Little Flamenco

Entry to the Palace is €11 each (so about £100 once you convert from sterling). I'd like to see inside but after seeing Cintra in Portugal I think we both felt this place probably takes itself a little too seriously. My feet have better things to do. But I kid you a little, I can see in the guidebook it has extraordinary rooms to match the vast exterior. Fortunately this girl outside feigning flamenco was a worthy substitute. She reminds me somewhat that the benefits of splashing out money on useless buildings may have other indirect benefits. People come from all around to gaze at the extraordinary wastefulness. In her exaggerated poses I see on a much smaller scale our simple need to shout 'see me'. When a monarch or nation does it, it just costs a little more. And without it life would be a little less interesting.