Getting there in .NET

Make Code 128C in .NET Getting there

From Madrid, the bus and train trips to El Escorial both take about an hour Buses from Madrid s Moncha Metro station (you can buy tickets at a kiosk in the station) drop you off right in front of the monastery About 25 trains leave Madrid s Atocha Station daily for El Escorial; buses meet incoming trains to shuttle visitors the remaining mile to Plaza Virgen de Gracia, a block east of the monastery Pullmantur, in Madrid at Plaza de Oriente 8 (% 91-541-1805; www |pullmanturcom), runs an all-day tour that stops briefly in Toledo before hurrying on to El Escorial and the Valley of the Fallen (a memorial to Spain s Civil War dead) The tour costs 89 ($102) The tourist office (% 91-890-5313) is at Grimaldi 2, north of the visitor entrance to the complex

Felipe II s royal apartments in the monastery/fortress of San Lorenzo de El Escorial (% 91-890-5902; wwwpatrimonionacionales) are as stark and monastic as a king could get He was such a devout Christian that he had his bedroom built to overlook the high altar of the impressive basilica, which has four organs and a dome based on Michelangelo s plans for St Peter s in Rome The basilica is also home to Cellini s Crucifix Under the altar is the Royal Pantheon, a mausoleum containing the remains of every Spanish king from Charles I to Alfonso XII The tapestried apartments of the Bourbon kings, Carlos III and Carlos IV, are more elaborate and in keeping with the tastes of most monarchs Paintings such as Titian s Last Supper, Vel zquez s The Tunic of Joseph, El Greco s Martyrdom of St Maurice, and works by D rer, van Dyck, Tintoretto, and Rubens are the source of the New Museum s popularity The Royal Library houses more than 40,000 antique volumes under a barrel-vaulted ceiling frescoed by Tibaldi in the 16th century El Escorial is open Tuesday to Sunday and holidays from 10 am to 6 pm (until 5 pm in winter) Admission is 6 ($690) adults and 3 ($345) seniors/students

Even though El Escorial is an easy half-day trip from Madrid, you may want to eat lunch before you return, so try the heavenly fare at the cavelike Mes n la Cueva, San Ant n 4 (% 91-890-1516; wwwmesonlacueva com)

Segovia brings to life a cross-section of Spain s history Still standing here are a Roman aqueduct, a Moorish palace, and a Gothic cathedral With its medieval streets, Romanesque churches, and 15th-century palaces, Segovia is an enjoyable place to stroll and get a sense of what it was like to live in a small Castilian city You can easily see Segovia in three to four hours, but if you re in need of a break from the big city, it makes a nice place to hang around for an overnight escape

Trains leave Madrid for Segovia every other hour (they depart Madrid from Atocha Station but also pause at Chamart n en route) The trip takes two hours From Segovia s train station, bus number 3 runs to Plaza Mayor in the center of town Pullmantur, in Madrid at Plaza de Oriente 8 (% 91-541-1805; www pullmanturcom), runs an all-day tour to Segovia and Avila for 68 to 79 ($78 $91) depending on your lunch choice The tourist office (% 92-146-0334) is at Plaza Mayor 10

The majestic Roman aqueduct runs 895 yards along the Plaza del Azoguejo on the east side of town The aqueduct, much of it two tiers high, contains 118 arches and is 96 feet at its highest point Built in the first century AD using stone blocks with no mortar, the aqueduct was one of the city s major water sources all the way until the 19th century The last great Gothic cathedral (% 92-146-2205) built in Spain is right in the middle of the city Isabella I (of Ferdinand and Isabella fame) was named queen on this very spot in 1474 The cathedral, built from 1515 to 1558, is all buttresses and pinnacles It has some beautiful stained-glass windows, which light the carved choir stalls, the 16th- and 17th-century paintings, and the grille-fronted chapels inside The attached cloisters were originally part of an earlier church at the same location Church admission is free, but entry to the cloisters, chapel room, and tiny museum (which holds paintings by Ribera, Flemish tapestries, jewelry, and manuscripts) costs 180 ($205) April through September hours are daily from 9:00 am to 6:30 pm (9:30 am to 5:30 pm the rest of the year)