Parque del Oeste, Madrid

Home to one of the best paseo routes we know of, Parque del Oeste is pleasantly shaded by tall, mature trees that offer a welcome respite from Madrid's unforgiving sun and heat during summer. The park is rather narrow and long, starting at Plaza de España and running all the way to Moncloa and Ciudad Universitaria. There are numerous outdoor café and stands selling a favorite of ours, Frigo ice cream bars, Valencia-style horchata, bocadillos (sub sandwiches, with jamón or vegetarian made with cheese or tortilla espanola) or granizados (basically a fruit-flavored ice drink that can break the heat of a hot Madrid summer day.

In addition to seeing Madrid from the bar atop the Torre de Madrid, the teleférico; Métro: Ventura Rodríguez/Argüelles carries you in a cable car to the heart of Casa de Campo. The facing seats in each car provide everyone a view of the city and the park. The teleférico closes for the siesta, but you can carry lunch with you and have a picnic. It is probably best to get a drink at the bar/restaurant at the Casa de Campo end of the teleférico, as the food is double the price and half the quality it should be.

The Templo de Debod is a fourth-century BC Egyptian temple given as a gift to the Spain people by the Egyptian government as thanks for work that Spanish engineers provided after a flooding occurred. Unless your trip lasts longer than 2 weeks or you have a specific interest, it's probably best to skip this one.

One of the most popular recent additions among Madrid youth has been the addition of a shopping mall (Métro: Príncipe Pío) with restaurants, a stadium seat movie theatre and a Starbucks that fills the main entrance atrium. Sharing the RENFE rail station, Príncipe Pío (Estación del Norte), this mall is very well connected with local (red) and regional (green) bus lines as well as two lines of Métro and the Cercanías commuter train lines. The mall was granted an exception to the "closed on Sunday" regulation, so it is very popular on Sundays and of course cold, hot or rainy days.

Of interest to more to art fans than the religious, the Ermita de San Antonio de la Florida; Métro: Príncipe Pío; is just steps from the Príncipe Pío station and mall and features something rarely seen: frescoes by Goya where they were intended to be seen instead of a museum. This paintings depict a miracle performed by St Anthony of Padua. The ermita also houses the artist's mausoleum.

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