Indian Chief Travel Guides

Madrid: The City

Madrid has been called the greatest Spanish city. There is no denying its supremacy in the realms of commerce, politics and sport (the sharply divided Spaniards agree on one thing: Real Madrid soccer team is the surest bet). And there’s no escaping its romping, rollicking late-night tendencies. Still, the capital city’s charm may elude the beleaguered traveler who, having arrived with expectations of a slower pace in a less-costly Spain and of architecture dating back more than a just a few centuries, finds something altogether different. Madrid is any other Spanish city on speed. A newcomer could easily get lost, bewildered and frustrated in the crowds. At each turn harried masses dash to and fro, appearing bent on some purpose and yet, despite the prevailing rush, the Madrileños are, by and large, as welcoming and friendly as a rural Galician or a lonely Extremaduran. The shoeshine man in Plaza Mayor is content to people-watch rather than polish shoes and earn a few coins; the singing guitarist outside Café Oriente still smiles when a tourist refuses to tip him; the sharp-suited executive lingers in Casa Pablo for another drink or two, for the whole afternoon, rather than return to work. As a local friend once explained, “En Madrid, no vivimos para trabajar, trabajamos para vivir! (We don’t live to work, we work to live!)”

So it goes with this sprawling city of the plain, whose industry has for centuries attracted Spaniards from all parts of the country and where, despite the influx of international “isms” during the recent past, the tendency to disfruta la vida is still embraced wholeheartedly.With a population representative of every Spanish region, with the nation’s greatest collection of artworks on display in the nation’s best museums, there is no greater whirlwind introduction to the country than by way of Madrid. Once you’ve roamed the halls of the Prado for hours on end and still not seen all the works, or danced away the night at Palacio only to learn the following day that a far better and less-touristy disco is just around the corner, then you will understand why Madrid is best approached on its own terms. It isn’t a love affair that keeps people coming back to this city time and again, but more like a life-long courtship.