In the captal city of Madrid, Spain

 "Nobody goes to bed in Madrid until they have killed the night. Appointments with a friend are habitually made for after midnight at the cafe. -- Ernest Hemingway

====================================================================
(at the geographical heart of the Iberian Peninsula) Spain's capital city of Madrid, is situated on an undulating plateau of sand and clay at an elevation of some 646 meters above sea level, making it one of the highest capitals in Europe. Spain’s arts and financial center, few cities boast an artistic pedigree quite as pure as Madrid’s: many art lovers return here again and again. For centuries, Spanish royals showered praise and riches upon the finest artists of the day, from home-grown talents such as Goya and Velázquez to Flemish and Italian greats. Masterpieces by these and other Spanish painters such as Picasso, Dalí and Miró now adorn the walls of the city’s world-class galleries.

+ A traditional nickname for the Madrileños is gatos (“cats”), originally coined in the Middle Ages as a reference to the ability of local troops to scale castle walls. It would be no less apt as a reference to the local lifestyle and the late hours kept by the city’s inhabitants, although keeping late hours is also common in other parts of Spain, especially in the heat of summer. People eat late, theaters and cinemas begin performances late as a matter of course, and the siesta is by no means dead. The city offers a wealth of cultural events and entertainments; its cultivated people tend to be widely read, while the youth are up-to-date with the latest pop music.

+ Madrid is a city that, with its style and flair, absorbs and holds those who live there or know it. The city's inhabitants have a reputation for being quite attached to it -- as reflected in the words of a local proverb, “From Madrid to heaven, and in heaven a little window from which to see it.” If the storybook capital of Spain looks and feels a bit like a fairytale, it may be because so many buildings here have a castle-like look to them. Even City Hall is astounding, with its white pinnacles and neo-Gothic features. Depicted here is the Plaza de Cibeles, a square with a neo-classical complex of marble sculptures with fountains that has become a symbol for the city of Madrid. It sits at the intersection of Calle de Alcalá, Paseo de Recoletos and Paseo del Prado. Of all the grand roundabouts along the Paseo del Prado, Plaza de la Cibeles most evokes the splenour of imperial Madrid. The jewel in the crown is the astonishing Palacio de Comunicaciones. Other landmark buildings around the plaza’s perimeter include the Palacio de Linares and Casa de América, the Palacio Buenavista and the national Banco de España. The spectacular fountain of the goddess Cybele at the center of the plaza is one of Madrid’s most beautiful. Ever since it was erected by Ventura Rodríguez in 1780, the fountain has been a Madrid favorite. (There are fine views east from Plaza de la Cibeles towards the Puerta de Alcalá or, west towards the Edificio Metrópolis.)