Atocha Station

The first station burned down in a fire, and in its place in 1892, a new one was built, which still stands today. Alberto del Papasio and the famous Gustave Eiffel supervised its construction. The station building consists of two pavilions, the space between them covered by an ornate roof of wrought iron and glass, measuring 152 x 40 meters. For 19th-century architecture, it was a true masterpiece. Trains would enter under this roof, blackening it completely over a hundred years.

In 1992, in preparation for the Olympics, the station underwent a major renovation. By this time, high-speed trains had appeared, and the platforms for their reception were moved outside, covered by a huge glass canopy. The old building became something like a shopping mall. On all floors are shops and restaurants and even a popular nightclub. But it is not the multitude of shops and restaurants located here that attract many tourists.

The fact is that under the huge glass and steel canopy, which was painstakingly cleaned of a century of soot, a real botanical garden has been organized, where tropical plants grow, and palms rise almost to the dome’s roof, delighting the eye with several hundred tropical plants. Under the dome, it’s warm all year round — +24°C. Birds sing here, and in small ponds live many turtles — sometimes they even lack stones to climb on. These turtles can wander all over the station.

The environment here is utterly unlike a train station. It’s peaceful, clean, with the sound of water, and turtles strolling around. It’s like a jungle, and only that. Various exhibitions and concerts are held here, and people come just to take a walk.

Every week, an unusual fair of fortune tellers takes place here, reading palms and selling stones with zodiac signs. The fortune-telling is expensive, but it’s worth a look. However, there are no robes, black nails, or other theatrics. Just simple women…

Atocha Station is an interesting example of what can be done in a major city with an old and cramped station, turning it into both a railway station and a cultural center.

As for the new part of the station, from where trains depart and arrive, everything here is organized and well-thought-out, with separate arrival and departure zones, and no hustle and bustle.