Last weekend I had the priviledge of traveling to Madrid and staying with family of friends of family... While the relationship may have been a little difficult to explain, one thing that was not was their kindness! Throughout the whole weekend they treated me as if I was family, and I am so thankful to be able to get to know them all a bit; it's incredible how much you can learn during three days of conversations while traveling together!
On Friday, I took a bus from Valencia to Madrid, which only took about four hours, but more importantly only cost about €35 for both the departure and return trips! After arriving at the bus station and finding my friend at the bus station, we met her mother and went to late lunch. We then walked around downtown Madrid, and in only a few short hours were able to see so many of the important historical and tourist locations, such as the Palacio Real (Royal Palace) pictured above. We also got to see the Plaza Mayor, the Puerta de Alcalá, Gran Via, which is like Madrid's equivalent to Times Square, and the Puerta del Sol, which contains the ground zero (0 km marker) for all of the major highways leading out of Madrid. We also stopped into a market which was renovated a few years ago and now not only sells fresh fruits, meats, and other foods, but also has lots of grilled and baked food made to order in a very hip, vintage environment. While we were only in Madrid a short time, I felt like we saw so much!
The next morning we traveled to Segovia, which was just over an hour away. This city is famous for it's 2000+ year old Roman aqueduct, which did not disappoint. It is incredible to see such a massive structure that didn't even use any cement to hold the stones together still standing high above the rest of the city. While there we also had the chance to see the cathedral, which was massive, and El Alcazar, which was a castle built on the side of a cliff. In fact, this castle was the main influence on the castle used in the old animated version of Disney's Snow White, so that was pretty neat to be able to see. Also, for lunch in Segovia we ate on a hill opposite the city, which had a great panaramic view of the cathedral, El Alcazar, and the whole city.
In the evening on Saturday we travled to Ávila, which is famous for the walls that still stand along one side of the city. They were massive, and it was very neat to be able to see them all lit up at night. Plus, I was able to try a dessert called "yemas" (de santa teresa) which are basically a mixture of egg yolk and sugar, but were quite delicious, and often made my the nuns of the city to help fund the convent.
Sunday morning was a fast and furious visit of Toledo, as we had to get back to Madrid by four in the afternoon so I could catch my bus. In just a few short hours we walked through many museums, such as a Jewish heritage museum and synagoge from the 12th century, and the house of El Greco (even though he didn't actually live there). I think one of the coolest elements of this city, besides it being very scenic and beautiful on a hill, is that there was such a mixture of cultures in the history, as over the centuries there has been an ecclectic mixture of Christian, Islamic, and Jewish cultures, which leads to a unique number of traditions and architecture. In fact, because of this the entire city is noted as a UNESCO world heritage site, and this year they were celebrating being the gastronomic capital of Spain.
While the weekend flew by, I was able to see so much more of Spain, both places and culture, and am so thankful to have been able to spent it getting to develop a relationship with some new friends as well!