Madrid is the
capital and largest city of
Spain.
[3] It is the
third-most populous municipality in the
European Union after
Greater London and
Berlin, and its
metropolitan area is the
third-most populous in the European Union after
Paris and
London.
[4][5][6][7]
The city is located on the river
Manzanares in the centre of both the
country and the
Community of Madrid (which comprises the city of Madrid, its conurbation and extended suburbs and villages); this community is bordered by the
autonomous communities of
Castile and León and
Castile-La Mancha. As the capital city of Spain,
seat of government, and
residence of
the Spanish monarch, Madrid is also the political centre of Spain.
[8] The current
mayor is
Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón from the
People's Party (PP). He has been in office since 2003, when he left the
Presidency of the Autonomous Community of Madrid and stood as the candidate to replace outgoing mayor
José María Álvarez del Manzano, also from the PP. In the last local elections of 2007, Ruiz-Gallardón increased the PP majority in the City Council to 34 seats out of 57, taking 55.5% of the popular vote and winning in all but two districts.
Due to its
economic output,
standard of living, and
market size, Madrid is considered the major
financial centre of the
Iberian Peninsula; it hosts the head offices of the vast majority of the major Spanish companies, as well as the headquarters of three of the world's 100 largest companies (
Telefónica,
Repsol-YPF,
Banco Santander).
[9] Furthermore, Madrid was ranked in drawn 10th place with Hong Kong for the world's most powerful cities, featuring in the top 20 cities for 5 out of the 6 categories considered.
While Madrid possesses a modern infrastructure, it has preserved the look and feel of many of its historic neighbourhoods and streets. Its landmarks include the huge
Royal Palace of Madrid; the
Teatro Real (Royal theatre) with its restored 1850 Opera House; the
Buen Retiro park, founded in 1631; the imposing 19th-century
National Library building (founded in 1712) containing some of Spain's historical archives; an
archaeological museum; and three superb art museums:
Prado Museum, which hosts one of the finest art collections in the world, the
Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, a museum of modern art, and the
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, housed in the renovated Villahermosa Palace.
[10]
The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million (as of December 2009). The entire population of the Madrid
metropolitan area (urban area and suburbs) is calculated to be 6.386.932. The city spans a total of 698 km² (234
sq mi).
[11]
Source: Wikipedia
Hotels in Madrid:
What I like about Madrid/Spain:
