28-1-2008

hello everyone. i’ve been thinking about Europe lately, and the challenges and opportunities it faces…colonial history aside,there is something magical about Europe, “liberte,fraternite,egalite” and all that literature trying to get into the soul of things…so as a homage to those European values the world seems to need an injection of lately, here is my recommendation for a very European experience in Madrid: visit plazas, city squares… plazas are supposed to be the centre of city life, in Spanish America the plaza always had three institutions, the cathedral, city government, and local court house…apparently, in prehistoric times peoples huts would form a circle, and at the centre of the circle different village activities took place…hence the beginning of the city square. In GrecoRoman times the market was incorporated into the space, for a culture that added a lot of value to urban public life the space became a sort of forum of activity, add a fountain and a monument, and voila, you have the basis of the today’s European plazas…No longer the centre of city life,(no, you will not see the stock exchange bustles in the Plaza Mayor),but they are still beautiful city rooms to walk through…and you can’t say you’ve been to Europe unless you’ve walked over cobblestones, right? So, here are my favourite plazas in Madrid, the ones you might miss out on if you’re just following a tourist route…

1.Plaza de la Villa …off the Calle Mayor, before you get to Plaza Mayor if you’re walking in the street direction…La Plaza de La Villa is quiet simplicity, with a monument to Alvaro de Bazan ….it is a juxtaposition of different buildings from different time periods, which is very typical of Madrid’s urban reality, but no so noticeable in old Madrid…Plus it is the home of the Ayuntamiento de Madrid…


2.Plaza de la Encarnacion…if you’re walking through the Gardens facing the Royal Palace don’t miss this lovely Square just a few feet away between Calle San Quinitin and Calle de la Encarnacion…This is actually my Favorite corner of Madrid, there is always music and warmth in the air…and it is the home to one of my favourite stores in Madrid, el Alambique…a lovely shop dedicated to the kitchen, it hosts all types of cooking classes, and makes even the most domestically challenged among us feel like Julia Child

3.Plaza de la Paja…just go, especially on a Sunday mid morning, and have a tea and the best cake in Madrid at the Café Delic, if you are lucky enough to meet Makama the owner, say hello for me, is one of Madrid’s loveliest most kind hearted people

4. Plaza de Lavapiés…it is just so beautiful, especially when the sun is setting over the horizon reflecting different hues of orange on the buildings…and if you want to know what Madrid will be like in twenty years this is the place to be, full of Chinese, Arabic and African stores, salsa beats, the smell of honey pistachio pastries, and lots of places to sip tea and dip into other cultures…

5.Plaza Colon…forget the actual structure or what it means, just watch the skateboarders, and break beat dancers, that come from another decade to remind us that not everyone likes right angles…

(to be continued,look for more plazas in next weeks travel diary….)