Meet Margaux Cintrano: From Montreal to Madrid

There are plenty of reasons people move to Spain. The weather. The food. The lifestyle. The promise of swapping snow shovels for sunglasses. Sometimes they come for something that warms you from the inside and (in my opinion) is considerably more important: love.

I first came across Margaux in one of those wonderfully busy Facebook groups for ladies living in Spain. You know the sort of group I mean. There’s a constant stream of questions, recommendations, advice, discussions, debates and of course the frequent “Does anyone know where I can buy…?” posts. I’ve used these Groups myself for help with everything from advice about a local hospital to asking for recommendations for neon nail polishes.

With so many women from so many different backgrounds sharing their experiences of life in Spain, these groups can be a fascinating window into the female community within Spain. Every now and then, someone pops up who makes you stop scrolling and have a bit more of a nosey (also known as “Facebook stalking” #SorryNotSorry). Margaux was one of those people.

We don’t actually know each other personally, although we’ve definitely tripped over each other in several corners of Facebook. Last week I added a shout out on one particular Group, offering a free interview for ladies who may wish to be featured in this section of Spain Buddy. Margaux filled out her details and whizzed them over. So here we are.

We don’t publish every interview that is submitted, but we do like an unusual angle. When I discovered that Margaux had made the move from Montreal to Madrid more than three decades ago, I thought she sounded like exactly the sort of person we should be getting to know here on Spain Buddy.

Margaux didn’t move to Spain for the usual reasons. She came to marry her Madrileño husband. She took a leap of faith for love – on her own, no less. Very brave, in my humble opinion!

That was more than 30 years ago. Today, Margaux is still happily living in Madrid. She and her husband are both recently retired, while their twin daughters are now grown up, married and raising young children of their own. And somewhere along the way, Margaux also managed to turn a project she started from a hospital bed into a long-running international digital magazine. That’s quite a story from one little interview submission!

Margaux Cintrano: From Montreal to Madrid

Right, let’s go back to the beginning. Margaux left Montreal and headed for Madrid, following her heart and embracing a completely new life in a different country. She came alone, with no entourage, no family caravan and apparently no complicated relocation plan. Just a Madrileño husband-to-be and a leap of faith.

It was quite a change of scenery. Montreal and Madrid are separated by an ocean, a language and quite a few cultural differences, but Margaux clearly settled into her new home. Yet, “settled” is perhaps an understatement.

After more than 30 years, Madrid isn’t simply somewhere Margaux lives. It is home. Her family has grown around her, her twin daughters have married and started families of their own, and she and her husband are now enjoying retirement together.

Not a bad result from taking a one-way trip across the Atlantic for love eh?

Margaux Cintrano’s love for the finer things

Love may have been what brought Margaux to Spain, but it certainly isn’t her only passion.

She has an appreciation for fine dining, good wine (Reservas being her favourites), restaurants that offer something a little extra to their diners’ experience, and travel. All of which makes perfect sense when you discover the project that began during a period in hospital back in 2016.

Margaux started Beyond Taste, a digital PDF magazine, as a project to keep herself busy while she was in hospital since 2016. What began as something to occupy her time has grown into a publication covering food, travel, people, lifestyle and plenty more.

You can find Beyond Taste on Issuu. Her latest PDF magazine at the time of writing is Beyond Taste Spring 2026.

Inside you’ll find everything from travel features and interviews to articles exploring the things that make French Bulldogs so special. It’s an eclectic mix, but that seems to be part of the charm. The articles are in different languages.

There is a real sense of adventure in Margaux’s content. She clearly enjoys discovering interesting people, places and experiences and then sharing them with her readers.

Which means that if we ever find ourselves planning a trip to Madrid (or Italy… or Montreal), Margaux would definitely be someone we’d want in our little black book of recommendations.