(I write this on the 7th November 2022....)

Hi folks, well it's some time since I wrote so here goes.... I had a visit from a good friend of mine recently who was a self confessed avid reader of my blogs. I explained that, as a result of my epic train journey across  my epic train journey giving so much material it became a daunting task to catch up. My return to the UK at the time of our permanent departure from the European Union rapidly followed by the Covid lockdown and subsequent economic turmoil including the war in Ukraine reduced my frame of mind to mush. I could not bring myself to "blog".  I feel especially sad about the Russian/Ukrainian situation as these were both countries I would have liked to visit at the time of my residence in Bulgaria. Sadly the annexation of Crimea prevented this.  I was recently looking for a new set of photographs for my TV screensaver when I realised how many of my travels have not been uploaded and reported upon.

So why start here, to be frank they caught my eye as I was browsing through directories of stored photos. My Spanish friend Jose-Luis has been ill in hospital and it was whist I was staying with him convalescing from a dislocated shoulder that I visited this museum. My younger brother and his wife managed to retire to Spain just before we divorced from Europe and he is a maritime man too. So here we are.  We have a lot in common with Spain, a royal family, a once dominant navy and, yes, an empire. We seem to question all of these things these days but other countries don't and I think that we should all be proud of achievements, sad about our mistakes and, above all, learn from history and mark our report with "Will do better."

I'm fascinated by museums and galleries and local history too. In my travels I have visited many such places if you have followed along. It is amazing how much there is still to discover. I constantly find new exhibits and new perspectives, how our history intertwines with others some regarded as enemies at the time. We see that all men are created equal, the foot soldier or the peasant is rewarded or suffers in equal measure whichever side he sits upon. The upper echelons often behaved in the same way according to their position in society. Sometimes we judge to harshly, sometimes we acquiesce. Whatever our reason for visiting the museums, revel in the exhibits finely crafted and displayed. Ponder the portraits and meditate at the meaning of it all.

Visiting the museum was at the time of my last prolonged stay in Madrid. At the time I was undergoing physiotherapy for my dislocated shoulder but I was determined to make the most of my time. Wander around the museum with me. There are some three hundred photographs in the album. Maps, models, armoury and shot. Portraits, medals and uniforms. All evoke periods in history from the Spanish perspective and a grand perspective it is too. Above all... enjoy....

View my "Museo Naval" photo album here

(I shall endeavour to add more descriptions to the photos once I find my notes from the time) 

Location: Madrid, Spain

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