Calle Baños de Montemayor

The name travels from the north of Cáceres, where the town of Baños de Montemayor rises literally out of hot water. Two twin springs surface at 43 degrees at the foot of the mountains, and to that sulphurous steam the town owes its surname. “Montemayor” recalls the lordship that ruled those lands; “Baños” (baths), what really made them famous. The Romans came first. They built baths there beside the Vía de la Plata, the road that linked Mérida with Astorga. The site survived the centuries, forerunner of the spa that still receives visitors. The street belongs to the Las Acacias neighbourhood, in Arganzuela, where several streets take names from the geography of Extremadura. The Madrileño who crosses it treads the echo of a water that has flowed among chestnut trees for over two thousand years.