Top 10 Things to do in Madrid by Open Travel Vacations
1. Golden Triangle of Art
2. Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial
3. Sobrino de Botin
4. Retiro Park
5. Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum
6. Prado Museum (Museo del Prado)
7. Royal Palace of Madrid
8. Plaza Mayor
9. Templo de Debod
10. Atocha Railroad Station
The region of Madrid has a semi-arid, Continental Mediterranean climate (CSa in the Köppen climate classification, but with some characteristics of Dsa) with cooler winters, due to altitude, including sporadic snowfalls and minimum temperatures usually below 0 °C (32 °F). Summer tends to be hot with temperatures that consistently surpass 30 °C (86 °F) in July and that can often reach 40 °C (104 °F). Due to Madrid high altitude and dry climate, nightly temperatures tend to be cooler, leading to a lower average in the summer months. Precipitation levels are low, but precipitation can be observed throughout the year. Summer and winter are the driest seasons, with most rainfall occurring in the autumn and spring
Although the site of Madrid has been occupied since prehistoric times, the first historical data that concerns the city dates from the middle of the ninth Century, when Mohammad I ordered the construction of a small palace (site occupied now by the Palacio Real). Around this palace there was built a small citadel (al-Mudaina). The palace was built overlooking the River Manzanares, which the Muslims called Mayrit meaning source of water (which in turn became Magerit, and then eventually Madrid). The citadel was conquered in 1085 by Alfonso VI in his advance towards Toledo. He reconsecrated the mosque as the church of the Virgin of Almudena (almudin, the garrison's granary), now the Catedral de la Almudena. In 1329 the Cortes first assembled in Madrid to advise Fernando IV. Jews and Moors continued to live in the city in their quarter, still known today as the "Moreria", until they were expelled. The Royal Palace of Madrid and the buildings and monuments of the Paseo del Prado (Salón del Prado and Alcalá Gate) deserve special mention. They were constructed in a sober Baroque international style, often mistaken for neoclassical, by the Bourbon kings .Plans for the construction of a new cathedral for Madrid dedicated to the Virgin of Almudena began in the 16th century, but the slow construction did not begin until 1879. Francisco de Cubas, the Marquis of Cubas, was the architect who designed and directed the construction in a Gothic revival style. Construction ceased completely during the Spanish Civil War. The project was abandoned until 1950, when Fernando Chueca Goitia adapted the plans of de Cubas to a neoclassical style exterior to match the grey and white façade of the Palacio Real, which stands directly opposite. and was not completed until 1993, when the cathedral was consecrated by Pope John Paul II.
Spain's railway system, the Red Nacional de Ferrocarriles Españoles (Renfe) operates the vast majority of Spain's railways. In Madrid, the main rail terminals are Atocha in the south and Chamartín in the north.
The crown jewel of Spain's next decade of infrastructure construction is the Spanish high speed rail network, Alta Velocidad Española AVE. Currently, an ambitious plan includes the construction of a 7,000 kilometre (4,350 mi) network, centered on Madrid. The overall goal is to have all important provincial cities be no more than 4 hours away from Madrid, and no more than 6 hours away from Barcelona. As of 2008, AVE high-speed trains link Atocha station to Seville, Málaga and Toledo in the south and to Zaragoza, Lleida, Tarragona and Barcelona in the east. AVE trains also arrive to Valladolid and Segovia.
Skyscraper will be only about 89 cm higher than the high-rise adjacent to the Torre de Cristal.
The building was designed by Sir Norman Foster, and its opening is planned for 2008 .
Originally the tower was known as Torre Repsol and was to be the main headquarters of Repsol YPF, the companies involved in processing crude oil and natural gas. During the construction of Repsol has decided to change the location of the headquarters building and sold financial institution Caja Madrid, which it acquired in August 2007 for 815 million euros.
Madrid is regarded as one of the most important places in Europe regarding art museums. The most notable being Triángulo del Arte, located along the street Paseo del Prado, including three museums. The most famous is the Prado Museum, there are works by some of the greatest painters including Diego Velázquez - Las Meninas (The Maids court) and Francisco Goya - La May vestida and La May desnuda. The other two are in museums: Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza - is the second in terms of the value of private collection of art in the world, there are pictures of all the important artists representing all major lines of art, from medieval painting after Surrealism and avant-garde, and the Queen Sofia Art Center . This is the face of contemporary art collection of Spanish as well as the place where the famous picture hangs Pablo Picasso - Guernica
According ordered the chroniclers of Arab Emir of Cordoba, Mohamed I. (852-886 AD.), In the year 852 AD to build a fortress on the left bank of the Manzanares, the geographical center of the Iberian Peninsula. In this era of him 'Mayrit "(' water source") called settlement is the origin of the city now known as Madrid. Traces of this flourishing Moorish town survive to this day - in a part of the city (Muralla Arabe) near the royal palace and the Mudejar architectural style of Madrid's oldest church, San Nicolás de las Servitas. Mayrit (also Magerit) was a strategically important location and Christians and Arabs fought bitterly until the end of the 11th Century around this area until Alfonso VI. these clashes after a three-year siege ultimately with the occupation of the castle Alcazar ended. However, it would be another 500 years until 1561 Philip II took the historic decision, its capital city of Valladolid to Madrid to relocate. Madrid is still the center of the Spanish financial world and politics, the seat of the Cortes (Parliament), the Senate and the royal family as well as the extraordinary cultural riches of the Golden Triangle, consisting of Prado, Reina Sofía Museum and the Museum Thyssen - Bornemisza.
Madrid derives almost 50 percent of its water supply from dams and reservoirs built on the Lozoya River, such as the El Atazar Dam.
There are several theories regarding the origin of the name "Madrid". According to legend Madrid was founded by Ocno Bianor (son of King Tyrrhenius of Tuscany and Mantua) and was named "Metragirta" or "Mantua Carpetana". Others contend that the original name of the city was "Ursaria" ("land of bears" in Latin), due to the high number of these animals that were found in the adjacent forests, which, together with the strawberry tree ("madroño" in Spanish), have been the emblem of the city from the Middle Ages.
Nevertheless,it is now commonly believed that the origin of the current name of the city comes from the 2nd century B.C., the Roman Empire established a settlement on the banks of the Manzanares river. The name of this first village was "Matrice" (a reference to the river that crossed the settlement). Following the invasions of the Sueves, Vandals and Alans during the fifth century A.D., the Roman Empire could not defend its territories on the Iberian Peninsula, and were therefore overrun by the Visigoths. The barbarian tribes subsequently took control of "Matrice". In the 7th century the Islamic conquest of the Iberian Peninsula saw the name changed to "Mayrit", from the Arabic term "Mayra" (referencing water as a "trees" or "giver of life") and the Ibero-Roman suffix "it" that means "place". The modern "Madrid" evolved from the Mozarabic "Matrit", which is still in the Madrilenian gentilic.
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain.After London and Berlin it is the third largest city of the European Union.
The city is located on the river Manzanares both in the centre of the country and Community of Madrid (which comprises the city of Madrid, its subsequent conurbation and extended suburbs and villages); this community is bordered by the autonomous communities of Castile and León and Castile-La Mancha. As the capital city of Spain, seat of government, and residence of the Spanish monarch, Madrid is also the political center of Spain. The current mayor is Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón from the center-right People's Party. He has been in office since 2003, when he left the Presidency of the Autonomous Community of Madrid and stood as the candidate to replace outgoing mayor José María Álvarez del Manzano, also from the PP. In the last local elections of 2007, Ruiz-Gallardón increased the PP majority in the City Council to 34 seats out of 57, taking 55.5% of the popular vote and winning in all but two districts.
As the capital, Madrid is a city of cultural and political importance. It is also a major European economic centre, and its international airport at Barajas is the largest in Spain. Due to its economic output, standard of living, and market size, Madrid is considered the major financial center of the Iberian Peninsula; it hosts the head offices of the vast majority of the major Spanish companies, as well as the headquarters of three of the world's 100 largest companies (Telefónica, Repsol-YPF, Endesa).
