Many of the videos and travel books I reviewed while planning my Spain adventure recommended a day trip from Madrid to El Escorial. I had this trip on my list. What made it a priority for me was the recommendation from my son. He raved about this site and highly recommended it. “Don’t forget to go to El Escorial, Mom. It is the best.”

El Escorial is a town northwest of Madrid. To get there, I took the metro to the Atocha train station and then transferred to a suburban train. After my last train adventure, I scouted out where I needed to go for each of these trains. I was prepared and excited to make the journey.

The town of El Escorial contains the 16th century royal monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial. The massive complex is a time capsule of Spain’s golden age. The complex has a monastery, a school, a mausoleum to honor Spanish royalty, and a palace to provide respite for the royal family.

The main building of the complex is about 700 feet long and 500 feet wide. It covers eight acres and has 2,600 windows.

The self-guided tour began in the Royal Library.

The library’s location linked the school with the library and symbolized the connection between secular and religious thought. The ceiling frescos depicted the subjects taught at the complex – geometry, astronomy, grammar, and so much more.

There were so many beautiful paintings throughout the complex. This one caught my attention and depicted the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit at the time of Jesus’ death.

The frescos also told biblical stories.

This is the story from the Gospel of John, Chapter 21 that occurs after Jesus’ resurrection. This particular scene is Station #9 from the Stations of the Resurrection. The Station is titled - ***Jesus appears by the Lake of Tiberias.*** I enjoyed writing about this station in my latest book, The Way of Light: A Study of the Stations of the Resurrection.

Here’s another beautiful fresco displaying a scene from the Stations of the Resurrection.

One of the adjourning rooms featured many beautiful paintings and sculptures including this beautiful painting by ***El Greco***.

Before long, the self-guided tour led to a burial place known as the Pantheon of the Princes. These were the burial places of members of the royal family to include nine chamber rooms of children who died before the age of puberty. In the center was a wedding cake like structure that housed the remains of royal infants who died shortly after birth.

The ***Royal Pantheon*** is a marble and bronze paneled octagon shaped room. This room held the remains of 26 Spanish kings and queens with two spaces reserved for the present monarchs.

One of the kings buried in this chamber is the great Charles V who ruled as Holy Roman Emperor during the Spanish golden age. His wife, Queen Isabel is also buried in this chamber. Their son and the builder of El Escorial was Philip II. He and his wife are also buried in this chamber.

The next part of the complex was the ***Hapsburg Palace.*** The Hapsburg family dynasty beginning with ***Charles V*** ruled Spain for 200 years.

The ***Hall of Battles*** was another interesting room depicting Spain’s great military victories. The paintings, completed in 1590, helped teach later kings the elements of military tactics and formations. As a career soldier, this may have been my son’s favorite room!

I saved the best for last on this self-guided tour. The Basilica at El Escorial is a magnificent structure located opposite the Royal Library.

The high altar is a 100-foot tall, four-tiered frame of red marble and green jasper. The center painting on the high altar is of ***San Lorenzo.*** In English, the name is ***Saint Lawrence.*** This painting depicts the martyrdom of San Lorenzo who was roasted on a grill by his Roman executioners.

One of the many side altars of the basilica displayed a beautiful painting of ***Saint Michael, the Archangel.***

Here are some more pictures of the inside of the basilica.

The ***chapel of the Blessed Sacrament*** was stunning and displayed a beautiful painting of ***Saint Clare*** and ***Saint Scholastica*** behind the tabernacle.

The best views of ***El Escorial*** were from the beautiful gardens.

After visiting the beautiful ***El Escorial*** complex, I had to find the local market – after all, it had my name on it!

This was a typical market that provided meats, vegetables, fish, and other items to locals in the same way our supermarkets do for us.

As I walked to the train station for my return trip to Madrid, I found a nice restaurant where I enjoyed a beautiful lunch of fish and potatoes followed by one of my favorite Spanish desserts – flan!

In Rick Steve’s travel book, it states that El Escorial is located at an elevation of nearly 3,500 feet. He writes that it could be cold and advises his readers to dress appropriately. It was a beautiful February day when I visited. I was dressed in layers with my winter coat, hood, and gloves. I needed every bit of these clothes to walk the grounds of the complex. The wind was quite fierce, and I struggled at times to walk along the garden paths.

While enjoying my lunch at the local restaurant, I noticed snow showers and realized Rick Steve knew what he was talking about when he said it could be cold.

Like my son, I truly enjoyed every bit of El Escorial and I highly recommend it as a day trip to anyone who visits Madrid.

So far, I have shared my first 12 days of this Spain adventure. There is still more to come. My next stop is a pilgrimage site in the eastern part of the country.

Stay tuned for the last part of this adventure.

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