Fuencarral

Germán, my boyfriend, studies architecture. Because creativity is one of the key attributes students should be honing to be an architect, they are frequently given projects providing them with a lot of creative freedom. Last weekend, his project was to put together a video portraying street architecture but from an alternative perspective. He chose to film different people or different shoes walking on calle Fuencarral in Madrid both at night and daytime, as well as surrounded by crowds or completely alone.

So that's what Germán, María, Jaime and I spent our day doing. We looked like such freaks... however, in Malasaña (Madrid's Camden) the hipsters and other oddballs didn't really seem to notice us. Having oh so professionally taped an iPhone to a metal pole, we set off.

That trusty palo...

 

I feel like a verb we really lack in English is the very concise Spanish aprovechar, meaning 'to make the most of'. Anyway, aproveché, I took the opportunity to photograph the counterculture of such a dynamic area. The graffitied narrow streets tightly pack old school Spanish matchbox-sized shops or traditional churches, with tattoo parlours, vintage stores, artsy bars and a place selling the next newest *thing* (I saw quite a few bike shops so look out pedestrians - you don't want to get run over by a hipster).

We then hopped right back on the tourist route with a walk to Sol and the Plaza Mayor and then for a (slightly over-priced) glass of wine - or two or three - in Mercado de San Miguel. It's one of my favourite places for tapas in the city (think Spanishified Borough Market).