I've put some info about how we got to and from there in another blog entry.
Because I am awesome, I accidently got us to hop off a few stops too early. (So, advice to people going to El Escorial by bus: don't get off in the little low town of El Escorial. You need to wait until the bus station which is up higher, and you'll go past the monastery/palace on the way there).
However, we did have a nice brekky in the café in town, so it wasn't all bad.
The monastery was built, on King Phillip II's suggestion, and under his close inspection, between 1563 and 1584. Right from the start, instructions for its use were laid out in a charter. For instance, there was to be both a public and private palace, a convent, rooms for scientific study, and much more...
You can check out more history (and pictures) on this site.
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| Photo by 'nerdygirl.' |
It turns out, the friend was right; it was really impressive. The people to responsible for that are Juan Bautista de Toledo, who did most of the architectural work, and Juan de Herrera, who supervised the construction. The Monastery of El Escorial is an absolutely huge place, with nice gardens and a fantastic view. There are several rooms with wall-to-wall (and ceiling) paintings. The ones which most stuck in my mind were the battle room and the library, both of which appear in the photo gallery in the link above. Also, the crypt left a lasting impression, especially the Panteón de Infantes.
I think my friend told me that this could be done in just a morning and, well, I guess it could if you were in a rush, but we decided to stick around for the afternoon. I mean, we hadn't even ventured into the gardens! Plus the entry was 10€ (or five, if you're eligible for a discounted rate) so, personally, I wanted to take my time and get my money's worth!
We had a big search for lunch (as I was convinced that many of the places were tourist traps and, if we wandered a bit, we'd find a much better deal) and ended up having tasty pasta in a restaurant with friendly staff, and a waiter who was very keen to practise his English.
After a big bowl of pasta, a leisurely wander through the gardens in the afternoon sun was in order. Off we went, imagining that we were out for a stroll in the grounds of our palace.
As we got the El Escorial by bus, we thought we would change and go home on the Cercanías train. This was also influenced by how unhelpful the people at the bus station were, I admit. We got so annoyed trying to find out where exactly the bus left from (even just to get down to the train station) that we gave up and got a taxi.
There was then some confusion about whether we really were getting on the correct train. We asked some other people but, unfortunately, they were equally unsure. It turned out to be the one, though. The light was fading as it took off, but we caught some nice glimpses of the sunset.
Once in Madrid, Mum and I took off to try to see the lights again, but to no avail. We just had to shop a bit instead!
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