A deeper look at the Manzanares River Visitors to Madrid often leave the Manzanares River off their itineraries in favour of the Prado, the Royal Palace and Retiro Park. That’s not to say it isn’t popular. Ever since a €4 billion rewilding project was completed in 2011, the river has become a haven for locals […]
Madrid’s Hidden Gems: The Manzanares River, with Clare Starkie Read More »
What is a gato? Gato means cat in Spanish but in Madrid, it also refers to someone who can count their ancestry back two generations within the city. This means that both their parents and grandparents were born and raised here. While there’s a little bit of debate on whether this should be on both
Artists Minty Donald and Nick Millar of Erratic Drift answer the question, “What is Madrid made of?” in this special guest post written ahead of their exhibition opening. A close look at the city When we visit a city as tourists, we’re often urged to stand back and look up to appreciate the architecture, or
Why a bear and strawberry tree? Visitors seeking an Instagrammable picture of themselves in Madrid often head to the statue of the bear and strawberry tree in Sol. It’s an iconic symbol that appears all over the city from manhole covers to public bins, to the logo of the much-maligned Atlético de Madrid – Madrid’s
An enduring enigma Marooned in the center of the Iberian peninsula atop the Meseta Central, landlocked Madrid suffers boiling summers and, in the days before climate change, extremely harsh winters. Regardless, Felipe II decided to settle the court permanently here in 1561. A puzzling move that he never properly explained. Despite leaving behind reams of
Just one hour’s drive from Madrid, the city of Toledo was once famed throughout Europe for its lively intellectual and economic life, a rich heritage that was deeply intertwined with the history of the Jewish people. Though obliged to pay higher taxes, Jews were left free to practise their faith, first under Muslim and later
From Islamic origins to saintly bones, to mind blowing miracles, here are a few surprising things you didn’t know about Madrid. Its name derives from Arabic Top of our list of things you didn’t know about Spain’s capital is that its name derives from Arabic. The settlement was chosen for its strategic position high above
Soviet-style concrete monstrosity Earlier this month the new granite face of Plaza de la Cebada was unveiled to very little fanfare. While locals might have been excited to see a shiny new sports centre appear on what was once an empty lot, it’s hard to imagine anyone was particularly impressed by the blank stone surfaces
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An inconvenient truth For many years, historians did not want to accept the fact that Muslims created the settlement of Madrid. Instead, the story went that the Romans founded Spain’s capital city. But the archeological evidence points in another direction. While Madrid was near an old Roman road that went from Merida to Zaragoza via
From when mammoths stalked the Manzanares River to when Napoleon stomped through the city’s gates, these three museums reveal Madrid through the ages. And the good news is, they’re all completely free! The Museum of San Isidro: The Origins of Madrid The first of my three museums that reveal Madrid through the ages is The
Three Museums that Reveal Madrid Through the Ages Read More »
