🌸 The Tapa Weekend: June 9
Yet another tapa route, a soggy music festival and a street party.
By @IanMount and @AdrianBono | June 9, 2023 | Madrid | Issue #11
🎉 Welcome to a new issue of The Tapa: Weekend Edition! An English-language newsletter about what to do this weekend in Spain (plus memes because why the hell not).
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Here are 5 Things to Do in Madrid This Weekend
We must admit that we’re worried by now. We’re less than two weeks away from the summer and the weather still feels like early May, April, March. Cold mornings and rainy afternoons is not what we had in mind for June. But at least we have reason to celebrate, as Spain’s Central Electoral Commission announced Thursday afternoon that those who have made travel arrangements (i.e. purchased flight tickets, paid for accommodation, etc.) before May 30, right after Prime Minister Sánchez announced the July 23 election date, will be exempted from poll worker duties. Hurray! Suddenly we all got our vacations back. (Can you get backdated reservations? Asking for a friend.)
Here are five cool things for you to do this weekend.
1. Let’s Start with the Obvious: Primavera Sound
The Primavera Sound Festival’s 2023 edition marks the first time there will be shows outside Barcelona—as in, in Madrid. From June 9-10, this highly popular and Instagram-friendly musical event lands in Arganda del Rey (37 km outside Madrid) and features over 200 performances in various stages, with artists and bands such as Depeche Mode, Kendrick Lamar, Blur, Rosalía, Calvin Harris, Halsey, New Order and Skrillex, among many others. There’s something for everyone: punk, reggaeton, K-pop, salsa, metal and techno. Now, you know that this is one of Spain’s largest music festivals and pretty much everyone will be there this weekend, right? Get your tickets while you can! We expect them to be sold out soon. See you all there!
PS: Unfortunately yesterday’s show was canceled due to the bad weather, but those tickets are still valid to attend today or tomorrow, so it’s not a total loss. The organizers are saying if you choose not to use it, you will be automatically refunded for it.
Primavera Sound Festival. Ciudad del Rock, Arganda del Rey. June 9-10. Tickets start at €125.
2. Calle del Pez Street Party in Malasaña
Leave it to Malasaña to throw a really cool street party.
Every year the Esto es Pez and Vive Malasaña organizations get together to offer residents a multi-day street party on Calle del Pez. Like, really. The reason? To celebrate the Feast of St. Anthony (it’s on June 13, so the celebrations take place this weekend, and we hear St. Anthony liked Mahou). For four days starting today, there will be live music, workshops, games, performances and even an open mic day.
As Calle del Pez is full of bars, restaurants and cafes, you can go see a live band and then grab a table at one of the terrazas and sip an Aperol Spritz while remembering how cool it is that you live in Madrid. Click here to see the full list of activities. If your body is still in the mood for some post-Primavera Sound activities, this is one you shouldn’t miss.
Fiestas Calle del Pez. On…Calle del Pez in Malasaña, Madrid. June 9-12. Free admission.
3. The Tapa Literaria Route
Yes, yes. “Another tapa route?” you ask. And the answer is: obvi. Considering how devilishly delicious tapas are, we see no reason to complain. (Plus, we like to think they named it after this newsletter.)
For two scrumptious weeks, the “Literary Tapa Route” is the perfect complement to the Madrid Book Fair. After book shopping in Retiro Park, you can check one of the 10 bars and restaurants that are participating in this ruta, each with a unique appetizer (plus beverage) to honor a writer, a book, a poem and other popular literary references. Most of them are located near the Prado Museum or Retiro, so it’s perfect to disconnect while reading a hardcover copy of a classic. As their website says, this route involves “cutting-edge cuisine alongside traditional recipes that combine into a new chapter in the love affair between books and stoves." Words and food. Yum.
Ruta de la Tapa Literaria. Around Madrid. June 2-18. Check their website for participating bars and restaurants. Tapas are €6 to €18.
4. PHotoESPAÑA Exhibit
PHotoESPAÑA is back for its 26th edition, showcasing a crazy big number of photo exhibits in museums and art galleries so visitors can explore “the latest in photographic art”.
This year a total of 96 exhibits are taking place in locations such as the Circulo de Bellas Artes, the ICO Museum and the Royal Botanical Garden. They feature 303 photographers and visual artists who have been tasked with addressing three key issues in today's society: art, environment, and gender. Photographers participating this year include Marina Abramovic, Bernard Plossu, Edward Burtynsky and Fina Miralles.
If you’re not in the mood for loud music and traveling all the way to Arganda del Rey this weekend, this is a great plan for you.
PHotoESPAÑA. Multiple locations around Madrid. May 31 to September 3. Check the website for additional information about schedule and tickets.
5. 2 Many DJs and Juan Magán
South Summit—Madrid’s startup, tech and VC festival—wraps up Friday (i.e. today) with a free concert in Plaza España. This “Fiesta Callejera” (street party) features Juan Magán, a big-time Spanish producer, singer, remixer and DJ of electronic dance music, best known in the "Electro Latino" world, and 2 Many DJs, Belgian electronica superstars from the late ‘90s and early ‘00s. The latter’s 2002 album 'As Heard on Radio Soulwax Pt. 2' was named best of the year by the New York Times, so expect a heavy Gen X contingent at this show.
This one’s free, so it won’t sell out—but it will get crowded, so get there early
South Summit Street Fest 2023, Plaza España, Madrid. June 9. 7:30 pm.
👨🏻💻 Other Headlines of the Week
These are some of the most ridiculous or viral stories in Spain this week that didn’t make our Thursday edition but we felt deserved a (dis)honorable mention today.
😴 At least Ryanair has a sense of humor
Ryanair was in hot water (hot pork fat?) for reportedly trying to charge fliers €45 in baggage fees to take their ensaimada pastries off the Balearic islands. The perceived slight to Mallorcan pride was so fierce that the regional tourism minister called the airline in for a meeting. Whether Ryanair changed its policy isn’t clear—the airline said there was a misunderstanding and they’d never charged for ensaimada transport—but now at the very least even passengers without luggage allowances can take “a normal quantity of ensaimadas” on board without charge. And Ryanair left us with that gem of a meme 👆.
🌧 You thought the Fyre Festival was soggy?
We mentioned that Primavera Sound was canceled on Thursday on account of rain, right? But that’s cool, because it can’t rain every day and it’ll all be good Friday. Uhm, maybe. Judging from pix on Twitter, it’s a wee bit soggy completely f-ing flooded on the festival grounds. Note to self: bring canoe.
🙏 Once again, please remember to share this newsletter with your friends on social media. The more we grow, the more information we’ll be able to offer each week.
We’ll be back next week with more.