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 dear 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 more on the history of this nostalgic street for me and my family , This is a memorable spots since youths days and continue to retiree guy with many huge family memories,Of course, this will be in my black and white series, no pictures, I like to tell you more on the Calle de Alcalà of Madrid, part II !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.

The Calle de Alcalá stretches for more than 10 kilometers (10,200 meters) from the center of Madrid to the San Blas-Canillejas district, next to the M-40 highway. It is an emblematic street of the city, crossing five districts and 16 neighborhoods of Madrid. In addition to being the longest street in Madrid, Alcalá Street begins in the very center of Spain, at kilometer zero of Puerta del Sol. Alcalà is an Arabic word meaning “the castle.” It is the longest street in Madrid ,and the third longest street in Spain. Its origins date back to the 15C as an extension of Calle Mayor towards Alcalá de Henares and Aragón. Hence its name. The current one, of course, because at first it was called “Calle de los Olivares” (Olive Groves Street) because it crossed an olive grove, which is hard to imagine today. Between Puerta del Sol and the Glorieta de Eisenhower roundabout ,it goes thru Districts 1 (Center), 3 (Retiro), 4 (Salamanca), 15 (Ciudad Lineal), and 20 (Canillejas). The neighborhoods of Las Cortes, Justicia, Jerónimos, Recoletos, Goya, Fuente del Berro, Guindalera, Ventas, Pueblo Nuevo, Quintana (lived), Simancas, Rosas, Rejas, Canillejas, and Salvador.

For a very short time, during the middle years of the 19C, it was called the Duque de Victoria or Duke of Victory. The duke was none other than Baldomero Espartero, a great specialist in uprisings, governments and exiles. The first Puerta de Alcalá Gate ended the urban road at the current Calle de Alfonso XI , a gate built between 1636 and 1639 and disappeared in 1778 to make way for the great work of Sabatini that we can admire today. The section between Cibeles and the Puerta de Alcalá was called Calle del Pósito. With the castrum widening project, the Carretera de Aragón road, a natural extension of our street and also its source of supply, became an urban road up to Plaza Manuel Becerra, and Calle de Alcalá was stretched out at the same time as the nascent Salamanca neighbourhood was being built. Later it was extended to the Abroñigal stream, and when the city of Madrid crossed the stream’s valley, it began to threaten the existence of the carretera de Aragón highway, which was getting shorter and shorter every time it seemed that there was no end to the Calle de Alcalá. Thus, it reached the intersection with Ciudad Lineal, in the place that everyone still knows or knew as the Cross of the Fallen or, more commonly, La Cruz. And, recently,the street has swallowed up Avenida de Aragón in its first section. In this way, it is the longest street in the city. In this way, the street today links Puerta del Sol almost with Barajas Airport, since it ends at the Eisenhower roundabout, which is more than a roundabout, it is a set of complicated interchanges between the Barcelona highway, the M-40 and the airport highway.

A bit of a tour if I make a big effort with the helps of my books and brochures of old and now it tells us that from Puerta del Sol ,right at the start of the street, occupying Nos 5, 7, 9 and 11, there is an imposing building, Francisco Sabatini’s first work in Madrid, which was built between 1761 and 1769 to house the Casa Real de Aduanas or Royal Customs House. The Ministry of Finance was installed there in 1845, and it is still used today to contain dependencies related to the public treasury. The neighboring building houses one of the most important institutions of Spanish culture, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando. The Goyeneche Palace was built between 1724 and 1725 on the old Calle Ancha de Peligros, today Calle Sevilla, whose left sidewalk and the corner with Calle de Alcalá are occupied by the majestic building of the Banco Español de Crédito, formerly the Equitativa.The Quadrigas de Basterra on top this is at Calle de Alcalá,no, 16 , The former Bank of Bilbao It opened in 1923 On the other side, where the headquarters of the Banco Bilbao-Vizcaya now stand. The Royal Casino of Madrid was founded in 1836 as a social club ,it is at Calle de Alcalá,no, 15, we come across the façade of the Calatravas Church. After climbing a small hill, the Calle de Alcalá descends and leads us to three little-known buildings: the State Secretariat for Equality, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport, the State Secretariat for Education, and the General Secretariat for Penitentiary Institutions, We continue along Calle de Alcalá and reach the corner with Gran Vía, a large intersection dominated by the Metrópolis building ,and the Winged Victory atop its dome, the first of those built on the new avenue on the site of the Casa del Ataúd. If we cross Gran Vía, we come face to face with the façade of the Church of San José. Before the construction of the current temple, there was already a convent of Discalced Carmelites here with a church that disappeared when the current one was built. project in 1733 ,and completed in 1742. Passing through the Plaza de Cibeles, whose four corners are occupied by important buildings worthy of mention. Among them the Círculo de Bellas Artes. Opposite the Department of Finance and Public Administration is the Bank of Spain. But, luckily for us, the current headquarters of the Instituto Cervantes, located in the Caryatids building, the Buenavista Palace, and the Cibeles Fountain are probably some of the landmarks for tourists to admire a bit of greenery as the Madrid City Hall, where the Centro Centro is located. The second building is the Casa de América, a landmark in Spain’s relations with Latin America.

The Puerta de Alcalá is located at the northwest end of Retiro Park in the Plaza de la Independencia It is in this park in Madrid where the Book Fair is held and at the end of which is the Cuesta de Moyano , and continuing towards the Puerta de Alcalá .and the Retiro metro entrance. There is a small and pretty church at No 83, the Church of San Manuel and San Benito (one of my Mom’s favorites), built between 1902 and 1910. On the other side, at the junction with Calle O’Donnell street, are what we all know as the Aguirre Schools, which currently house offices of the Madrid City Council. Its most characteristic feature is its tower, with three bodies and a metal and glass attic from which you can enjoy a beautiful view of Madrid. Continue along Calle de Alcalá , and we find the Casa Árabe. We can see luxury shops until we reach Plaza Manuel Becerra and see the Eva Duarte Park, one of the largest parks in the area. From there you go downhill to reach the valley that was formerly occupied by the Abroñigal stream and where the M-30 beltway highway runs today. And there, on the left, is one of the most significant points not only of Calle de Alcalá , but of all Madrid. The brick structure of the Las Ventas Monumental Bullring. Leaving the bullring behind, We continue towards the M-40, but the rest of Calle de Alcalá is residential, with very little tourist interest. Nevertheless, it was a good walk of almost 5 km, half of it along Calle de Alcalá. We’ve crossed the Abroñigal stream and entered a section of our street that doesn’t contain monumental or aristocratic buildings, but is one of the liveliest and most boisterous spots in all of Madrid. El Carmen and Quintana,(my neighborhood!) two characteristic neighborhoods whose backbone was the Carretera de Aragón road, and today Calle de Alcalá, And for the memories , the Café de Fornos, called Gran Café from May 1909 onwards, was a leisure establishment opened in 1870, on the corner of Calle de Alcalá and Calle de la Virgen de los Peligros, opposite the Café Suizo. the meeting place for intellectuals, aristocrats, politicians, military personnel, and writers. Ernest Hemingway mentions Café Fornos in his novel Death in the Afternoon . Paco the dog (a very popular stray dog ​​in Madrid at the time) was a regular at the café, alternating his visits between the Café Suizo and Café Fornos. Unamuno and Pío Baroja were introduced to the café for the first time. Alfonso XII is also mentioned as a visitor, in the nocturnal company of the Marquis of Alcañices and ‘Dr. Camisón’ (the King’s chamber physician). More legendary is the presence of the spy Mata Hari at the café. Another regular king was Amadeo I of Spain, who was apparently there when he was informed of his “dismissal” on February 11, 1873. It is also noted that, after receiving the news, he canceled the order and ordered a grappa instead, then gathered his family and returned to Italy that same day.

The Madrid tourist office : https://www.esmadrid.com/en

The City of Madrid on its districts  : https://www.madrid.es/portales/munimadrid/es/Inicio/Distritos/?vgnextfmt=default&vgnextchannel=f9792593e5d48810VgnVCM1000008a4a900aRCRD

The comunidad de Madrid tourist office on Madrid : https://www.visitmadrid.es/en/where-to-go/madrid-the-capital-of-spain

The Spain National tourist office on Madrid : https://www.spain.info/en/destination/madrid/

There you go folks, another wonderful story post on my dear Madrid ; come to see it to see what i mean, and you will be glad your read my post. Again, hope you enjoy this post on the Calle de Alcalà of Madrid ,part II !!! as I.

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