Today's blog was written by Victoria Pray and Kiona Deans. *Kiona will probably kill McConnell when she sees this photo so it will be changed later today after we take a new one!
After arriving in Madrid, we headed over to the Royal Palace of Madrid. King Charles III was the first king to live in the palace and he started living there in 1764. The architecture in the palace is Italian and the styles of each room changes with each room but the main styles are baroque and neo-classical. This palace is not just a museum, but royalty (Juan Carlos I and Sofia) come here a couple times a month for either celebration or business. The last king to actually live there year-round was Alfonso XIII and that was in 1931. Some kings collected certain items such as clocks, tapestries, and chandeliers, which shows because there is at least one in almost every room. Some of the rooms have new items such as carpets and drapes but other rooms such as the throne room have not been changed since 1764. The king and queen no longer sit on the thrones because they are now part democratic monarchy and they don’t have absolute power. One room we saw – the dressing room – was completely made of porcelain, which can be taken apart at any moment because the porcelain is screwed into wood. Carlos III apparently had three different porcelain dressing rooms that he kept. In the past, the main dining room table had so many bronze pieces, fruit, and flowers as centerpieces (to show power) that the guests were unable to see each other. Now, however, there is a more modest centerpiece.
Next, we visited the Museo del Prado. Luis mainly showed us paintings from Diego Velázquez and Francisco de Goya. Velázquez was the official painter of the royal family and when they traveled to Italy, he came with them. Because of this, he inspired Italian painters in their style. Goya also painted royalty at first, but after the Napoleonic War, his attitude towards the Spanish government changed, which led to his “pinturas negras” (translated as black paintings). These paintings are much more embittered and bleak with disturbing images such as his famous “Saturn.” After the museum, we went to lunch at the Hotel Mora and did some sightseeing before leaving for Segovia.
En Madrid, el grupo visitó el Palacio Real de Madrid. Carlos III fue el primer rey para vivir en el palacio en 1764. La arquitectura en el palacio es de Italia y los estilos de los cuartos incluyen barroco y neo-clásico. Alfonso XIII fue el ultimo rey para vivir permanente en el palacio, pero Juan Carlos I y Sofía visitan el palacio durante el mes. Unos reyes han coleccionado unas cosas como relojes, tapices, y arañas y cada cuarto tiene al menos uno de cada cosa. El cuarto de trono es el único cuarto que no ha cambiado desde 1764. El rey y la reina no se sientan en los tronos porque ahora, son parte de una monarquía democrática. El vestuario está hecho de porcelana y se puede estar desatornillado de la madera del pared. En el pasado, la central de la mesa tenía muchas piezas de bronce, frutas, y flores que los huéspedes no podían ver el uno al otro pero ahora el mesa tiene una central modesta.
Después del palacio, visitamos el Museo de Prado donde vimos las pinturas de Diego Velázquez, Francisco de Goya, y otros pintores. Aprendimos que Velázquez fue el pintor de la familia real y visitó Italia con la familia. En Italia, influyó los estilos de los pintores italianos. Goya pintó una familia real también, pero después de la Guerra Napoleónica, sus pinturas cambiaron porque su perspectiva del gobierno y humanidad se hizo desolado y oscuro. Después del museo, comimos al Hotel Mora y exploramos la ciudad de Madrid. Fue un día bueno y lleno de paisajes hermosos.
After arriving in Madrid, we headed over to the Royal Palace of Madrid. King Charles III was the first king to live in the palace and he started living there in 1764. The architecture in the palace is Italian and the styles of each room changes with each room but the main styles are baroque and neo-classical. This palace is not just a museum, but royalty (Juan Carlos I and Sofia) come here a couple times a month for either celebration or business. The last king to actually live there year-round was Alfonso XIII and that was in 1931. Some kings collected certain items such as clocks, tapestries, and chandeliers, which shows because there is at least one in almost every room. Some of the rooms have new items such as carpets and drapes but other rooms such as the throne room have not been changed since 1764. The king and queen no longer sit on the thrones because they are now part democratic monarchy and they don’t have absolute power. One room we saw – the dressing room – was completely made of porcelain, which can be taken apart at any moment because the porcelain is screwed into wood. Carlos III apparently had three different porcelain dressing rooms that he kept. In the past, the main dining room table had so many bronze pieces, fruit, and flowers as centerpieces (to show power) that the guests were unable to see each other. Now, however, there is a more modest centerpiece.
Next, we visited the Museo del Prado. Luis mainly showed us paintings from Diego Velázquez and Francisco de Goya. Velázquez was the official painter of the royal family and when they traveled to Italy, he came with them. Because of this, he inspired Italian painters in their style. Goya also painted royalty at first, but after the Napoleonic War, his attitude towards the Spanish government changed, which led to his “pinturas negras” (translated as black paintings). These paintings are much more embittered and bleak with disturbing images such as his famous “Saturn.” After the museum, we went to lunch at the Hotel Mora and did some sightseeing before leaving for Segovia.
En Madrid, el grupo visitó el Palacio Real de Madrid. Carlos III fue el primer rey para vivir en el palacio en 1764. La arquitectura en el palacio es de Italia y los estilos de los cuartos incluyen barroco y neo-clásico. Alfonso XIII fue el ultimo rey para vivir permanente en el palacio, pero Juan Carlos I y Sofía visitan el palacio durante el mes. Unos reyes han coleccionado unas cosas como relojes, tapices, y arañas y cada cuarto tiene al menos uno de cada cosa. El cuarto de trono es el único cuarto que no ha cambiado desde 1764. El rey y la reina no se sientan en los tronos porque ahora, son parte de una monarquía democrática. El vestuario está hecho de porcelana y se puede estar desatornillado de la madera del pared. En el pasado, la central de la mesa tenía muchas piezas de bronce, frutas, y flores que los huéspedes no podían ver el uno al otro pero ahora el mesa tiene una central modesta.
Después del palacio, visitamos el Museo de Prado donde vimos las pinturas de Diego Velázquez, Francisco de Goya, y otros pintores. Aprendimos que Velázquez fue el pintor de la familia real y visitó Italia con la familia. En Italia, influyó los estilos de los pintores italianos. Goya pintó una familia real también, pero después de la Guerra Napoleónica, sus pinturas cambiaron porque su perspectiva del gobierno y humanidad se hizo desolado y oscuro. Después del museo, comimos al Hotel Mora y exploramos la ciudad de Madrid. Fue un día bueno y lleno de paisajes hermosos.
RSS Feed