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Latest obsession: confessionals

I've got a confession to make: I'm a little bit obsessed with confessionals. I suspect this might be one of the weirdest things a priest could ever be told through a latticed window, but although I have no intention of repenting my curiosity-related sins, an explanation might be helpful…
Underground © La Escalera de Jacob
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Magic beneath the streets of Lavapiés

In a dark cellar, just around the corner from the Lavapiés dungeon, a young Madrileño is enchanting people with his magic three times a week. His spellbinding illusions may not have been thrust onto the underground stage at all had it not been for hard times, but this sombre era in Spanish history is inspiring a new movement and Carlos Devanti is a driving force behind it.
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The ‘secret’ Lavapiés jazz club

Those hermetic voile curtains are partly to preserve Café El Despertar's clandestine atmosphere, they're but mostly there to deter the naive walk-in customer. The steely elderly owner, with his enviable beard, is interested only in clientele who are specifically here for his jazz music, and most certainly not the police, who, for good reason, he constantly fears.
The Duck Church
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The Duck Church of Lavapiés

Unless you live on this quiet, narrow street in Lavapiés, there's almost no reason for you to walk down it – that is, unless you're going to the Duck Church. Nestled into the ground floor of a centenarian building lives a tiny temple devoted to the rubber duck, and its priest is Leo Bassi, a 66-year-old clown who was born on tour.
Jose Luís Jiménez
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71 enchanting years of Bodegas Jiménez

When I asked Jose Luis Jiménez who the people in the photographs were, he spent the next half hour telling me stories from his childhood and showing me pictures taken by his friends from all over the world.
Don Justo, now 93 years old
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The Outsider Artist building a life-size cathedral set for demolition

Ex-monk Don Justo survived the Spanish Civil War and even tuberculosis, yet at 93 years old, he knows doesn't have long left. He's just a decade away from completing his 60-year mission to build a life-size cathedral, but when the local city council want it demolished, the question becomes, 'who will outlive who?'
Kiosko de Horchata Miguel y José
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The last horchata kiosk in Madrid

My obsession with horchata began exactly where it should: on the coast of Valencia, surrounded by orange blossom and flamingos. On my return to Madrid, I vowed never to rest until I'd found the best horchata in town, and there it was – as it has been for 74 years – in a little roadside kiosk run by the fifth generation of the same family.
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Madrid city in bloom

The Spanish spring is finally upon us and the almond and cherry trees are blossoming! This spectacular honey-scented force of nature only lasts a few weeks, but don't worry, you don't have to hurriedly plan a trip out to Andalusia – you can see it right here in Madrid. Here are six places to find them…
These chairs were confiscated during the war
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The vintage barber’s that survived being on the frontline

Peluquería Luis Martín is one of Madrid's last remaining vintage barbers. It survived the frontline of the Spanish Civil war, the requisition of its beautiful chairs, and the untimely death of Don Luís Martín himself. Yet, 93 years later, and still having never given in to the hipster beard, this niche men's hairdresser's is still going strong.
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Inside Madrid’s last porn cinema: then and now

In 2015, Cine X closed. But fast-forward two and a half years and this stunning building has been brought back to life as Sala Equis. I finally got to see inside Madrid's last porn cinema – and even better, they've barely changed a thing since the day it closed.
The tiny entrance to a labyrinth of storage units
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Eight eccentric museum-worthy collections found only in El Rastro

There are few better ways to spend a Sunday in Madrid than strolling around El Rastro, but if you don't have time to explore this 400-year-old market as many times as we have (possibly into three figures), then let us help you hit the ground running with seven of our most eccentric finds.