Sightseeing: Madrid

My penultimate day in Madrid was spent doing a ridiculous amount of walking around the city.

Nice little GoT nod to Banksy which I found in an abandoned lot.

A few statues atop some of the buildings. There are plenty of these around the city so do take the time to look up every now and then.

This statue is clearly loved by the birds in the city. This is in the Parque del Retiro, the largest park in the city and a cool place to hang out.

The bear and strawberry tree is on Madrid's coat of arms. Bears don't reside in the city and strawberries don't grow on trees, some I'm unsure why they chose this.

The Alcala gate opened in 1778, prior to that people would have been trapped in the city. This arch can be found NW of the Retiro Park.

Are the crisps fresh?

Plaza Mayor is in the centre of the old town of Madrid and is a popular place to get lost if you're a Chinese tourist. Twice I was stopped for directions.

The plaza opened in the 1600s and the statue in the centre is of King Philip III

The opera theatre which is where I seemed to end up a lot. All roads lead here it would seem.

El Boris Bikes

In front of the Royal Palace, much whiter than our own Buckingham Palace.

Like in London you can reach through the gates for a nicer shot. I could have gone in but a) I couldn't be bothered and b) I didn't fancy waiting for it to open.

Opposite the Palace sits the Almudena Cathedral.

I got lucky with the low sun hitting the stained glass just right.

Nice interior.

A cool piece of art which I photographed only because I know at some point I can easily photoshop my face into it.

Walking south out of the old town and realise how hilly the city was. The cold wind blowing in was another clue.

An old basilica

and a nice statue within its grounds.

This is the Toldeo Gate in the south of the city near the river.

Vicente Calderon Stadium is home to two of the Madrid football teams. 

Liking this style of building, those circular corners must make it hard to carpet.

One way of guaranteeing you'll never lose your car.

The City has a Hard Rock. It is extremely popular with tourists on account of not having to speak Spanish to order. It's expensive and not worth enduring the noise and bad music videos for a sandwich. When did Justin Beiber become Hard Rock?

My walking tour finished at Atocha station and from there it was an easy train ride back to the hotel.

A couple of baby head sculptures outside the station.