Layover in Madrid: Take Advantage

Rather than spending your 6 hour layover in Madrid like this…      

   

Why not explore the city a bit?

Madrid is a fantastic city to explore- whether you have 1 hour or an entire day – take advantage.

1) Drop off your luggage in the airport storage lockers located in Terminals 1, 2, and 4.

2) Catch a Taxi/ Airport Express Bus/ Metro depending on how much time you have.

(See my article “Transportation to and from Madrid Barajas Airport”)

3) Enjoy the city

General Suggestions:

• Puerta de Sol = the heart of Madrid. The city’s main plaza where you can stand in the middle of all the hustle & bustle: watch street performers, the not-so-Spanish-mariachi bands, and my favorite, the characters dressed as Sponge Bob, Mickey Mouse, Hello Kitty, and Cookie Monster, walking around half-dressed, holding their “heads”, talking on their mobile phones, and destroying the dreams of the poor children watching them in horror. 
• On a lighter note: go shopping and grab some Spanish tapas in the neighborhood. Stand on “Kilometer 0”, supposedly the center of Spain (located beneath the clock tower). Take a picture with El Oso y el Madroño, The Bear and the Strawberry Tree bronze statue which stands as the symbol of Madrid.

                                                                                                                                                                            Grab a pastry at La Mallorquina or some churros & chocolate at the famous San Gines Chocolatería (dating back to 1890)… or both. Life is short, live it up. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                           The not-so-Spanish Marachi band that always plays in Sol. (pictured below)

• Plaza Mayor: Madrid’s main square; just a 5 minute walk from Puerta de Sol. Grab a calamari sandwich from Cervecería Sol Mayor on Calle Posta on the way. Take a walk around Plaza Mayor and check out all of the strange street characters & performers in the plaza, including the fat Spiderman in a onesie. 
• Spiderman is actually quite friendly & speaks perfect English. Give the guy a euro and take all the pictures you want with him. He gets really into it. 

Metropolis Building, Gran Vía

• El Prado Museum: Spain’s national art museum housing one the finest collections in the world. Check out famous works from Goya, Velazquez, Rubens, Bosch, El Greco and even a restored copy of the Mona Lisa (found in January 2012) painted by a student of Leonardo da Vinci.

• Gran Via: Madrid’s mini “Spanish Broadway” and major shopping district. Go shopping, take a walk up & down the streets, and discover some of Madrid’s iconic buildings like the Metropolis Building. Continue along Gran Vía until you reach the famous Cibeles fountain & Madrid’s old Post Office building.

• Royal Palace: The official residence of the Spanish Royal family (although the Royal Family doesn’t actually live there). Walk through 50 rooms of elaborate decór, tapestries, art, and collections of porcelain, silverware & dishes, furniture, and even a room containing Stradivarius violins, cello, and viola. Also, check out the collection of medieval armory and the Royal Pharmacy on premise.

• Retiro Park: Madrid’s largest park. Rent a boat on the pond, watch the street performers, walk through the rose garden, and relax.
• Aside from relaxing by the pond, my favorite part of the park is the lesser-known Jardines de Cecilio Rodriguez, the garden along the street Avenida de Menendez Pelayo. The garden is absolutely beautiful, but the best part is following around the peacocks walking around freely.

Or spend the day like this…

                                                           Desperation at its finest.

This may be a practical invention, but you’ll still look like a douchebag.