Lavapies

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.

Lavapiés in the 1980s

When you first glimpse Marivi Ibarrola's casually composed photographs of Lavapiés in the 1980s, you feel as if very little has changed. But stare for longer and you'll see some profound differences: the Tabacalera no longer emits smoke from its chimney, the anarchists have been gentrified out of their squats, and cinemas have been demolished to pave the way for the Lavapiés we hang out in today.

No-frills bars in peculiar places (Vol. I)

Much like a municipal bin, a no-frills bar is never more than 50 metres away from you in the centre of Madrid. Going for an impromptu caña was never easier, be it at a train station, on a train, in a hospital or even next to a funeral parlour.

Bar El Jamón: the Godfather of Lavapiés

In the thick of bustling Indian restaurants and foreign food stores, a jazzy facade with bold retro lettering stands out from the crowd. This neighbourhood veteran is Bar El Jamón, the Godfather of Lavapiés.

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…

Casa de Baños: washing with Madrid’s homeless

I've always been curious to see inside the Casa de Baños in Lavapiés, and the opportunity finally arose when we returned to our flat after a week away to find that the boiler had exploded. As you'd imagine, very little gets done over the Christmas period, so we were to embark on yet another fascinating no-frills adventure, and what an insight it's been.

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.

Ghost buildings

We’re in a surreal time in Madrid, somewhere between crisis and post-crisis. With the economy in motion again, the city’s charming madrileño hum is being shattered by the crash-bang-drill-beep of construction work and, for a brief moment, a peculiar phenomenon is appearing.

The thriving scrap metal collectors

Mayorista de Chatarra is a local scrap metal dealer in Lavapiés that’s been going strong for over 100 years, and especially for the last ten.