A Walk in the Park

Park life in Spain takes on a culture of it’s own. As I’ve mentioned before, the plazas and parks in Spain always seem to be full of people. The best time to go on a weekday is around 6-8pm, when people are wondering through on their way home from work or school, or on their way to a tapas bar for a mid-evening snack.
This is our favorite plaza- called the “Plaza de Oriente.” It is located in front of the Royal Palace and is lined with cafes with outside terraces.


Here is another very popular and historical plaza- “Plaza Mayor.” It holds much of the history of the city and even includes the world’s oldest existing restaurant.


It is interesting to walk through as it has many street artists drawing a crowd. Travis’s favorite is the guy dressed up as Yoda from Star Wars. Each time we walk through, he checks to make sure that Yoda is present. Yoda has yet to disappoint us. Although this plaza is popular, we try to avoid this area as it is flocked with tourists giving in to expensive restaurant prices (with very mediocre looking food) and silly souvenier shops.

During the weekends, parks are in full swing with people in and out all day long. In the morning, the crowd is typically composed of tourists. This is because the Spaniards are still in bed from the late night before. During the afternoons, you see a lot of couples strolling, families gathered with a picnic or having a party, and individuals of all ages sitting and staring or reading a book.




As a side note, Madrid has a HUGE reading culture- people have a book with them at all times. Part of this “re-birth” in reading is said to be because of the oppression the country faced for so many years under the rule of Franco. During this time, all literature (and arts, music, culture, etc.) was banned. So, currently there is a HUGE boom in books and the popularity of reading, so believe me it is very evident wherever you go. Take the metro for instance- never have I been in a metro car with less than 90% of the riders reading a book. Get this- they even have book vending machines in the metro stations! Can you imagine?

A few more interesting facts about the parks. In Spain, couples are MUCH more public with outward displays of affection than they are in the states. I’m not just talking here about a lot of handholding and quick kisses; I’m talking about the whole shebang. There is no hiding it, it is just to be expected every time we are in a park. The picture should give you a pretty clear idea…








All of the large parks, and even the smaller ones squeezed between the corners of apartment buildings, have areas fenced off called “zona infantile.” This is the area where the kids play. We’ve been incredibly impressed with the accessibility of the parks in Spain and the millions to choose from. If we had children here with us, we could probably walk to a new zona infantile at a different park everyday for a month. How fun for the kids! Speaking of the kids here, Spanish children are adorable. I don’t know if it’s their olive skin or European features, but I’ve turned my head more than once just to see another adorable girl or boy at play.



There is a lot to learn from the Spaniards and the value they place on park life. It seems they may be on to something that many of us Americans too often forget; It is okay to slow down, take a breath of fresh air, and smell the roses from time to time. This is a lesson Travis and I have put into practice for ourselves here in Spain…. and we definitely plan to take it home with us.