Madrid in its streets and details
Because a walk through Madrid it can hide many details that we never pay attention to. Have you tried looking up?
Madrid, Friday afternoon, after eight. Taking advantage of the fact that I am in Plaza de España, I decide to approach the Temple of Debod , to enjoy once again, what they say is the best place to watch the sunset.
While I go down, following the rush of people, I have to wait for the traffic light next to the corner of the Ferraz street . I look up and wham, what a surprise. I have passed by here hundreds of times but I had never stopped to look up and what I had missed, one of the most curious modernist buildings in Madrid. From below, it seems that its curves and balconies, its projections, its reliefs, its windows and its domes are moving. It is Casa Gallardo, renovated at the beginning of the 20th century and which today houses a select restaurant, El Club Allard.
Gallardo House
This is just one of the reasons to realize that although Madrid is the city of rushing, of people everywhere, of noise and atmosphere at any time, it is much more.
Madrid also invites you to take it easy to discover those details that go unnoticed. You just have to look up from the street and from your mobile to see those architectural curiosities, paintings, lifelong posters, balconies, colors... that we had never noticed before.
And there is no need to get away from the most touristic places, from the areas where we usually meet to go to terraces or have a drink with friends. You just have to go at a different pace, stop and look. Let's investigate neighborhood by neighborhood.
The taste is in the detail
COUNT DUKE
Very close to Plaza de España, next to the steps that go up to ** Conde Duque **, on the corner with the Duke of Osuna street , stands a white building on the ground floor of which there are bars and restaurants, always with a full terrace in summer. But its surprises are on the facade. In it you find yourself, suddenly, with characters from mingote who talk, dance or look at you from the window sills.
Curiosities of a walk through one of those charming neighborhoods of Madrid, with narrow streets of old houses, little latticed balconies, traditional bars, modern shops with a vintage air and squares like that of the Comendadoras. A perfect place to sit and take in the colorful houses around you or the Convent of the Comendadoras de Santiago , with its church and outbuildings that were once used as private homes.
Comendadoras Square
MALASANA
From here there is nothing like following the La Palma street or San Vicente Ferrer street. Strolling through the narrow streets of all life to plant ourselves in Malasaña, whose streets and slopes are full of cute buildings, latticed balconies, traditional signs, urban art shows, markets, street markets, terraces and, of course, hipster businesses.
Malasaña is a noisy neighborhood with a lot of atmosphere for tapas, terraces or shopping in slightly different shops: bookstores, custom-made shoes, vintage and second-hand fashion... A lot to experience and instagram, because any corner will attract your attention for a photo , either because of the paintings on the facades or doors, or because of the careful shop windows of some of the premises, or because of the very different people who walk through here.
But don't let them escape you posters and ceramics of the Pharmacy Puerto (Plaza de San Ildefonso) and whatever the Juanse Specialty Laboratories , today a cafe in San Vicente Ferrer, 32.
Puerto Pharmacy in Malasaña
CHUECA
The atmosphere of shopping, tapas, beers, wines, sweets or juices continues through Chueca, through the streets Hortaleza, Fuencarral and the rest of those just behind Gran Vía. An eclectic neighborhood healthy in which it would be a shame to focus only on its shop windows and premises. The hustle and bustle of the area may drag us down and make us forget the details we were looking for.
It is true that around here it is obligatory to visit some of the terraces with the best views of Madrid, such as the San Anton Market **or the Oscar**. But don't forget to go up Calle del Barco and look at the facades of the houses; to walk through Hortaleza and look at those old apartment buildings, with their curved shapes, large windows and terraces; or to stop in front of those traditional shops whose old facade hides today more modern businesses, such as the Casa Robustiano Díez Obeso, Seeds and Seeds , today an optician where seeds, grains and legumes were sold long ago.
Behind the Gran Vía
FROM THE CENTER TO THE LATINA
On the other side of the Gran Vía, there are almost no more traditional stores like this one, but there is still another Madrid waiting for you to look up. On the way to the last two neighborhoods of the route, you can start by stopping at the main Street and see how there are curious corbels that support balconies or overhangs, or how the facade of the oldest hotel in the city stands out, ** La Posada del Peine **.
Not far away, between the Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor , on the Calle de la Sal, corner with Calle de Postas, there is another building starring the drawings of Antonio Mingote, on traditional scenes of Perez Galdos.
Inn of the Comb
But if we get traditional, we have to go down to La Latina, although not to stay only in the squares of Barley and Straw.
We have to see inside and outside the remodeled and colorful Barley Market ; envy (or not) those who live behind the balconies of the colorful buildings in its streets; shelter from the sun by the stairs of the Nuncio Street ; walk through the Cava Baja to stop at ceramic facades such as the one in The Chata ; go down Calle Toledo, looking at its houses of no more than five floors and its glass windows; and of course, walk the trail , on Sin Rastro day, so that the crowd does not keep us from looking up and enjoying the architecture of this very Madrid neighborhood.
Because any corner around here keeps a photo.
street in latin
FOOTWASH
Another one that has many and also many treasures on its facades is footbath , where, for a few years now, urban art has been one of the residents of the neighbourhood. There are many samples through its streets, although the most striking are those of the old tobacco , with an exhibition space and a self-managed social center. On its exterior walls, those facing the Meson de Paredes Street , various artists from around the world leave their stories to reflect on.
Tobacco
There are also colorful corners and very peculiar sundials around the Ambassadors street. And there are still corralas around here that appear like this by surprise and before which you can't help but stop; unique buildings that keep ancient secrets, such as the Pious Schools; and narrow, shady streets, past the hubbub of bar and terrace areas. Come on, it's worth getting lost walking around the neighborhood, because surely there are details left to discover.
In this way we could also follow the Barrio de Las Letras, Salamanca, Chamberí, etc. But there is time for everything and I hope that this trip has opened your curiosity to look into their secrets on your own.