Crystal Palace of the Retiro Park
This incredible haven of peace in the oppressive traffic of the streets that frame it was playground for court. The Good Retreat , named in this way by the Count-Duke of Olviares, who delimited it (1633), also included buildings such as the current Army Museum, in a palace ordered to be built by Philip IV (1635), and the Buen Retiro House , reopened as a study center in 2009 and which housed 19th-century Spanish paintings belonging to the Prado Museum collections that have now been relocated to the museum's main headquarters (in the Rafael Moneo extension) .
In the park was built first bullring in the city , which was inaugurated in 1743 and closed in 1874, in addition to nine hermitages and a comedy corral. Among the spaces that can be admired today are the Monument to Alfonso XII , the Crystal Palace, the Paseo de Coches, the Rosaleda and the Palacio de Velázquez.
The monument that dominates the pond of the retreat is dedicated to Alfonso XII , who scans the horizon on horseback and from the top of a large column. Surely he counted the number of people who flocked to his neighboring pond waters to dispose of their useless belongings. When they cleaned the pond, they found under tons of mud everything from bicycles to appliances to even a safe , empty of course. Oh, Alfonso XII.
The crystal Palace was devised as part of the Philippine Islands exhibition of 1887, in which it served as greenhouse for a large number of exotic plants. Today, it hosts art exhibitions and the small pond in front of it is famous in Madrid for its voracity and mischief of his ducks and swans. As a curious fact, it was here that he was chosen Manuel Azana President of the Second Republic in 1936.
You can also visit the sculpture of the Fallen Angel, wrongly considered the only monument dedicated to Lucifer in the world, because in Turin there is another, the Traforo del Frejus monument. What is not wrong is that the monument is located exactly 666 meters above sea level.
And, as an almost kitsch element, the Retiro Park has among its numerous fountains one in egyptian style , with sphinxes, obelisk and pharaoh included, perhaps because they match the Temple of Debod . You will find it on the right side of the pond of the monument to Alfonso XII.
On one side of park , facing Menéndez Pelayo street, you will find a completely colorful and noisy fauna, because the Cecilio Rodriguez Gardens hide a small colony of Peacocks. Be careful, they seem harmless with all their feathers, but they wear them out if they get angry. We are used to it because we celebrate the Condé Nast Traveler Awards ceremony there.
And where is it located today? the Rose Garden , erected in 1915 by Cecilio Rodriguez , Royal Gardener, there was an artificial lake that every winter, when it froze, was used for rollerblading , hence the oval shape of the garden.
You can enjoy different activities throughout the year in the Park, from the celebration of the Book Fair to puppet festivals, painting and photography exhibitions... Here you can access the updated schedule of the Retiro Park.
Map: See map
Address: C/ Alfonso XII, 28014 Madrid See map
Telephone: 911 273 988
Price: Free
Schedule: Winter: 06.00am-10.00pm Summer: 06.00am-12.00am
Guy: Parks and gardens
Official Web: Go to the web
Twitter: @Retirement park
Facebook: go to facebook