13th August 8月13日
This was a day with a royal theme.
全日的行程，都環繞馬德里的歷史和皇室。
I started the morning with a stroll along Calle Mayor towards Plaza Mayor (the Big Square). The shops around the square had just started their business by then, and they were selling traditional craft and handiwork, like dolls dressed in traditional costumes from different regions of Spain.
早上沿着Calle Mayor街緩步至大廣場（Plaza Mayor），廣場四邊商店剛剛開門，售賣特色手工藝品及玩意，包括穿著西班牙各地地道服飾的娃娃。
(When I revisited on the morning of the 15th, there were many other stalls selling antique coins, stamps etc., attracting much interest from passers-by.)
（到15日早上舊地重遊時，有不少攞賣古錢幣、郵票等的攤位，吸引不少人駐足。）
From Plaza Mayor, I criss-crossed the many nearby laneways until I reached Plaza de la Villa (City Square). This is the most ancient square of Madrid, and is the home to the City Hall of Madrid as well as the oldest existing buildings of Madrid dating back 500 to 600 years.
從廣場出來，穿插附近的小巷後，便到了全馬德里最古老的城市廣場（Plaza de la Villa），是馬德里市政府所在地，其對面亦有全市最老的建築物，約有五、六百年歷史了。
The oldest building of Madrid
馬德里最古老的建築
The royal palace and the Cathedral of Almudena were just a stone's throw away from Plaza de la Villa.離城市廣場不遠，就是皇宮及聖母大教堂（Catedral de la Almudena）。
Cathedral of Almudena (Night photo taken on 12th August)
聖母大教堂（晚間的照片於8月12日攝）
The Royal Palace 皇宮
The palace might not be the most eye-catching from the outside, but the interior will blow your mind away. The décor was simply stunning! The architecture and decoration came from the work by top French and Italian artists using the best construction material, including top-quality marbles from all around Spain. One can tell that the Spanish royal family were really rich and had a fine taste, as seen from the collection of furniture, chandeliers, ceiling paintings and the other decorations. It's a pity that I can't share these treasures with you since photography was prohibited. But I doubt if my 1 GB memory card would be enough if I were allowed to take photos! Elsewhere in the palace was an armoury which exhibited the armour and weapon collection of the former kings. The sight of mannequin knights mounted on horsebacks holding lances or other weapons was certainly captivating.
皇宮外貌不揚，但室內裝潢教人驚嘆不已，西班牙歷任帝王，都會從法國及意大利聘用最好的藝術家、用西班牙最上乘的大理石及歐洲其他最佳建材，構建皇宮及為各宮室佈置，集豪華及藝術氣息於一身，無論是家具、吊燈、天花的畫和裝飾，都炫耀皇室的品味和財富！可惜宮內嚴禁拍攝，無法與各位分享分享，不過如准拍攝，則我的1GB記憶卡也未必夠用！皇宮範圍內還有個軍器庫，展出古時皇帝的盔甲及武器，展館安排各式「鐵甲人」坐在馬上，手執數米高的矛或其他武器，很是逼真。
Then came the time of finding lunch, which required me to venture across Plaza Oriente in front of the palace.
參觀完皇宮，穿過前面的東方廣場（Plaza Oriente）找東西吃。
Night photo taken on 12th August
晚間的照片於8月12日攝
Afterwards I back-tracked to the palace before heading off to the adjoining Jardines de Sabatini (Sabatini Gardens).
然後折返皇宮，到毗鄰的薩巴堤尼公園（Jardines de Sabatini）兜了個圈。
My next stop was Plaza de España (Spain Square) where a monument was erected for Cervantes, a man of great influence to Spanish literature.
又到西班牙廣場（Plaza de España），那裡豎立了文豪賽凡堤斯（Cervantes）的記念像。
From there, I made my way to Parque Campo del Moro, on the slope behind the royal palace. This park appears to be joined to the palace at first sight but is actually not the case. The leafy paths and the sparsity of visitors all made for a comfortable walk inside the park.
接着到皇宮後山坡面的Campo del Moro公園，驟眼看來跟皇宮相連，實則非然。公園內大樹成蔭，遊人稀少，散步時很是舒服。
Some time after coming out of a park, I found a street (Cuesta de los Ciegos) that looked like the famous zigzagging Lombard Street of San Francisco.
逛過整個公園後，無意中來到一條樓梯街（Cuesta de los Ciegos），有點像三藩市那條在山坡上曲曲折折的街Lombard Street。
It was quite easy to find a way back to the Cathedral of Almudena from the top of this zigzag street, and I went into the Cathedral. The classical look of the Cathedral was rather deceptive, since the Cathedral was only completed and consecrated by Pope John Paul II in 1993!
從樓梯街之頂，不久便返回聖母大教堂，我走進內參觀。聖母大教堂看來很古典，其實是1993年才落成並由當時的教宗主持新教堂的奉獻禮。
A full day of walking finally took its toll; I couldn't last much longer after visiting an outdoor evening fest near the Cuesta de los Ciegos. I need energy for my trip to Toledo the next day!
逛了一整天，晚飯後返回樓梯街附近的夜市看看一會後也覺累，提早休息，準備翌日往托萊多(Toledo）。
14th August 8月14日
After half an hour of high-speed train, I arrived in Toledo. The distinctive style of the railway station was a sign of the things to come.
乘了半小時高速火車後，便到達了托萊多。單是火車站就已很有特色。
The entire city of Toledo is listed as World Heritage. In the medieval times, Toledo was a meeting point of Christianity, Islam and Judaism and their associated cultures. Although most of the heritage sites left today are related to Christianity, the other religions and cultures still left their influence in arts and cuisine. Of course, I would need more than just a day trip to appreciate better these aspects of Toledan culture.
托萊多整個城市已列為世界遺產，中世紀時是基督教、回教及猶太教匯聚之地，雖然現時保留下來的古蹟大多跟基督教有關，但藝術及飲食方面亦有受其他的宗教影響，後兩者我在短短一天當然無法好好體會。
The older part of Toledo was founded on top of a hill, surrounded by a river (Río Tajo), and more hills stood on the opposite side of the river. The landscape was therefore like a smaller version of a canyon.
托萊多的古城區建在小山上，三面被河包圍，而河的另一岸又是山，因此景觀有點像小峽谷。
The trip into the old town took me past a bridge followed by a winding path uphill, through one city gate after the other. The founders of this city really knew how to choose a good site for a city!
要進入古城，先得過橋，然後以蜿蜒的小徑和道路上山，沿途穿過一道又一道的城門，古時的人，真懂選址建城！
The first stop in the old town was Plaza Zocodover, after passing through the last city gate.跨越最後一道城門，便是托萊多的Zocodover廣場。
I was busy looking for the Toledo Cathedral where all the other tourists were flocking to. The Cathedral was not physically very far from the Plaza but not very easy to find either. Then again, this gave me more opportunities to see the streets of Toledo.
我忙着找遊客必到的托萊多大教堂，雖然離Zocodover廣場不遠，卻不太好找，但也因此讓我看到橫街小巷的特色。
I couldn't help noticing the many shops that were selling armours, knives and swords. Only when I talked to a Spanish friend after the trip did I find out that Toledo was an important centre for steel production and was famous for making weapons made of steel.沿路有很多售賣鐵甲、刀劍的店鋪，後來跟一個西班牙朋友談起，才得知托萊多的鋼鐵業是很有名的，是出產刀劍的重鎮之一。
It took me quite a while to find the main entrance to the Cathedral (and the Town Hall Square opposite), and yet more time for the entrance for visitors. After negotiating several corners, I could finally make my way into the Cathedral!
好容易才找到大教堂的正門（及對出的市政廣場），但原來遊客入口仍要拐幾個角落才到達，結果耗了不少時間，才能入內參觀！
The Cathedral and the Town Hall 大教堂及市政廳
Afterwards I went to the Casa Museo Victorio Macho, which was housing artwork by El Greco and the sculptor Victorio Macho. The museum offered more than top quality artwork; it also had a beautiful courtyard and boasted some of the best sceneries of Toledo since it directly overlooked the river Tajo on the edge of a steep slope.
之後前往Victorio Macho博物館（Casa Museo Victorio Macho）觀賞El Greco的名畫及雕塑家Victorio Macho的作品，那裡不祇藝術品好看，庭園景緻也不錯，而由於博物館臨山崖而建，也看到更多的托萊多山峽景色。
Then I went into the nearby monastery (Monasterio de San Juan de los Reyes) for a visit.
然後走進附近的帝皇聖約翰修道院（Monasterio de San Juan de los Reyes）參觀。
And I took a casual stroll through the streets, passing though a city gate and a street where the offices of the local provincial government was situated.
又隨意在街上閒逛，經過其中一道城門及當地地區政府的辦公樓。
Local residents and the local government alike are fond of overhead walkways!
無論是平民或政府，都喜歡架空走廊！
I ended up walking back near Casa Museo Victorio Macho and reached the El Transito Synagogue. The synagogue doubled up as a museum for the history of Jews and Judaism in Spain.再折返鄰近Victorio Macho博物館的猶太會堂（Sinagoga de El Transito），也是猶太教博物館，講述猶太教及猶太人在西班牙的歷史。
There's a highest point on every hill, and in Toledo that happened to be the Jesuit Church (Iglesia de los Jesuitas) - well, I should say the 'twin tower' of the Church. That was arguably the best vantage point for the whole city.
凡山都有最高點，在托萊多那就是耶穌會教堂——其實應該說是教堂的「雙子塔」，全市風光盡收眼底。
Coming down from the tower, I just let the time slip unhurriedly before going for some tapas for dinner. Then I went back to Madrid, happy and satisfied.
從塔下來，再消磨點時間，便隨便找家吃地道菜的店子，餐後便心滿意足地返回馬德里。
15th August 8月15日
I was due back to Munich in the afternoon. With my free morning, I went to the classy district of Salamanca. There were plenty of luxury stores which were all closed! It took me some time to figure out that it was a bank holiday for the Assumption of Mary. Oh well, I wouldn't find myself stepping into the shops even if they were open.
下午飛返慕尼黑，趁早上有空，便到「高檔」的Salamanca區逛逛。那裡果然名店林立，但全都關了門，後來才想起是當地假期（聖母升天日），不過就算開門，我也祇會過門而不入。
I walked pass Centro Cultural (Cultural Centre), featuring huge stone monuments with carvings. 路過文化廣場（Centro Cultural），但見巨石矗立，上面都雕了圖案或文字。
This vast square was lined by boulevards on three of its sides. In the big cities of Europe, it's actually not so common to find public areas with so much open space. The surroundings appeared especially spacious as pedestrian and vehicular traffic was also light. What a relaxing and comfortable feeling - and isn't it what holidays are for.
敞大的廣場，三邊是寬闊的大馬路，如此廣闊的空間，在歐洲大城市實屬少見，再加上車少人少，更令我覺得消遙自在，放假，本來就是輕鬆的時候嘛。
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