Fiestas de la Paloma en La Latina (August 14 to 17)
This is by far the most famous summer festival in Madrid, in addition to the festival of San Lorenzo in Lavapies. Concerts, plays, workshops and, of course, food/drink kiosks are all over the neighborhood, especially around Plaza de la Paja, Plaza de la Cebada, Puerta de Moros, Almendor, and San Francisco. You can reach the festivities by metro stops La Latina, Tirso de Molina, and Puerta de Toledo. http://www.fiestas-de-madrid.com/fiestas-de-la-latina.htm
Fiestas de San Lorenzo en Lavapies (August 8 to 11)
August is fiesta or festival season in the center of Madrid. While the students, tourist, and other Spaniards leave the city for the beaches, real madrileños stay behind for the verbenas or street parties. Fiesta de San Lorenzo in Lavapies is the place to be with locals strutting their traditional chulap@s (traditional festival costumes) while dancing the chotis. You can reach the festivities by metro stops Lavapies, Tirso de Molina, Anton Martin, and Atocha.
Think nothing’s free in Madrid? Think again. We’ve got plenty of free things to do to keep your calendar booked.
This is an excellent list of free things to do any time of the year in Madrid. I've seen and been to almost all of the places mentioned on this list. My favorite, of course, is Casa Encendida because it epitomizes a real cultural center open to the public. It has art galleries, fair-trade shop, cafe, rooftop terrace, library, computer/internet room with printing (free for the public to use, of course), etc! Pick up a monthly schedule of events and you'll be surprised of the caliber of culture in this neo-Mudejar building. Check out Casa Encendida's Soundays concerts every Sunday in the months of July and August. http://www.lacasaencendida.es/es
Other cultural centers not on the list but worth checking out for free:
Matadero (Metro Legazpi): In the summer months, it has outdoor concerts and cinemas every weekend. Check out their website at http://www.mataderomadrid.org/
Tabacalera (Metro Embajadores): This is a self-sustaining cultural center managed by a collective. It offers many cultural event during the year, for example language courses, gardening, cinema, and countless workshops like free salsa (dance) lessons every Thursday--worth checking out. http://latabacalera.net/
La Caixa Forum (Metro Atocha): Well, this museum/art gallery used to be free for everybody, it has recently started charging 4eu for entry for adults. However, it is free for children 16 and under with tarjeta joven or student card and for clients of La Caixa bank. For hours and prices for entry, check out http://obrasocial.lacaixa.es/nuestroscentros/caixaforummadrid/horarios_es.html
Museo Municipal (Metro Tribunal): If you're ever in Tribunal, it is hard to miss this baroque building with an amazing facade. It is a museum dedicated to the urban development of Madrid as a modern city. It is small museum, but a good place to visit while you're waiting for friends. http://www.madrid.es/portal/site/munimadrid/menuitem.f4bb5b953cd0b0aa7d245f019fc08a0c/?vgnextoid=ab18a1ead63ab010VgnVCM100000d90ca8c0RCRD&vgnextchannel=0c369e242ab26010VgnVCM100000dc0ca8c0RCRD&vgnextfmt=default&rmColeccion=30fe658f83a5d010VgnVCM1000000b205a0aRCRD
Alpargatas aka espadrilles- Summer fashion on a budget
Madrid is h-o-t in the summer! If you’re travelling in the city at this time of the year, leave your shoes behind and buy espadrilles at one of the historic espadrille stores just outside the Plaza Mayor. Their cheap, durable, and fashionable too—well, at least you won’t look like a tourist wearing your Birkenstock with socks.
The most famous espadrille store in the city is Casa Hernanz (Calle Toledo 18). It is a small shop so expect a line, a long one may I add, depending of the time of day it is. Their prices are very reasonable and the people working their are so helpful. Make sure you try on everything you buy by walking around with your espadrilles in or around the shop! By the way, these espadrilles are made by hand the old fashion way so make sure they fit perfectly. The shop assistants are patient and they’ll help you in every way possible. Be aware that the ‘regular’ or ‘normal’ espadrilles do not different right or left.
Check out Casa Hernanz’s website at http://www.alpargateriahernanz.com/donde-estamos
There are also other espadrille stores around Casa Hernanz on Calle Toledo. You can reach the area by metro using the Sol, Tirso de Molina, Opera, and La Latina stops.
Just because it's August doesn't mean Sunday Fundays in La Latina stop for the summer. In fact, this barrio is where you got to be on Sundays to enjoy a nice pub/bar crawl with friends year round. In this particular Sunday, I was with my friends Lauren and Liz and their friends (photo) enjoying a 2 for 1 offer on cocktails for 8eu at Cava Baja--the oldest street in the city, by the way. We continued our pub crawl all the way to El Atril (Calle de la Paloma 9), one of the many discobars in the area. And we ended our night at Shoko (Calle Toledo 86), which, by the way, was hip-hop night and they had a guess dj from NYC!
Tip: Depending on your energy or budget, you can start your pub/bar crawl with your friends at La Latina anytime after the Rastro (after 12pm), the outdoor flea market in the same barrio from Plaza de Cascoro continuing through Calle de la Ribera de Curtidores ending at Ronda de Toledo. People usually meet at Teatro de La Latina at Plaza de Cebada and you can start from there. You can find terrazas or outdoor sittings everywhere, but I recommend spending some time at Plaza de San Andres or by Plaza de Paja around the church of the same name (just go around).
Mercado Agrario in Casa de Campo Wine lovers unite every first Saturday of the month at this public market. It's open from 10 to 3pm. Buy a wine glass at the entrance for 2euros and sample your way through many many wines, cheese, meat, etc from all over Madrid region. Tip: bring a bottle opener and extra energy to continue drinking/eating what you buy at the market for the lake nearby. Metro: Lago (dark blue Line 10) Direction: Go left from the metro exit and walk up the hill for 5 minutes. The market is on the left-hand side. For more info check this out http://www.mercadillosemanal.com/en.madrid/mercado-agrario-de-la-casa-de-campo
Yes, indeed..it’s summertime in the city and the sky is blue with no clouds in sight. Madrid is hot and people are out and about. Here’s to my adventure in this beautiful city this month :)
