Madrid, the capital city of Spain, as well as offering wonderful city walks filled with history and Civic Centres that bring together people from around the world, contains many secrets to be discovered.
The La Latina neighbourhood for instance is one, it hides extraordinary places like the Jardín del Príncipe de Anglona that were laid out around 1750 and it’s one of the few noble family gardens from the 18th Century that survives today. This particular green space represents the luxurious vision of the Príncipe de Anglona and now affords visitors an unusual moment of silence in the noisy chaos that is Madrid.
Following the walk through the neighbourhood of La Latina, we recommend visiting the Basilica of San Francisco el Grande, located next to the Royal Palace, between c/ Bailén and c/ de San Francisco. A Roman Catholic church with an extraordinary dome, the third largest diameter in all Christian temples, where you’ll also find works by Spanish painters Goya and Zurbarán.
To end the tour through some of the least known but most remarkable parts of Madrid’s La Latina, the visitor should spend the last hour of the afternoon visiting the Dalieda de San Francisco, located next to the church. A botanical garden with a collection of Dalias that is located on the same site where the old convent of San Francisco was located, where as legend has it in 1215 St. Francis of Assisi made a stop on his pilgrimage to the south. At the rear of the park you will find views of the western part of the capital from where you can enjoy one of the best sunsets in Madrid.
