Hotel Sterling Madrid

When we talk about romance, immediately scenes of beaches or summer flowers come to mind. However, winter in Madrid can be as romantic or more than any Caribbean beach or summer escapade.

Just arriving at Hotel Sterling anytime from the end of November to the 8th of January you will be able to breath the special festive atmosphere around you, people are happy and cheerful, looking forward all the different seasonal events and family celebrations.

What is there more romantic than walking down the Gran Vía hand in hand, sharing a bunch of roasted chestnuts packed away in a paper bag from one of the many kiosks that appear during he winter? In the evening when the cold starts getting a bit too much, the centre of Madrid offers a million hideaways where to share a nice “merienda” (early dinner or high-tea) with your loved one. Hot chocolate with churros, deep fried dough sticks, or a steaming café con leche (latte) accompanied by warm cakes, or maybe some nice hot tapas shared over some local wine, can do the trick for an informal romantic experience.

In the morning to brighten the mood you can always take a walk down Puerta del Sol towards the Royal Palace and once you get there just enjoy the views from one of the wonderful cafés in Plaza de Oriente.

Madrid is the ideal city for a romantic getaway, a romantic weekend, a short break or even your honey moon. This capital city has a lot to offer for those looking for romantic excitement.

This city has a number of restaurants and cafés where you can enjoy your partner’s company in a cosy and friendly atmosphere that will enhance the experience of your romantic break. However, in broad daylight, against the sounds and the bustling of the city, you can still find those secret hideaways where to enjoy each other companies.

Simply taking a walk around the little network of streets behind Hotel Sterling, behind Calle San Bernardo, taking in the life of the city and the types that inhabit this area can be a nice romantic experience. If you want something more typical, you can always go down to Paseo del Prado and take a walk in Retiro Park, where you can rent a boat for the hour and spend some quality time alone, just bobbing in the middle of the lake and enjoying the view of the Crystal Palace and the swans and ducks.

Very close to Hotel Sterling you will also find the Parque del Oeste, also known as Parque de Rosales because it is in Paseo de Pintor Rosales. This park has a fantastic layout and you will enjoy many different types of roses.

The actor Juanra Bonet faces the audience for one and a half hours, just by himself. However, he is perfectly well prepared to do it: he’s got his perfect script following the purest North American stand-up comedy style.

With these great references arrives Animales (Animals), the new play by Iria Productions,  with an ingenious text of the controversial actor and scriptwriter Ricky Gervais and directed by José Luis Sicto.

The play will be presented in the Alfil Theatre in Madrid from 21^st September to 27^th November.

The performances will take place from Wednesdays to Friday at 8pm. Saturdays and Sundays they will be at 6pm. The ticket price is 20 Euros, and Wednesdays there is a special discount as it is the day of the audience, and the price is only 15 Euros.

The monologue is really sharp and caustic, daring and sometimes even a bit hard, but it’s a brilliant text that follows on the style of Gervais, famous for authoring the TV series The Office.

From the beginning of the play, Bonet introduces a question, that sets the pace for it: are we, as humans, as different from animals in the way we behave in our everyday life? With a screen and a projector, Bonet will show us that sometimes reason and the irrational can mix.

He carries around the legacy of his family, an family of artists. Flamenco runs through his veins, because he’s lived through it ever since he was in his mum’s belly. Maybe that’s why he’s become the best Flamenco dancer in our country. Farruquito has in himself all the best of this art form that is Flamenco.

This bailaor or dancer has arrived in Madrid to present his new show, Baile Flamenco, Flamenco Dance. This new show will not just excite the imagination of those purist of the noble art but also the public in general.

His show will take place from 15^th to 17^th of September 2011 in Teatro Compac Gran Vía in Madrid.

The performances will take place on Thursday and Friday at 8.30pm and Saturday at 7.30pm and 10.00 pm. The ticket price is 20 Euros.

Farruquito or little Farruco has inherited his art and talent from his grandfather, Farruco, and the innate talent of his father Juan Fernández Flores, El Moreno, as well as his moves and style from his mother la Farruca. From all of them, Farruquito, has taken only the best features of their art to become one of the most important figures in Flamenco.

After his problems with justice caused by a fatal car accident, Farruquito has managed to get back to work. He has develop a fantastic choreography that will not disapoint any member of the audience.

Madrid will be flooded by art on 15th, 16th and 17th of September 2011. Over fifty art galleries in the capital will open the new academic year with new exhibitions.

The event has been called Apertura 2011 (Opening 2011). It translates into the opening for the public of more than 50 spaces dedicated to contemporary art and artistic creation.

This is the second edition of this event organized by ArteMadrid. Through this event they want to offer visitors and tourists many different activities in all the museums and art galleries in Madrid.

Participating galleries will all select their best pieces to decorate their rooms, they will choose the most representative artists, new comers or those who already have a long and fruitful career in national and international art circuits, all of this, of course, in order to make their venues the most spectacular of all.

This event is a great opportunity for collectors and art dealers from all over the world that will come to Madrid to enjoy this innovative idea.

Besides opening for longer during these three days, the participating art galleries will organize learning breakfasts on Saturday mornings to help those less artistically minded to understand art.

Thursday, 15th of September is the date chosen by Maná to perform in the capital of Spain, Madrid. The event organizers foresee that it will be sold-out and the venue will be totally full.

This concert by the Mexican band Maná will start at 10pm in the Palacio de Deportes in Madrid. Ticket price will be around 40.5 Euros for the cheapest one and around 187 Euros for the most expensive one, the VIP pass with seats near the stage.

The best and most famous Spanish speaking band in the world will arrive in Madrid with great strength, with their eighth CD, Drama y Luz (Drama and Light), that has had a great success in North America.

Now, Fernando Olvera, the leading member and singer of this band will get on stage accompanied by his musicians Sergio Vallín, Alejandro González y Juan Calleros. He will show everybody that they are still following their philosophy of singing to love and indifference, with deep sounding lyrics and a fantastic musical composition.

It is one of the strongest and best known theatre companies in Spain, Yllana. This company has managed to get its own niche in the Spanish theatre scene following the steps of Tricicle. They work this complicated and difficult technique, mime on stage.

Now this company are bringing us a new show, 666, a funny play that will have you in stitches. They will perform in the Alfil Theatre in Madrid, from 6^th to 27^th September 2011.

Joseph O’Curneen, Fidel Fernández, Juan Francisco Ramos y Raúl Cano are the protagonists of this funny comedy. The story presents four prisoners arriving to Death Row to be executed.

During their day to day life with the prison guards they have many different problems caused by the tension of the situation. When their turn to be executed arrives, the fun is guaranteed, as all the devices prepared for their execution break down.

This play is a tough satire about the death sentence, with it Yllana intends to show the public the most irrational, absurd and primary side of the human being.

666 is black humour, a silent visual comedy that keeps the audience’s attention from the word go.

Just off the Puerta del Sol, the central square in Madrid and not far from Hotel Sterling, there is an old Palace called Palacio de Gaviria. Although nowadays the old building has merged with the more modern buildings around, and you need to look at it twice before realizing it’s there, the beauty of this palace is in what lies inside.

Palacio de Gaviria is a 19th century building inspired in the renaissance. Built in 1850, this building lived through important moments of the history of Madrid, like the civil war and the transition. Restored in 1991, Palacio de Gaviria has become one of the referents of the Madrid night-life.

Palacio de Gaviria is used now as a night-club, being one of its main attraction the interior, that has been restored to the grandeur of a 19th century palace. Nightclub goers will be able to enjoy the latest national and international hits in magnificent rooms decorated with mirrors and lamps in its original renaissance style.

Thursdays are a special night in Palacio de Gaviria for international students and locals who wish to meet people from all over the world, it’s the international night. As you go in you will be given a sticker with the name of your country and so people will be able to identify easily where they come from and maybe find language exchange partners or holiday friends.

However, every night Palacio de Gaviria opens with a great themed party or just as normal nightclub to cater for all those party lovers that come to Madrid!

There are many street markets in Madrid, big, small, and on different days of the week, but none of them is as famous or interesting as el Rastro. This street market is set up every Sunday morning until the afternoon, it runs from Tirso de Molina till Puerta de Toledo. From Hotel Sterling you can take the Metro from Gran Vía to Tirso de Molina, on  line 1 or simply take a stroll to Puerta del Sol and from there walk to Tirso de Molina through Calle de las Carretas.

The area where the Rastro is now was occupied in the past by a slaughter house, the trail that the blood from the carcasses left on the road was in Spanish “rastro” and from that gory beginning was born el Rastro.

This flea market has all different types of stalls, you can find clothes, vintage clothes, hand-made clothes, as well as hand-crafted items and even pets and pet food. For those lovers of collectible items or Spanish history, there are also stalls with old coins, stamps and even Franco memorabilia.

One of the areas to see in the Rastro is Plaza de Cascorro. The statue of Eloy Gonzalo, nicknamed Cascorro, stands in the middle of the square, a reminder of the grandeur of past times, when Spain was still fighting to defend its colonies in the new world. Eloy Gonzalo was a hero of the Spanish war in Cuba.

El Rastro is very popular on Sundays, so go early to avoid big crowds. If you are hungry or thirsty you can also visit one of the many bars and cafés in the streets around el Rastro.

Madrid is divided in areas that although sometimes correspond to the political divisions of the official districts of the city, more often than not are popularly known for some little quirk or some characteristic. For instance, the area behind the Gran Vía, just off where Hotel Sterling stands, is known as Malasaña and also Chueca.

Chueca is the gay area, and it comprises the streets around the Chueca Square or Plaza de Chueca. While Malasaña is a more main stream area, that is well known among party goers and those lovers of the Madrid “marcha” or “going-out-scene”.

The area of Malasaña comprises the streets around Plaza del Dos de Mayo. There is no direct Metro station on this square or any of the streets around, but you can get to it from Metro station Tribunal or San Bernardo/Bilbao. From Tribunal, go down Calle de la Palma, and from San Bernardo or Bilbao, the most direct way is going down Calle Carranza and then turning into Calle de Ruiz.

Malasaña features a number of pubs and bars with different music and atmosphere, from main stream Spanish/international pop to funk, heavy and many other styles. Dress code tends to be relaxed.

During the day the area is well known for its many independent shops and delicatessens. Calle del Espíritu Santo is an interesting one for independent shops.

If you are looking for a nice and affordable restaurant before hitting the dance floor, LaGata Flora in Calle Vicente Ferrer, 33 is a good choice. It’s an Italian restaurant with a 10 Euro menu that will make your mouth water.