A Walk through time from Old to Art Deco Madrid

A warm and overcast day in Madrid and the plan is to put in some serious walking to explore more of the old city as well as get out into the more modern parts.

A nun walking into the Basilica of San Miguel, built in 1739.  It is unique due to its curved facade

The dome of Almudena Cathedral towering over the medieval buildings of the Centro District

  

Casa de la Villa was built in 1692 and was Madrid's Town Hall until 2007.  The building in the shadows was the home of the wealthy Lujanes family and built in the 15th century.

The back side view of the Almudena Cathedral that sits next to the Royal Palace 

Inside the Cathedral looking at the main nave

The Basilica of San Francisco was built in 1760 by King Carlos lll.  The dome is 108 ft in diameter which is the largest in Spain and is larger than St. Paul's in London.

The Casa Gallardo building was completed in 1914 and is one of the key works of the last stages of Madrid's modernism movement. 

One of Madrid's landmarks, the Metropolis Building was completed in 1911 and is located at the beginning of The Grand Via (Madrid's main street, although it was built before it was started)  

The Cibeles Palace was built in 1919 as the headquarters for Spain's postal and telecommunications service.  In 2011 it was renamed and became Madrid's City Hall

Retero Park is 300 acres and was once the private domain of Spanish royalty but was opened to the public in the late 18th century by King Charles 111.  The park has a small, man-made lake (El Estanque) where you can rent row boats in front of the moment to King Alphonso Xlll (the last monarch before Franco)