After bidding farewell to South America, I took a 12-hour flight from Buenos Aires to Madrid on Aerolineas Argentina. I like the plane because it has a 2-4-2 seating arrangement, broad legroom and touch-screen entertainment system.

Madrid may lack the cachet of Paris, the monumental history of Rome, or Barcelona’s reputation for Modernista masterpieces. And no, there is no equivalent of the Eiffel Tower, Colosseum or La Sagrada Família that you can point to and say ‘this is Madrid’. But Madrid has nothing to be envious of. Spain’s broad sweep of architectural history provides a glorious backdrop to city life, from medieval mansions and royal palaces to the unimagined angles of Spanish contemporary architecture, from the sober brickwork and slate spires of Madrid baroque to the extravagant confections of the belle époque. Put simply, this is one beautiful city.

Having visited only Barcelona the previous time that I was in Spain, it was inaccurate to say that I had visited the real Spain. The Spain would say that I had visited Catalunya which is a strong separatist region in Spain. Thus Madrid was the real deal and I could not wait to explore the city. With its easy-to-use metro, I reached Puerto del Sol (Gate of the Sun in Spanish) station in 40 minutes from the airport. It was a huge square with streets diverging in all directions, music of buskers filled the air and tourists posed for photos in front of the large equestrian statue of King Carlos III.

According to a Spanish New Year tradition, the locals would gather in front of the Casa de Correos clock to eat 12 grapes, coinciding with the number of chimes at midnight, supposedly to bring them good luck for the new year.

The food street of Madrid, Calle Cuchilleros, is located west of Puerta del Sol. For fresh iberico ham, cheese or oysters, head to the Mercado (market) San Miguel north of Puerta del Sol. It is like the wet markets in Singapore, selling a variety of fresh produce from fruits and vegetables to meat and dairy products.

Restaurant: Fatigas del Querer
Address: Calle de la Cruz 17, Madrid
Cuisine: Spanish

For lunch, I suggest going to Fatigas del Querer. Dining in Spain can be affordable especially when you make use of their daily lunch special which costs around €10-15 or €20 at more touristy establishments. I paid only
€12 for my lunch set menu which came with a first course (paella), second course (fried cod served with salad), chocolate cake for dessert and a bottle of house red wine. There is no menu in English, but I had no problem ordering since I can understand Spanish. For the Korean family sitting in front of me, the waiter kindly explained to them in English the choices on the menu, there are other stuff to try such as soup, salad, sausage for the first course and other options such as steak for the second course. For drinks, you can choose betweem water, beer or wine. I chose wine of course, since I am in Spain which is well-known for producing wines. Even the cheap house wine tasted palatable to me.

first course – paella

second course – fried cod with salad

third course – chocolate cake

After having a satiated meal, I walked to the Atocha railway station to admire the architecture. The restaurant “Fatigas del Querer” was located about 10 minutes on foot to the train station, so you can satisfy your lunch desires if arriving at Madrid Atocha from other parts of Spain or before leaving the capital. The Madrid Atocha Train Station (Madrid Estación de Atocha ) is Madrid’s largest train station. The station is exceptional with its steel and glass construction, not to mention the vivid tropical gardens that line its concourse. In addition, travelers can enjoy viewing the permanent display of sculptures found within the station.

Stay tuned to more updates on San Sebastian, Pamplona and Bilbao in the upcoming posts. Adios!