Estación de Atocha, Madrid

Made of steel and glass, this fine old railway station building was designed by the Basque architect Ricardo Velázquez Bosco, who was also responsible for the Palacio de Cristal in Retiro Park. It has been stylishly converted into tropical gardens under glass with an elegant first-floor restaurant. There's a permanent display of sculpture in the hall that leads to the new station. In summer you can visit the popular terrace-bar that's set up outside. It was built in 1892 for the Rothschilds, who controlled the development of the railways at that time. Unfortunately, the Atocha Station was one of the locations of the 11-M terrorist attack that took place on March 11, 2004. In 2007, a big glass memorial monument was inaugurated outside of the station. This monument contains the names of all the victims and the condolence messages of Madrid's population.