Castle of Torrechiara, Finished Midterms, and Spain: Week 10

On Halloween, I took a visit to the Castle of Torrechiara, which was constructed between 1448 and 1460. 

These are some of the rooms in the castle. The walls and ceilings are very pretty.

This is the kitchen.

This is the view from the castle. The foggy weather definitely added to the Halloween atmosphere.

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I finished my midterms last week!

For fun, here's a picture of me studying for my child development midterm in an airplane. 

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I ended the week by taking a trip to Madrid, Spain! I've always wanted to travel to Spain and it definitely did not disappoint!

As SOON as I could, I got tacos. I LOVE tacos and they were DELICIOUS! Yes, I know tacos are from Mexico and not from Spain, but, nonetheless, they were amazing.

I did a walking tour of Madrid the following morning. It started at the Statue of Isabell II, who was the queen of Spain from 1833 - 1868.

Then, we went to the Royal Palace of Madrid, originally founded by King Philip V in the 18th century and first used by King Charles III in 1764.

The Statue of King Philip IV, who ruled from 1621 - 1655, is in front of the palace.

The Sabatini Gardens, located where stables used to be located, were so peaceful. I came back to the palace on my last day in Madrid and came across these gardens and found myself lost in the tranquility of it all.

I've learned that I love seeing countries at nighttime as well, and I just had to see the palace at night. It was very cool.

Then, the guide to took us on a hill to get a view of the Cathedral of Saint Mary the Royal of the Almudena, which took 110 years to build! Its construction started in 1883 and wasn't completed until 1993.

I came back at night to get a different view of it and to capture its ambiance at night.

The next stop on the tour was Plaza de la Villa, the oldest plaza in Madrid at around 600 years old.

It looks pretty cool at night, too!

Then, we went to Plaza Mayor, where the first official bullfights in Madrid occurred in the early 1600s. Additionally, the government used this square for royal proclamations and ceremonial functions.

In this picture, you can see Buzz Lightyear (lol) AND the Statue of King Philip III, who reigned from 1598 - 1621. The people of Madrid used to believe that this statue was haunted.

Hey, who would've thought? It has a pretty awesome atmosphere at night, too.

Then, the tour guide led us to Puerta del Sol, a very busy square in Madrid. I didn't get any good pictures on the tour, but I did walk by this square multiple times, so I was able to get some good pictures throughout my time in Madrid.

This is the "KM 0" landmark, located in Puerta del Sol, and serves as the point that the radial roads in Spain are measured from. You can also see my favorite pair of shoes ever (lol); I've gotten a pair of Vans for my "new shoes" since I was 14 years old.

A statue of Madrid's symbol, a bear and a strawberry tree, is also located in Madrid. The bear signifies strength and resilience, while the strawberry tree signifies abundance. 

After the tour, I got lunch with my friend, Paloma! She lives in Madrid, and studied abroad in America when I was 15, which is how we met. We haven't seen each other since then and it was great getting to catch up after such a long time!

She showed me a lot of traditional Spaniard food, which I am so grateful for! For our appetizers, we had croquetas (left) and patatas bravas (right). 

For our main courses, we split canelones.

We also split Iberian Pork with Pedro Ximénez Reduction (I think). Everything was SO good!

We took a walk after lunch, and we passed by their congress building!

After saying goodbye, I explored a bit and found the Schwepps building. This area reminded me a lot of New York City.

Then, I went to the Reína Sofia Museum.

There was a lot of art by Pablo Picasso in this museum, which is actually so cool. The painting above is the "Woman's Head" by Picasso.

The pictures above are of Guernica, also by Picasso. There was a lot of people around this huge piece of art.

The piece above is titled "The Swimmer" and is also by Picasso.

I ended the night by getting traditional churros and hot chocolate at Chocolatería San Ginés. It was all so good. The hot chocolate reminded me of the hot chocolate my mom makes, but thicker.

The following morning, I walked by the Cuartel General de la Armada, which is the headquarters of the Spanish Navy.

Then, I went to the Palace of Cibeles, which once served as the main post office and telecommunications headquarters of Spain.

This is what it looks like on the inside.

There was a mural set up for the Day of the Dead, which was pretty neat to see.

I went to the top to view Madrid's skyline and it was amazing! It was also a very beautiful day.

Then, I went to the Temple of Debod, which was originally constructed in the second century BC in Egypt and is over 2,200 years old. It was donated to Spain in 1968 as a gift for Spain's efforts in saving Egyptian temples. 

It was just so cool being next to something so ancient. 

However, it was even COOLER to see the temple at night. 

I also made a visit to the "Real Jardín Botánico." It was very peaceful and nice to slow down.

The flowers were all so pretty.

I couldn't leave Spain without seeing a Flamenco performance! Everyone was so talented. I could've sat there for hours and hours.

When I left the performance, I saw the most beautiful sunset.

I went to the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum the following morning and saw a lot of pretty art! The painting above is "Les Vessenots" by VINCENT VAN GOGH! HOW COOL IS THAT?!

This paining is "The Stevedores in Arles," also by Vincent van Gogh.

This painting is "The Potato Eaters," by Vincent van Gogh. Seeing three paintings by THE Vincent van Gogh was amazing.

The painting above is titled "Fruit Bowl with Pears and Apples" by Picasso.

This painting is "Violin" by Picasso.

While not Picasso or Vincent van Gogh, there were some pretty paintings I found noteworthy. The one above is titled "Beachballs" and is by Donald Baechler. It reminds me of the beach.

This painting is "Waterloo Bridge" by André Derain. Not only is it stunning, but "Waterloo" is also one of my favorite songs from the second Mamma Mia movie.

This painting is "Autumn" by Frederic Edwin Church.

This painting is "Greenwood Lake" by Jasper Francis Cropsey.

This painting is "Singing Beach" by Martin Johnson Heade.

This is a "Covered Standing Cup" from 1560.

This is the "Nautilus Cup" from 1577.

Towards the end of the day, I took a stroll around Parque del Oeste.

There was a man singing and playing the guitar. It was a great and lively atmosphere.

The sunset was so pretty, too.

I ended the night by getting Popeyes! I haven't had chicken tenders in SO LONG and was so EXCITED when I found some in Madrid. Overall, it was a great trip!