December 18th, 2003 | The lowdown by Emily Masamitsu

MOMA

When you tell people you are going to Madrid, one of the first clubs they will recommend is Kapital. Kapital is great - seven stories, three dance floors, and tons of attractive people - but the one thing you will find missing is Spaniards. Ask any native, and they will tell you that yes, they used to go there, but that was back when they were 16. Kapital is definitely worth going to once, and that will suffice if all you are looking to do is to dance with foreigners.

Instead of going to Kapital, I would recommend Moma. The first thing you will notice about Moma is that it is not near Sol. Sol is the great downtown of Madrid, and Moma is more out of the way. Every tourist, without a doubt, will hit up Sol during their stay. Moma, on the other hand, is more well known by the natives.

Secondly, you will notice Moma attracts a slightly older and posher crowd. Practically everyone there is much better dressed than your average disco goer. I would have felt down-right trashy if I had worn jeans. The sight of a couple older people worried us at first, but you realize this is just because you are used to all the sixteen year olds running around at the other clubs.

What made Moma interesting to me was the ambience. From the outside, you will notice that it is a combination cafeteria, bar/club, and restaurant. Inside, all you will notice is red. The color is everywhere, except in the bathrooms, where the decided to tone it down with black marble. Some of my friends said it reminded them of being in Las Vegas.

My friends and I found out about Moma through one of those random meetings that require you to take a chance on random nightlife advice - it's a place that none of us found in our guidebooks. Moma is fairly new and as it seems, has not yet spread through the ranks of the exchange students. If you are interested in going, take either line 10 or line 7 on the metro to the Gregorio Marigñon metro stop, and walk a block and a half up Jose Abascal.