the Chicote Bar

Some of the pictures of celebrities in the Chicote bar.

It was a wall full of Celebrities from all parts of the world.

There is even a Spanish TV series called “Arde Madrid” which features the story of Eva Gardner when she was living in Madrid.

Throughout the series there are many scenes involving the Chicote Bar. In 2004 the Chicote bar received an award as one of the best bars in Europe.

It was a great experience being in the Chicote Bar. We enjoyed a cocktail at one of the historic and iconic bars in Madrid. We even took a selfie picture of us with the Chicote Bar.

“Hasta luego y que tengas un gran dia”