Madrid in Spain |
Madrid
Madrid is divided into 21 barrios, each completely individual, the most central being the barrio popular, whose hub is the bustling square of the Puerta del Sol. This is a stone's throw from the oldest, and most atmospheric part of Madrid, centered around the 17th-century Plaza Mayor, built as the administrative center of the Court by Philip II. Today's Royal Palace, along with the cathedral, lies to the west, overlooking the River Manzanares, on whose opposite bank stretches the vast, and surprisingly wild, park of the Casa de Campo, a popular place for all kinds of sport. West from Puerta del Sol, a series of wide and leafy 18th-century boulevards, punctuated by superb squares and fountains, are home to Madrid's great museums, the Prado, the Thyssen-Bornemisza, and the Reina Sofia, all lying within an easy walk of the beautiful central park and gardens of the Retiro. North from here is the Salamanca barrio, a quiet, expensive neighborhood that is home to the city's wealthiest residents and chicest shopping. By contrast, barrios such as Lavapies - home to the famous Rastro flea market - Chueca, and Malasana are noisy, vibrant, and chaotic.
Madrid has an intense culture of late night partying, and a word - madrugada - which refers to the hours between midnight and 6am. Traffic jams clog the streets at 4am as young people head home or move on to early morning discos and clubs, while, as summer temperatures soar, the whole scene moves outdoors to the open-air terrazas scattered all over the city. Madrilenos don't usually dine much before 10 or 11pm, resulting in a population surviving on less and less sleep as siesta hours are curtailed to bring the business day in line with the rest of Europe.
The history of Madrid The area of modern Madrid was first inhibited around 1000 BC by Iberian tribes and later became part of Roman, then Visigothic, and finally Muslim Spain. In AD 854 Mohammed I founded the city proper, which was re-conquered from the Moors by Alfonso VI in 1085. It was recognized as a city by Alfonso VII in 1202, housing the Cortes (Parliament) from 1301 and becoming the permanent home of the monarchy in the 15th century. It became the Hapsburg dynasty capital in 1561 and the 18th century saw much construction in the French style under the Bourbon monarchs. Madrid was occupied by the French from 1808 to 1812, and the 19th century saw further construction and modernization, which has been almost continuous. Post-Franco, Madrid has changed immeasurably, the renovations of the 1980s giving the impetus to the movidad madrilena ("happening" Madrid). The city was extensively refurbished for its 1992 role as European Capital of Culture, and work continues on urban rehabilitation and the transport infrastructure. |
Madrid, the capital of Spain,
lies at a height of over 2,000 feet (650 meters) in the center of the
Iberian peninsula's high central plateau, the meseta. Bitingly
cold in winter and blisteringly hot in summer, the city encompasses
everything from historic buildings, palaces, skyscrapers, shopping malls,
and great museums to sprawling industrial estates and shanty towns of
abject poverty. It is a city of extremes, a capital chosen by Philip II
(1527-98) in 1561 as much for its geographical position as for political
reasons, whose inhabitants include immigrants from all over Spain. For
these reasons the spirit of Madrid is both diffused and elusive, and
madrilenos have far greater loyalty to their own barrio (neighborhood)
than to the city as a whole.