Hola Todos!
It has been a while since I have updated all of you with my adventures, but I have been so busy! The week before classes started here our group took a week long trip to all of the places mentioned above. I took way too many photos for all of them to be put on display here, but I will try to pick the best ones for your entertainment! And I think they will be a separate post because I don't want to have to fit them all in with writing.
First Stop: TOLEDO
Here (like in every city we visited) we got a guided tour of the city. We looked at the most famous cathedrals, examined the remains of the wall that once enclosed the entire city, and witnessed almost living history through architecture. My favorite part was a single door that used to be part of the wall around the city. In the door the bottom stones were from the Romans, the middle stones from the Arabs, and the top most stones were left behind by the Christians during the Spanish Reconquest. It was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen, and it was even more amazing to think that all of those people once walked down the same streets that I was standing on!
After touring the city we had some free time so we went and bought marzipan! (a dessert/candy famous in Toledo and it was delicious!) We were then supposed to head off to Madrid, but our bus forgot about us and we ended up spending about 2 extra hours trying to figure out where it had gone and how to get it back! Everything worked out however.
Stop Two: MADRID
Once we finally got to Madrid we spent 3 nights there and it was a great experience. We took a combined walking/bus tour of the city the first day and visited the Prado. I can't even describe what that experience was like, but I will try. You know how you always see famous painting in textbook and read about the artists? Well none of it actually seems that real right? Well now imagine that you are standing about 3 inches away from those actual painting created by the actual hands of those artists...the experience is unreal! You don't recognize the significance of these types of things until you are actually experiencing it.
I had this same kind of experience when we had a free day in the city the next day and we went to the Reina Sofia. I literally was standing next to the works of Salvador Dali and Pablo Picasso (Guernica was on display when we went). Not only that, but I also walked through Parque del Retiro. It is kind of like Central Park in NYC but so much better! It was beautiful. We attempted to go to Plaza de Toros (the bullring in Madrid) but unfortunately it was closed to visitors on Feb 2nd and 3rd out of the whole year, and those were the days we were in Madrid! We had fun exploring the city anyway though. That night we went to the theater and saw a play that confused everyone! We only understood it because we read the summary that they handed to us before the play started. It was all about everything in life being a lie and everything being the truth and never knowing which to expect... I think the play accomplished its goal.
The Metro came in handy when we went out at night. We went to a bar/club called Cafe Orange. It was really fun... and guess what it was FREE (for girls at least) There was no cover charge for girls, and once we got in it was an open bar for us until 1:30am...pretty good way to go out...very economical :) We were allowed to get as many beers, sangria, or cokes mixed with red wine as we wanted during that time. I don't really know how that works, but they do open bars in clubs all over Spain. It is definitely a cultural difference! Overall, the time we spent in Madrid was extremely interesting both culturally and socially. It was fun to have our whole group in one place instead of spread out across the city.
Third Stop: SEGOVIA
Almost everyone had read about the famous aqueducts of Segovia, but have you ever stood underneath them?? I HAVE! That was one of the highlights of this trips. We also toured other cathedrals, but the best part was the fact that we got to go in a castle! Kings and queens actually lived there! We even climbed to the top of the tower which was an accomplishment considering that when we toured Segovia and then Ávila it was about two degrees Fahrenheit. We ate lunch in Segovia... a really nice dinner type of deal; three courses plus bread, wine, and after dinner chupitos (shots). We ate cochinillo (full roasted baby pig) LITERALLY there are pictures to follow. It was really fun to experience with everyone especially since they kept refilling the wine and giving out more shots...needless to say our program director had to deal with a group of tipsy students for the next bus ride and tour in Ávila. (His fault...he shouldn't have supplied it if he didn't want us to drink it, but then again it is the Spanish way)
Stop Four: ÁVILA
This was the quickest tour of all because we were all so freezing cold that we could barely pay attention to what was happening! But we toured the cathedral there and learned about St. Teresa of Ávila. It is the only city in Spain that is still fully enclosed by a wall. I wish we got a chance to walk on it, but the wind was too strong and would have blown us away!
Stop Five: SALAMANCA
This was perhaps my favorite city of the trip. It was beautiful and we had all the free time in the world to explore what we wanted to. I like to learn through my own exploration, so this was fantastic! Not to mention the fact that I loved the people I got to go exploring with :) We wandered through the city, found the old roman bridge, the caves of Salamanca, and an old look out tower. It was very easy to navigate and just overall a wonderful trip. You would think I would have more to say about one of my favorite places, but that's just it... I don't. It was just one of those places that you will never forget.
Sixth and Final Stop: EL ESCORIAL
This building is a place and cathedral all in one. It was built as the summer home of Philip II. We got to tour it on our way home to Granada. I liked the fact that we were walking through rooms where the king or his daughters had actually slept, prayed, and lived. All of their bedrooms connected directly to the cathedral so that they could attend masses without the inconvenience of leaving their home. When we were there a mass was actually taking place with was truly amazing. It was quite the experience to actually see one of these grand cathedral put to use.
Overall, I learned a lot on the trip and had so much fun. I could get used to this kind of life... living right in the middle of history that spans from prehistoric to modern times. I don't feel like I have had enough time in each place however. I guess I will just have to come back to Spain sometime after my semester is up! Maybe if some of you are lucky you can come with me :)
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