November 15

Hmm Well after finding a suitable hostel I slept, then an Aussie gal and myself checked out the royal palace and gardens, then I hung out with the people at the hostel. It sucked because the people at the place all smoked, and ventilation was piss poor, so the entire hostel stunk like smoke. I wasn't impressed. Although the jazz is premium at the various hot spots in the city! On my first impressions after wandering around for a while, I found Madrid very similar to Toronto. It's a financial hub of Spain. Very artsy, but dosn't have the vibe of Barcelona. I still like the place though.

November 16

After being somewhat mad at the hostel people, (bad tastes in music too) I went to another place, with wireless!!! much better facilities closer to the center of town, and did I mention wireless? anyhow I wandered though the rain downpour to the Prado museum. (http://museoprado.mcu.es/ihome.html) There are many classical works in the Prado. It features art from 1000-1850's. I found most of the art was very religious in nature, or pics of monarchs or aristocrats. It rekindled my fondness for Goya though, after so many pictures of the virgin and christ, he was something completely different. He had a very pessimistic view of the world, and personally witnessed the Napoleonic battles and some of the most brutal civil wars of the modern age. This of course is reflected in his art. Another artist I enjoyed was Bosch. His works were very surreal in style, completely different from his peers of the time. Tomorrow, modern art museum!