Madrid Things to Do Tips by Krystynn

Hang loose.... order a nice expensive Sangria and tapas and dine al fresco under the cool Mediterranean sun at one of the many cafés that line Plaza Mayor.

The large rectagular, stonepaved square known as Plaza Mayor was built in the early 1600s. Until the last century, the Plaza Mayor was used as a marketplace on weekdays and was the scene of popular events from bullfights to public announcement of sentences during the Inquisition, religious processions, public executions and dance and theater festivals.

Beneath the fancy arcades at Plaza Mayor, you can find a variety of shops selling intricately-designed fabrics, costume jewelry and souvenirs/postcards... interspersed with outdoor cafés, Spanish taverns and bakeries.

On Sunday mornings a stamp market is held beneath the arches and during the Christmas holiday season, you'd see numerous stalls setting up shop here selling all types of Christmas decorations.

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Address: Main square of Madrid
Directions: Metro Sol & Opera

The Main Square of Madrid at dusk is captivating!

The most striking building in Plaza Mayor must surely be the Casa de la Panadería (read: Bakery house). You can't miss its colorful fresco-adorned façade.

On the opposite side of Plaza Mayor is the Casa de la Carnicería. This was formerly a butcher shop. Today, it houses the Municipal offices of Madrid.

In the center of the Plaza is the equestrian statue of Felipe III.

You'll love it here!

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Address: Main square of Madrid
Directions: Metro Sol & Opera

There are many nice places for you to shop in Madrid. Try: Puerta del Sol and Gran Via for starters.

For fans of Ferragamo, sorry, they haven't got a boutique here - much to my disappointment.

However, if you're a fan of LOEWE bags, Mango, Zara and other Made-in-Spain products, you won't be disappointed!

October is the BEST time to replenish your wardrobe back home with new clothes that you're going to buy in Madrid. It's SALE time here in Madrid, baby!

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Stroll along the beautiful Plaza de España and admire the statue of Miguel de Cervantes and Don Quixote.

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The Royal Palace is no longer in use by the present ruler of Spain - King Juan Carlos - as his official residence. He and his consort lives in the more modest Zarzuela Palace, located on the outskirts of Madrid.

Today, the Palace is used mainly for state functions and as a major tourist attraction. :-)

Tourists and commoners (like you and I) are able to visit some of the important rooms in the Palace. If you get the chance, don't forget to scrutinize some excellent frescos inside the Palace by Tiépolo... and paintings by Diego Velázquez de Silva, Goya, Rubens, El Greco, Juan de Flandes and Caravaggio amongst others. The Royal Art Collection is really impressive! I'll leave you to imagine how many "oohs" and "ahs" I made!

The Palace gardens are also worth seeing - Jardines del Moro and the Sabattini gardens).

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Address: Former King's Residence

Madrid has many, many first class museums. For starters, you may wish to check out the world-famous Museo del Prado.

The major museums in Madrid have an amazing collection of paintings by some of the world's greatest artists, amongst them - Goya, El Greco, Velázquez, Picasso and Dalí.

Nowhere else will you find such a concentration of masterpieces as in the three major museums here - Prado, the Reina Sofía and the Thyssen-Bornemisza.

Apparently, these museums make up Madrid's so-called Golden Triangle of Art.

If you (like me) do not have much time to spare.... but would like to see the major paintings by your favorite artists, why don't you join a full-day museum tour. I did just that and have absolutely no regrets!

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The Museo del Prado is housed in an 18th building designed by Juan de Villanueva and located just a stone's throw away from the Ritz Hotel.

Today, the Museo del Prado is considered one of the best art galleries in the world. It is here that you can find art masterpieces by Velázquez, Goya, El Greco, Zurbarán, Ribera, Titian, Raphael, Botticelli, Fra Angélico, Rubens, Bosch, Van der Weyden, Poussin, Lorrain, Watteau, Rembrandt, Dürer and Mengs, among others.

Here I am with my American friend from Los Angeles at the Prado. She was the only one who shared the same interest as me (read: visiting world famous museums to view world famous masterpieces). The rest of my trendier friends were out shopping and had absolutely no interest in visiting museums! Ha - and you thought I was a shopaholic! ;-)

Thanks for accompanying me, Rochelle! :-)

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Phone: 91 3302800
Address: Paseo del Prado.
Directions: Metro: Banco de España & Atocha.
Open: 9 AM to 7 PM; Sundays 9 AM to 2 PM. Closed: Monday.
Website: http://museoprado.mcu.es/home.html

Let me spend the next few minutes showcasing some of Prado's BEST art works & my personal favorites.

Art Masterpiece: Infanta

Favorite Artist: Diego Rodriguez de Silva Velázquez (1599-1660)

Spain's greatest painter was born in Seville.
His father was of noble Portuguese descent. In his teens he studied art with Francisco Pacheco, whose daughter he married. He learned much from studying nature. After his marriage at the age of 19, Velázquez went to Madrid. When he was 24 he painted a portrait of Philip IV who became his patron.

Velázquez lived in Madrid as court painter. His paintings include landscapes, mythological and religious subjects & scenes from common life called genre pictures. Most of them, however, are portraits of court notables that rank with the portraits painted by Titian and Anthony Van Dyck.

He was eventually made marshal of the royal household and as such he was responsible for the royal quarters and for planning ceremonies.

In 1660 Velázquez had charge of his last and greatest ceremony -the wedding of the Infanta Maria Theresa to Louis XIV of France. This was a most elaborate affair. Worn out from these labors, Velázquez contracted a fever from which he died on August 6.

Velázquez was called the "noblest and most commanding man among the artists of his country." Because of Velasquez' great skill in merging color, light, space, rhythm of line and mass in such a way that all have equal value, he was known as "the painter's painter."

Velázquez has directly or indirectly led painters to make original contributions to the development of art. Others who have been noticeably influenced by him are Murillo, Goya, Corot, Courbet, Manet etc. His famous paintings include "The Surrender of Breda", an equestrian portrait of Philip IV, "The Spinners", "The Maids of Honor", "Pope Innocent X," "Christ at Emmaus" and a portrait of the "Infanta".

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Phone: 91 3302800
Address: Paseo del Prado.
Directions: Metro: Banco de España & Atocha.
Open: 9 AM to 7 PM; Sundays 9 AM to 2 PM. Closed: Monday.
Website: http://museoprado.mcu.es/home.html
Other Contact: Artist Bio from: www.ibiblio.org

Art Masterpiece: El Buen Pastor

Favorite Artist: Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617-82).

Bartolomé Murillo was born in 1617 in Seville. His parents died when he was a child, and he went to live with a local artist, Juan del Castillo. As might be expected, Murillo's early works show Castillo's influence. Under him Murillo learned to turn out religious pictures that were sold to small churches in Spain and in the Spanish colonies in America.

At some point in his life, probably in the late 1640s, Murillo is believed to have visited Madrid. In any case, after 1650 his use of color and light and his natural, human portrayal of figures seems to show the influence of Diego Velazquez. In Madrid, Murillo would also have seen paintings by the Flemish and Venetian masters, and the work he did in Seville between 1650 and his death seems to show these influences too. Because Murillo did not put a date on most of his paintings, these changes in his style are often used to determine the order in which he painted them.

One striking characteristic of Murillo's works is the illuminated mist, populated with angels and cherubs, that surrounds the central figures. The few portraits he painted are extremely lifelike. In 1660 Murillo helped found a public academy of art in Seville and served as its first president.

In 1681 Murillo was in Cadiz, painting the "Espousal of St. Catherine" on the walls of the Capuchin monastery there. He fell from the scaffold, and his death on April 3, 1682, apparently resulted from his injuries. Murillo was buried in the church of Santa Cruz in Seville.

Among Murillo's well-known paintings are three versions of the "Immaculate Conception". "St. Anthony of Padua" was another of the subjects that he painted several times. Many people like best the series he painted for the Charity Hospital in Seville.

Among these are "Moses Striking the Rock", "St. Elizabeth of Hungary Tending the Sick", and "St. Peter Released from Prison".

Info courtesy of: http://www.ibiblio.org (Abridged)

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Phone: 91 3302800
Address: Paseo del Prado.
Directions: Metro: Banco de Espa?a & Atocha.
Open: 9 AM to 7 PM; Sundays 9 AM to 2 PM. Closed: Monday.
Other Contact: http://museoprado.mcu.es/home.ht

Art Masterpiece: Fusilamiento del 3 de Mayo

Artist: Francisco Goya (1746-1828)

Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes welcomed and received official honors and worldly success with enthusiasm. At the same time he left a ruthlessly penetrating record of his patrons and private expressions of introspection, moral objectivity, and caustic commentary on his times. By the 1780s Goya was Spain's leading painter, specializing in religious pictures and portraits. He acknowledged 3 masters: the elegant, fluid Diego Velázquez, his predecessor as court painter to the Spanish royal family; the truthful, penetrating Rembrandt van Rijn; and, above all, nature.

A 1792 illness left Goya deaf and mentally broken. He turned inward and began painting dark, disturbing, private works. His etchings "Los Caprichos" expressed his distaste for the corrupt, fanatical establishment, particularly the Church, for whom he worked; the etchings went on sale in 1799, the year he became principal painter to the Spanish king.

During the Napoleonic wars, Goya recorded his reactions to the occupying French army’s atrocities in his Disasters of War etchings and a painting, "Fusilamiento del 3 de Mayo 1808 ", whose immediate equivalence of paint, flesh, and blood profoundly influenced Édouard Manet. By 1814, the repressive Spanish monarchy was restored and Goya resumed painting the royals, whom he portrayed with at times unflattering frankness. He died in voluntary exile in France.

Info courtesy of: http://www.ocaiw.com

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Phone: 91 3302800
Address: Paseo del Prado
Website: http://museoprado.mcu.es