{"id":1712,"date":"2017-01-09T07:42:04","date_gmt":"2017-01-09T06:42:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/?p=1712"},"modified":"2017-01-09T10:58:39","modified_gmt":"2017-01-09T09:58:39","slug":"11-ways-to-fall-in-love-with-madrid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/2017\/01\/09\/11-ways-to-fall-in-love-with-madrid\/","title":{"rendered":"11 ways to fall in love with Madrid"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/strong><\/p>\n

Whoever you fall for and whoever you love, Madrid loves you<\/strong>. That\u2019s why we\u2019re the most tolerant city in the world with respect to LGBT<\/a> rights. That\u2019s why there are very few streets that celebrate diversity like ours. That\u2019s why we\u2019re an international standard-bearer for freedom. And that\u2019s why you\u2019re going to fall in love with Madrid. For all the above and for so many more reasons\u2026<\/p>\n

\"Malasa\u00f1a\"<\/a>

Malasa\u00f1a<\/p><\/div>\n

1.\u00a0TALKING TO STRANGERS<\/strong><\/p>\n

Twelve hours after arriving in Madrid, no matter where you\u2019ve come from, you\u2019ll have a friend. The really brazen lad in front of you in the queue to buy bread, the nosy woman from the group of people huddled at the door to Boite<\/strong>\u00a0or the guy from the agency, as he gives you the address of the place you\u2019re staying at in Malasa\u00f1a<\/strong><\/a>. In Madrid, no matter who you are, people talk to strangers. They ask how life is going and throw out invitations for drinks next Friday. So be on the lookout and don\u2019t be shy, because the next time you head out for a night on the town<\/strong>\u00a0you might just find your new family.<\/p>\n

\"Calle

Calle de Fuencarral<\/p><\/div>\n

2.\u00a0WALKING AROUND FUENCARRAL<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve lived in London and visited Paris several times. If you have too, you might know what it feels like to walk alone with your Spotify through Place des Vosges or Cambridge Heath Road. That feeling of being in a cultural megacity that places the entire world at your feet. Well, wandering down the stretch of Calle de Fuencarral between Tribunal<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Gran V\u00eda<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>on any weekday afternoon is one of those urban pleasures<\/strong>\u00a0that only some know how to appreciate. A mixed bag of people<\/strong>, a vibrant anonymous life and Madrid at its purest.<\/p>\n

\"The

The hora del aperitivo<\/em> (pre-lunch nibbles and drinks) in the La Latina neighbourhood<\/p><\/div>\n

3.\u00a0ENJOYING AN APERITIVO<\/strong><\/p>\n

Some make the mistake of identifying Madrid\u2019s aperitivo<\/em> with the tapas<\/em> of Andalusia or the pintxo<\/em> of the Basque Country. Nothing could be further from the truth. In Madrid, the aperitivo<\/em> means texting your friends at 12 noon on Saturday. Letting them know you arrived home in one piece after partying hard the night before. Telling them that although you\u2019re a tad hungover from the wine at last night\u2019s dinner, you fancy seeing them again. And so you find a spot at Bar Camilo<\/strong>\u00a0in Calle de La Palma<\/strong>, order your first vermouth<\/strong>, soak up a bit of the sun shining in through the window and wait calmly for some patatas revolconas<\/em> (mashed potatoes with bacon and garlic) or hake ceviche to whet your appetite. The rest of the gang arrives, you start to chat and you realise what a privilege it is to live in Madrid.<\/p>\n

\"Pride

Pride Festival<\/p><\/div>\n

4.\u00a0GOING TO PRIDE<\/strong><\/p>\n

They say that every capital in the world makes a certain festival its standard-bearer. The fact that Madrid is the most tolerant <\/strong>city in terms of embracing sexual diversity is no coincidence. And neither is the fact that our Pride is the largest in the world. In Madrid, our Pride has gone beyond the assertion of sexual rights, welcoming the entire city into its fold in the biggest party of the year. Some two million people will take to Madrid\u2019s streets once more at\u00a0WorldPride 2017<\/strong><\/a> next June, which is shaping up to be the largest in the city\u2019s history. It\u2019s the ultimate event that you simply can\u2019t miss.<\/p>\n

\"Pink

Pink Monkey is one of the restaurants that have recently opened their doors in the Chamber\u00ed neighbourhood.<\/p><\/div>\n

5.\u00a0\u00a0GOING ON A DATE (OFFLINE)<\/strong><\/p>\n

I know we live in the digital age and all that. But what can I say, I\u2019ve always been one for face-to-face interaction. There\u2019s nothing like a nice dinner<\/strong>\u00a0on a humdrum, boring day to meet your other half. And for this purpose, Madrid is an unbeatable setting: good-looking guys and girls everywhere, hundreds of restaurants which will win over any palate for a small fee (Chamber\u00ed<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is awesome for a casual date) and a climate that invites you to move in for that first kiss while strolling under the stars and getting ready to break out an old classic: Your place or mine?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Temple

Temple of Debod<\/p><\/div>\n

6.\u00a0WATCHING THE SUNSET AT THE\u00a0<\/strong>TEMPLE OF DEBOD<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s nothing new if I tell you that Madrid\u2019s sky<\/strong>\u00a0is absolutely unique and beyond compare<\/strong>. That we have one of Europe\u2019s greenest capitals or that the sun shines for us in the city almost every day of the year. What perhaps not all of you know is that these three magical elements come together to enhance the charm of a place that\u2019s no longer quite so secret. If you climb the steps up to Madrid\u2019s best-known Egyptian monument, walk to the outer edge bordering Oeste Park<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and take in the horizon at sunset, you\u2019ll know for sure that this is the most romantic<\/strong>\u00a0city in the world.<\/p>\n

\"A

A shop in the Chueca neighbourhood<\/p><\/div>\n

7.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>BEING A NEIGHBOURHOOD RESIDENT<\/strong><\/p>\n

Madrid has something very special: its neighbourhoods<\/strong>. You\u2019ll say that all cities have neighbourhoods<\/em>. Of course they do, but they don\u2019t have madrile\u00f1os<\/em> (the Spanish word for Madrid\u2019s residents). Few large capitals have managed, in the face of growth, to retain the neighbourhood infrastructure and warmth of a small community as Madrid has done. It blows me away to see how, even today, some of Europe\u2019s most cosmopolitan and pioneering neighbourhoods like Chueca<\/strong><\/a>,\u00a0<\/strong>Lavapi\u00e9s<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0La Latina<\/a><\/strong> manage to build social frameworks with strong community ties and a remarkable distinctiveness<\/strong>. It\u2019s something that makes Madrid a city few can match in terms of diversity<\/strong>, with an inexhaustible well to draw on: there\u2019s a new Madrid to discover in every neighbourhood.<\/p>\n

\"Florida

Florida Retiro<\/p><\/div>\n

8.\u00a0MAKING THE MOST OF MADRID\u2019S NIGHTLIFE<\/strong><\/p>\n

You don\u2019t know what PARTYING is until you\u2019ve had a night out in Madrid. You might have been to Las Vegas or Ibiza, or perhaps you\u2019ve travelled to the Full Moon Party or Coachella, but Madrid, my dear friends, is where it\u2019s at<\/em><\/strong>. Any time of night or day, 365 days a year. And by partying, I don\u2019t mean a club and a premium drink. I\u2019m talking about an atmosphere: feeling an entire city pulsing and moving at night, having some premeditated nocturnal fun. Making the night a way of life. Raising a glass to the new friends you\u2019ll make, the unbelievable moments<\/strong>\u00a0you\u2019ll treasure and the love of Madrid you\u2019ll never forget.<\/p>\n

\"BiciMad

BiciMad Station<\/p><\/div>\n

9.\u00a0MAKING YOUR WAY AROUND THE CITY, FROM CUATRO TORRES TO ATOCHA<\/strong><\/p>\n

If there\u2019s one truly marvellous thing about Madrid, it\u2019s its size. This little big town offers you everything you\u2019d expect from a large capital and is just the right size for everything to be within easy reach. A long avenue, Paseo de la Castellana<\/strong>, which turns into\u00a0Paseo del Prado<\/strong>, runs through the city from end to end. Using BiciMad<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0to bike down it in spring and seeing how its varied buildings seem to part before you as you cycle by and the city extends you a warm welcome is one of the greatest pleasures to be found in Madrid.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Prado

Prado Museum<\/p><\/div>\n

10.\u00a0\u00a0TAKING IN A CULTURAL EVENT<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although it may seem a pleasure that can be easily accomplished in any city, few places offer the sort of cultural mix that Madrid does. Three of the world\u2019s finest art galleries (the Prado Museum, Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum and Reina Sof\u00eda Museum) or internationally admired street graffiti. The big-name musicals<\/strong>\u00a0on Gran V\u00eda or\u00a0the most underground<\/strong>\u00a0and avant-garde theatre<\/strong> on Madrid\u2019s fringe scene<\/strong>. Festivals<\/strong> devoted to <\/strong>music<\/strong>,<\/strong> art<\/strong>,\u00a0<\/strong>interior design<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0gastronomy<\/strong> in the streets for all to enjoy, held almost every month of the year. Concerts<\/strong>\u00a0by international artists and up-and-coming experimental musicians. The future of fashion. Artistic creation in every student flat. A cultural explosion driven by talent and generational renewal.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/strong><\/p>\n

11.\u00a0\u00a0COMING BACK<\/strong><\/p>\n

If there\u2019s one perfect moment to be had in Madrid \u2013 and I know what I\u2019m talking about \u2013 it\u2019s your return. Because once you\u2019ve truly experienced the city, if only for a few fleeting hours, you\u2019ll be captivated by it. You\u2019ll look for the right time to come back, and when you do \u2013 just as your train is pulling into Atocha<\/strong>\u00a0Station<\/strong><\/a> or your flight is touching down at Barajas Airport<\/strong> <\/a>\u2013 you\u2019ll feel a strange fluttering in your stomach\u2026 But don\u2019t worry. You\u2019ll know \u2013 in that very instant \u2013 that you\u2019ve fallen in love with Madrid<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Whoever you fall for and whoever you love, Madrid loves you. That\u2019s why we\u2019re the most tolerant city in the world with respect to LGBT rights. That\u2019s why there are very few streets that celebrate diversity like ours. That\u2019s why we\u2019re an international standard-bearer for freedom. And that\u2019s why you\u2019re going to fall in love […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":32,"featured_media":1726,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7],"tags":[204,128,244,140,30,114,75,243],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1712"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/32"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1712"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1712\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1732,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1712\/revisions\/1732"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}