The traditional Spanish garden with its gravel pathways and rigid lines of dusty hedges initially struck me as rather austere when I first moved here. That’s probably because I was used to the vibrant green abundance of English gardens, with their chaotic profusion of blossoms and wide velvety lawns. Now, having lived more than six …
Property speculation is a swindle as old as the notion of capitalism itself and, judging by the wave of evictions sweeping the city, not going out of style any time soon. But if you think the behaviour of the banks and investment funds these days is outrageous, then get a load of what went down …
Psst! Want to buy a blade? Es muy fácil my friend. Just go to the south western corner of Plaza Mayor, enter the Arco de Cuchilleros and head down the steep street – you’ll know you’re in the right place as soon as you catch a whiff of the slaughterhouse – there you’ll find all …
If you take a wander around Retiro on a Sunday afternoon, you’ll encounter people getting up to all sorts beneath the foliage, from spiritually-minded yogis contorting their bodies into ever more impossible shapes, to carnally-inclined lovers locking lips. But when the park was first opened to the public in 1868, such scenes would have scandalised. …
Grandson to Spain’s most awesome king Charles III, Ferdinand VII, was without a shadow of a doubt Spain’s worst ever king. While his subjects suffered terribly, this slug of a man managed to slither unscathed in and out of Napoleon’s conquest of Spain agreeing to whatever was asked of him in exchange for a gilded …
If you take a wander down to Plaza de la Cebada and peer through the portholes that line the walls surrounding the square, you’ll often see the citizens of Madrid enjoying themselves at one fiesta or another. These days the public space is a regular venue for drinking, dancing and general merrymaking, but rewind a …
Each evening dozens of people flock to the Temple of Debod to watch the sun set from what is now one of Madrid’s most peaceful and beautiful spots. Most have no idea that less than 100 years ago this was the sight of a mass slaughter. That’s because only a single plaque remains and this …
“There are people who say it’s a fake, but I can tell you, I’ve seen it myself! It’s really incredible, the blood turns to liquid and goes a bright shade of red!” During this impassioned speech, our guide’s eyes shine with the fervour of the true believer. Some in the group mirror her enthusiasm, …
No matter how capable she might be, in 15th century Spain it was almost impossible for an ordinary woman to make her mark, let alone leave an impression that would last down through the ages. But that’s exactly what Beatriz Galindo aka La Latina (a nickname that referred to her fluency in Latin) managed to …
On May 2 1808 the last remaining members of Spain’s royal family were getting ready to be shipped off to France. Fearing perhaps that if they didn’t keep on Napoleon’s good side they’d wind up (just as their French cousins had) with their severed heads rolling around an executioner’s basket, the last of the Bourbons …