Gran Vía

The Gran Vía (The Great Way) is one of the most important shopping areas in Madrid, Spain. It also has hotels and large movie theaters.

The Edificio Metropolis on the Gran Via de Madrid.

Gran Via, Madrid

Many of the buildings on the Gran Vía are decorated with fancy sculptures. One of the more impressive buildings on the Gran Vía is the Edificio Metropolis. It was built in 1907 by Jules and Raymond Février. It has a statue of the winged Roman goddess, Victoria, on the top. Madrid's first skyscraper, Telefonica's Head Office, is also on the Gran Vía.

The Gran Vía was planned in the 1850s. They did not start building the road until 1904 and finished it in 1929. People laughed at the plan because it took so long to get started. As a joke, they called it the 'gran vía' or 'great road'.