Friday, August 20th
We woke this morning worried about what type of neighborhood we were staying in. We had seen graffiti from the taxi as we approached the apartment. Of course, we've seen graffiti in virtually every city we've visited, but to have it on the very street we're staying was pretty scary. Graffiti is synonymous with gangbangers and hoodlums, thieves and murderers...and we certainly don't want to run into any of those!
Matthew heard a ruckus outside and cautiously looked out the window. He was horrified to see a gang of young men playing futbol (soccer for us uninformed Americans) in the courtyard. I wondered if they were able to penetrate our seemingly impenetrable apartment complex, what would we encounter when we ventured out from the safety of our building.
It didn't take long to find out, as our stomachs growled and beckoned us to leave in search of sustenance. We left the apartment...walked down the stairs...and slowly opened the security door to the building. Outside was a hoodlum alright...riding his bike around...staring us down. It looked as if he had just robbed the gang of their futbol. I contemplated running back inside, but then I got a better idea...I took out my camera and snapped a picture of the guy.
Okay, so the neighborhood isn't bad. Just a little graffiti. We walked and had a great breakfast, took the metro to Puerto del Sol and walked to the Palacio Real (Royal Palace). The palace was incredible, we all really enjoyed it...but they don't allow you to take pictures inside. =(
We headed back to Puerto del Sol and did some shopping. I've been going pretty crazy with the souvenier shopping. Matt too, he's bought a weapon of some type in every country. We decided we were gonna need another suitcase to take everything home.
We left Puerto del Sol and found a grocery store...the shopping never ends. Matt decided that I'm going to make breakfast tomorrow morning. Thanks, Matt. We went back to the room and I did something new...hung clothes on a clothesline. The apartment has a washer, but no dryer. Out of the window is a pulley system to hang clothes on...I did not enjoy this part of the day...remember, Mike does all the laundry at home.
The Prado Museum was next on our agenda. We walked...it was only about 20 minutes away...and it was free because we got there after 6 pm. The Prado has mostly Spanish artists, but a good collection of others. We headed to all the 'must-sees'...which I probably should never do...my 'must-sees' are not always the same as those in a guidebook. In fact, my RS guidebook said that the best painting in world was located at the Prado...Les Menines by Velasquez. It certainly wasn't the best in my opinion, but art is subjective. We couldn't take pictures, so I found one on the web.
After the Prado, we found another suitcase, had dinner, and walked back to our apartment...luckily it was still light out.
I see that you found out that you can't judge a neigborhood by graffitti, and that graffitti doesn't always mean gangbangers and hoodlums. My daughter teachers photography in Va., they have a Quest program which is an after school program for advanced students (art, photography, once when it was her turn to teach it she did graffitti...they have a large wall by the school parking lot....it not looks great.
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