OR THE LAST LOOK AT MUSEUMS: THYSSEN-BORNEMISZA AND CAIXAFORUM MADRID THEN MORE AIRPORT HOTELS TALES
And here it was, my last day in Madrid. In the morning I would finally be going home after three months away. Tomorrow was to be a scary day. Home at last while Covid was just a twinkle in Wuhan’s eye. Home to mountains of mail and possibly some dead plants. Home to the familiar all unfamiliar now. Home to what would be, allsorts of shitstorms. Home to my gilded cage. (ironical to think we literally would be caged with the so called lockdown) Home to terrible dramas and discontent.
THYSSEN-BORNEMISZA GALLERY.
I’ll wizz you through with a couple of slide shows, the two last galleries before shooting of to Barajas, a lovely little town just by the airport one of my more successful airport hotels. (Apart from a bit of a smell of wee)
This art gallery is a bit of a mouthful but if I were to compare to Sofia and Prado I would say come here if you have limited time. It’s smaller and beautifully curated and the staff are, just well, nicer. Different coloured walls for different eras and very easy on the eye. Just be aware that this is for you to glimpse at or peruse at your leisure. You will recognise many of the pieces of artwork and the artists, others you will scratch your head at. This is just to get the old taste-buds going not a history of art lesson. In other words I can’t be arsed to title all these pics you can always do a bit of research you idle things!
From Fourteenth Century……..
Lichtenstein and more modern stuff….
CAIXAFORUM MADRID
OK a bit of blurb.
“CaixaForum Madrid is a 21st century sociocultural centre which opens its doors to ancient, modern and contemporary art, music and poetry festivals, multimedia art, debates on current affairs, social conferences and family and educational workshops.
Its spectacular premises, in Paseo del Prado, near the three major museums of the Art Walk, the Prado, the Thyssen and the Reina Sofía, are one of the city’s newest icons. The renovation of the building that housed the old Mediodía electric power station was carried out by the Herzog & De Meuron architectural studio and it has two characteristics that make it easily recognisable: its vertical garden and its apparent state of “levitation”.
British Museum Treasures in Madrid.
Luxury.
This show was all about luxury and the opulence that Alexander the Greats huge empire enjoyed and the magnificent artwork of the Oxus Treasure. It covered the influence of the Phoenicians and the Achaemenid Empire (Persian) and the melding of the different artistic styles. Below are some pics. The ‘Hellenisation’ was truly massive and audacious.
This very smart renovated building in Central Madrid was a treat for me as it was right by my hotel. I was starting to feel anxious to go to my airport cheapo in Barajas. I’m always fidgety when it comes to the time to leave so this relatively small show was just the ticket, I even recognised some pieces and it seemed to be a sign from the gods that this was it, time to go home you dirty stop out. My last limp around (keep up, remember the broken foot!) then I grabbed my case and still snooty with the reception I bade them an arrogant adios not hasta luego.
Barajaras and wee wee room.
The cab ride there is about half an hour so I arrived in time for a late lunch. This town has a charming central square but apart from that nothing was open as it was a Sunday. I checked in and rushed to my room which was an attic room. Normally I would have loved it with it’s angled ceiling and skylight overlooking the town but sadly it had absorbed all the heat from the day and was enough to roast this old bird til she was table ready. Although they insisted the air con would come good it didn’t. I laid on what was a remarkably hard bed sweating and unpacking a bit . I wanted to give it a chance but the bloody air con was obviously broken. As I took my sponge bag into the bathroom I saw a trickle of sweat running between my cleavage and made the decision that it would be impossible to sleep here before the flight tomorrow.
Enter Moaning Minnie to reception to negotiate another room that they seemed amazingly reluctant to faff around with. I wheedled on til they could stand it no longer. I was told to go get my lunch and they would sort it.
I had a choice of three restaurants that had outside tents so I could my my little head off in after lunch. They all had more or less the same fare so I ordered a lovely butter bean soup and some lamb chops and chips ( I know, I know but this was a set menu) and got out the old IPad and played a game of Words With Friends while waiting and sipping some of their red plonk. I would advise anyone to use this pleasant little town for a stopover before an early flight and enjoy their hospitality. I sat in that sun and did my lounging lizard impersonation soaking up the sun and the wine. I suppose you could also have called me a lounge lizard.
Yummy lunch over I sauntered back to the hotel and was given a new room. Crispy cold much larger but sadly slightly smelling of urine, I conceded that this was as good as it gets. I laid out my travelling clothes and prepped for the morning with the window open (was that smell going to go?) I even sniffed the mattress of the bed I had chosen to sleep in and that seeming okay I returned to the square for evening drinks. They had a whole load of coloured lights on and it was very festive and had turned rather nippy actually. I wouldn’t be needing that bloody air con after all.
In the morning I went and got my coffee and croissant before jumping in a cab to the airport and with dread and a lurching in my stomach prepared to reurn home to London.
Old Bird Travels Solo! 