Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Tag: Madrid

Madrid – Almudena Cathedral

[I originally posted this in July 2018, but I’ve reposted it to fix the broken image links]

Madrid hasn’t always been the capital of Spain, and it took some considerable time for the church to arrange to build a cathedral in the city. It built many in the Americas during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, but this one took it a little longer.

The construction work started in 1881 when the foundations for the building were started. Land was given to the church by the neighbouring Royal Palace, meaning that it had an important city location. So, the civil engineers got going to build the cathedral, and then the money ran out. It took until 1911 to construct the crypt, but that was sufficient for services to at least be held.

Work didn’t progress any faster after they finished the crypt. The Spanish civil war started and very little work was undertaken during that period, but in 1950 it was decided to speed things up again. So, it had taken 70 years for the civil engineers and the church to manage to build anything other than the crypt.

But, with the help of the local council, it all started happening again. The nave was covered and completed by 1961 and the city residents looked forwards to having a cathedral that they could be proud of. Then the politicians of Madrid City Council got themselves involved with the process, and then the project stopped again because it ran out of money.

It wasn’t until 1984 that work started again to complete the building, more than a century after they had commenced the construction. With a huge burst of energy, it was completed nine years later and in 1983 Pope John Paul II consecrated it.

The impressive bronze doors.

The exterior of this building is beautiful, this is the view from the Royal Palace side of the cathedral.

The cathedral’s grand nave, which is filled with light.

The altar of Virgen de la Almudena, which is an altar dating back to the fifteenth century.

The organ, which was built and put together by Gerhard Grenzing.

The Gothic chest of Saint Isidro, which dates from the thirteenth century and came from the Archbishop’s Palace.

It’s certainly a very grand building, and surprising that it took so long for the work to be completed, although it was at least finished before the Sagrada Família in Barcelona, which they’re still faffing about with (although that’s a basilica and not a cathedral).

There’s no entrance charge, although a donation of €1 is requested, and a reasonable number of people seemed to be paying it. I particularly liked the display boards that gave some of the history of the building, it helped put numerous elements into perspective.

There were also private areas for those wanting to go to pray quietly or who wanted to go to confession. It felt very much a working cathedral and there was a relaxed and calm atmosphere to the interior of the building, although that was slightly marred by someone with the loudest camera I’ve heard in some time.

I didn’t unfortunately get the chance to visit the adjoining crypt on this occasion, I’ll have to hope that I get to come back to Madrid at some point in the future.

August 12, 2025
Madrid – Oven Restaurant

[I originally posted this in July 2018 but have reposted it to fix the broken image links]

Located opposite the city’s history museum was this Italian restaurant, which is part of a small national chain. As it was hot and I didn’t feel the need to walk very far, I thought that it looked a pleasant place for lunch. The heat outside also made the restaurant’s name of Oven feel just that bit more appropriate as well.

The restaurant had no other customers when I entered. Nor indeed did they have any customers whilst I was in there, so I was the sole diner. That did mean that I could choose the table I wanted, so I picked the window seat so that I could people watch. Although, since there was scaffolding up, I spent half the time people watching and the other half scaffolding pole watching.

Nicely presented menu, which as the flag suggests, is available in English.

When in Spain it’s only sensible to have, er, an Italian beer. I was brought over some olives whilst I waited for the pizza.

The diavolo pizza, which looks a little burnt, but it wasn’t, it was perfectly cooked. The beef was similar to that in a bolognese sauce, and that worked nicely on the pizza. There was some pepperoni and the base was thin and crispy, just as I liked it. It was clear that the pizza had been wood-fired and it was all at the appropriate hot temperature.

The pizza cutter seems a bit superfluous with a pizza they had sliced, but the chilli oil added extra spice. The service at the restaurant was attentive and friendly, with the staff member speaking excellent English. All very friendly, the pizza and beer cost around £11, which wasn’t the cheapest in the city, but it was central and I liked the dining environment.

August 11, 2025
Madrid – Álvaro de Bazán Statue

[I originally posted this in July 2018, but have reposted it to fix a broken image link]

Located in the city’s historic Plaza de la Villa is this statue of Álvaro de Bazán. The square is currently being restored and so it’s not possible to get closer to the statue. It was added to the square in 1891 and was sculpted by Mariano Benlliure, who was also responsible for numerous other statues in Madrid.

Álvaro de Bazán lived from 1526 until 1588 and was one of the country’s most famous sailors, responsible for the Spanish Armada. It is said that he was never defeated in his time as an admiral and the navy still has ships named after him today.

August 11, 2025
Madrid – R Line (Ópera and Príncipe Pío)

[I originally posted this in July 2018, but have reposted it to fix some broken image links]

My favourite underground line in London is the Waterloo and City line as I’ve always liked that it’s such a quirky little route which serves just two stations. So I was rather pleased to discover that Madrid has a similar set up, with the R Line which connects Ópera and Príncipe Pío.

Inside the carriage, which is similar to many of the other trains on the underground network. It was relatively busy when I used it, which was at 15:00 on a Tuesday afternoon, with no empty seats remaining. Apparently the line was originally an extension of Line 2, which is why it has that route above the doors.

It’s the only line on the Madrid underground which has a letter, as the other lines are all identified by their number. There are two trains which run to and from the stations, and there is one track at each station. The journey takes around two minutes to travel the entire length of the track, which is just over a kilometre.

And the doors open after my exciting journey… Admittedly this journey isn’t exactly something akin to trekking the foothills of the Himalayas, but it intrigued me.

August 11, 2025
Madrid – Beer in McDonald’s

[I originally posted this in July 2018, but have reposted it to fix some broken image links. Mahou has now been brought to the UK, although by brought over, I really brewed here as another generic lager stripped of any real authenticity]

I admit that going to McDonald’s in Madrid is hardly sampling the local food. But it was hot, I needed wi-fi (actually, I can’t use that excuse any more, I have a large data package to use across the EU, so I’ve lied here) and most importantly of all, I’m sure that Dylan and Leon would want to see photos. It’s of course crucial to educate these two young and impressionable young minds about the importance of travel.

I’ve had beer in a McDonald’s in Porto, Portugal, but I haven’t in Spain, so I thought that I should correct that omission. The beer here is Mahou, which is a Spanish beer which has been brewed in Madrid for over a century (by that I mean that they’ve been brewing beer for over a century, not that they’ve had this particular beer resting for that length of time). The quality was fine and it was at the appropriate slightly chilled temperature.

As for the quality of the rest of the meal, it met my expectations for McDonald’s……

August 11, 2025
Madrid – Plaza de España

[I originally posted this in July 2018, but have reposted it to fix the broken image links]

The Plaza de España was only laid out in 1911, with the area having previously been used by the military. The interesting looking building behind the above fountain is the Edificio España which was a shopping centre and apartment building, although it’s now closed with the intention of turning it into a hotel. I imagine it’ll be a luxury hotel, rather than my own preferred option of an Ibis Budget…

This statue dominates the square and it’s the monument to commemorate the life of Miguel de Cervantes. Cervantes is one of the country’s literary greats, the author of Don Quixote.

The grand statue was inaugurated in 1929, although some of the statues surrounding it weren’t completed until the 1960s.

At the other end of the square is a fountain, which adds even more character to the area.

The square has lots of seating, mostly under the olive trees which have been planted in neat lines to the sides. There were numerous tour groups all jostling for position when I was there, but I was happy to let them get on with it as it was far too hot for all that excitement…

August 10, 2025
Madrid – Muslim Walls and Parque Emir Mohamed

[I originally posted this in July 2018, but have reposted it to fix the broken image links]

Given the size of Madrid I decided that I’d just start in the middle and use the Wikipedia app to find some sites of local interest. One of the first that it came up with was the Muslim Walls, which date to around the ninth century and originally protected the palace and mosque.

The walls have been uncovered recently following archaeological investigations, and this section is located at the base of Madrid Cathedral.

There’s a plan of the walls which gives some basic context.

A plan of how the central area of the city used to look.

The original Muslim walls, which had survived because they were used as supporting walls for later buildings placed on top of them.

The walls are some of the earliest remaining pieces of defensive stonework surviving in Madrid.

The park at the base of the walls seemed to be closed when I looked at it, which seemed a shame given that it was such a well designed and clean location. However, I was fortunate that I visited on a Sunday, as this is apparently the only day that the park opens.

The plants and trees in the gardens were well tended (I don’t know much about this really, but they just looked organised) and they had information in Spanish and English about what they were. This is apparently a hackberry tree.

And apparently this is a cypress tree.

This is an olive tree, although I might have guessed this one without the label as there are olives growing on it….

The park’s central fountain.

August 10, 2025
Madrid – Campo del Moro (Moorish Gardens)

[I originally posted this in July 2018, but have reposted it to fix the broken image links]

There is only one entrance to these extensive gardens, and there is an impressive view of the Royal Palace that visitors see when they come through the gates.

The area that the gardens stand on today was once space between the palace and the river, which was formerly a steep slope. It was partly levelled in the 1840s, although the construction took some decades to complete.

The fountain doesn’t currently have water in it, and it seems from reviews that it hasn’t for some time. The formal name of the fountain is Fuente de las Conchas (fountain of the shells) and it dates from the late eighteenth century, although it wasn’t moved to its current location until 1845.

The fountain from another angle.

There were some beautiful parts of the gardens, although I didn’t see any particularly impressive floral sections. The gardens were badly damaged during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s, but efforts were made to ensure that they were repaired.

This is an eighteenth century wagon which was used in the construction of the Royal Palace. It was part of the collection of the carriage museum, which is at the park, but which has been closed for some years.

There were long rows of trees, which provided the shade that I needed given the heat in Madrid.

One of the more formal parts of the gardens.

One of the wide avenues in the park.

There are a number of these Tyrolean style buildings located throughout the park, all dating from the late nineteenth century. They didn’t currently seem to be open or accessible to the public.

These gardens are extensive, although the entrance can be tricky for some people to find. They do seem to need more attention though, with the museum closed, the fountain having no water and the toilets needed a little attention. However, there is no entrance charge and it is a surprisingly peaceful location, with not that many visitors in the gardens during my visit.

August 10, 2025
Madrid – Mercado de San Miguel

[I originally posted this in July 2018, but have reposted it to fix the broken image links]

This centrally located market building was originally opened in 1916, on the site of a former open market. It risked falling into decline in the late twentieth century and it was modernised and re-opened in 2009 as a market selling fine food and drink.

The market is visited by over ten million people a year, and a good portion of those appeared to be there during my visit. The market is really aimed for those wanting to dine there and then, rather than a more traditional provisions market.

Cocktails available for €8 or €9. There was an excellent array of different tapas items throughout the market, although like the drinks, the prices were generally set at a premium level. There were many stalls where the tapas looked particularly appetising, and a real effort had been made with the presentation.

Well, how lovely – the crisps that is, not the pork rinds.

There was a bustling atmosphere in the market, although there was a lack of available seating for those who wanted to sit down.

A fine selection of meats.

And a fine selection of wine, although all of the bottles seemed to be over €20. All the market needs now is a pottery seller from Great Barton and the selection will be complete.

Another frontage of the market, which is open for very long hours of at least 10.00 until 00.00 every day of the week.

August 9, 2025