Palacio Real de Madrid, Museo Arqueológico Nacional, and a long night’s rest

Day 8
7:00am Breakfast. Tour ends.

We managed to get a table in the hotel restaurant at the Spanish peak almuerzo arrival time, 9:30am, when we saw a few stragglers from the tour gang catching breakfast or transfers to the airport. After breakfast, the doorman blew his whistle at a waiting taxicab and we rode the few minutes to Calle de Bailén.

For 8 €, a person can walk through the official home of Spain’s royal family, Palacio Real de Madrid (http://www.patrimonionacional.es). Upon entering each room, my chief thought was—each time, mind you—“this room is just too ridiculously gorgeous.” It’s no wonder the Royal family prefers to live outside the city and suffers the palace only for formal gatherings and receptions. On the other hand, their palace makes a marvelous museum, loaded with frescos, architecture, furniture, tapestries, sculptures, and other artworks by Spain’s greatest artists, including Stradivarius violins, Goya portraits, the Sacchetti structural design, a Sabatini staircase, and Tiepolo and Giaquinto frescos.

Adjacent to the Royal Palace are the Royal Armory (Armería Real) and Royal Pharmacy (Real Farmacia) which both contain exactly what you would expect.

With only two items left on our Madrid-to-do list, we set out by taxi to fulfill one of the items: visiting the Museo Arqueológico Nacional (http://www.man.es/), where admission was free this day (entrada gratuita) but, as Ian commented, the collections were less extensive then those in the Smithsonians.

When rain began, we changed our next destination from Calle Carretas at Puerta del Sol to Hotel Palace so I could grab raingear. Sleepiness kept me in the room while Ian dutifully braved the taxi rides in an excursion to tick off the final item on the to-do-list: shopping for dress shoes and a leather jacket. As it turns out, no tiendas are open on Sunday. Ian returned to the hotel with a little extra rainwater in his possession but no leather. For an alternate event, he visited the hotel workout room.

We wrapped fragiles, stuffed our clothes into the suitcases (someone’s was considerably more stuffed than the other’s), organized carry-ons, took final showers, and tucked ourselves in for this trip’s last night in Spain.