People here say that Madrid lacks a big monument. There is no Eiffel Tower, Brandenburg Gate or Colliseum, nothing that conjures an instant image of the city. However that is not to say there aren't many interesting things to see and I'm here to prove it! I thought we would start with the Prado. The first thing to be said, before the number of great works it contains and all that, is that it's fucking massive. Thanks to Alex and his dogged sense of persistance I can honestly say that I have seen the vast majority, if not all of it. The Prado is a gallery that is home to the former royal collection of the Spanish monarchy. It is classical as they gave away all their modern stuff because they had too much, which is daunting when you think how many paintings they still have and what a space it covers. Daunting is the word that describes how the place feels at first. It's just a question of where to start. With the Greeks, with the pictures of the crucifixion (of which there are many) or the ones of Spanish royalty being regal. Once you start though it's wonderful and before you know it you've been there for five hours. It is considered one of the world's great galleries by people who know about this sort of thing. I am not one of those people and yet I can safely say I really like it. Most of it is over my head, I read the plaque next to each and wonder they could possibly know that but am happy to take their word for it. Here are some of their masterpieces in a format that does them absolutely no justice at all.
The Knight with his Hand on his Brest - El Greco
Garden of Earthly Delights - Bosch
Charles IV of Spain and his Family -Goya
Self Portrait - Albrecht Durer
Las Meninas - Velazquez
Portrait of a Cardianal - Raphael
To seem them in all their glory you'll need to get yourself on a plane won't you?
love love love x
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