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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.
Antonio on the emergency phone
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The last toy hospital in Spain

Once upon a time in Madrid, in a neighbourhood named after the Pacific Ocean, there was a man named Antonio, who kept the child inside all of us alive. The Toy Hospital’s customers aren’t typically children. Antonio’s customers are adults – some are toy collectors or savvy antiques dealers, but many of them are nostalgic souls whose childhood is preserved in the peculiar object clutched in Antonio’s paint-stained hands.
Incredible views of Madrid's skyscrapers from the historic centre
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Madrid’s city of the dead

Over five million people are buried, stacked and stored as ashes in Madrid’s biggest graveyard. La Almudena’s size and layout make it feel like more of a city than a cemetery: it has a historic centre, named streets, and neighbourhoods with different characters. You’ll find upmarket areas with mansions for the rich and famous, detached houses, workers’ apartment blocks, the poor neglected parts of the city and, last but not least, an anarchist squat.