Author Archives: MadridMan

2012 San Isidro Festival in Madrid’s Pradera de San Isidro

Posted on May 15, 2012 by MadridMan

Today, 15th of May, is Madrid’s Patron Saint’s Day, San Isidro Labrador. It’s Madrid’s most “Castizo” day of the year with festival events throughout the city including concerts in “Las Vistillas”, a month long bullfight festival in the Plaza de … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain, Entertainment, Food, Photos | Tagged 15 mayo, 2012, Chulapas, Chulapos, El Chotis, Ermita del Santo, Fuente, goyesca, Misa, pradera de san isidro, rosquillas, san isidro, water | 3 Comments

BIG Price Raise in Madrid Public Transportation

Posted on April 11, 2012 by MadridMan

Starting 1 May 2012, end-users of Madrid’s Public Transportation System will feel the sting of the sharpest price raises in 10-years. This raise takes place at the same time as the prices of gasoline, electricity and natural gas go up … Continue reading →

Posted in Money, Travel | Tagged airport bus, autobus, budget, bus, cheap, city, economical, expensive, Madrid, metro, price, public, public transportation, raise, shuttle, subsidized, transportation | 6 Comments

Palm Sunday Procession in Madrid 2012

Posted on April 1, 2012 by MadridMan

Palm Sunday, or “Domingo de Ramos” in Spanish, is the first day of Holy Week (“Semana Santa”) processions throughout Spain. This afternoon I caught the “Cristo de la Fe y del Perdón” procession of the San Miguel Church in Madrid, … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain | Tagged 2012, band, cross, Domingo de Ramos, Holy Week, holy week music, Iglesia, jesus christ, Madrid, Nazareños, Palm Sunday, paso, Penitentes, Plaza de la Villa, Procession, religion, San Miguel, Semana Santa, Virgin Mary | 2 Comments

Spain’s General Labor Strike Today

Posted on March 29, 2012 by MadridMan

Today is a General Labor Strike in Spain against labor reform. That’s not to say no one is going to work, but enough so you’d notice. Some small shops and restaurants are closed because they don’t have the personnel to … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain, Money | Tagged bus, communists, derechos, España, Huelga General, labor reform, Labor Strike, Madrid, manifestación, march, metro, Plaza de Neptuno, protest, Puerta del Sol, rights, servicios minimos, Spain, transportation, Worker Strike, workers, you gotta fight for your right to party | 1 Comment

Langostinos – FAT Shrimp for Friday Night Dinner in Madrid

Posted on March 16, 2012 by MadridMan

Growing up in the rural Ohio, USA, “America’s Heartland“, eating shrimp was a near-luxury, something you only got if you went to the Red Lobster family restaurant in the next town. If you went to “the big city”, however, you … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, Health | Tagged cheese, cocktail sauce, dinner, langostinos, local market, market, meals, prawns, Red Lobster, Rueda, rueda wine, salsa rosa, seafood, shrimp, spanish food, Spanish wine, white wine, Wine | 2 Comments

C(H)OEURS Ballet-Opera in Teatro Real Madrid

Posted on March 15, 2012 by MadridMan

(pssst! One of the below photos contains full rear male nudity. if you’re sensitive to such things, read no further – but you don’t really see anything apart from their rears. Speaking of rear-ends, this blog entry has an ending … Continue reading →

Posted in Entertainment | Tagged Alain Platel, Ballet, C(H)OEURS, dance, Madrid, modern, Opera, Opera house, palco, performance, reaction, Royal Theater, Teatro Real, tickets, verdi, wagner | Leave a comment

Spring Sprung Early in Madrid

Posted on March 14, 2012 by MadridMan

The almond trees are blooming and buds are sprouting, too. It must have reached 70ºF here today and, surprising to no one, and it was a perfect day. A great day to have all the windows open. I know, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Health | Tagged almendros, almond blossoms, buds, floreciendo, heat, hot, laundry, spring, summer, trees, warm | 2 Comments

Spanish Holiday TV Tour of Huertas Madrid

Posted on March 13, 2012 by MadridMan

Last September 2011 I had the true pleasure and privilege to escort television personality, Najip Ali through the Plaza Santa Ana and the Barrio de Huertas in Madrid – ON CAMERA!!! Najip is the host of “Makan Angin Sepanyol” (“Spanish … Continue reading →

Posted in Entertainment, Travel | Tagged Barrio de las Letras, channel, host, Huertas, interview, Makan Angin Sepanyol, Malay, Najip Ali, Plaza Santa Ana, Singapore, Suria, TV interview, Video, walk | 2 Comments

Semana Santa – Holy Week in Seville

Posted on March 12, 2012 by MadridMan

The following is a “guest blog” by Susan from Michigan USA, her second guest blog on MadridMan’s Madrid Blog. The photos included are the property of Susan herself. DISCLAIMER: The comments and opinions expressed by our esteemed guest blogger do … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain | Tagged barrio Santa Cruz, catholic, church, customs, el gran poder, Holy Week, Jesus, jewish quarter, KKK, la macarena, Nazareños, parade, pasos, Penitentes, Procession, processions, saeta, Semana Santa, sevillanos, seville, Virgin Mary, worship | 7 Comments

11 March 2012: Choose Your Cause. Or Don’t!

Posted on March 11, 2012 by MadridMan

Today, Sunday March 11, they scheduled a march and demonstration from the Plaza de Neptuno to the Puerta del Sol in Madrid to protest the labor reforms in Spain. Today, Sunday, March 11, is also the 8th year anniversary of … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain | Tagged choice, demonstration, football, holidays, labor reform, Madrid, madrid bombings, manifestación, memorium, politics, reforma laboral, terrorism, train bombings, victims | 1 Comment

Cine de Barrio on Spanish TV

Posted on March 10, 2012 by MadridMan

Here I sit at my computer, poking away at this blog entry, as Sara Montiel sings the copla song “Una, Dos y Tres” in the 1959 Spanish movie, “Carmen, La de Ronda” on the weekly TV program Cine de Barrio. … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain, Entertainment, Flamenco | Tagged Carmen Sevilla, Cine de Barrio, Concha Velasco, coplas, flamenco, Movie, Music, program, Spanish movies, Spanish singing, Spanish TV, television, traditional, TVE | Leave a comment

Hearing Flamenco Music in my Madrid Neighborhood

Posted on March 9, 2012 by MadridMan

I’ve often been criticized for liking, even enjoying Flamenco music by my Spanish peers. “Only our grandmothers listened to flamenco music because that’s all there was!“, they’d say. Thusly, flamenco has been mostly shunned by popular Spanish culture – OUTSIDE … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain, Flamenco | Tagged community, copla, flamenco, flamenco music, gypsies, gypsy, Music, singing, Spanish music | 4 Comments

Madrid Menu del Dia for 7 Euros in the Neighborhood

Posted on March 8, 2012 by MadridMan

“Cafetería Javi” – a.k.a. “Bar Ramos” – on the Calle Sagrados Corazones, 25, in Madrid, near metro station Alto de Extremadura (L6), is my favorite neighborhood bar at which to have a wonderful, and economical, “Menú del Día” for just … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain, Food, Money | Tagged bar, cafeteria, cheap, cheap lunch, economic, food, lunch, Madrid, meals, Menu del dia, price | 18 Comments

Madrid Post Office Trip

Posted on March 7, 2012 by MadridMan

Maybe using the word “trip” isn’t the best way to describe today’s visit to my local post office (“correos“), but it did take 15 minutes to walk there. It’s located on the far side of my neighborhood, passing the metro, … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain, Money | Tagged barrio, Bars, Correos, mail, Menu del dia, neighborhood, neighbors, Post office | 5 Comments

Ballet in Madrid’s Teatro Real

Posted on February 19, 2012 by MadridMan

Last night I had the great pleasure to witness the ballet in Madrid’s Teatro Real, featuring the “Danza Contemporánea de Cuba” – the 20-person Cuban Contemporary Dance Group. No, this was not a tutu-and-pionte-shoe classical ballet, but it did not … Continue reading →

Posted in Entertainment, Photos | Tagged auditorium, Balet, Ballet, Cava, Danza, Danza Contemporanea, Danza Contemporanea de Cuba, fotos, foyer, Madrid, Opera house, Palacio Real, photos, Plaza de Oriente, sala, Teatro, Teatro Real, tostadas, Video | 1 Comment

English-Speaking Friends Return to Home Countries

Posted on February 17, 2012 by MadridMan

This is not a tourism-focused blog entry. Clearly! But I often have “feelings”, other experiences, which really have nothing to do with tourism. I guess any non-Spanish-native has these longings, these deep, inexplicable yearnings for sound, safe, familiar grounds. This, … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged Britian, England, english, Ireland, Irish, Madrid, Midwestern, Ohio, Spain, travel, USA, visitors, work | 22 Comments

Feels Like Home When Merchants Know Your Name

Posted on February 2, 2012 by MadridMan

Okay. The local merchants don’t really know my name, but they know ME and that’s what counts. How can a foreigner feel any more “at home” than when the merchants, at which the weekly purchases are made, know your face, … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain, General, Money | Tagged barrio, carniceria, charcuteria, chicken, chino, el chino, fish, foreigner, lifestyle, living, Madrid, meat, neighborhood, newsstand, pescaderia, polleria, prensa, Spain | 16 Comments

Madrid Airport Express Shuttle Bus

Posted on January 25, 2012 by MadridMan

Madrid’s Airport Express Shuttle Bus has been in operation for over a year and is an easy alternative – for many – to taxis, “cercanías” regional trains, and even the metro for getting into downtown Madrid cheaply and quickly. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Money, Travel | Tagged aeropuerto, airport, airport shuttle, atocha, Barajas, cercanias, cheap, Madrid, Madrid Barajas, metro, Paseo del Prado, Plaza de Cibeles, shuttle, shuttle bus, taxi, temrina 4, terminal, transportation | 12 Comments

Rick Steves Spain 2012 Recommends MadridMan

Posted on January 17, 2012 by MadridMan

Imagine my thrill last November in a Columbus, Ohio Barnes & Noble bookstore during my annual USA visit, leafing through the “Rick Steves’ Spain 2012” book which recommended MadridMan.com!! He wrote: “Helpful Website: MadridMan.com is run with passion by American [MadridMan] … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain, General, Travel | Tagged book, Europe, Europe Through The Back Door, Madrid, MadridMan, recommendation, Rick Steves, Spain, travel, travel book | 9 Comments

Madrid Christmas 2011, New Years, Magic Kings 2012

Posted on January 12, 2012 by MadridMan

Another Spanish holiday season comes to a close. It was nice and I tend to really enjoy Christmastime, no matter where I am. Being in Madrid, Spain makes it especially “exotic”, even after living here for 6-years. The Christmas lights … Continue reading →

Posted in About Spain, Photos | Tagged 2011, 2012, belen, Cabalgata, Christmas, Christmas Eve, gifts, Madrid, meals, nativity, New Year, New Years Eve, Nochebuena, Nochevieja, Reyes Magos, roscon, roscón de reyes, turkey | 4 Comments

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