ISABEL GARCÍA Madrid
Madrid
Updated Saturday, March 2, 2024-00:06
Curiosities Guide to fall in love with Madrid in 48 hours
Ranking A Spanish city, the third most attractive in the world for tourism in 2023
They grow more than
80 types of tomatoes
.
And 59 varieties of fruits.
And 26 vegetables.
They also give wine, with their private winery within the estate.
And they even have their own oil mill, from where they extract the essence with which they produce the extra virgin
Changlot Real,
the "homemade liquid gold" that has come to conquer the
White House, the Vatican
and a good handful of Houses. Real Europeans, regular customers.
"They ask us for it every year and we send it to them packaged in our special ceramic bottle, which keeps it perfect," says José Cabrera,
alma mater
and owner with his wife, Encarna, and their children, of
La Huerta de Carabaña,
the
temple
of gourmet harvests located on the outskirts of the town of the same name, in the region of Las Vegas and Alcarria.
The most demanding palates
come to him
(he is a supplier to El Corte Inglés) in search of products "from before, those that really taste," adds Cabrera while walking among the tomato crops, the true jewel in the crown of This
sustainable farm
of 30,000 meters, which even has an Agricultural Research Center.
The tomatoes from La Huerta de Carabaña.I.
GARCÍA / TRAVEL
Its history began more than a century ago, although Cabrera acquired it a little more than two decades ago.
"Having a garden was my pending subject since I was a child, since I grew up among them in
Ibahernando
(Cáceres)," he recalls excitedly.
They maintain the same form of production as in the past, traditional, maintaining the natural balance of the ecosystem "and feeding the land with
organic compost
from the farm animals, which we also have," adds the man from Extremadura, this time in front of the
donkey stables.
, goats, sheep and chickens
that populate the place, surrounded by the fertile nature of the Vega del Tajuña.
Not in vain, this area, less than 50 minutes from the center of the capital, is known as
"the pantry of Madrid"
, since a large part of the fruits and vegetables consumed in the region come from here.
Its
privileged location and climate
make it a wonder of nature where you not only come to eat well, but to enjoy its hiking and cycling routes.
The businessman José Cabrera, on his farm.
For a reason, it is one of the stops on
the Tajuña greenway
, an essential part of the Las Vegas and Alcarria region, one of the four into which the region is divided, whose
tourist offer
is jointly defended by the MadRural project.
"Madrid is much more than a city; there are four perfect rural destinations to live in a leisurely way, enjoying its
leisure
, nature, culture and gastronomy proposals," says Luis Martín Izquierdo, director of Tourism and Hospitality of the Community.
Vestiges of the Civil War
The aforementioned greenway starts in Arganda del Rey and reaches Ambite, already on the border with Guadalajara, through
49 kilometers
that run through a pleasant landscape of meadows, scrubland and, finally, dry lands following the course of the river. same name.
In between, one can witness History by visiting places such as the
Museum of the Battle of Jarama,
key during Madrid's resistance in the Civil War, in
Morata de Tajuña,
also popular for its delicious chocolate palm trees.
Not far away is Tielmes, with its characteristic cave houses excavated in the rocks.
Bike ride through the region.
The king of this type of construction is the so-called
Risco de las Cuevas
de Perales de Tajuña, a complex made up of 47 artificial caves located on the right bank of the river and declared a National Monument and
Asset of Cultural Interest
.
Dreamlike movie scenario, it is believed that they date back to the Neolithic, since polished stone axes and ceramics from that time have appeared around.
No one lives in them anymore, although they were inhabited until the beginning of the 20th century.
After passing Carabaña, the greenway continues towards the town of
Orusco
passing through rock walls built for the train to pass through and ancient stone bridges.
The final stretch to
Ambite
slides between groves and small cliffs that plunge over the river, leaving more than photogenic images.
The Cliff of the Perales de Tajuña Caves
OTHER EXPERIENCES
MADRURAL. Tourist project.
This initiative was born to publicize the cultural, landscape, leisure and gastronomic offer of the four rural regions that make up the region.
PAST. The trace of the Civil War.
The Battle of Jarama Historical Park shows the vestiges of the war through 35 kilometers, nine routes and a dozen key points.
RECREATION. In popular style.
The Tielmes House Museum and Rural School remembers what the rhythm and daily life of the inhabitants of the region were like during the last century.
ARCHITECTURE. White facades.
Between steep slopes, baroque churches and ancestral houses with a coat of arms, the town of Carabaña follows in the wake of the white towns of Andalusia.
Stone bridge on the Tajuña greenway.
You can follow
El Mundo Viajes
on
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and