Reviewing every station on metro line 1: part 1

The title is pretty self explanatory. 

This is the map of the Madrid metro system. I was going to review either the red line, the blue line, or the brown line, because those are the ones that run near my apartment. 

I chose the blue line. I wanted a north-south route because the general vibe of the city changes more from north-south than east-west. I also feel like I’ve already taken most of the red line because it passes through most of the touristy areas.

I will give each a rating from 1-5 based on my sometimes limited first impressions of the stations and/or surrounding areas. So if I diss a station, I acknowledge I might be totally missing something about it. Someone I know who has lived here a while warned me that most stops on this line are super boring. Idk if that's true or not. Only one way to find out!

I will also look up why the stations are named what they are or any notable history if I can find it. 

I marked off the ones I'm reviewed so far in yellow.

Chamartín 

Actually this station is why I started this project in the first place. I took the metro here to catch a speed rail to Valencia and realized I hadn’t been that far out of the city center at all. Other than Atocha in the south, this station is one of the only places you can catch bigger trains that run outside. It was actually a very cool station, a vaguely Brutalist/Bladerunner design. 

Apparently the station has kind of a turbulent history. It was commissioned by some dictator in the 1930’s (I’m realizing I know nothing about Spanish history), and then in 1979 by a Basque separatist terrorist group called the ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna). The train station connected to the metro is called Clara Campoamor after a Spanish feminist during the Spanish women's suffrage movement. 

The general aesthetic and vibe of this place is neat. Even though it’s not very fancy, I like the industrial architecture style and it has that brisk liminal feeling that airports do where everyone is there for the purpose of coming or going. This would be a solid 4, but I have to knock off a star for the very confusing layout of the train platforms. I came 45 minutes early and still almost missed my train just because I kept getting lost. And I feel like I generally have a pretty good sense of direction so it can't possibly be my fault. The platform was down like 3 flights of stairs, through a parking lot, up another 3 flights of stairs, and down a hallway marked with a handwritten paper sign. 

3/10

Cuatro Caminos 

I toured an apartment here a few days after arriving. The apartment sucked, I did not take it. The area also kind of sucked. It’s called Cuatro Caminos because there are four main roads that intersect at that point. So it was very loud and smoggy and was mostly just department stores and fast food places.

1/5

Gran Vía

This station always gets super clogged up because for some reason there’s only 1 entrance despite it being a super busy area. But once you're in, it's a pretty descent station. Gran Via is the street the station opens onto. It’s the one in all the postcards of Madrid, big white buildings with wrought iron decorations and the Schwepps tower. It kind of reminds me of Union Square in San Francisco. Feels kind of like a fancy outdoor mall with all the department stores and H&M. It’s pretty, not much to do other than shop though. I took a really nice night walk around here a few weeks ago. It's lively and bright even late at night. There's a lot of nice Christmas lights this time of year.

3/5

Sol 

Super touristy, super loud, super dirty. This station smells the most like pee out of any station in the city. Also there are pickpockets. I say this for both the station itself and Sol, which is most comparable to Madrid's version of Times Square.

1/5

Tirso de Molina 

This is actually one of the first stations I ever used. It’s in the Las Letras neighborhood, which is one of my favorite areas of the city. The plaza this station opens up to is nothing special, but it’s in a prime location. If you walk South, you get to the heart of Lavapies, where there’s a lot of Middle Eastern and African markets, hipster cafes, and hills with really pretty views of the suburbs to the south. If you go east, you’ll end up in La Latina, which is very touristy but very cute historic district with a lot of tapas places. The center of Las Letras is to the west, lots of hotels and craft stores and historic stone buildings. Every Sunday, there’s a huge flea market called El Rastro that’s super fun and really affordable. You can get literally anything there, from leather jackets, to earrings, to haunted antique baby dolls. Lots of nice memories walking through the market with new friends. 

There’s also a super cool bar called Sala Equis that was built in a former adult theatre where they project old silent films on the wall. You can buy popcorn and it’s really good. It has a really nice and relaxed vibe and is partially outside so it’s nice and breathable and not too loud. Plus, if you get bored of conversation you can just zone out and watch the silent film.

Most stations aren't decorated in any way and look mostly the same. But the entrance to Tirso De Molina features a dome roof decorated with white mosaic tiles. According to Wikipedia, Tirso de Molina was a Spanish Baroque dramatist and poet, and also a friar, and a priest. Iconic resume. He was born in Madrid in 1579. I didn’t even realize I’ve actually read one of his plays. Or maybe not, apparently it is debated whether he actually wrote it or not. It’s called El Burlador de Sevilla y Convidado de Piedra aka The Trickster of Sevilla and the Stone Guest. It is where “Don Juan” comes from. I don’t remember any of it because I thought it was really boring. I wish I had paid more attention in my 12th grade AP Spanish Lit class for this moment. A lot of the bars in the area have Tirso's portrait up on the wall. He is always dripped out in robes and has a really cool friar haircut. Also apparently he was a feminist ally which can only add to this station's already high rating.

5/5

Anton Martín

This station is super close to Tirso de Molina. It is smaller and quieter than Tirso. There’s a lot of theaters around this station mostly showing touristy Flamenco shows and American broadway musicals. Around the corner from the station, there’s a movie theatre called Cine Doré that I saw Cleo from 5 to 7 at with a friend. Pretty soon after coming to Madrid, I realized there really isn’t much of an art scene here. Which is fine, but it was cool to be in a space where people were also really excited about movies. The theatre was packed and there was a huge standby line. Entry was free that day but usually it’s only 3 euros. I’ll definitely be back. Anton Martín is referring to the founder of the Hospital de San Juan de Dios, I guess.

4/5

Iglesia 

Iglesia is the station closest to my apartment. It is a very solid station. Nothing special, but small, clean, and usually not too busy. It’s on a busy street running through a residential area. I assume it’s called Iglesia because there is an old church in front of it. There’s always a huge crowd in front after mass on Sundays. 

There's a lot of markets aka Mercados around the city that are just warehouses lined with stalls that are either mini grocery stands, butchers, bars, or restaurants. Almost every neighborhood has its own mercado. This is the one for my neighborhood, Mercado Chamberí. It's across the street from Iglesia.

4/5

Bilbao

This is one of the stations I use on a near daily basis. It’s on a street called Fuencarral. Bilbao the station isn’t my favorite, it’s really big and a little confusing to navigate because there are a lot of entrances and exits that are all very far from one another. It also smells kind of like pee and sweat. It is also quite busy and crowded at times because it has a lot of connections to other lines. The area is great and very central though, which is why I usually use it more than Iglesia. It would be a 4, but for the experience of the station I have to knock off a star. Fuencarral is a street near my building where I do most of my grocery shopping. There’s like 6 or 7 grocery stores on the one block. Also a Zara and an Ikea. The city often blocks that street off to cars to turn it into a pedestrian walkway. If you cross the street to the south you walk into Malasaña, a small neighborhood with a lot of clothes and vintage shopping, bars, and upscale restaurants. 

3/5