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Grilled fish is the speciality of this hotel-restaurant in an 18th-century palace.

“Paseo” implies a stroll and this lovely avenue, at its best on a sunny morning or just after sunset, was designed precisely for that purpose. The first cafés began to appear in the 19th century when the boulevard was nicknamed “Recoletos beach”. Most of the originals had disappeared by the 1980s when the Movida gave the terraces a new lease of life (see People and Places of La Movida). The Pabellón de Espejo looks the part with its painted tiles and wrought-iron adornments but actually dates from the 1990s. No. 10 was the residence of the Marqués de Salamanca.

What draws visitors to the Alcarría region is the rugged scenery and peace and quiet. In Pastrana, first take a look at the Palacio Ducal in the main square. The Museo de la Colegiata (next to the church of the same name) has a splendid collection of 15th-century tapestries depicting the capture of Tangier by Alfonso V of Portugal. Just outside town is the Convento del Carmen, founded by St Teresa of Avila in the 16th century, with an exhibition on her life.

Spain is the largest producer of olive oil in the world and this representative of a grower’s cooperative knows his business. Like wines, you can distinguish different varieties by their colour, flavour and smell, and tastings here are part of the fun (see Patrimonio Comunal Olivarero).

The controversial Academy Award-winning film director shot his first movie, Pepi, Luci, Bom in 1980. Iconoclastic and subversive, his bizarre characters – drug-pushing nuns, pill-popping housewives and outrageous transvestites – shocked a society that was only just emerging from the Franco era and captured the spirit of the movida on celluloid.

The film director released his first full-length film, Pepi, Luci, Bom, y otras chicas de Montón in 1980.

Hip designer with a great line in jackets and stylish clothing for younger men. The idolized footballers from Real Madrid have been known to drop by.