The joys of Old Madrid, and the joys of football

So after that traditional breakfast our walk today starts at the commemorative Puerto de Toledo, after which we follow Calle de Toledo all the way to the city centre, via Plaza Mayor, through to Plaza del Sol and its Madrid icon, the statue of the bear and the arbutus tree. The spiritual heart of this city was historically Plaza de La Paja until it was usurped by the still majestic square which is Plaza Mayor, though in modern days this in turn is now rivalled by del Sol, and its iconic, albeit recent, statue. 

For Adrian and me, the obvious difference here is the prices. Plaza Mayor remains a grand square with many attractive cafes, but we are living cheaply down in Old Madrid, whereas here in the Plaza it’s exploitative, just twenty minutes walk from our neighbourhood yet simply no comparison between prices. You know, it’s really not that hard to avoid being ripped off. You really don’t have to look that far. We move on..

Parque del Retiro is a wonderful green space in the heart of the city, Madrid’s jewel in terms of such, and today, Sunday, it is thronged with families, sunbathers, joggers, martial arts classes, pretty much all of life. 

And so after lunch in yet another wonderful taberna, we are off to what is, after all, the main reason that two old guys like us are here: the football. Atletico Madrid’s new stadium is majestic in the new style of football (soccer) grounds, out on the outer limits of the metro lines. Its 67,000 capacity makes for a lofty stadium, and, as our seats are up in the gods, the climb to the top needs ice picks and crampons and by the time we reach our seats we are more ready for a snooze than excitement!

On to the game..

With the important things in Spanish football settled for the season in terms of championships and European qualification, tonight’s game against Sevilla is effectively a dead rubber, but the huge and vociferous crowd are clearly expecting an end-of-season party, and the home team quickly buy in. 1-0 up at half time, the scene is set, but Sevilla poop the party, bossing the second half and end up just a little unlucky to take away just a single point in a 1-1 draw. It’s an open and entertaining match, and the pageant of a huge stadium filled with passionate fans is as stimulating as it ever is. Anywhere. 

Back in the city, our day ends almost inevitably back at El Bombin. Well, it would be rude not to. Without doubt this bar has given me the most free drinks and free food I’ve ever been given anywhere on our travels, and tonight repeats it all. Good beer, good wine, great pintxos, great rapport with staff. We’ve now spent at least some time here on all three nights of our visit and we are yet to hear the voice of a single other tourist. We are incredibly lucky to have this place on our doorstep, it’s brilliant. We have loved it; rarely do you get lucky enough to find a locals’ enclave in a capital city, but Old Madrid seems to have retained authentic Spanish character in its narrow atmospheric streets.