aranjuez and escorial

last friday we took a day trip with our group to a small town outside of madrid called aranjuez. there is a palace there and we toured it. it is still a residence of the king of spain but was commissioned by phillip II the same who designed the escorial we went to later that day during the 1500's. we only were able to see certain rooms of the palace but the rooms we saw were truly amazing. they were exactly what i was expecting to see in a palace. the walls were covered in wall paper of yellows, reds,  and blue with patterns. every room had a chandelier in the hanging in the middle. if only i could own a chandelier like those i saw in that palace even tho most of them are not the original, they still looked amazing. most of the ceilings were also painted with cherubs, spanish symbols and designs. we saw the queen's bed, which weighed a ton and was made out of gold and wood...the most beautiful bed i have ever seen. 

i think that the most impressive part for me was the elegance that the palace possessed. the elaborate designs, fabrics, use of gold, antiques, paintings/artwork in every room and really attention to detail made it feel prestigious. i almost felt that i didn't belong in the palace-like walking around in it would someone make it seem less perfect. i could not imagine living in such a place.

later we went to the escorial, a monastery that phillip II commissioned as well and used as his summer home or when he needed peace. there are quarters just for him and his family and his business. the monastery and rooms here and no where near as elaborate as the palace. they were simple and decorated with paintings and other religious decor. i think the most interesting part about the escorial were the caskets in the basement. the each of the rooms that held the caskets of royalty and royal family throughout spanish history was made out of marble. the caskets were also made out of marble and highly decorated. the amount of marble and gold screamed wealth, even in death. but the escorial was located up in the mountains and really was very quiet, very peaceful. it is fitting for a monastery to be there and have so many spanish royal families spend eternity there.