Fiestas de San Lorenzo

The Fiesta de San Lorenzo is the major summer festival in the downtown neighborhood of Lavapiés. The celebration happens in August and is an interesting spin on the other traditional summer festivals in Madrid like San Isidro, San Cayetano, and La Paloma. While those celebrations adhere to Madrileño traditions, the San Lorenzo festival reflects the young, alternative, and multicultural nature of Lavapiés. You're just as likely to find Brazilian caiprinhas as sangria, and the tables stretching down Argumosa Street are filled with elderly people, normal families, young hipsters, Africans, and a variety of immigrants all chowing down and having a grand old time.