The Retiro retreat from the hot sun...

Playlist

Earthworks - All Heaven Broke Loose

Beethoven - Beethoven - Complete String Quartets

New Order - Substance

Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin Remasters

Bill Nelson's Red Noise - Sound-On-Sound

Elvis Presley - The All Time Greatest Hits

Focus - Mother Focus

Neil Young - Comes A Time

Prince - Batman Soundtrack

Haydn - Haydn: Die Jahreszeiten

Bryan Ferry - Street Life - Greatest Hits

The Beatles - Revolver

Talk Talk - Spirit Of Eden

Patrick Moraz And Bill Bruford - Flags

Chick Corea - Now He Sings, Now He Sobs

Brinsley Schwarz - Greasy Truckers Party

Brian Eno - Music For Films 3

Lou Reed - Sally Can't Dance

Roxy Music - Viva! Roxy Music

Leonard Cohen - The Best Of

Alice Cooper - From the Inside

Faust - The Faust Tapes

Mozart - Classic CD (1990)

Paul McCartney & Wings - All The Best!

The Byrds - Greatest Hits (Remastered)

The Beach Boys - Smiley Smile

Françoise Hardy - Les Chansons D'Amour

It Bites - Thank You And Goodnight

Roy Harper - Lifemask

Kiss - Double Platinum

Strauss, R - The Opera Conductor

Aphrodite's Child - 666

Jon Anderson - Change We Must

Mott - Drive On

Telemann - The Chaconne Collection Vol.2

Pet Shop Boys - Alternative

Brian Eno & Jah Wobble - Spinner

Saturnalia - Magical Love

David Bowie - Stage

The Rolling Stones - Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out!

Rain Tree Crow - Rain Tree Crow

Various Artists - Cloudland Blue Eclectic Selection 2016 Vols 1-52

Arlo Guthrie - Alice's Restaurant

Black Widow - Sacrifice

Weather Report - Domino Theory

Talk Talk - Natural History: The Very Best

Abwärts - Amok Koma

Cloudland Blue Quartet - Starlightnight Box Sampler

The Blue Nile - A Walk Across The Rooftops

Hawkwind - Electric Tepee

Kansas - In The Spirit Of Things

Lou Reed - Magic & Loss

John McLaughlin - Extrapolation

Corelli - Corelli: Concerti Grossi, Op. 6

Peter Gabriel - So

Rush - Chronicles

Steve Howe - Turbulence

Emerson Lake & Palmer - Works Volume 1

Asia - Then & Now

Genesis - Seconds Out

Haydn - String Quartets 1, 3 & 5: Hunt, Lark & Emperor

Purcell - Essential Purcell

Bill Bruford - Master Strokes 1978-1985

Adrian Belew - Mr. Music Head

Yes - Yesyears

Jethro Tull - Stand Up

Roy Wood - The Best Of & The Rest Of Roy Wood & Wizzard

The Clash - London Calling

Yello - Tied Up

Rush - A Show Of Hands

Emerson Lake & Palmer - Brain Salad Surgery

David Bowie - Tin Machine

Alice Cooper - Trash

Allan Holdsworth - Atavachron

Yello - Of Course I'm Lying

Rush - Rush

Allan Holdsworth - I.O.U.

Kiss - Smashes, Thrashes And Hits

Trevor Rabin - Can't Look Away

Roy Wood - You Can Dance The Rock 'n' Roll

Falco - Falco 3

Yes - Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe

Alice Cooper - Pretties For You

Don Henley - The End Of The Innocence

King Crimson - The Compact King Crimson

Yes - Yessongs

Paul McCartney - Flowers In The Dirt

Alice Cooper - Easy Action

The Tubes - Outside Inside

Belinda Carlisle - Runaway Horses

Yes - Drama

Erasure - The Innocents

Earthworks - Dig?

Rush - Presto

The Psychedelic Furs - All Of This And Nothing

It Bites - Still Too Young To Remember (Single)

Jeff Beck - Jeff Beck's Guitar Shop

Alaska + Dinarama - Fan Fatal

Scott Walker - Scott 4

John McLaughlin - My Goal's Beyond

The Kinks - The Singles Collection

Barenaked Ladies - Gordon

65daysofstatic - No Man's Sky: Music For an Infinite Universe

Kansas - Leftover The Airwaves

Craig Armstrong - Classically Chilled

I Roy - Frontline Presents Roots

Christine and the Queens - Christine and the Queens

Curtis Mayfield - Superfly (2CD Special Edition)

Bob Marley & The Wailers - Burnin'

Roxy Music - The Platinum Collection

Clean Bandit Feat. Eliza Shaddad - New Eyes [Special Edition]

Hugh Brodie - The Cream Of Funky Jams Vol. 1

John Barry - Beat For Beatniks & Beat Girls

Family 5 - Resistance

Commodores - Funk

Jeff Buckley - So Real: Songs From Jeff Buckley

Amanda Palmer/Anna Calvi/Paul Buchanan - BBC Bowie Prom

The rather large playlist reflects the difficulty in sleeping due to the hot, hot heat...

Up and out for rolls...

Already roasting...

...in Plaza de Lavapiés...

On my return, Anne was enjoying a coffee on the balcony...

Breakfast...

...to the music of 1989, the date of our last visit to this city...

The view from the office this morning...

The beast was about its business on the balcony with its Exec Producer...

Out and a walk to the Parque de el Retiro...

We took a back street route for its shadiness, along Calle Dr Piga...

Then, along the side of the Reina Sofia...

...once again, suitably attired...

Over the Paseo de Santa María de la Cabeza...

...past the impressive Estación de Madrid Atocha...

...and the equally impressive Ministry of Agriculture...

I liked the bookstalls of Cuesta de Moyano - but did not purchase as I cannot read Spanish...

Loadsa bargains, no doubt...

Over Calle de Alfonso XII...

..and into the gardens, probably the one place best remembered from our previous trip...

There was much activity going on - keep fit...

...painting...

...football and tennis...

The gardens overlook part of the Prado museum...

To the lake but far too hot to take a boat trip...

We stumbled across a colony of feral cats...

...and kittens...

...who were sharing their patch with some unpictured and strangely confident, given their feline "room mates", ducks...

On round the lake...

...by which Kermit was taking a rest...

Out and down...

...past the San Jerónimo el Real church...

...and the always packed Prado...

On, up the Plaza de las Cortes...

...and into town, eventually finding ourselves back at Plaza Santa Ana...

Did I mention it was super hot?

Drinks were partaken of, just down from Calleo...

A couple of record shops were visited but no purchases...

More walking - through Puerta Del Sol...

...and then back to...

...Plaza Santa Ana where great wee bar was found for more refreshments and some lunch...

Back home for a rest...

Back in Scotchland, both Queens and Hearts won 3-1 against St Mirren and Hamilton respectively - good times...

In the evening, out to Calle Argumosa for drinks...

...at Bar le Petit...

...and, after a walk the whole length of the street and back, Bar Restaurante Noche Blanca, almost directly opposite...

The young ladies at the next table entertained, although we understood not one word that was said...

The beer made up for that though...

It s best not to shop when under the influence...

...but we ended up eating at home...

...whilst enjoying Real Madrid beating Ossosuna 5-2...

When in Madrid...

Highlight of the Day : Back at the Retiro...