MATADERO

Another great discovery this term was Matadero. It's a former slaughterhouse which has been turned into a hub for culture, with buildings devoted to a theatre, restaurant, library, spaces for exhibitions and even a centre for education. Situated in Legazpi in the south of Madrid, it is right beside the river (and Madrid río).

With free entry, there's no excuse not to explore the place. The architecture is interesting; it isn't how I expected a slaughterhouse to look - although just as Spanish - but there are signs of its past if you look for them, from ganado signs to plastic curtains to prevent blood spatters.

Feeling ultra artsy we stumbled upon two exhibitions and wandered through them attempting to understand what was going on.

The first one, on Japanese art.

 The second, on Spanish architects and architecture.

Another building houses a space which I can't really label. It is very bare but with art features, for inspiration I take it, and with tables and chairs scattered around for working, reading or resting. Then there's a silent area for the same sort of think (a bit more comfortably as you'll see below). As I watched the hipsters tap away on their macs, I was ever so slightly jealous that I don't study here in Madrid; I can't quite justify a metro ride across Madrid merely for a little light reading.

This post is probably lagging on a bit so I promise to stop writing it soon - just pay attention for a leetle more. Below are some more of the photos I took that day on my trusty iPhone. They're of the quirky educational centre, where we saw both a Masters seminar and a baby crèche happening on the same day. All in all, definitely give Matadero a visit if you can.