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Madrid. It is a CLEAN southern European capital, if not the cleanest among the capitals of Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece. The only thing is that I've yet to "define" what Spanish food is. I ate well when in Madrid, but I don't remember any of the platters I had. That's true of any place I've been in Spain, except for the Canaries where the food is similar to Cuban food.
If I didn't like Munich very much, I doubt I'd like Berlin.
Madrid is nicer. Berlin has a crap load of parks ( too many, imo). Berlin has better public transportation because it's a major hub for trains in all directions and they've got the S Bahn. They also got a better night life than Madrid. Berlin seems to be the party capital of Europe now. I don't know how this happened, though. Not sure if Madrid is much more expensive than Berlin. I'm not up-to-date on the current rents/rental market in Madrid. I'm guessing things have gotten cheaper since there's massive unemployment in Spain.
The rest is all about personal preference, imo.
Location: Near Tours, France about 47°10'N 0°25'E
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Location - Madrid, less central on a east/west scale, but at once in western Europe, southern Europe. in the same time close to France, Morocco, Algeria and Italy
Scenery - Madrid, The sierra de Guadarama very close.
Climate - Tie. Contrary to what many people think Madrid climate is not mediterranean. The summers are much hotter than mediterranean coast, and the winters are much colder.
Urban layout - Madrid
Parks - Madrid
Public transport/road infrastructure - Madrid, the city is much more compact, the subway is modern and very efficient. Berlin is too much spread
Architecture - Madrid
Streetlife - Madrid
Entertainment/Nightlife - Madrid. no European capital is as much lively, spanish bar culture. Berlin is maybe a bit better for more "underground" stuff.
Dining/Cuisine - Madrid far away
Culture (Museums, Art.etc) - Madrid
People (Friendliness.etc) - Madrid
Cost of living/Livability - Maybe Berlin is cheaper. I'm not sure.
Tourist attractions - Madrid
To me Madrid is the most underrated of the big European capitals. We always hear people saying they go to Paris, Rome or London, but rarely Madrid. Madrid is actually the third biggest city of western Europe, has among the best museums in the world. The city is probably not as architecturally charming as Rome or Paris could be but largely worth to be among the top 5 of European cities to see. Just outside of Madrid the sierra de Guadarama offers natural mountains just out of the city; while the Escurial, Segovia or Toledo are exceptional historic places to visit less than one hour from the city.
To me Madrid is the most underrated of the big European capitals. We always hear people saying they go to Paris, Rome or London, but rarely Madrid.
Even when Michael Buble sings "Home," he includes the other capitals, as you say, but not Madrid. Madrid is more of a discovery. When I went to Spain for the first time, I asked myself "What am I going to go see?" It wouldn't be Bilbao or Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. It was going to be Madrid and Barcelona. And then, when you're there, you acknowledge to yourself that Madrid is a very nice city. I didn't know what to expect, and was more positive than negative, but as a result of visiting it a few times, my opinion of it is very much positive.
Location: Near Tours, France about 47°10'N 0°25'E
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When I said many people do not think about Madrid when talking about main European capitals, I was thinking especially about non-Europeans, and especially American people. I don't think us Europeans tend to exclude Spain (and as such its capital Madrid) from the major EU countries.
But I've notices that many Americans are somehow reluctant to either visit Spain or to consider Spain as one of the major nations of western civilisation, among Italy, France, UK and Germany. The truth is that Spain has a longtime a (the) leading role in shaping western civilisation, in my opinion more than England or Germany, whose strong influence is relatively recent (compared to the lenth of western civilsiation).
I fear that some people might have some prejudiced with Spain because of the association of Spanish culture (language and such) with the poor immigrants that comes from Mexico. It seems that the image of hispanic cultures in the US suffer from the fact that many spanish speakers in the US are "ghettoish", and as such have somehow a bad image. For some reason, maybe some people might expect Spain to be the LA Mexican ghettoes?...
Location: In a Galaxy far, far away called Germany
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I like Berlin (a lot), but I am all about warm climates If I had to pick, it's Madrid for no other reason than that!
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If I had to pick, it's Madrid for no other reason than that!
