A young persons_guide_to_madrid_sample_curso24_reisejournalismus_spanisch

A Young Person’s Guide toMadrid

Bienvenidos to Madrid!Madrid is a fantastic city and well worth a visit. Whether you arestaying for a while or just make a quick stop. This guide will help youget as much as possible out of it as you will hopefully find what you’relooking for and make it a great stay!This guide is the result of our three weeks together during the hottesttime in Madrid! Fourteen of us came from all over Europe for the ‘CityTravel Review’ project. We set out to work together to write a guideshowing everything Madrid has to offer, specifically focusing on youngpeople like ourselves. It was a fantastic time with excursions toneighbouring places such as Toledo, pub-crawls through the centreand even a bullfight! Although we all chose our own subjects to writeabout, we worked together to give you a complete overview ofeverything that there is to do in Madrid. Eating and drinking, palacesand museums, fashion and sports. Whatever you’re looking for and allMadrid has to offer, we will guide you to it.Enjoy your stay in Madrid!Your City Travel Review Team 2011

ContentsPage 6-10 Introduction - Top things to see and do - Tips for TouristsPage 11-30 Experience Madrid - Overview of Madrid - Accommodation for young people - Public Transport - Different ways to experience Madrid - One Day in Madrid - Learning Spanish - ToledoPage 31-49 History and Culture - History of Madrid - Historical monuments and architecture - Palacio Real and Royal Theatre - Museums - Spanish Artists - Street Art - Literature 4

ContentsPage 50-66 Things to Do - Flamenco - Shopping and Fashion - Nightlife - Live Music Bars - Parks and Leisure TimePage 67-76 Food and DrinkPage 77-92 People and Life - Spanish Lifestyle - Siesta - Sports - Bullfighting - Famous People of MadridPage 93 Meet the City Travel Review Madrid Team 2011 Disfrutenla! (Enjoy!) 5

Top things to do in 10 Madrid See a bullfight1 Perhaps the most controversial ‘must see’ attraction in Madrid, but also one of the most fascinating. For those who can look past the barbaric nature of the sport, abullfight offers a unique insight intoSpanish culture and tradition. As the warbetween animal cruelty activists andSpanish traditionalists wages overwhether or not the bullfights shouldcontinue, (the sport has been banned inBarcelona and the rest of north Catalonia)it may not be long until bullfights arehistory. Not for the faint hearted, butmost definitely a ‘once in a lifetime’experience and well worth the visit. Eat Tapas Tapas bars are abundant throughout Madrid, the secret is finding a good 2 one. Look for locals, dirty floors (yes! this is a giveaway of some of the best bars in Madrid) and anywhere swarming with people. The queues for the bar are well worth the wait for authentic local Tapas, chorizo, Spanish omelette and anchovies are some of the most common tapas. As the barmen usually pick and choose what they serve you, there is little choice over what you end up with so picky eaters beware, however for genuine Spanish food (without the frills) visiting a local Tapas bar is a must. Take an open topped bus tour This is one of the easiest and quickest ways to see a lot of Madrid in a short amount of time- perfect if you’re not in the city for long but want to see some of the most3 renowned sights Madrid has to offer. Frequent departures from numerous locations make the hop on-hop off bus effortless, as opposed to trawling the streets in the hot weather you can see the Palacio Real, Prado museum, Real Madrid stadium and several other notable locations from the comfort of an air-conditioned bus, with the option of picking and choosing where you wish to visit. Several companies who offer the service, and it is possible to jump on a bus from the bottom of Gran Via- however, for those looking for a guided tour and the ability to book in advance the Panoramic Madrid Tour offers a fantastic tour which is also surprisingly affordable. 6

Try Churros con chocolate4 As an avid food lover, and general chocolate enthusiast, Churros con chocolate - a traditional Spanish delicacy- was one of the most memorable parts of my time in Madrid, and most definitely alegitimate reason for returning. For those ofyou who have never heard of churros, the bestway to describe them would be almost like adeep fried donut, served with a cup of hotchocolate sauce. Traditionally had as breakfast,it is not uncommon to see Spaniards with anorder of Churros con chocolate on their wayhome from a night out. Chocolateria SanGinés at Pasadizo de San Ginés in apassageway close to San Ginés church, west ofthe Puerta del Sol is one of the most famousplaces to find Churro’s, open 24 hours a daythere’s no excuse not to make a visit!Take a ride on the TelefericoLocated at the heart of the Casa de Campo, the teleferico has been 5around for over 40 years offering an incredibly skyline view of Madrid aswell as a fantastic way to escape the city and relax in one of the oldestparks in Madrid (the Casa de Campo was once the royal hunting groundsand is now preserved as an endless park space used for cycling andwalking) despite the queues for a ride, the 4 euro return trip will take youacross Casa de Campo with an automated guided tour in either English orSpanish. The teleferico reaches a height of 40 metres and is an affordableand unique way to see the city. 6 Stroll through El Rastro market El Rastro market is legendary in Madrid, on the surface, the market seems to be like any generic European flea market- cheap jewellery, fedoras, tourist t-shirts and guitar playing street performers, however dig a little deeper and you will find cobbled streets filled with priceless antiques. From record players to Louis Vuitton trunks, its easy to see where El Rastro got its reputation is one of the most unique markets in Europe. The vintage accessories and paintings seem never ending and each shop seems more impressive than the last- a word of warning however, these antiques are not cheap! Whilst it is possible to pick up old cameras and records for a few euro- many of the more unique antiques are in the thousands, nevertheless El Rastro is well worth a visit, even just for a look. 7

A young persons_guide_to_madrid_sample_curso24_reisejournalismus_spanisch

by Curso eG on Aug 09, 2011

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A young persons_guide_to_madrid_sample_curso24_reisejournalismus_spanisch — Document Transcript