Outside the Reina Sofia

Off to Madrid. Since I studied a bit or Art history while in college, when I learned that I would have a business meeting in Madrid, I immediately thought of the art museums there. When I made my travel plans, I tried to think ahead and figure out when and how I could visit the Prado. I looked at the website before I left, and noted that it looked like a short cab ride away form the hotel. When I arrived in Madrid on the morning of 22 Jan, I checked in, and then took a cab over to the museum. When i arrived, it was drizzling. The Prado is a huge place, and reminded me a bit of the Met in NYC. It was place was under renovation, with the main entrance blocked off by construction. It was also closed, because it was a Monday. great planning on my part. I met a lady selling useless maps, and she was nice enough to direct me to the Reina Sofia Museum, down the street. I bought a useless map. I walked to the Reina Sofia, which I liken to the MoMA. Inside I saw many interesting things. Very many Picasso paintings and etchings on one floor. Another floor was a featured exhibit, a labyrinth of dimly lit rooms with TV sets everywhere that ran loops of odd tv footage, and also a room-sized exhibit with deflated plastic cushions all over the floor (you had to take off yr shoes) and grease covering the walls & ceiling. When I left the museum I bought a post card at the gift shop, which I would later send to my niece in Denmark. After that I went outside, and took a picture of myself with an interesting building in the background... some big terminal. I would later learn that it is the Atocha train station, the location/origin of the 11Mar2004 train bombings.