Crystal Palace, Madrid

Thursday
We had a very early flight out of Charles de Gaulle this morning, so we drove up last night and stayed in a hotel very close to the airport. A beautiful sunny day greeted us in Madrid. We checked into our hotel, dropped our luggage off, had a bit of breakfast, then set off. We spent much of the day enjoying the Thyssen Bornemisza museum, which focuses on European painting from the 13th to 20th centuries. Wealthy industrialist Baron Heinrich Thyssen Bornemisza began acquiring Old Masters in the 1920's for his villa in Switzerland. His son continued to add to the collection after his father's death. The state bought the 1,000-strong collection in 1993. We left about mid-afternoon, to enjoy the rest of the beautiful sunny day in Retiro Park, formerly royal gardens. On the way we passed the very impressive Town Hall building and the Plaza de Cibeles, and the Puerta de Alcala. The focal point of the park is probably the boating lake with the huge monument to Alfonso XIII, but also contains the Velazquez Palace, built in the 19th century for a national exhibition, statues, fountains, a French formal garden, a rose garden, and the Crystal Palace depicted in my blip. Built in 1887, it was inspired by its British namesake. We spent a couple of hours exploring the park, then headed back to the hotel to change and freshen up before going out to dinner.