The Making of Madrid
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The Making of Madrid From medieval medina to modern metropolis
22nd March 2023
Five scams to avoid in Madrid

Five scams to avoid in Madrid

Visitors coming to Madrid are often nervous about being targeted by scammers. A legitimate fear if you don’t understand the language and are reliant on the kindness of bilingual strangers to help you navigate your way around a foreign city. As problems can start as soon as you get off the plane with unscrupulous taxi …

13th February 2023
Toledo’s Jewish History

Toledo’s Jewish History

Just one hour’s drive from Madrid, the city of Toledo was once famed throughout Europe for its lively intellectual and economic life, a rich heritage that was deeply intertwined with the history of the Jewish people. Though obliged to pay higher taxes, Jews were left free to practise their faith, first under Muslim and later …

31st December 2022
Five Things You Didn’t Know About Madrid

Five Things You Didn’t Know About Madrid

From Islamic origins to saintly bones, to mind blowing miracles, here are a few surprising things you didn’t know about Madrid. Its name derives from Arabic Top of our list of things you didn’t know about Spain’s capital is that its name derives from Arabic. The settlement was chosen for its strategic position high above …

28th November 2022
Gangs of Madrid: Is Madrid a Safe City?

Gangs of Madrid: Is Madrid a Safe City?

The murder of a 15-year-old boy earlier this year might have left many wondering if Madrid was a safe city to visit. This machete attack was particularly shocking as it took place outside a nightclub on Calle de Atocha right in the centre of Madrid. Reported widely in the English language press, the incident led …

31st October 2022
Plaza de la Cebada: a Grotesque Reshaping of a Historic Square

Plaza de la Cebada: a Grotesque Reshaping of a Historic Square

Soviet-style concrete monstrosity Earlier this month the new granite face of Plaza de la Cebada was unveiled to very little fanfare. While locals might have been excited to see a shiny new sports centre appear on what was once an empty lot, it’s hard to imagine anyone was particularly impressed by the blank stone surfaces …

11th July 2022
Caught on Canvas: a Rogues’ Gallery of Spanish Rulers

Caught on Canvas: a Rogues’ Gallery of Spanish Rulers

Caught on canvas or let off the hook? Portraiture is a tricky business. An artist has to balance capturing the true likeness of the subject with flattering their ego. If said subject is a nasty piece of work, the job just gets even trickier. This post features three portraits of Spain’s most notoriously nefarious rogues, …

29th May 2022
The Reconquest That Never Was

The Reconquest That Never Was

An inconvenient truth For many years, historians did not want to accept the fact that Muslims created the settlement of Madrid. Instead, the story went that the Romans founded Spain’s capital city. But the archeological evidence points in another direction. While Madrid was near an old Roman road that went from Merida to Zaragoza via …

26th April 2022
Unique Tours and Tapas Away from the Tourist Traps

Unique Tours and Tapas Away from the Tourist Traps

If you’re looking for tours and tapas away from the tourist traps, then look no further! I’ve been running unique tours that show another side of Madrid for a while now. So, with mask laws lifting, it seems like the perfect time to add drinks and tapas to my itineraries. As I’ve been doing this …

21st March 2022
Café Barbieri Saved by New Owners

Café Barbieri Saved by New Owners

Madrid has lost many treasured bars to the pandemic and last year, it looked like Café Barbieri in Lavapiés was going to be added to that list. Though the closure of this institution was announced in May 2021, I’m delighted to report that the café reopened under new management last month. Even better, with the …

27th February 2022
The Atocha Massacre and its Aftermath

The Atocha Massacre and its Aftermath

Taking place just two years after Franco’s death in 1977, the Atocha Massacre was one of the darkest episodes in Spain’s transition to democracy. However, while the assassins aimed to goad the far right into a bloody exchange that would justify a coup, the wholesale murder of leftist lawyers and trade unionists instead met with …

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