This post originally appeared on our sister site notesfromspain.com.

Recommendations for 10 things to do in Madrid

1. The Do or Die Arty No-Brainer
Visit at least one of the big three art museums, the Prado, the Reina Sofia or the Thyssen. If in doubt pick the Reina Sofia and see Guernica.

2. Tapas Grazing
Start on Cava Baja, stopping at will on this bar-packed street, then head into the depths of La Latina for more.

3. Something Different
Take a trip on the Teleférico, out into the depths of the Casa de Campo.

4. A Walk
Go to Plaza de la Villa and take one of the small alleys on the left-hand side or at the back of the square. Wander aimlessly, follow your nose, change course at will, check out the churches – it’s the best way to see Madrid de los Austrias, the ancient city centre.

5. Everyone misses
Malasaña – a really charming barrio centered around Plaza Dos de Mayo. Check out the lovely tiled shop fronts, ignore the graffiti, and have a drink at Manuela Café, on Calle San Vicente Ferrer 29.

6. A Park
The Retiro: for people-watching, romance, rowing, and relative peace and quiet.

7. A Shop
Antigua Casa Talavera, an incredible ceramics shop on Calle Isabel la Católica, 2.

8. A trip out of the city
El Escorial or Toledo. It’s a toss up as to which is best. If you really can’t decide, try Chinchón instead.

9. A reasonable restaurant
Taberna Miranda, at Plaza del Conde Miranda, 4, is local, cheap, has amazing food, and is generally very Spanish. Our favourite in Madrid. Arrive 9ish at weekends if you don’t have a reservation. Otherwise do snacks at the lively bar.

10. Hidden Culture
El Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales, at Plaza de las Descalzas Reales, 3. A closed order of nuns still live in the private quarters of this monastery. Amazing treasures lie within.

10+1. Last thing at night
Ward off a hangover with chocolate con churros at Chocolatería San Ginés, on Pasadizo de San Ginés. Things liven up after 3 a.m., when locals gather to dip thick battery churros sticks into gloopy hot chocolate.

Add more Madrid recommendations in the comments below!

See map below for places mentioned above: Read more »

There are tons of free things to take advantage of in Madrid, but this post goes beyond the normal standbys of parks, museums during certain hours and public healthcare. If you are hunting down frugal activities in the city, be on the lookout for the phrase, “entrada libre hasta completar el aforo,” free entrance until full. Search various event listings and check out the resources listed (in Spanish) here.

1. Art: For hip and fresh art spaces I recommend a visit to the Matadero and NFM’s perennial favorite, La Casa Encendida.

2. Clothes: Sincoste is an experimental “store” where the ropa is all free. It’s located in a sort of hippie-collective building that, according to a friend, calls to mind both Berlin and the U.S. Food Not Bombs movement. The name is an anti-capitalist riff on the Lacoste brand.

3. Books: Madrid’s library system offers a network of municipal libraries plus metro-based mini-libraries. To qualify for a borrower’s card, present your Spanish ID or passport, if a foreigner. Some English-language reading material and plenty of versión original DVDs available.

4. Tapas: OK, technically you do have to shell out for your drink to qualify for this offer, but several bars—like El Tigre—do a great job attracting clients with this freebie.

5. What would you choose as the best free thing in Madrid? Add your comments below!

See map below for locations mentioned above: Read more »

Spring has sprung! Get out and about in Madrid to enjoy the best of it. Here are our tips for the month:

1. Crónicas de retaguardia is an exhibition of 100 previously unpublished images of life in Madrid after the 1937 Civil War offensive at the Escuela de Fotografía y Centro de Imagen (EFTI). The images were culled from an archive containing nearly 900 negatives. Hurry, you’ve only got ’til April 8th.

2. Now that Luca Giordano’s impressive fresco has been restored, it’s time to finally discover the Casón del Buen Retiro, where he is the star of the current exhibit. The building, formerly part of the royal palace housed within Retiro, is an extension of the Prado.

3. Madrid’s summer music festival scene is pretty hot with Summercase and Rock in Rio on the calendar. Best to buy your tickets sooner rather than later: the two-day Summercase tickets are now 95 euros, but will go up after April 15th. Rock in Rio tickets are currently 49 to 69 euros per day.

4. The bicentennial celebration of Madrid’s uprising against Naploeon’s troops is just a month away. Starting on the 15th of this month you can see the Prado’s homage to the anniversary: Goya in Times of War.

5. On the 27th of April, thousands of runners will take to the streets in the annual Maratón de Madrid. The race starts at 9 am; the fastest runners will be heading towards the finish line in Retiro around 11. Check out the map of the course and go animar all those hard-working runners!

See map below for places mentioned above: Read more »

This week I was one of the first visitors to Madrid’s latest attraction. In 1966 the Ministry of Public Works, finding that Chamberí Metro station could not be easily modified to take the new six-carriage trains and that the area was already well served with other accesses to the metro system, decided to close the station. For forty-two years only the tracks running through the station have been maintained as it lies on the busy Line 1. Meanwhile, the platforms and access tunnels and stairs slowly crumbled. On the surface a new plaza was built with relaxing benches, raised flower beds and a bandstand surrounded by busy cafés and bars, leaving no clue to what lay beneath.

Two years ago it was decided to resurrect the station as a museum. It opened this Monday. A photograph shows the derelict state of the ticket office that the workmen found. Today it has been restored to its original ceramic-tiled glory as envisioned by the first architect of the metro, Antonio Palacios.

The visitor enters via a spiral staircase, or lift, sited on the corner of Calles Luchana and Santa Engracia. Two spirals down one passes through the vestibule to where a small tiered cinema, cleverly formed from an old stepped passage, shows a twenty-minute film describing the Metro’s history — from its beginnings in 1922 to the present day. There are evocative scenes of the metro tunnels in use as air-raid shelters during the Civil War and sequences of old pre-metro Madrid with its uncluttered tramways. Read more »

February is the shortest month of the year. Here are five recommendations to make the most of it:

1. So you may not like Valentine’s Day (many Spaniards I know say it was invented by the Corte Inglés), but what better excuse to grab your significant other or group of friends and relax in Madrid’s very own Arabic baths?

2. A winter’s day is the perfect time to discover the Círculo de Bellas Artes. For the one-euro entry fee you can visit any of the exhibitions and then refresh yourself in the gorgeous cafetería.

3. Among the highlights at the Filmoteca in the historic Cine Doré this month are the Brazilian slum tale City of God (9 February) and a retrospective of Fernando Fernán-Gómez’s films. Full schedule is here.

4. Check out the Modigliani exhibit at the Thyssen or free of charge at Fundación Caja Madrid. The exhibit looks at the Italian artist’s work after his arrival in Paris in the early 20th century, as well as the artists – among them Cézanne, Picasso, and Chagall – who influenced him.

5. Make your own music at the monthly Anti-Karaoke in Sala El Sol on 27 February. The show promises to be a crazily good way to bid February adiós.

See map below for all locations mentioned above: Read more »

Madrid residents and visitors alike ought to check out the Reina Sofia’s new temporary installation “La Noche Española” (or Spanish Night), open through 24 March 2008. It’s a look at the quintessential Spanish dance – Flamenco – at the intersection of avant-garde and popular culture, 1865-1936.

Brimming with caricatures, photographs, archival video footage and dance costumes, the exhibit occupies 14 rooms on the third floor of the museum and will take at least an hour and a bit (y pico) to enjoy properly. The show includes big Vanguard names, including Manet, Picasso, Miró and Man Ray, as well as iconic Spanish painters like Solana and Romero de Torres. But it centers on the meeting of the salon and the street, of the reflecting of this frenetic music and dance form through the artistic prism.

Through the artistic representations of flamenco, we grasp for clues to understanding Spanish folklore, fashion, politics and sexual roles. Spanish national character on this stage is at once brazen and coquettish, flamboyant and somber, obvious and elusive.

The only major failing of the exhibit is that you’ll be out of luck for descriptions if you don’t read Spanish (if I recall correctly; let me know if I overlooked translations). At any rate, the art itself is transfixing enough to overcome any lack of words.

See our full Reina Sofia write-up for location and opening times.

The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía houses the modern art portion of Madrid’s Golden Triangle in a former hospital. The mostly 20th-century Spanish art collection is well suited to the vast spaces of the hospital: the Reina Sofía may be Madrid’s most accessible and well-organized major art museum.

I’d recommend whizzing up to the second floor in one of the über-modern glass elevators to begin your tour. This is where you’ll find Picasso, Dalí, Miró, and Gris: the heart of the permanent collection. One of my favorite rooms on the second floor, though, is beyond Guernica in the tiny sala 8, which is home to photos of Madrid taken during the Guerra Civil—the Telefónica building barricaded with sandbags and the like. If you have the time and energy, swing through the fourth floor to catch works from the latter half of the 20th century to present day.

Don’t forget to check out what’s on in the temporary exhibits in the expansion of the museum—they could be well worth it. And keep in mind that there’s plenty to do besides looking at paintings: the courtyard garden of the main building is a lovely place to sit on a nice day, and the cafeteria/restaurant Arola (in the expansion) offers food and drink in a decidedly 21st-century setting. You also shouldn’t miss La Central, the museum’s excellent bookshop.

Free entry: Sat. 14.30-21.00 and Sun. 10.00-14.30. General admission at other times: 6 euros. Closed Tuesdays. More details

Metro: Atocha. Calle Santa Isabel, 52. See map below: Read more »

Known as the “city of three cultures,” medieval Toledo was a relatively harmonious home to Christians, Muslims and Jews for several centuries—and luckily, while the latter two groups have disappeared, traces of their architecture remain. Toledo also conjures associations with El Greco’s artwork and its artisans’ distinctive metalwork.

Toledo makes a great day-trip from Madrid. Go by train: the comfy Avant takes only 30 minutes and at 8.60€ one-way or 15€ round-trip (discount when buying return ticket in advance or in Toledo), it costs little more than the bus.

From the tiled train station, hike up the hill or take bus #22 or #6 to get to the city’s nerve center. Be sure to wear comfortable shoes; you’ll be walking many a cobblestone street. At the tourist stand in the bustling Zocodóver Plaza you can pick up a free map, but at some point, enjoy losing your way in the labyrinth.

I suggest you see these religious buildings, in order of most awe-inspiring to least:

• Museo Sefardí/Sinagoga de Tránsito (museum of Spanish Jews attached to synagogue)
• Museo de los Concilios y la Cultura Visigoda (Visigoth church with breathtaking Romanesque frescos)
• Sinagoga de Santa María la Blanca
• Mezquita del Cristo de la Luz
• Mezquita de Tornerías

The last three are free, provided you don’t go inside the Cristo de la Luz mosque (you can see everything from outside) and the rest are 2€ or less.

The main El Greco attraction is the Iglesia de Santo Tomé, where his Burial of Count Orgaz is hung (1,90€). El Greco works can also be seen at the Museo del Greco (closed until early 2008); the Museo de Santa Cruz (1,20€); the Monasterio de Santo Domingo El Antiguo (1,90€); the Hospital de Tavera/Museo Duque de Lerma, outside the city center (4€) and in the cathedral sacristy (6€).

Unfortunately, Toledo’s grand Alcázar is closed while being converted to a military museum but it should re-open sometime in 2008. Don’t miss the city walls, especially the mudéjar Puerta de Sol. Finally, typical Toledan souvenirs include marzipan, gold-inlay damascene jewelery, and swords, if you’re into any of those things.

Toledo is about 80 km South West of Madrid – see map below: Read more »

(Continuing from Part 1 – Intro to the Prado…)

Entering the museum through the “Puerta Alta de Goya” (at the top of the stairs outside, so on the first floor), look at your map and head (counter-intuitively) for the basement first (numbers 100-102 on the map) by crossing the entire first floor (24-32) and descending the two flights of stairs. The “Tesoro del Delfín” basement collection is a wonderful amalgamation of pots, vases and other interior decoration that is too easily forgotten among the bombastic paintings above ground.

Move up one flight of stairs and turn left, heading into 72. Numbers 71-74 form a selection of classical sculpture, nice for fans and certainly interesting on account of its not being painting. Turn left after entered 74, and have a brief look at the Italian painters in 75 (remember not to linger!) Cross 47 into 49, disregarding its Italian paintings for a moment; you will come back here later. Turn right (55B) and be surprised by the contrast between Italian and German painting. Straight ahead into 55, turn left (during my last visit, there was no other choice as the “A” rooms on the map were shut off) and pass the mildly interesting Flemish paintings in 56 and 57, turning left again into 57B, and again left into 56B. Don’t go straight ahead, you’ve already been there! Turn right, and you’re back among the Italian paintings of Rafael in 49. Turn right again, cross 50, and: congratulations, you’ve completed 2 out of 4 floors!

Take a hard left, and ascend the stairs: you’re back where you started. Cross the hall into 4; to your left, there is quite a bit of forgettable French painting leading to a dead end. Unfortunately, the paintings by Claude at the far end are gorgeous (now that’s what I call merchandising), so move quickly into number 2 and back again. Straight ahead (5-6) brings you slightly more interesting Italian painting, leading to the only “Dutch room” in the Prado (7). Being the traitor to my country that I am, I couldn’t care less, and move left and immediately right to have a glance at Tiziano (7A-8A). This leads you to the intriguing paintings of El Greco (9A-10A), definitely worth a look. Turning right into 10, this is where Rubens starts. Take another right, crossing 9 and 8, and left again into 8B (not straight ahead, or you’ll be in the Dutch room again). Another left brings you to 9B, and a subsequent right takes you back to the hallway that you have seen before (you can skip 10B, don’t worry).

This is the “heart” of the Prado, littered with Spanish masters. Turn left and have a brief look at 26 and 27, preludes to the big names (forget 25 for the moment). Another left brings you into the realm of Velázquez, impressive if only for the big octagonal room he occupies. There’s more of him when you take a right (14-15), but keep in mind that this part is essentially a dead end: after making a circle, you will have to cross Velázquez again to get back into the grand hallway. When there, go left and start overdosing on Goya: it is more or less the last artist of your Power Tour. Have a quick peek into 16B, and drift through 29 and 32, where you turn right into 35-38. In my opinion, the round Goya paintings here are most worth your attention. Move into the hallway when in 37, and, if you’re up for it, peek into 39 on your right. Then, straight ahead and up the stairs to your right. These lead you to 85, where a happier and more colourful Goya greets you. Take advantage of this joyful spell, move into the hallway and turn right: rooms 90-94 will show you similar Goya paintings. Had you turned left, you would have visited 86-89, a salad bowl of paintings hard to categorize and even harder to recommend. Forget them, and leave with the colours of Goya in your head, moving down the stairs again and along the grand hallway back to where your coat is hanging.

At this point: pat yourself on the back – you have survived the Prado!

You may hear less mention of the Museo Thyssen – Bornemisza than of Madrid’s other two famous art museums, but that’s only because its name is tricky to pronounce. There’s no reason to overlook this corner of Madrid’s “Golden Triangle of Art.” The well-rounded collection, compiled by the art-loving Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza and acquired by the Spanish government in 1993, spans eight centuries, from Gothic to modern painting.

Fitting into a three-hour-or-so visit, you can start on the second (top) floor and work your way down chronologically. I like to play “spot the donor” with the older paintings. Continue for some fine Renaissance portraits, including the famous Ghirlandaio portrait of Giovanna Tornabouni.

The collection boasts many Flemish and Dutch masterpieces. Keep your eyes peeled for some Spanish painters: Ribera, Zurburán, El Greco and Goya (just a handful of them compared to the Prado). There are also many fine examples the 19th century American painting, especially landscapes.

I’m biased toward the lettered wings on the first and second floors over the numbered rooms, for whatever reason. Perhaps it’s how the spaces are connected, allowing one to glimpse this beauty from several rooms afar.

The impressionist, post-impressionist, and expressionist rooms are utterly transporting: among them are works by Pisarro, Degas, Monet, Renoir, Hassam, Gauguin, Toulouse-Lautrec and Van Gogh. On the ground floor, you can catch works by Picasso, Miró, Kandinsky, Dalí and Lichtenstein.

Despite not filling a clear niche, this is a must-see museum. Main collection tickets are 6 €/4€ for students and senior citizens, and 9€/5€ to see the general collection and temporary exhibit.

Metro: Banco de España. Paseo del Prado, 8. See map below: Read more »

Warning: this post may offend Prado evangelists and/or defenders of its untouchable status.

Right, the Prado. Without a doubt, this is Madrid’s business card for art lovers – or any bus load of tourists, really. Known throughout the world as a must-visit, the museum contains a wide array of paintings up until the 18th century, with a strong focus on the Holy Trinity of Spanish painters (being Goya, Velázquez and El Greco). Flanking its very own avenue (indeed, the “Paseo del Prado”), the sheer volume of art presented to the public is overwhelming in its own right.

And this is exactly one of the Prado’s problems. No matter the sophistication of your art stamina, Madrid’s most lauded museum simply contains too much. I myself generally call it a day after 1½ hours max, and have a strong preference for anything exhibition-related to be a one-hour affair. Now, these numbers may vary from visitor to visitor, but regardless of your art-absorbing capabilities, I tend to propose a “Power Prado” tour, either as an orientation or as a means to tick the mother of Madrid museums off your list.

So, to turn your visit into a Power Tour, remember the following:

The key to the Prado, in my humble opinion, is strategy. The building lacks a clear structure, which may lead to you getting lost, coming across the same works twice or three times, thereby wasting valuable time and energy. Upon entering, get yourself one of those maps (Plano del Museo) and keep it handy at all times. Before embarking on your tour, please remind yourself to keep up the pace. Walk briskly, and try not to linger in places; this breaks your strategy and eats away your scarce energy resources – if necessary, mark the interesting spots on your plano and save them for a follow-up visit. Whenever encountering an art form that is not painting, savour it – they are few and far between, and will recharge your batteries for paintings yet to come. And, strange as it may seem, start with the basement (sótano) and move your way up systematically to the second floor (planta segunda) so as to build up momentum for the great Goya.

Next in our Prado series: the ‘Full Prado Power Tour’

www.museodelprado.es
Opening times and admission details
Metro: Banco de España. Address: Paseo del Prado, see map below: Read more »

Sidewalk merchants are an inherent part of Madrid life. The top manta vendors offer sheet after sheet of DVDs, sunglasses, and bags. Late night Sol sprouts folding tables tempting the temporarily buzzed with a jolt of energy in the form of a bocadillo (roll). Gypsies sell fruit on the street corners. And there is, of course, the mother of all street bazaars – the Rastro. The market appears on Sundays and holidays and offers everything you can imagine within a few short, crooked city blocks. Some people adore the Rastros’ ambience and make it a weekly adventure. Others can only muster the energy to go when friends and family come to town. But whatever your Rastro-views may be, it is an essential stop if what you’re looking for is art.

Be it posters for a recently-arrived expat or original paintings for that perfect souvenir, the Rastro’s “art street” has what you’re looking for. Wander up Calle de San Cayetano and you’ll find all manner of artwork, from still-lifes and cityscapes to mosaics and lithographs. As you stroll along you’ll find a pencil sketch of the Plaza Mayor for 3€ next to an original mosaic of the Virgin Mary that will set you back 600€ and will barely fit on the Metro. What makes the purchases even more special is that because you frequently buy them straight from the artist, they sometimes have a story to tell. Years ago when I paid just 40€ for this pair of paintings, I also discovered that the artist dedicates himself solely to painting scenes from Cevantes’ Don Quijote in the hope that foreigners will learn to share his love for that story. It worked, since we bought six different paintings from him.

So next time you are looking for art, give the museums a rest and wander the Rastro.

Metro: La Latina / Tirso de Molina. The Rastro is on Calle Ribera de Curtidores and surrounds. Art street is Calle de San Cayetano. See map below: Read more »

According to Damian Corrigan at gospain.about.com, Noche en Blanco “is an all-night cultural extravaganza which takes place on one night each September (in 2007 it will take place on the night of September 22). Everything is free of charge and the city puts on 24 hour public transport to make getting between events easier.”

As well as free entry to most of the major museums throughout the night, musical offerings include shows from Daft Punk, Strange Fruits, Macanique Vivante and Fátima Miranda. For full details check out Damian’s write up at about.com, or the official Spanish site.

Pickpocketing and theft are a problem in Madrid but it is not something to worry about if you take a few sensible precautions. Obvious things to AVOID are carrying your wallet in your back pocket, or valuables in a back pack on your back – both are asking for trouble. Handbags should be carried under your arm. Be very careful not to leave bags next to you on the floor in bars or restaurants – keep them on your lap. Pickpockets and bag snatchers tend to work in pairs or small groups in Madrid and often one or two members of a gang will distract you (by shoving you, asking an innocent question, showing you a map) while another robs you – be particularly aware in the Metro and around major tourist attractions such as museums. Again, there is no need to be paranoid all the time, but if you are aware of this problem then you are bound to be fine.

What follows in an excellent example of the tricks used in Madrid these days, from Julian, who was on holiday in Madrid with his wife Judith, and was targeted the Rastro market.

So having walked round the Rastro & flea market, Judith & I had bought a few items & were heading out when I got targeted as the victim of a ‘contrived accident’. I knew all about this possibility & Ben had warned us not to have anything of value on us.

It was skilfully carried out because it was made to look as if I had tried to rob the pickpocket.

He was just ahead & was holding a mobile (probably an old broken one) close to his ear. He swung round backwards & bumped into me – the mobile was dropped (flung) against my leg as I walked forward — thus sending the mobile skittering off a few feet away. Instead of just retrieving it – he bent down & grabbed one of my legs with one hand while with the other made a show of frisking my leg where the mobile had hit it, i.e. trying to make it look as if I had deliberately tried to pinch his mobile.

My wallet was in my front pocket out of harms way and I had a firm grip on it. I freed myself quickly from this & he picked up his mobile from the ground.

But the distraction had enabled his accomplice (who I never saw) to remove the contents of my back pocket … just a few sheets of folded A4 paper.

No harm done but it shows that despite taking all precautions the pickpockets can still catch you unawares.

This all happened so quickly that Judith who was walking slightly ahead of me carried on & hadn’t even noticed what had happened.

Do you have a Madrid pickpocket story? Send it in to help others avoid the same trap!