The Rain In Spain...

Europe » Spain » Castile & León » Salamanca
June 16th 2006

Published: June 16th 2006

So a little background on the title. Ian joined us in Europe on May 8th...today is June 16th. That´s somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 days. We don´t quite need an ark, but it´s rained at least 35 of the 40 days we´ve been here. As such, we´ve nicknamed Ian "El Nube Negra" (Black Cloud). Everywhere we go, they say it never rains at this time of year and whaddya know, it rains! Ian is none too amused by this turn of events but it´s actually a blessing as it keeps thing cool in España Caliente. Say what you will about the waste of energy that is AC, it just seems necessary sometimes.

Anyway, we left Berlin on June 7th and as Teresa explained, we had a blast. Yes, Europe has turned into a bit of a bar tour but we´ve enjoyed it thoroughly and it´s been a great way to round out this amazing trip. We arrived in Madrid, found our quaint little hostal in Central Madrid and hit the town for Tapas. Delicioso. After a little wine and then a lot of Sangria, we headed out to the clubs. We were lured into a club with the promise of a free shot and ended up meeting a couple of girls who live in Madrid, one Spanish and the other Irish. The night ended after a rousing rendition of "Ironic" by Alanis Morrisette from Ian and the girls and we turned in.

The next day mi madre y Rod arrived and we did a quick little tour of the city. We grabbed some tapas (again delicioso) and made it an early night. The next day we spent the morning at the Prado, which is a pretty amazing museum. I could probably go 100 times before really taking in all that it has to offer. In fact, we are going back tomorrow for a special Picasso exhibition that is going on right now.

After that, we grabbed some rental cars and hit the ground running. We stopped in Segovia for the night and it turned out to be a beautiful city. It has an amazing aqueduct built by the Romans, which basically means it´s incredibly old and incredibly amazing. After a dinner of roasted suckling pig (my mom loved that one, especially the head and ears) we grabbed a beer at a local joint and smoked a cigar with mom and Rod in the street in the rain...of course.

The next day we drove to Santander, a beach town in Northern Spain. It was described by the tourist desk in Madrid as a quaint tourist spot with nice beaches. In reality it´s a budding metropolis a la San Francisco with nice beaches. Needless to say, it wasn´t the easiest place to navigate and find a hotel but we got it done and ended up with a 5 bed room for 6 people. Mom called it a bed and breakfast with a terrace, I saw it as a crappy hostel with a concrete glassed in porch. Either way, it worked for the night and while the kids endured it for one more night, we at least got the parentals into a nicer place for the next night.

Past that, it was a blast. We found ourselves a nice beach, layed out, played in the freezing ocean water (for you Austinites, think Barton Springs cold with salt mixed in) and enjoyed the sun. Other highlights included Cade hitting on a 16 year old girl and hanging out at the "hard rock" club and watching the beginnings of the Copa Mundial (World Cup...oh and so far, outlook not so good for the Americans). After Santander, we worked our way down to Salamanca where Cade is studying and it´s been really nice here.

We got a nice room, we´ve had some good food, saw the sights, and mostly just relaxed. Oh yeah, and I made it to the big 25. That´s right folks, I am a wise old man now so if you have any questions, let me know. Teresa got me a great pocket watch, I got a new wallet, and some cologne...life is good. Salamanca is another of those beautiful Spanish towns with lots to do and see. It´s also a study abroad mecca so there are a ton of young kids to party with, which we of course did at the 6.50 Euro all you can drink bar. In case you are curious, all you can drink is a bad idea. It´s a rousing good time but that shouldn´t be legal.

It´s been a wonderful week with the parents and the bro, not to mention Ian, and it makes us realize once again that we are some pretty lucky people. However, in the future and as a tip to others, if you want to travel in a group of 4 or more, MAKE RESERVATIONS AND PLANS IN ADVANCE. There´s been a lot of indecision, hurry up and wait, and scramble around the city to find food, accomodation, etc. due to the fact that we have 6 people with different motives moving in at least 2 different directions at any given time. Regardless it´s been well worth it and we´d definitely do it again, just maybe at a beach house or in the mountains next time.

For now, it´s off to Madrid (if Cade ever gets here from packing and eating at his house) for one more night before heading off to Italy. We´ve got about 10 days left before we are back in the good ole´ USA. To be honest, I think we are about ready to wind it down. Five months for a honeymoon has been a pretty good run.

Copyright Notice: All Rights Reserved