The Fantastic Playgrounds of Spain: Plaza Juan Pujol and Plaza Dos de Mayo (Madrid)

When you are young and carefree and childless, you hang out in Malasaña to be cool and drink cheap dobles at Pepe la Botella. Luckily, there are plenty of playgrounds on the plazas in Malasaña for parents who still want to hang out and be cool but need to entertain their kid(s).

Plaza Juan Pujol (pictured below) has a very small playground geared toward toddlers that is fenced in near an outdoor terrace. It's...a little sad and a little dirty. People drive very fast down C/Espíritu Santo which makes it a bit nerve-wracking. Still, if you can snag a table near the playground, it's a good-enough space.

But, if you walk down C/San Andrés, you will soon find yourself in the playground wonderland that is the Plaza Dos de Mayo. Plenty of bars with terrace seating right next to the playground. There are three separate playgrounds on two levels, plus lots of pavement and benches and, of course, a statue commemorating the bravery of the people of Madrid who rose up in opposition to Napoleon's army on May 2, 1808. The only downsides of the playgrounds of Plaza Dos de Mayo: 1) has sand playgrounds (shake out your shoes after playing) and 2) with two levels and such a big plaza, you will not be able to sit at your table and watch your kid throughout the play area.

Logistics: Maybe it's not the closet stop, but I like to use the Bilbao metro stop to get to Malasaña. Bilbao metro has elevators and is a gently sloping downward walk down C/ Fuencarral. To get to Plaza Dos De Mayo as quickly as possible: make an immediate right onto Calle Manuela de Malasaña (if you walk past the McDonalds, you've gone too far), a left on Calle San Andrés, and you will run right into the Plaza Dos De Mayo.

A pleasant pigeon perched on the Plaza Juan Pujol Playground

One of the Plaza Dos de Mayo's sandy, sandy playgrounds