Quiet Days in a Rainy Madrid

The semester is coming to an end! Oh, oh, oh! Some ideas for a few quiet days before the big Easter break.

First things first: The Museo Nacional del Prado, in collaboration with Samsung and Radio 3, continues its free evening opening of "El Prado de noche" (The Prado by Night) on the first Saturday of every month from 8:30 pm to 11:30 pm (last admission at 11:00 pm), entering through the Jerónimos door. You can enjoy the full opening of the ground floor of the Villanueva building and also visit the recently opened exhibition "Shapeshift: Myth and Metamorphosis in the Roman Drawings of José de Madrazo."

Also, if you haven't already, this is your last chance to chat with Spanish people and practice your language exchange skills: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/language-exchange-venues (this one is from the tourism website, but there are many in Madrid and it's a very common activity for Spaniards).

Looking for some dance shows? Dancers Andrés Marín and Ana Morales are bringing a show to the Centro Danza Matadero (https://www.centrodanzamatadero.es/) that blends traditional and modern flamenco to explore human desires.

It's been 160 years since Lewis Carroll's 'Alice in Wonderland' was published. Since then, it has been translated into more than 170 languages, films inspired by the novel have been made, and works of art, fashion collections, and plays have been produced that primarily reference the striking world of Wonderland. The Caixaforum exhibition (https://caixaforum.org/es/madrid) explores how this 19th-century publication has become part of our collective imagination and how it has permeated various artistic and even scientific fields, leaving room for play and reflection.

Some Tips to Celebrate the Good Weather

Spring is finally here! Aren't you bursting with energy? Here are some very different ideas to get you going! :-)

PROUST IN THE THYSSEN MUSEUM The Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza is offering an exhibition from March 4 to June 8, 2025, showcasing how art influenced the work of the illustrious Parisian writer. Proust is considered one of the most influential writers of the 20th century, who also excelled in philosophy and art history. In his literary production, one can observe the influence of past and contemporary artists, as well as the recreation of landscapes and monuments that captivated him in his day, along with the artistic environment he experienced. This period was marked by the renewal in the arts brought by the Impressionist artists in a modern and cosmopolitan Paris – where Marcel Proust already lived – illuminated by electricity, with Parisians traveling by car and filling cafés, restaurants, and shows. It is precisely the environment in which he lived and developed his life and work related to the arts that is the fundamental element on which this exhibition is based.

IFEMA (Institución Ferial de Madrid) is a major event venue in Madrid, Spain. It hosts a wide range of fairs, congresses, and exhibitions throughout the year. Located near the Campo de las Naciones and Barajas Airport, IFEMA is known for events like FITUR (International Tourism Fair), ARCO (International Contemporary Art Fair), and MOTORTEC. Two current events:

**WAH MADRID_In true Las Vegas and Broadway style, you can enjoy a musical and gastronomic show from Thursday to Sunday at ESPACIO WAH, located at the IFEMA MADRID fairgrounds. It features a cast of artists and professionals who have worked on the Oscars ceremonies, Eurovision, London's West End, and Broadway, as well as for the world's leading bands and singers from Sting to AC/DC. An unforgettable playlist. Puccini, Paco de Lucia, Guns & Roses, David Guetta, or Lady Gaga, among other music giants, take the stage, starring in a fusion of styles ranging from opera to house, flamenco, electronic, gospel, or rock. Designed to thrill and move the audience through music and its original gastronomic performance. https://wahshow.com/en/

**FRIENDS' EXPERIENCE_The experience inspired by one of the most popular television series in history arrives in Spain for the first time, bringing fans closer to their favorite characters with life-sized recreated sets, iconic backdrops, costumes, and a wide variety of accessories and memorabilia. It can be visited from March 17 to June 29 at the IFEMA MADRID fairgrounds (Pavilion 14.1). Fans of the series will find numerous interactive recreations full of nostalgia and can recreate some of their favorite scenes, such as posing behind the famous purple door of Monica and Rachel's apartment, relaxing in Chandler and Joey's recliners, and, of course, lounging on the legendary orange couch at the famous Central Perk café.  https://madrid.friendstheexperience.com/en/

 A LITTLE OUTDOOR EXERCISE_And next to the Manzanares river, on its west bank, you will find Madrid's largest public park, the Casa de Campo. With its more than 1,535 hectares, it is the ideal setting not only for hiking and cycling along various routes but also for enjoying the outdoor terraces located next to its impressive artificial lake, whose origins date back to the 16th century. If you're up for it, you can even embark on the adventure of rowing in one of its recreational boats available at its large dock.

Free movies and Good Food

 If you like films that don't usually make it to multiplexes, take note: from March 13 to April 10, Cines Embajadores is showing the five finalists for the LUX European Film Audience Award for free.

The menu includes films from Greece, France, Latvia, Ukraine, and Belgium, and themes such as cultural identity, misinformation, work pressure, and the devastation of the planet.

Admission is free: you must register online at this website and then pick up your ticket at the box office 72 hours in advance. Voting for your favorite will enter you into the drawing for a trip to Brussels for the ceremony.

And since spring never seems to arrive, I recommend two traditional Spanish dishes for colder days, because paella isn't everything in Spain. You'll already be familiar with one if you've been on our Rural Spain trip. The other is typical of northern Spain, specifically Asturias.

The Madrid Stew Route celebrates its 15th edition from this Saturday, February 15th, to March 31st, offering 90,000 servings of this iconic dish in 42 restaurants in and around Madrid. Prices range from €14 to €40, with options for vegans and celiacs. Participants can also vote for their favorite stew and win prizes, such as one of the 100 stews raffled off or a prize draw worth €2,000. Find out all the information here (I am sorry, it is only in Spanish) or here.

📍 Location: Madrid and surrounding areas

🗓️ Dates: until March 31st

Until March 23, Madrid hosts the eleventh edition of the Fabada and Verdinas Route, an event that pays tribute to Asturian cuisine. During these dates, several restaurants in the city will offer special menus focused on traditional fabada and verdinas. This event coincides with World Fabada Day, celebrated on March 15. For more details on the participating restaurants and their offerings, you can read the full article in Madrid Secreto.

📍 Location: Various locations.

📅 Dates: Until March 23, 2025

What to Do a Rainy Tuesday in Madrid

 First of all, I want to welcome our Nairobi-Madrid Cohort, who arrived in Madrid last Sunday. You will meet them next Friday in Paco’s “kingdom” ;-)

Just dreaming about good weather back, I was wondering if you are talented writers. If that is the case, every first Tuesday of the month, an open mic event is held in the Malasaña area. Mainly in English but not only, writers present their work in a nice cafeteria. The “master of ceremonies” is a Californian writer who has been living in Madrid for many years.

Have fun if you dare ;-)

Carnival and Other Ideas for the Weekend

Of course, one of the star cultural activities these days will be the Carnivals, which in Madrid are a bit peculiar (nothing to do with Rio 😉). If you want to read a very brief explanation about their origin you can find it in an old post on our blog: https://exploringwithauspain.blogspot.com/2023/02/carnivals-and-gastronomy.html

This year it will be from March 1 to 5. From Carnival Friday to Ash Wednesday, Madrid surrenders year after year to the party of the game of identities, with parties, parades, musical performances and many more activities. Do you remember that in the previous post I told you about the beautiful Matadero cultural center? Well, that will be where most of the activities will be held. You can find all the information in English here: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/whats-on/carnaval-madrid

I've been told that the Iberian Experience group is going to participate in the Burial of the Sardine! On that website you can see some photos and read about the "burial", but also about the previous days, the parade, the music groups, dance, theatre, magic...

📍 Location: Matadero (and much more). Metro Legazpi, lines 3 and 6.

📅 Dates: March 1-5, 2025.

💸 Price: free entry.

Another option for the weekend is the following: The Vegan Association of Madrid organizes Madrid Vegan Market, a vegan market that this Sunday (from 10:00 to 16:00) returns for its third edition with different stalls that will show food products, cosmetics, gastro area... there will also be talks. We will find the delights of Freedom Cakes, Urban Nomad Cooking, Good Shit Vegan Kebabs, Vegasun and Vegasauria or Pastelería Macchi, among others.

📍 Location: Espacio Rastro, on Calle San Cayetano, 5 (La Latina)

📅 Dates: Sunday March 2, 2025.

💸 Price: free entry.

And if you want to travel nearby: Chinchón, considered one of the most beautiful towns in the Community of Madrid, is celebrating its traditional Medieval Market once again this year. Jugglers, knights, musicians and itinerant artists will fill its streets with life and activities – check out the full programme here –. They will also be joined by craft stalls, traditional cuisine and a children's area for this date with the past.

📍 Location: Various locations in Chinchón

📅 Dates: From February 28 to March 2, 2025

Little Secret Plans ;-)

In this post we are going to share with you some not-so-well-known places to enjoy Madrid (but remember that the almond trees have just blossomed, check out my post from last week!).

If you are a movie lover, you can find many movie theaters with current films in their original version in Madrid (for example Los Cines Ideal, Los Renoir, Golem...) with much cheaper prices than in the US. However, there are other less-known cinemas, which are wonderful. One of my favorite places is the magical Cine Doré (one of the first cinemas in Madrid, in art deco style). Prices are ridiculous (3 euros per session! and even less if you buy multi-session passes. The films can be old classics from many different countries, or come in thematic cycles, or be current, and they are different every day. Next door is the Antón Martín market, where you can eat well for a low price. 

WHERE: Calle Santa Isabel 3 (Metro Antón Martín, line 1).

TICKETS: https://entradasfilmoteca.gob.es/ (up to 72 hours before).

Another fantastic place with the same system of changing films is the Cineteca del Matadero. If you don't know this cultural centre (Matadero), you should go and have a look! (https://www.mataderomadrid.org/en) They offer electronic music concerts, dance shows (in particular, this weekend it looks very interesting!: https://www.mataderomadrid.org/en/schedule/it-dansa), theater, art exhibitions, and much more. Also, the Madrid Río Park is very close by (check the picture below). But coming back to the movies:

WHERE: Plaza de Legazpi (Metro Legazpi 8, lines 3 and 6).

TICKETS: https://tienda.madrid-destino.com/es/cineteca/

If you need information about bookstores specializing in film, don't hesitate to ask us. There are some great places with a cafe where you can grab a bite to eat in the meantime!

The Winner of the Photo Contest and What Spring Brings :-)

All the staff members (except Eva, because she knew the author of each photo sent) and the professors Patricia from Art and Pilar from "Paseos" voted for their favourite photo anonymously. The winning photo is the following one and its author is the student Víctor Pagan-Viera. Congratulations! 

Below you can also see the rest of the participating photos as the members of the jury saw them. thank you for participating!:

On the other hand, spring is here! And so are the exams! If you want a quiet weekend, we recommend you take a walk through the gardens that have almond trees in bloom... they are the first trees that announce spring in Madrid! In this link you can find a description of a very little-known park, full of almond trees in bloom: https://exploringwithauspain.blogspot.com/2023/02/the-chilean-poet-pablo-neruda-once.html

And here are some other options: https://www.timeout.es/madrid/es/que-hacer/parques-jardines-almendros-en-flor-madrid

Enjoy your weekend, focus on your exams, but feel the Spring coming step by step! And by the way... Happy Valentine's Day!!!

A Market Unlike Any Other

If there is one weekend market that is a must-see in Madrid, it is the Mercado de Motores. Not only because it is the oldest (it has been held almost uninterruptedly since 2012), but also because of the number of designer stalls that can be found, including a space for second-hand clothes and items in the outdoor part of the venue.

In addition, there are food, coffee and drink stalls to replenish your energy. And finally, workshops, free concerts and DJ sessions throughout the weekend. All with the added bonus of doing it in a setting as iconic as the platforms of the Railway Museum, a jewel of Madrid's industrial architecture that is still standing.

Although the museum is open every day in the morning except Wednesdays, the market is only held once a month, usually on the second weekend of the month. This February it will be on the 8th and 9th of February.

Reserve your free tickets in https://mercadodemotores.es/proxima-edicion-mercado-de-motores-madrid-2/

And if you go in costume, you can participate in a contest and win a free drink (read how here):

https://www.eventbrite.es/e/carnaval-disfraces-y-rondas-gratis-en-mercado-de-motores-tickets-1232947963549?aff=oddtdtcreator

Tips for those who are staying in Madrid next weekend

This week some students will travel to Andalusia as part of their program. Others who do not belong to that cohort will probably travel to other places. We wish them both a happy trip!

However, other students will stay in Madrid, and the ideas of this post are for them 💕:

On the first Saturday of every month from 8:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. you can visit the Museo del Prado for free. On February 1st you can visit the exhibitions: “Shaking hands. Sculpture and color in the Golden Age”, sponsored by the AXA Foundation, and “Sigmar Polke. Revealed affinities”, the painter’s first solo exhibition in Madrid, presented by the Museo del Prado and the Fundación Amigos Museo del Prado, in collaboration with the Madrid City Council. In addition, you can enjoy the exhibition of the Resurrected Christ, the first work by the artist Giulio Clovio in the collections of the Museo del Prado, thanks to the recent donation from American Friends.

Radio 3 will liven up this evening event in the Sala de las Musas with the station's DJs María Taosa, José Manuel Sebastián and Nacho Álvaro El Patillas Dj, highlighting the uniqueness of the proposal. Visitors will be offered the chance to pose in a photocall designed for the occasion by Samsung, and Café Prado and the Museum shop will also be open.

The celebration of the Chinese New Year, which has more than 4,000 years of history, coincides with the beginning of the crop cycle, despite the winter, and welcomes a new season, hence it is also known as the “Spring Festival”. In 2025, the Year of the Wooden Snake is celebrated (which begins on January 29) and as in previous years there is a complete program of activities (Jan 29 to Feb 15) to celebrate it (mainly in Usera, Madrid's Chinatown).

You can find all the activities in https://madridchino.com/distrito-usera-madrid-chino/ (it is only in Spanish and Chinese, but I am sure that you can figure out what it is said).

Also, in https://www.esmadrid.com/en/whats-on/china-taste, we can learn about the Chinese gastronomy for these celebration days:

"Celebrating Chinese New Year, which begins on 29 January 2025, the eighth edition of China Taste will be taking place from 20 January to 16 February. This ground-breaking culinary event promoted by the Chinese Embassy, the China Cultural Centre in Madrid, Madrid City Council and the Regional Government will be celebrating the arrival of the Year of the Snake in 2025. In addition to this culinary celebration, there will be several show cooking sessions at the China stand of the FITUR fair from 22 to 26 January.

To celebrate and promote China’s rich culinary tradition, this festival is being held in conjunction with Chinese restaurants throughout Madrid that are known for their use of high quality ingredients, excellent wine menus and efficient service. They have designed a special menu for the occasion that you can enjoy at all participating restaurants for a month at very reasonable prices.

In the 2025 edition of this event, 30 restaurants throughout Madrid and Mallorca will be delighting diners with Chinese haute cuisine guaranteed to satisfy even the most discerning food lovers. The Dim Sum Market is one of the unmissable venues taking part in this edition, known for its modern and authentic approach, which takes the art of dim sum to another level, combining tradition and creativity in each dish.

Other exceptional restaurants taking part include "Le Chinois", which prepares delicious dishes based around duck; "Soy Kitchen", a restaurant known for its creativity where chef Julio Zhang has created a dish known as Fire Fish especially for the occasion; and the restaurant "Chi-La" specialising in dishes from the province of Hunan, offering flavour and spice in equal measure. They also participate "Asia Té", "Bao Li", "El Buda Feliz 1974", "El Bund", "China Crown", "Chunli", "Cocina Lú", "Gran Café Shaghai", "Indochina Brasa", "Kököchin, Kzen", "Lelong Asian Club" and "Xiaolongkan".

China has a broad culinary culture classified into eight culinary styles or schools  (Sichuan, Shandong, Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Hunan and Anhui). China Taste aims to make people more familiar with Chinese cuisine through the participating restaurants.

This culinary festival has also partnered with the Spanish Red Cross, which gives it even greater added value. For each menu, China Taste will make a donation to projects run by the charity organisation."

Have a nice weekend wherever you are!

Madrid’s Musical Melting Pot this Week

Tuesday January 21_As part of Inverfest, the Movistar Arena (located inside the WiZink Center) hosts an event that pays tribute to the legacy of the immortal Van Morrison. https://www.movistararena.es/busqueda?evento=van-morrison-2021

Wednesday January 22_Pianist and composer Joep Beving released his latest album last summer. In collaboration with cellist Maarten Vos, in a small cabin in the woods, he wrote Vision of Contentment, an album dedicated to his friend, who passed away the previous year. Halfway between classical, minimalist and the most avant-garde experimentation. https://www.teatroscanal.com/espectaculo/joep-beving-maarten-vos-tc2425/

Wednesday January 22-Tuesday February18_The prestigious German director Christof Loy ('Arabella', 'Rusalka' or 'Capriccio') is in charge of directing the adaptation of Eugene Onegin, a classic opera by Tchaikovsky that returns after 15 years to the Teatro Real. https://tickets.teatroreal.es/selection/event/date?productId=10229194556811&lang=en 

Last minute tickets are very interesting because of their reduced price: for those under 26 years old, 20 euros in any area of ​​the theatre!: https://www.teatroreal.es/en/how-buy

Sunday January 26_Sho Hai, member of the influential rap band Violadores del Verso, ends his Polvo tour with a great concert at the La Riviera venue, in an event that is part of the Inverfest programme. https://inverfest.com/events/sho-hai/

Sunday January 26_Candlelight concerts bring the magic of a live music experience to incredible venues in Madrid. Buy your tickets now to discover Coldplay's music at the exclusive Four Seasons Hotel under the soft light of candles: https://feverup.com/m/115425/en

Sunday January 26_What do you feel when you listen to Vivaldi's Spring? What colours do the rhythms of Autumn suggest to you? The artist collective Projektil has taken this to another level: an immersive experience that opens this Saturday at the church of the German-Speaking Evangelical Community – Friedenskirche. Through site-specific video mapping projections (that is, adapted to the space to generate total immersion), we will be able to feel, see, imagine how Antonio Vivaldi's most famous concertos come to life. https://eonariumexperiences.com/madrid/enlightenment/en/

Welcome to the AU Madrid blog

Welcome to our blog!

In the other sections, you can find information about the most famous museums, cafes, theatres... But every week you will receive some tips on new things to enjoy the cultural life of Madrid. This week I recommend two exhibitions that you might like. The first one because it is about to disappear (not far from ISDE) and the second one because it has just arrived in Madrid.

The first one is The Berlin Wall. A World Divided ,a unique exhibition that chronicles the escalating conflict in divided Cold War Berlin.

• More than 300 original objects on display for the first time.
• Unpublished testimonies of citizens from both sides.
• A thorough exploration of the global conflict that marked modern history.
• 🎧 Includes an audio guide in Spanish and English.

📅 General Information

• Date: For a limited time in Madrid.
• Times: from 11:00 to 22:00 (last access at 19:30). Closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
• Location: Sala Castellana 214 (Fundación Canal), Paseo de la Castellana 214, Madrid
• Special offer: Mondays at a reduced price, and free for the unemployed (at the box office, unless it's a public holiday)

The novelty is The Banksy Museum, which opened its doors in Madrid on January 2, with a certain mystery and in silence, appearing by surprise in Arganzuela... as Banksy, the artist to whom the space is dedicated, would have done. This new permanent exhibition shows more than 170 replicas of the works by the famous artist whose identity we do not know.

Banksy is Banksy: vindictive, combative, acid, direct, and with his own style as replicated as it is honored. Now, the Banksy Museum becomes the place in Madrid where you can explore his life and work in 1,500 square meters of exhibition space.

📅 General Information:

• Dates: every day from 10:00 to 20:00 (last admission at 19:15)
• Location: Paseo de la Esperanza 1 (Arganzuela)
• Price: Tickets from €14