The Royal Palace

Yesterday we decided to do some sightseeing since we haven't really explored the city from a tourist's perspective yet, so we went to The Royal Palace (Palacio Real) to experience how the royal families of Madrid lived.  The current royal family does not live in the palace and instead lives in a more modest palace outside of Madrid, but the Palacio Real is still used today for select governmental ceremonies.  Though King Juan Carlos retains his title as king, like other countries, the royal members do not participate in political activities and merely serve as public figures.  Side note: Spain is currently governed by a socialist party. Elections will be held this November, and since the economy is bad and unemployment rate high, many Spaniards speculate that the Partido Popular (a more conservative party) will win the elections.  To be determined.

Anyway, as you can imagine, the Palacio Real was absolutely stunning.  Each room was covered from ceiling to floor and wall to wall with the most beautiful and intricate detail.  Many were lined with gold and had hand-painted designs and murals on every wall.  Each room had its own style and was truly a piece of artwork.

 Royal Gardens

 Side of the Palace

 Palacio Real

 Entrance hall in the palace

Ceiling of the entrance hall

...Then I got in trouble for taking pictures, so that's the last of them.  

I couldn't believe how one family could occupy such a massive, ornate structure.  Each room has a unique function that differentiated it from the next.  One room was for having conversations, one for eating lunch, one for drinking wine, one for getting dressed. One room was for viewing films-yes, a royal family lived in the palace in the early 1900's, when films existed! It made me wonder though if these rooms were once used for each of these functions, or if it was just for show.  Did the king actually go into the 'conversation room' to speak? What if he wanted to stay in a different room that was a ten minute walk from the 'conversation room?' Things like that just made me wonder.  It's crazy to imagine what life would be like living in such an immense home that called for elegance and formality on a daily basis....