Partying In Madrid - A Guide To The City Of Spain

The city's Eastern section houses the Paseo des Arte with three massive museums scattered among striking gardens, the Centro de Arte de Reina Sofia, The Prado and the Thyssen Bornemisza all within easy walking distance. Private apartment complexes and fine dining highlight this area, and the older museums serve as background for the ambience of the bigger three. The retiro gardens are located to the back of the Prado, a fabulous stretch adorned with ponds and fountains, glass gazebos, and rose gardens, a lovely shaded section to escape from the summer heat.

To the West of the Paseo del Arte you can find the exciting barrio of Santa Ana, it's thin sloped lanes surrounded on either side by tiled tapas bars and restaurants. Cervantes and Lope de Vega's influences were instrumental in fashioning the area into a progressive, cultural bastion. In the past, the brothels and theatres competed with each other for business, and the place is still quite lively after dark. The crowds fight for seats and standing room in the terraces and areas encompassing the Plaza. It is less noisy during the daytime where the older locals lounge on benches and watch with amusement as the neighbourhood’s new population of trendy professionals take their fashionable dogs out for a stroll.

This beautiful plaza is the heart and soul of old Madrid. The large, impressive square which was long ago the site of royal ceremonies and religious persecutions, is now, sadly, just filled with tourist restaurants. The contorted and intricate lanes that wind away from the square as well as the senior lanes in the metropolitan area, are a final distant sound of the history of the georgeous city. Lined on either side with churches, palaces, convents, and speciality shops that make traditional guitars or sharpen your knives, all seem completely impervious to the slow passage of time. East of here lies the Palacio Real, a magnificent example of baroque beauty, as well as the newly restored Opera House.

These customary working class neighbourhoods are located randomly below the Plaza Mayor. Rejuvenation is present even though most of the region is delapitated. There is an international flavor to the cafes. Don't miss out on the notable Sunday morning flea market as well as a tapas crawl.

Gran Via is a reflection of the best of east meeting west including the modern shops and classic entertainment venues. A contrast of calm and craziness exist between night and day north of Gran Via. The hip and trendy shops and bars meshing hand in hand with the famous endless nightlife makes these places the coolest areas in Madrid to hand out in.

Chic apartments and fine dining can be found in Swanky Salamanca, in the northest part of the city. The feeling of money oozes out of this place, from the ritzy designer shops of Calle Serrano, to seeing Ferraris outside of clubs that one will never be able to get into. Some mansions from the nineteenth century only add to the upscale atmosphere, and the glossy towers lining the Paseo Castellano are an excellent attraction for those interested in modern architecture.

Article Source: http://www.articles.com.mx

Lucy is a author commentating tourism and holidays, whilst working on airport transfer service To Greece and Spain on behalf of eComparison.

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