Madrid: "Pez de Cristal", Puerta del Sol on Sat.

The Pez de Cristal ("Glass Fish"), the new Cercanías entry structure, is to be inaugurated on Saturday, 27 June 2009. It'll connect Atocha and Chamartin stations, creating the famed "Túnel de la risa".

ANOTHER UPDATE: The Inauguration WAS today at 11am, presided over by the President of the Comunidad de Madrid, Esperanza Guirre.

Apparently, the subsurface space is the largest man made cavern in the world, large enough to fit a 6-story building horizontally. The inauguration will end (????) nearly 5-years of construction and excavation in Madrid's Puerta del Sol.

Wow! I can't believe that the obras (construction) will finally come to an end in Sol! I am looking forward to seeing the finished product on my next trip to Spain.

Thanks for the update!

I was just thinking of asking if anyone knew when this project would end.

I'll see it in October.

I'll see it in August..it's very cool...

UPDATE: Today I've read that while the inauguration will take place this Saturday, the station itself won't be open to the public for transportation until Sunday.

More photos below from today's www.Madridiario.es :



1-Year Old Video of the construction of the new station and Cercanías Line of the Puerta del Sol:

UPDATE: The Inauguration day has been changed to Sunday, 28th June, 12pm-2pm. I can't make this day/time, unfortunately. ARGH!!

Saludos, MadridMan

Zapatero and Esperanza presents in the inauguration??? I don't get lost it.

What a F'IN PAIN IN THE ARSE! I've just now found the page on Madrid.org that says the F'IN inauguration WAS today/Saturday at 11am. ARGH!!! GOOD GRAVY, they'd done a P-POOR job of promoting it. Man, am I P*SSED!! Plans made, then changed to tomorrow, and now this!!

Today I have been fantastic to see Esperanza and ZP, but the best the exhibition of regional Spanish houses and his eaten ones, included Morrocan.in Plaza Mayor. I have eaten up a TAPA of ham and a wine for 3 € Mmmmm....

Well, although I missed the (poorly-or-not-publicized) inauguration this morning at 11am, I'll still go tomorrow/Sunday morning to check out the first day of operation, take some photos (if they let me), and will report back here and with a Madrid blog entry.

Saludos, MadridMan

Yesterday's Grand Opening of the new Puerta del Sol Cercanias Station was an interesting experience.

A buddy and I met up there yesterday to check it out "in depth" and went as far down as the common area - we didn't buy a train ticket just to see the trains or the remains of the Iglesia de Buen Suceso under glass, though. It was all interesting and there were A LOT of people, most of whom seemed NOT to be passengers but rather gawkers and media people, picture takers and transportation aficionados.

The above-ground entry structure is interesting if not unusual, roughly in the shape of a fish and brings a lot of attention to itself, standing out like white on black in the traditional and historical Puerta del Sol.

Saludos, MadridMan