"San Lorenzo de El Escorial " a San Lorenzo de El Escorial Travel Page by acemj

My original plan was to do a daytrip to Segovia, but considering that we arrived six hours late in Madrid the day before, we decided to go somewhere a little closer so that we would have a couple more hours in Madrid itself. El Escorial was the perfect option. The full name of the town is San Lorenzo de El Escorial, but the famous monastery here is simply known as El Escorial.

The train only took about 45 minutes or so to arrive and it was interesting to see the weather change the closer we came to El Escorial. As we chugged along, we noticed the skinny creeks beginning to glaze over with ice. A few miles later, there was a flake of snow in the air and by the time we arrived, a thin blanket of white covered the tracks.

Personally, I think I would have preferred to visit the Medieval town of Segovia. There is something more satisfying to me about visiting a place that is appreciated for the whole instead of a single sight or two. Segovia is famous for its aqueduct, but known for its plazas, its Alcazar, cathedral, winding streets and its roast suckling pig and I imagine that visiting would be a joy in both an overwhelming and a subtle fashion.

El Escorial, and its neighboring Valle de los Caidos, on the other hand, are monuments that are impressive to see and are certainly capable of assaulting the senses, but beyond the monuments themselves, there is little else here that one is likely to write home about.

Nonetheless, the monastery and the basilica that I toured here will resonate in my mind for years to come.