In 1960, Martín and Marcos are forced by their difficult personal circumstances to travel to Switzerland in search of work, leaving their families in the Madrid of Franco's Spain. But they undertake more than a simple journey; they begin the road to a new life.
Natalia, a successful painter, and Hugo, a writer in a creative rut, are going through a rough patch in their relationship. After Hugo moves out in an attempt to finish his novel, Natalia is determined to do whatever it takes to reunite with him.
At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, the nun Maria is forced to flee her convent. She takes refuge in a brothel, until it is liberated by a woman's anarchist group. Maria joins the group and eventually goes to the front. The women's group faces the problems of fighting not only the nationalists, but also factions on the left seeking to impose a more traditional military structure.
A group of Africans clandestinely reaches the coast of southern Spain. Among them is Alou, a 28 years old Senegalese. As all his belongings are stolen while in Almsería, he has no choice but to engage in street vending. His only pleasure are the letters he writes to his family to tell the vicissitudes of his Spanish adventure.
The story unfolds in Bilbao. Rocío (Emma Suárez), is in love with Mario (Antonio Banderas), a free rider with a lot of face that, to top it all, is partner of the business of her father, Domingo (Francisco Rabal) with whom she maintains incestuous relations. When Domingo passes away, both Mario and Rocío's mother have to put to the front of the business, finishing with the inheritance that could receive Rocío. In the midst of her frustration, a young business worker, secretly in love with Rocío, will try to have the legacy of her father end up in the hands of his rightful heiress.