Last Friday I got on a train at 6:45am to make the 4.5hr trip to Madrid. When I got there, I (struggled a bit and then) took a metro to the Puerto del Sol, where I had verrry sketchy directions to the hotel my parents were staying at. So I couldn't figure them out and awkwardly walked around Madrid for about an hour, when, with the help of several police officers, I finally found it ! They were super proud of me for figuring it out on my own, and I realized that I really have grown a lot since I arrived in Spain.
Dawson was exhausted from the trip, so my parents and I walked around looking for places to eat. We found this adorable little place that was super Spanish, delicious food, awesome atmosphere, nice people. It was a great way to start their visit to Spain. Then we went back and got Dawson and basically just wandered around the city until we were hungry again, and no one was feeling very well (due to the jetlag) so we went to a Tapas place where Mom & D had their first tortilla española, and my dad and I each got a beer and split some delicious garlic shrimp and spicy potatoes. We crashed early.
The next day we had a lovely breakfast at the hotel and then went to the Prado for the day where we saw tons of amazing and famous art! We were very exhausted after that, so we went to a sketchy market and went back for a mini siesta before heading to to the stadium for the soccer game! My daddy treated us to a Real Madrid soccer game, which was super cool, and Dawson really loved. They kicked Real Sociedad's butt, but it was fun to see a high scoring game!
The next day, we got up and had breakfast, but it was Daylight Savings in Spain, so we lost an hour, and then we went to the Palacio Real
which was cool, especially the throne room, and then we ate at a delicious Mexican restaurant before running to the train station, to make the train back to Cáceres! So it was a whirlwind weekend for sure.
On Monday, they came to eat lunch at my host family's house, which was really special. Teresa brought out the Christmas china, and we all got wine and had a FEAST of shrimp, meats and cheeses, breads, croquetas, paella valenciana, strawberries, and turrón de navidad (a kind of fudge that they usually only have around Christmas). It was so so special to have both of my families together, but it was completely exhausting having to translate everything. After my real family left, I absolutely passed out, my head was so tired! That evening we met back up and had FroYo and looked around old town
and then I took them to my favorite cafe where mom and I split a mojito and the boys had hotdogs.
So this was kind of a crazy week, because in addition to my fam being here, it's the week before Spring break, so the homework load was extra heavy, AND Spain's national strike day is today, so there were lots of preparations being made by everyone-the city, the students (school was cancelled for us today), and my parents (they were supposed to leave town today, but no one was sure what transportation would be going). So it was pretty hectic.
Tuesday we hung out at the Parque de Principe and then walked up to Eroski so they could see the "big mall" of Cáceres, and in the evening, they met a bunch of my friends' parents! I was doing homework, so I didn't meet them, but I was glad they got to meet some of my friends here :)
Wednesday was our last day together :( We went up the mountain and then went out for gelato, and mom helped me pack for spring break before we reunited for churros con chocolate and café con leche, a great way to end their stay in Cáceres! It went so fast, but it was great to have them here.
As for me, I spent all day finishing up the homework I needed to get done before spring break. Tomorrow, I leave for Paris, where I (with 7 others from our group) will spend 2 days before taking a scenic route through Belgium to Amsterdam, where we spend a day and a half, before heading to Cologne, Germany where we spend 2 days around the Rhine River before heading back on an epically long train ride to Spain in order to be home for Easter next Sunday! Keep me in your prayers please :) I hope to have lots of pics and stories for you when I return.
Praises to God for:
-safe travels for my family here to Spain, please keep them in their prayers as they spend this weekend in Valencia and then head home
-that I got to see them!
-that I got everything done in time
-good weather
-good friends
-opportunities and resources to do amazing travel, like what's coming up
-my sweet sweet host family
-the Lord and the sacrifice He made for us on the cross 2000 years ago
That you all will have a lovely Easter together with your families and that you remember why we celebrate this day on which our debt was wiped clean by the perfect savior. Os quiero mucho <3
Hablamos pronto!
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