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        <title>Been there | Tips</title>
        
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            Welcome to Been there. Your tips on the places you know - that you love,
            live in or have just visited - are what make this guide.
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                <title>La Ida</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/10709</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Art work hangs from the lime green painted walls and exposed pipes at this trendiest of hang-outs in Chueca. It's laid-back and an ideal escape from the nearby mania of Gran Vía. The staff are sound enough to knock off any euro cents you might be missing for your cafe con leche.]]></description>
                
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                <title>The Prado Museum</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2109</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Big art gallery in central Madrid. Goya and Velasquez are good but Bosch steals the show for me. Very strange and very dark.]]></description>
                
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                <title>The Prado museum</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2082</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[A first-class art gallery which demands two full days to see it all as there is too much to take in all at once.]]></description>
                
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                <title>San Lorenzo de El Escorial</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2073</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Famous for the monastery built by Philip II, a building as austere and powerful as its patron, San Lorenzo offers plenty to the visitor. The monastery tour is essential; you'll see a vast basilica with some fine art (the Cellini Crucifixion in particular), the 'panteon' where most of Spanish royalty lies rotting away, King Philip's bedroom overlooking the high altar, and a fine art collection.  <br><br>After all this, a bit of relaxation is needed. Try Cafetín Croché for posh cocktails in Art Nouveau environment, or Café Babel for something more arty and bohemian.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2036</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Madrid's second most famous art museum. It doesn't have Las Meninas or cute art students doing copies of the Old Masters. But nor does it have the Prado's crowds and the endless succession of suffering Jesuses and portraits of Spanish royalty and their mates.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2026</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[The museum not to miss while in Madrid is the Thyssen-Bornemisza.  This private art collection housed right accross from the infinitely more famous Museo del Prado, features paintings from the 16th through the 20th centuries by some of the world's most prominent artists, including Caravaggio, Monet, Degas, Gaugin, Van Gogh, Picasso, O'Keefe and Hopper, among others.  The quality an diversity of the collection is uncomparable, yet it is a size that is manageable and won't cause 'museum-fatigue'.  So you'll have enough time and energy after your visit to get out and see the rest of what Madrid has to offer!]]></description>
                
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                <title>Centro de Arte Reina Sofia</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1034</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Fantastic museum full of modern art - if nothing else, it contains Picasso's incredible (and enormous) Guernica. Like a lot of the museums in Madrid, admission is free on Sundays.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Reina Sofia museum of modern art</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/9014</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[It is the city's museum of modern art, heavily featuring Spanish modern artists - Dali, Miro and Picasso, and houses Picasso's Guernika. It's much more manageable than the Prado; the building itself is gorgeous, all white and airy, with a lovely garden in the central quadrangle. It used to be a mental hospital.<br><br>The top floor also houses contemporary installations which make the mind boggle. Enough for an hour or two of culture, without feeling obliged to see the rest, or be overwhelmed at the amount of work to see. <br><br>My favourite is a preparatory sketch of a bull with mad eyes Picasso made, for Guernika. My first stop whenever I am in town.  <br><br>Free Saturday afternoons from 2pm.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Fresco at San Antonio Hermitage</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2988</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Goya painted the fresco on the dome/ceiling. It is stunning and now restored it looks fresh with brilliant colour. Entry is free.]]></description>
                
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                <title>Jardin Botanico</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2159</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[Beautiful botanical gardens right next to the Prado. An oasis of calm to wander, read and relax when you want to escape the noise and pace of central Madrid. Also has a gallery with changing exhibitions showcasing contemporary artists - I saw fantastic Stephen Gill photographs when I was there in June.]]></description>
                
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                <title>El Retiro</title>
                
                <link>http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/2143</link>
                
                <description><![CDATA[El Retiro is the nicest park in Madrid. It's pretty big and has loads of interesting features: the lake, where you can hire little rowing boats; Casa de Vacas where you can see art exhibitions; and the Palacio de Cristal where art exhibitions are shown. El Retiro is great all year round for walking, running, cycling, having a drink or simply lying on the grass.]]></description>
                
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