Day Two Toledo

We started our tour at thr park and statue of Don Quixote commemorating the writer Cervantes. We then went the the famous Bullfighter Stadium that holds 85 thousnad spectators. We also did a bus tour all over Madrid and saw the famous Futbol stadium (soccer). We then had a grand tour of the Royal Palace, and saw 15 rooms out of hundreds. It was unbeleivable to see the opulance and grandeur of this palace where all the royaly lived since the 13th century. Taveling 42 kilometers we went by bus to Toledo, and entered by the Porta del Sol, the Sun Gate. This medieval hill town has historic Isllamic, Jewish, and Catholic roots. We first toured the Calle de Santa Isabel other wise known as The Cathedral. There are five famous Cardinals buried there, and its architecture is Baroque, Roccoco, and Morre. Then we went to the church that is called El Greco House and Museum to see Goya's most famous painting called Assumption The painting was of a nobleman who was buried where St. Stephen and St. Ephram took his soul to heaven as bystanders witness this miracle. Next we went to Santa Maria la blanca, which was a Jewish Islamic Synagogue that was turned into a Catholic church. We also toured the Damascene Sword Factory for sword and jewelry making demonstrations. The jewelry is Islamic in design with gold leaf etched on a gold and black backgroud. Steven and Shawn bought awesome swords - lets see how we get them home! Sorry I can't uplaod pictures - You will see plenty of pictures when they get home! Tonight we went to a Flamenco performance for an hour and a half. Ole until tomorrow!!!

Day One Madrid

We arrived in Madrid and went directly to thr Ibis Mardid Velantin Beato hotel to unpack and rest. We then went by Metro to the Prado Museun to see El Greco, Valazquez, aqnd Goya paintings. We walked to a large park that used to be in the king's back yard. It has a lake and is as large as Central Park. The flowers and parks are everywhere and beautiful. We did a walking tour of Madrid by the Plaza de Mayor and had a terrific buffet at Freso's Restaurant. We still had jet lag and crashed at the hotel about 11. It is typical to eat dinner at 9 here!