Paris1972-Versailles2003

I love to take you back to my wonderful dear Madrid. Another soft spot in my heart and always come back to it, lucky me. I have written many posts on my city and you can tell my inclination for it. It never cease over the years since that day I came upon it in 1971.  Let me tell you a bit about an off the beaten path that is right in one of the most visible streets of Madrid!! This is a memorable street of youths partying and later subtle family visits. I like to tell you a bit on the Calle del Arenal of Madrid !!!! Hope you enjoy the post as I

The Calle del Arenal is a popular historical streetof Madrid, linking the Puerta del Sol (pic from Arenal to Puerta del Sol) and Plaza de Isabel II (Opera) Its name comes from the primitive stream that flowed through its path before urbanizing the area with which it appears labeled already in the map of Teixeira from 1656 as in the successive maps of the city of Madrid.  Calle del Arenal is a pedestrian and Traffic-Free Zone for most of its length, It is one of 10 Streets emanating from the Puerta del Sol

Some interesting buildings to see here with a story are:  The street contains a plaque and a small museum as a memorial to a spanish icon ,Ratoncito Pérez (Mouse Pérez), The subject of a story written by Father Luis Coloma (a Jesuit Priest who wrote novels and children’s stories) for the young King Alfonso XIII when he lost a milk tooth. The author located the residence of Ratoncito Pérez at No 8 Calle del Arenal, This story came about in 1894, when Queen Maria Cristina of Hapsburg-Lorraine asked the author Luis Coloma to write a story for her 8 years old son, who had just lost a tooth. Further interest you can find more at official house museum raton perez: https://www.casamuseoratonperez.es/

You can see the extravagant Palacio de Gaviria at no 9, a 19C confection that lay empty for decades. Restoration in 1991.Do visit and enjoy its historic atmosphere and many works of art, it currently closed, Also, the nice quant Libreria San Ginés ,in the pasadizo San Ginés, off Arenal ,there since 1650,  a hidden treasure, a second-hand book stand tucked under the dark wooden eaves of the ancient Church San Ginés, update: I have read from Madrid the libreria has closed sadly!

A bit of history tell us that a route determined by the topography, the ancient Arenal, formed by the runoffs that flowed into it, followed the course of the intermittent Arroyo de la Zarza stream which, coming out of the ravine of the same name (in what would later be the Puerta del Sol), reached the plazuela del Barraco which would then be filled into the popularly known Plaza de la Opera. From there, taking the abundant flow of the Caños del Peral, the Arenal basin ran south in search of the stream of Leganitos, in the vicinity of the Cuesta de San Vicente. The Arenal separated two of the oldest outskirts from the primitive medieval village, the one of Saint Ginés to the south ,and sheltered from the Church of San Ginés, (see post) ,and that of Saint Martin extending northward under the rule of the Benedictine abbey of San Martín , a Mozarabic priory.

The first palaces were built in the 16C, disappearing gradually to make room for the houses of stale families of Madrid, In the second half of the 19C, the central and populous street was filled with hotels and houses of travelers and take out eateries in the books of foreign travelers of the 18-19C and first third of the 20C. The opening in 1853 of the Travasia del Arenal on the main road to link with the Plaza Mayor.   Although renovated on successive occasions, the Church of San Ginés (see post) still occupies the space from which we have the most distant news of a building. At number 11 is the new Teatro Eslava (Joy Eslava see post), a historic scene of various chapters of Madrid’s night history since the 1870s. Indeed fantastic memories forever here !!.

From the cafes, you can remember the Café de la Europa, and the new Café de Levante, at number 15, with talks and encounters of the likes of Ramón María del Valle-Inclán, José Martínez Ruiz «Azorín», the painters José José Gutiérrez Solana, Santiago Rusiñol and Julio Romero de Torres, brothers Pío and Ricardo Baroja and cartoonist Rafael de Penagos. Even old shops such as the bookstore of the Librería de los Bibliófilos Españoles (Spanish Bibliophiles), the Prast Confectionery, or the castiza chocolatería San Ginés,(see post) in the Pasadizo de San Ginés are preserved. It is one of the most popular places to have chocolate with churros since it was founded in 1894.

The Madrid tourist office on the Calle del Arenal shopping:  https://www.esmadrid.com/en/mayor-arenal-shopping

There you go folks, another wonderful spot in my dear Madrid ; come to see it for more than the buildings, and you will be glad your read my post. Again, hope you enjoy the Calle del Arenal of Madrid as I.

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!