This past Tuesday we got back from a 7 day excursion all throughout Southern Spain. We saw so many cool buildings, ate a lot of yummy things, and listened to our guide, Enrique, talk A LOT. I will try to keep this to just a summary of what we did because we seriously did all the things. But warning, this is long. So here I go:
Wednesday, February 26
We left Oviedo around 7am and drove through snowy mountains. The sunrise was beautiful. Our first stop was El Escorial, which is a monastery, palace, library, art gallery, many other things. Next, we drove to el Valle de los Caídos. This is a monument to the fallen in the civil war, but Franco, the Spanish dictator, made it into a memorial/burial place for himself. The basilica is built straight into a mountain! It was beautiful and really a shame that Franco made it all about himself because no one likes him and so they don't really like the memorial. After seeing that, we drove into Toledo. We got to see a gorgeous view of the city at night! Because of a huge lunch and a budget of only 5 euros, dinner consisted of sangria and leftover bocadillo (good word to know).
Wednesday, February 26
We left Oviedo around 7am and drove through snowy mountains. The sunrise was beautiful. Our first stop was El Escorial, which is a monastery, palace, library, art gallery, many other things. Next, we drove to el Valle de los Caídos. This is a monument to the fallen in the civil war, but Franco, the Spanish dictator, made it into a memorial/burial place for himself. The basilica is built straight into a mountain! It was beautiful and really a shame that Franco made it all about himself because no one likes him and so they don't really like the memorial. After seeing that, we drove into Toledo. We got to see a gorgeous view of the city at night! Because of a huge lunch and a budget of only 5 euros, dinner consisted of sangria and leftover bocadillo (good word to know).
Thursday, February 27
Thursday morning was spent learning all about Toledo through a walking tour. Some things we saw included a hospital, cathedral, monastery, and synagogue. Toledo is famous for metal work and the swords were awesome there. After walking all the day, we got back on the bus headed for Granada. Once we arrived in Granada, we met up with Diana's friend that was studying abroad for the semester. We went to Burger King and that was the first time I have ever been. I probably won't go back. With the 5 euros, dinner was chips, my other bocadillo, and ice cream. So healthy.
Friday, February 28
We did so many things on Friday! The morning was spent on a walking tour that included another monastery and cathedral. The church in the monastery was so beautiful. Enrique then bought us all chocolate con churros. That made all his talking worth it (; Next, we went to the chapel where Los Reyes Catholicos (Isabela and Fernando) were buried. I got a pretty good picture, even though it's not allowed. We took a quick stop to shop in the market and that was crazy. So many things! After eating lunch at our hostel, we headed over the the Alhambra. It was a beautiful day and everything was just so gorgeous. It's hard to believe that royalty actually lived there. The carvings are so intricate and the running water/fountains everywhere make it really pretty. Dinner was yummy kebabs and gelato. We then headed out to a showing of a flamenco dance in a cave. One dancer was hilarious! After, we got a beautiful view of the Alhambra at night.
Saturday, March 1
Saturday morning we got on the bus and headed to Córdoba. It was another beautiful drive. Once in the city, we took a tour of the mosque/cathedral. The story is that the mosque was built and got bigger and bigger as the city gained more importance and money. When the Christians conquered it, they put a bunch of gothic architecture in the middle of the mosque and called it a cathedral. It was crazy to see the mix of cultures in real life since we have learned so much about it in history class. We then took another walking tour of the city. Even though it was slightly raining, I loved the city. The streets are so small and cute and there are blue flower pots and everything was just so cute. I want to go back. Jenna, Hope, and I shared a really good tapas menú and a nutella crepe.
Sunday, March 2
Our destination for Sunday was Madrid, but we made a few stops before arriving. Our first stop was Consuegra. The book Don Quijote de la Mancha includes a part where Don Quijote fights a windmill, thinking it is a giant. We got to see some windmills that inspired this part. The day was absolutely beautiful. Our lunch seemed like it was going to be terrible when we pulled into a campground to eat, but it ended up very good with paella and chicken and french fries. Next, we went to the royal palace of Arajuez. We toured the gardens and the inside, which was still decorated with the old royal things. Everything was so extravagant! We finally got to Madrid and Jenna led us around some sketchy streets (we were later warned to avoid that area) to get to a Chinese restaurant found on yelp. The menu was in Chinese and translated into Spanish, but we didn't really know any of the words. Thankfully the waiter noticed that we didn't know anything and ordered us food that he thought we would like. It was so delicious and clearly authentic Chinese food. And only 6 euro per person. So worth it.
Monday, March 3
Monday was sent touring all over Madrid. Enrique says that our walking tour was equivalent to about 2 or 3 combined. Let's just say we learned a lot (or maybe nothing). We went to the Puerta del Sol, Plaza Mayor, Palacio Real, and various other buildings. After a lunch close to our hostel, we headed over to the Prado Museum. It was cool to see a lot of paintings that we have been studying in class. They are so much bigger in real life than in the book! We then walked through the Parque de Buen Retiro. We took the subway back to the hostel and bought a dinner of bread, cheese, ham, yogurt, and oranges at the grocery store and ate in on the floor in our room. It was Ian's birthday so we headed out to experience some Madrid nightlife. The hostel had a bar crawl so a man named Germán took us around to a couple places. The mojitos were delicious!
Tuesday, March 4
We got on the bus heading back home to Oviedo and made two last stops. The first was the royal palace called La Granja. Again, the gardens and decorations inside were so extravagant and beautiful. We were all a little tired of traveling and it was about 32 degrees outside so we didn't enjoy it as much as we would in the summer, but it was still pretty. Next, we went to Segovia. The Roman aqueduct was amazing! We took another walking tour of the city and, after a big lunch, we were in a much better mood. We saw another cathedral, palace, and random other buildings. After a coffee, we finally were headed straight for Oviedo.
So this post turned out really long and I apologize for it, but a lot of things happened. This week doesn't have much going on other than a few projects and a test. One important thing this weekend is Carnaval. We don't usually celebrate Fat Tuesday in the US (only Mardi Gras in a few places). Everywhere we went during the excursion, people were dressing up crazy at night and going out, but we didn't have the opportunity to participate. We thought we would miss Oviedo's, but it is this weekend! We have our costumes all ready and are ready to see the parade and see whatever other traditions are normal.
Yesterday we reached the halfway mark of our time in Spain. I feel happy and sad at the same time. I know I won't want to leave when the time comes! Anyway, I have to go to the Carnaval parade!
Beso, beso