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City Break to Madrid
Madrid is the capital of Spain, a large city of over 3 million people. Madrid is steeped in history and has a distinctive character that is well worth exploring with a city break. There are grand historical monuments, museums and art galleries, and a vibrant nightlife to be enjoyed. Madrid is a city that truly never sleeps, and the first city in Europe that I went out for a meal that commenced at half past midnight! There are cafes and bars open around the clock in Madrid, and thankfully – crucially, even – the local coffee is like rocket fuel and will keep the intrepid visitor primed for the 24 hour buzz of the city.
During daylight hours, there are a profusion of places to visit and see. Starting with high culture, the Museo del Prado is a museum and art gallery that boasts one of the world’s premier collections of European Art. The core of the collection, based around sculpture and painting, was first assembled by the Spanish Royal Family, and has been augmented over the years until the present day where it contains over 2000 prints, 5000 drawings and around 2000 works of art. Go there to see the work of masters like Goya, Titian, Raphael and Botticelli.
Not far from the Prado, The Parque del Retiro is the largest park in Madrid, and popular wisdom would say, the most beautiful. The great and good of the city can often be seen to promenade with the family of a Sunday, and this is a fantastic location for all of the family. There are sculptures and monuments aplenty, and often a selection of high quality buskers, playing music from Spanish flamenco to New World pan pipe music.
The Plaza Major in the centre of the city has a great atmosphere and is a good place to go for a coffee and buy souvenirs. There are literally hundreds of small bars and cafes around this area of Madrid, perfect for touring round and sampling the local ‘Tapas’. Tapas are on offer everywhere and often come free when a drink is ordered. Tapas are small dishes of food, from fresh vegetables to seafood and a healthy selection of pork products. Many bars feature whole cured ‘Jamon’, that is cured hams, hanging above the bar, carved into small pieces for Tapas – perfect salty nibbles to accompany beer!
Planning my trip to Madrid I looked for city breaks online, and found lots of reasonably priced hotels at lastminute.com.
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