El Rastro de Madrid is a favorite destination of both local madrileños and tourists, as evidenced by the thousands of people that browse the many stalls and open antique shops every Sunday morning. We paid a visit to the market recently, and will be back for more as soon as possible. It sounds like a simple swap meet, but for a foreigner it is a doorway into a mixed, exciting underground culture, not to mention a shopper's dream.
Since the 15th century, the El Rastro neighborhood has been viewed a commercial area, specifically famous for the trade of second hand items. Eventually a slaughterhouse was built here, resulting in a leather goods business. The main street of El Rastro is called Ribera de Curtidores, which means Riverbank of Leather Workers, and it is possible that the name El Rastro, or The Trail, stems from the residual trail of blood that was left as men hauled the meat carcasses through the streets from the slaughterhouse to the tannery.
By the time the slaughterhouse closed the area was known for its market and though the leather goods decreased, vendors of other goods appeared to fill the void. Now it is possible to shop for anything and everything in El Rastro, from paintings to house pets. We viewed t-shirts, antiques of war, funky dresses, second hand fur coats, potted cacti, used books, sports equipment, shoes, leather purses, jewelry, hand-sewn skirts, toys, paintings, souvenirs, knives, and an endless assortment of bric-a-brac.
Traditionally, in the afternoon shoppers step into the surrounding bars and restaurants to take a break with a cold caña (small beer) and a tapa, or small snack. This sustanence is usually taken standing, as the bars and restaurants can be just as busy as the streets outside the door.
Instead, we walked to a less busy area of town and ate lunch in a restaurant of Asturias food. This region of Spain is known, most famously, for its tradition of cider, which one must pour from high in the air to "make it taste better." Cider is poured quickly, about a centimeter in a glass at a time, and drank quickly, to preserve the flavor.
Full of food and exhausted by the market, we snoozed for a while in front of the palace before continuing our walking tour of the great city of Madrid.
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