Fotos, ¡por fin!

After getting our technical issues worked out, we're back with photos. So today I'm gonna give you a whirl-wind picture tour of Madrid. There's a saying that Madrid is best experienced at night, and I took several night shots in an attempt to capture the essense. In some cases I've show both day and night photos to give the contrast. Enjoy...

I'm gonna kick things off by showing you around the apartment a little bit. This is the living room (this was my last day and I was packing; I don't normally keep my luggage sprawled out on the sofa).

Here's the dining room...

And my bedroom... which randomly had kermin the frog on the bed-side table.

I thought he deserved his own close-up.

This is a small plaza in my neighborhood... just to give you a feel for the area.

The main entrance of the Palacio Real.

The royal gardens on the opposite end of the palace.

A shot of the back end of the Palacio Real looking from across the gardens during the day...



... and at night.

Plaza de Oriente, which is directly in front of the Palacio Real. By day...

... and by night.

Quite possibly the strangest site in Madrid is the Temple Debod. This Egyptian temple was built in the 2nd century B.C. on the Nile River, but given to Spain in 1968 as a gift from the Egyptian government.

The Puerta de Alcalá, this was once part of the wall around the city of Madrid. As the city has expanded, this area is considered central Madrid. This puerta is right next to the Parque del Buen Retiro.

Artificial lake in Parque Retiro (analogous to Boston Common or Central Park). This park was once reserved for the exclusive use of the royal family. Now it's open for everyone.

Paseo de la Argentina, also in the Parque Retiro. Here's a photo of it in the summer.

Gardens in the Parque Retiro.

The Palacio de Cristal in the Parque Retiro. It often hosts art exhibits.

Atocha Station, the site of the 2004 Madrid bombings.

Inside the train station, there's an extensive tropical garden...

... which is home to a huge number of turtles (this is only a small fraction).

The Plaza de Neptune, which is in between the Prado and Thyssen-Bornemisza Museums (two of the most famous art museums in Europe). When Atlético Madrid wins championships, its fans congregate here to celebrate.

The Plaza de Cibeles, with the Palacio de Comunicaciones in the background.

Plaza de Cibeles por la noche.

A close-up of Cibeles.

The Plaza Mayor, considered by many Madrileños to be the center of Madrid.

The Puerta de Europa, an interesting set of leaning towers in northern Madrid.

Top-level view of Estadio Bernabeu, the home of Real Madrid.

Field-level view.

The player benches (which were super-comfy, by the way).

And the trophy room.

So tomorrow we'll have a picture culinary tour, and Friday will be the last post: I'll wrap things up with some final thoughts.