The Ham Nomads

24 Jan 2015. <ES> Madrid —

A similar plan to yesterday, but this time aiming for the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, the modern art museum that houses Picasso's famous Guernica.

But first, we found the place in Puerta del Sol where there is a plaque set into the ground marking the point from which all road distances in Spain are measured. A very popular tourist point!

Then we walked around to the Plaza Mayor, an impressive square constructed in 1617-1619 and which has been central to Madrid's history ever since — it is here that they staged bullfights, proclamations of monarchs, royal weddings, autos-da-fe, executions, you name it! Under the colonnades around its edge are many shops and restaurants whose chairs and tables spill out into the square itself. In the centre of the square is the equestrian statue of Phillip III, the first monarch of the House of Austria to be born in Madrid.

From the Plaza Mayor we walked down Calle de Atocha directly to the Reina Sofía. Two pleasant surprises when we got there — as retirees, we got free entry, and, but for the rooms which house Guernica we were free to take as many photos as we wished! Needless to say, we spent about 4 hours wandering its halls communing with Picasso, Dalí, Miró and many other modern artists. Wonderful.

Picasso's Guernica

Salvator Dalí

Joan Miró

Coming out of the Reina Sofía, we didn't go back to Puerta del Sol, but instead walked across to the nearby Atocha railway station, where we could catch our train straight back to El Casár and walk back to the van, weary but exhilarated!

Distance driven — today, nil; to date, 11,898 miles ( 19,148 km )