Hidden Madrid: El Día de Mercado de la Cámara Agraria

Shortly after I arrived in Madrid, I somehow discovered that La Cámara Agraria organises a monthly farmers' market and, as good luck would have it, I was just in time for the next one. So I went to check it out... and then promptly forgot all about it. Finally, some 23 months after I last visited, I went back.

Last time I'd gone, the crowds were immense and I was barely able to see the stalls, never mind actually buy anything. So this time I headed down earlier, arriving at around 11:00. I was pleased to note that very few people got off the metro. But then I discovered that's because everyone was already at the venue, and the place was every bit as packed as it had been the year before. Fail!


The entrance



A sneak preview of what was to come

Another basket of vegetables

Two years ago, overwhelmed by the sheer size of the crowd, I simply let the cart-wielding abuelas shove me out of the way. This time, I refused to be jostled or pushed aside. I was here to take photos and sample whatever foods were on offer and, come hell or high water, that was what I was going to do.

I made several circuits of the market, slipping through snaking queues and sneaking up to stalls to sample anchovies, boquerones (Spanish white anchovies), various cheeses, melon, raspberries and potato chips among other things.


Some of the herbs on offer

Lavender and thyme

From the colour to the sheer variety, I really enjoyed looking at the vegetable stalls. However, as these are the big draws of the market, getting close enough to get the pictures I wanted was pretty tough. Nonetheless, on my third or fourth walkaround, I managed to grab a few nice shots.


A study in red and green



Corn-on-the-cob

More garlic than you can shake a stick at

Radishes, courgettes (zucchini), aubergines (egg plant) and white onions



I was really intrigued by these dried sunflower heads



A pumpkin that gets its own chair

While the vegetable stalls may have been in the majority, there were plenty of other things that caught my eye, among them, a couple of baked goods stalls. The bread was especially popular, and within an hour or so, it had almost completely sold out.

  

Pretty bakery



Chocolate truffles and cake

Freshly-baked bread

While some things appealed to me from a photographic point of view, like the bakery stalls, for example, others did from a taste point of view. One of my favourite stalls was the one selling anchovies and boquerones. Not only was the seller friendly, he was positively pushing samples of these delicious goods onto all and sundry. I definitely ate my fill of boquerones. My only regret is that I didn't buy any!

One of the best things I tasted

 Delicious cheese made from sheep's milk

Typical Spanish fare

Having spent quite a while walking round looking at all the stalls, I decided to have one last wander before calling it a day. By now, the place was filling up and I had pretty much seen everything I'd come to see and tasted everything from sweet, juicy melon to soft, melt-in-the mouth cheese. So, from the main entrance, I did one last anti-clockwise circuit and left. Market, done!

Colour that appealed to me



A little bit of everything

El Día de Mercado (Paseo de la Puerta del Ángel, 4) is held on the first Saturday of every month from 10:00-15:00. The nearest metro is Lago (L10), from where you turn right out of the station, take a short uphill walk, and La Cámara Agraria is on the left-hand side, just past a carpark. You can also take the metro to Puerta del Ángel (L6), but not having done so, I don't know what the walk is like.

Discover Britain: Rye

Standing on the confluence of the River Rother, the River Tillingham and the River Brede, Rye is a medieval town in East Sussex bursting with character and charm. One summer, inspired by my uncle's love of his childhood town, I decided to visit.

The train from Brighton was packed and I had high hopes that it would empty out at Eastbourne or Hastings. But it didn't. So unless people were going to Ashford International, there really was only one other stop – mine!

Sure enough as the train pulled into Rye, half the passengers stood up. As I got caught up in the slow moving procession toward the stairs, I silently cursed myself for not having gotten an earlier train. But I needn't have worried. Within minutes of exiting the station, I had lost them, and myself in Ye Olde Worlde...

Walking uphill from the train station I found myself on High Street, which was quite unlike any other High Street I have ever been on. Not only was it absolutely gorgeous, but it lacked the all too familiar High Street names like H&M, Next and McDonald's. There was not a plastic logo in sight! Despite the huge outpouring of people from the train, the streets were almost empty so I was able to take my photos in peace.

The Standard, a recently-refurbished B&B

Charming old buildings on the near-empty High Street

  

Houses that transport you back to medieval England...

The town's big draw is Mermaid Street, a steep cobbled street lined with attractive buildings with charming names such as "The first house", "The house with the seat" and – my personal favourite – "The house opposite". I had expected the street to be rammed, but the heat (27°C/81°F and rising) and the steepness of the hill meant that I was able to navigate it without too much difficulty.

The cobbled Mermaid Street...

...where each building was more beautiful than the previous one

Mid-summer roses

The Grade II listed historical Mermaid Inn built in 1420

Alleyway just off Mermaid Street

Pigeons having an argument outside the pub

The brilliantly-named House Opposite

At the top of the hill, I turned right into West Street, another pretty sloping street and one that was seemingly overlooked by the hordes of day-trippers. As I reached the bottom, I realised I was back on High Street, and within striking distance of Cobbles Tearoom, an English teashop offering cream teas. It was a no-brainer.

Standing on the corner of Mermaid Street and West Street

Struggling to decide which view was the most photoworthy...

...and ending up taking ALL the photos

Yet another historic building dating from medieval times

The ever lovely High Street

An English tearoom

Traditional English cream tea – guess how long that lasted?!

One cream tea later and I was ready for more sightseeing. I walked along High Street in the opposite direction, and then swung a right into Lion Street.

Before long I had reached St Mary's Church, which dates from the early 12th century. Getting a decent shot of the church's exterior was practically impossible as the sun was in the wrong place, but the simple interior was well worth a look. Back outside, I noticed a sign pointing to the tower and for a mere £3 (€4/US$5) I was treated to some stunning views. I could have stayed there all day...


Close-up of the high altar



View of the nave from the high altar



Looking down the nave



View across the rooftops, with Lion Street in the centre



The spire

Another rooftop view



Converging rivers

From the church tower I was able to see Ypres Tower and on descending, made my way there. In 1249, King Henry III (r. 1216-1272) ordered the building of a fort, which for centuries was known as Baddings Tower. Almost 200 years later, the fort was sold by Rye Corporation to a cloth merchant named Jean d'Ypres and thus the tower got its present day name of Ypres Tower. With a history dating back over 750 years, the Tower has been a fort, a private residence, a court and a prison. Today it's home to the Rye Castle Museum, which opened in 1954.


Ypres Tower

I visited the Tower, and then treated myself to a pink lemonade at The Ypres pub, where I studied my map and decided that I'd seen everything I really wanted to see. So, with the lemonade drunk, I wandered slowly back through the pretty cobbled streets and made my way to Rye station.

One last cobbled street

Discover Britain: Shoreham-by-Sea

Sandwiched between the South Downs, the River Adur and the English Channel, Shoreham-by-Sea is more than just an easy link to Brighton. It's a very walkable little town with a smattering of cute cafés, decent restaurants and good pubs. I'd never even heard of it before starting summer school, but now whenever I need to get off campus, it's my go-to place.

To get to Shoreham from the college you have to walk along the banks of the River Adur, and to this day it remains one of my favourite walks in the world. No matter what the weather's like, the ever-changing views are gorgeous.


View of the Adur (and Shoreham airport) from the bridge

Another day, another view, this time from the towpath looking back towards the bridge and the college

A little bit further along the towpath

The end of the towpath takes you to the bottom of High Street, where you can find the usual array of high street shops. Just as High Street becomes Brighton Road, I swing a left onto East Street, because this is where Toast by the Coast, my favourite café-cum-delicatessen, can be found.

My go-to café

Though a little over-priced, the food is really good. This summer, to combat the monotony of deep-fried crap being served up in the dining hall, I escaped to Shoreham for a continental platter (£6.50/€8/US$11) at every given opportunity.

The first of many...

With my stomach taken care of, I was able to do some exploring. In the middle of East Street is the Grade I listed Romanesque Church of St Mary de Haura (at the harbour).


The church with the war memorial in front

Originally erected during Norman times, it has undergone a lot of work throughout the ages. Consequently, much of the interior has been built in the Transitional style, between Norman with its rounded arches and Gothic with its pointed ones. Unusually for a parish church, both the chancel and its aisles are vaulted in stone and supported by flying buttresses.

Interestingly, the columns in the chancel arcade are different on both sides. The ones on the north side (on the left in the picture) alternate between round and octagonal columns while those on the south side are all constructed in the same complex design.


The 12th century chancel

Golden bird

The façade

The graveyard

East Street runs alongside the church and takes me to one of my favourite shops, Ginger & Dobbs, which is a seller of locally-sourced organic produce and – rather strangely – antiques and salvage. They also have a small café serving coffee, sandwiches and cakes.

 

The café-cum-grocer's-cum-salvage store

International banking corporation packaged for the small-town market

One of Shoreham's biggest attractions is its pebble beach, and when the sun comes out, that's where the local folk go. Lined with pretty beach huts, it's a great place to watch the sun set.

Sunset over Shoreham beach

But if a walk to the beach seems too much, you only need to head back to the river to get equally stunning sunset views. I may have travelled to a number of places on three different continents, but when it comes to great views, a sunset over the River Adur is right up there.

Still one of my favourite ever views