art – passporttopossibilitycom

With Madrid still full of excitement and celebration, we continued exploring the city. We woke up a little earlier, had yogurt for breakfast, loaded up, and headed out for another day of sightseeing.

It was definitely hot, but after La Grande-Motte, Madrid’s heat somehow felt a little more bearable!

We decided to spend the morning at the Museo Nacional del Prado, about a 20-minute walk from our apartment. Along the way, we passed beautiful fountains, government buildings, and impressive architecture.

Madrid is another one of those cities where you need to remember to look up because there is always something incredible above you.

Then we entered the Prado.

What a museum!

Founded in 1819, the Prado is considered one of the world’s great art museums and holds an extraordinary collection of European art, particularly Spanish masterpieces from artists such as Velázquez, Goya, and El Greco.

Some of the paintings were so realistic and three-dimensional that it felt like you could reach out and touch them and the people would suddenly come alive.

We spent hours wandering through room after room. Some of the ceilings seemed 20 feet high, yet there were paintings so enormous they nearly filled the walls from floor to ceiling. The scale of everything was incredible.

Photography wasn’t allowed in much of the museum, which was probably a good thing because otherwise I would have taken hundreds of pictures! Instead, we bought a book about the collection so we could remember the paintings and learn more about them later.

One work that really caught our attention was Juan de Flandes’ The Crucifixion. We also saw an incredible collection depicting dozens of Spanish cities and their monuments. It was fascinating to study the details and see how the cities and their landmarks were portrayed.

Another portrait that caught our attention was of Manuela Isidra Téllez-Girón, the future Duchess of Abrantes.

The Prado has done an amazing job preserving centuries of history through art. You aren’t simply looking at beautiful paintings. You’re looking at clothing, architecture, religion, landscapes, families, royalty, wars, celebrations, and everyday life preserved on canvas.

Gabe could have stayed there all day.

Eventually, though, we needed to move on. We had plans to return to the apartment, rest for a while, and then get ready for Mom’s birthday dinner.

On our walk back, Gabe decided he wanted a photo with one of the stone lions outside an important government building.

The police officers guarding the area made it very clear that this was not going to happen!

No picture with the lion for Gabe.

Once we returned to the apartment, Kiya crashed and Mom decided to give her knee a much-needed break. Gabe and I weren’t quite ready to sit still, so we headed back out for another stroll.

We ended up having our caricatures drawn.

What a fun experience! We laughed the entire time and now have another unique souvenir from our trip.

Gabe also found some vinyl records he wanted to bring home, while I continued my hunt for another silk scarf. I had bought one earlier in the trip and had been wearing it in my hair, but somewhere during our train travels it disappeared.

Thankfully, I found some replacements at a little shop near our apartment, along with, of course, some funky earrings.

Then it was time for the main event—Mom’s Madrid birthday dinner.

Our wonderful host, Angel, had given us several restaurant suggestions close to the apartment, but nothing had really caught our attention.

Then I found Bel Mondo.

The moment we saw pictures of the colorful, eclectic restaurant, we all agreed that was where we wanted to celebrate.

Unfortunately, I made a slight mistake with the reservation.

The information said you could have your table for one hour and 45 minutes. Somehow, I interpreted our reservation as starting at 6:00 p.m.

Nope.

It ended at 6:00 p.m.

Oops.

Thankfully, the staff couldn’t have been more gracious. They found us another table for 7:30, so we had some time to wander around the neighborhood.

We browsed a few stores and eventually found a coffee shop where we could sit, have a drink, and pass the time.

When we finally walked into Bel Mondo, we knew immediately that waiting had been worth it.

The restaurant was amazing.

The atmosphere was eclectic, eccentric, colorful, and absolutely beautiful. There were flowers, bold patterns, artwork, lights, and interesting decorations everywhere you looked. It felt less like walking into a restaurant and more like stepping onto a movie set.

For dinner, Mom ordered an enormous steak, Gabe chose sliced rib eye, and I had chicken.

Then I spotted something very important on the menu.

Moscato.

I ordered a bottle.

It was soooo good!

Gabe loved it too.

So naturally, we ordered another bottle.

By the time we finished dinner and dessert, the three of us had polished off two bottles of Moscato and were thoroughly enjoying Mom’s birthday celebration.

The staff made the evening even more special. They surprised Mom with a cheesecake topped with a candle and gathered around to sing “Happy Birthday” to her.

It was perfect.

After everything we had experienced together over the previous six weeks, celebrating Mom’s birthday in Madrid—with wonderful food, two bottles of wine, lots of laughter, and the people she loves—felt pretty special.

Eventually, after a wonderful birthday dinner, we headed back toward the apartment.

On our way, we stopped at the little corner store near where we were staying. Earlier in the day it had been closed, so I was excited to see it open again. I found some more beautiful silk scarves to replace the one I had lost—and maybe a few extras! Mom got into the shopping spirit too and picked out some gorgeous earrings to match some of the new outfits she had bought during our travels. I loved seeing her choose some fun pieces for herself.

It was the perfect little shopping stop to end Mom’s birthday celebration.

Then we headed back to the apartment for one final round of packing.

Our taxi was scheduled to arrive at 8:00 the next morning, and this time our little group would be splitting up.

Mom, Kiya, and I would fly to Lisbon for the final stop on our European adventure, while Gabe would begin his long journey home, flying to New York and eventually making his way back to Bellingham..

It had been wonderful having him join us for this part of the trip.

From swimming in the Mediterranean and wandering through Madrid to cooking us dinner, exploring museums, shopping for records, getting caricatures drawn, and celebrating Grandma’s birthday, we packed a lot of memories into our time together.

Now it was time for one more country.

Portugal, here we come.

The next morning we all allowed ourselves to sleep in a little. After several busy days of sightseeing, it felt good not to rush.

We headed out on foot toward the Musée d’Orsay, walking through the beautiful Esplanade des Invalides. Stretching between the Seine River and the Hôtel des Invalides, the wide lawns and tree-lined walkways offered wonderful views of one of Paris’s most historic landmarks. Originally commissioned by King Louis XIV in the 1600s as a hospital and retirement home for wounded soldiers, Les Invalides is now home to several military museums and Napoleon Bonaparte’s magnificent tomb beneath its golden dome.

As we walked, we realized we had unknowingly found ourselves along part of the Bastille Day festivities.

What incredible timing!

Bastille Day, celebrated every July 14, commemorates the storming of the Bastille prison in 1789, one of the defining moments of the French Revolution. Today it serves as France’s national holiday and is marked by one of the world’s largest military parades.

This year’s celebration was especially significant. Nearly 6,700 troops, 98 aircraft, 31 helicopters, and more than 300 military vehicles participated in what was reported to be the largest Bastille Day parade ever held. France also highlighted its solidarity with its allies, welcoming Ukraine’s president as the guest of honor while showcasing its commitment to European security.

It was exciting to watch units from across the French Armed Forces marching through Paris. We saw soldiers, military vehicles, helicopters overhead, and aircraft flying as part of the celebration. While watching, one of the commanders walked over and presented us with a commemorative patch from Base Aérienne 702 (BA 702) at Avord.

The patch featured a fire-breathing dragon, a symbol traditionally representing strength, determination, and formidable power. BA 702 is one of France’s most important Air and Space Force bases and plays a key role in the country’s strategic defense. Receiving the patch completely by surprise made it an unexpected souvenir that will always remind us of spending Bastille Day in Paris.

Eventually we continued our walk to the Musée d’Orsay.

Although our timed tickets were for 9:00 a.m. and we were running a little behind, the staff welcomed us without any difficulty.

The Musée d’Orsay quickly became one of my favorite museums of the entire trip.

Housed inside the beautifully restored Gare d’Orsay railway station, built for the 1900 World’s Fair, the museum itself is a masterpiece. The soaring glass roof, enormous clock faces, and grand Beaux-Arts architecture are almost as impressive as the artwork hanging on the walls.

Its collection focuses primarily on the artistic revolution of the late 19th century, and room after room was filled with masterpieces.

We stood before paintings by Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir, Degas, Cézanne, and countless other artists whose works I had only ever seen in books. The museum’s sculpture galleries were equally breathtaking, filled with marble and bronze masterpieces displayed in beautifully lit open spaces.

Everywhere we turned there seemed to be another world-famous painting waiting around the next corner.

We wandered through gallery after gallery until closing time at 4:00 p.m.

Alan would have been so proud of us for staying until they practically had to usher us out!

After another full day of exploring, we walked back to our apartment, still trying to work through the ongoing issues with GuestReady and VRBO. Unfortunately, the apartment never really improved, and it remained one of the few disappointments of our entire European adventure.

Dinner that evening was simple but perfect.

We finished the leftovers from our delicious meat and cheese board, paired them with some incredibly sweet French nectarines, and enjoyed a quiet evening together.

Then it was time to repack our suitcases once again.

The next morning, our wonderful driver Nesrine would be picking us up to take us to the train station as we said goodbye to Paris and began the next chapter of our journey—heading south to the Mediterranean and the beautiful seaside town of La Grande-Motte.