Madrid

El Escorial

By Christopher Minster

The bustling modern capital of Spain somehow manages to defy and define the nation at the same time. The Madrileños are quintessential Spanish, in everything from their love of fútbol and traditional food to their mannerisms and accents. The streets of Madrid hold treasures like centuries-old tapas bars and bookstores featuring original copies of tomes from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries and even before. You can catch a bullfight at the largest ring in Spain, spend all day chatting at a sidewalk cafe, and see traditional flamenco dancers. At night, the pubs fill with brightly dressed university students toting guitars: they are tunas, wandering singers, who will sing for beer and wine. Tunas trace their origins to the troubadours of the middle ages.

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