“I do not ask for the riches that perish or the fame that fades away like a morning mist.” Mother Angelica

There are few places in my travels that require a revisit and so I dragged our little group to the fascinating ​Monasterio de Las Descalzas Reales​, a royal monastery in ​Madrid​, founded 1559. It has limited hours since it’s still a functioning monastery with just 16 nuns.

It’s a treasure trove of religious art and exquisite tapestries woven to designs by Rubens and works by Hans de Beken and Brueghel the Elder. They were even more beautifully imposing than the first time. The 45 minute tour took us throughout two floors chockablock with iconic imagery donated from around world.

The Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales, literally the “Monastery of the Barefoot Royals,” resides in the former palace of Emperor Charles V and Empress Isabel of Portugal. Their daughter, Joanna of Austria, founded this convent of nuns of the Poor Clare order in 1559. She’s buried in the chapel’s crypt.

Throughout the remainder of the 16th century and into the 17th century, the convent attracted young widowed or spinster noblewomen. Each woman brought with her a dowry. The extraordinary riches quickly piled up and the convent became one of the wealthiest convents in all of Europe. Among its priceless art masterpieces are Titian’s “Caesar’s Money.”

The demographics of the convent slowly changed over time and by the 20th century, all of the sisters were in poverty. The convent maintained the riches of its past, but it was forbidden to auction any of the items off or spend any of the money it received from the dowries. The state intervened when it saw that the sisters were poor and the pope granted a special dispensation to open the convent as a museum in 1960. You can call that divine intervention.

Photos were forbidden, but my little spy managed to take a few, even though we were followed by security with a watchful eye.

A trip to Madrid isn’t complete unless you visit the 7-story dedicated shopping mecca, ​El Corte Inglés​, the biggest department store group in Europe and third worldwide. It’s Spain’s only remaining department store chain. Black Friday sales had brought in the multitudes to open holiday shopping.

When it comes to retail, David takes the lead and I followed like a good soldier. His plan ~ start on the top floor and work our way down ~ toys, sports, winter, men’s and woman’s casual, formal, shoes, jewelry, cosmetics and finally the basement. Not just any ole basement, but a vast food emporium ~ a super supermercado ~ where your taste buds could explode ~ a Whole Foods gone supernova. Like Costco, food samples abounded at each aisle.

We returned to our well appointed Airbnb with a few goodies: Spanish wine, bacalao, chocolates, cookies, tortas de aceite, marcona almonds. David needed to rest since he’s still not up to par and we fly home in two days … and we all know flying sick is no fun.

​On the Menu …​ Leftover chicken soup, refrigerator munchies and I had a Madrileño fast food favorite, “​pan con​ ​calamari​” from across the way from our Airbnb … waiting 10 minutes in a fast moving line for it; the verdict – it needed more flavoring or spicy sauce besides the packet of mayonnaise it’s served with.

A day rich in art, food and shopping!