Blogs from Castile & León, Spain, Europe - page 89

Hey guys! I know that yall are getting excited for school to be out! Time goes by so fast!!! Let me know the exact date that yall are done with school! Have you gone on all of your field trips yet (to the baseball game, the park, etc)? How was that? That would have been fun to have been there to go with you all! Tomorrow is my last day in Avila. I'm leaving in the evening to go to Madrid and then I'm traveling for about 3.5 weeks! Some of my really good friends are coming over in a little over a week! I'm really looking forward to seeing familiar faces! I'll be sure to update as often as I can while I am traveling, but I cannot guarantee that I will be able to ... read more

Hey guys! This has been a pretty good weekend so far. I haven't done much today at all. It's gone by pretty fast but thats cause I went to Madrid yesterday to go shopping-yay- and meet up with a few people! This is my last weekend in Avila and I cannot believe how quickly it has all gone by. There have definitely been moments where I thought it would never end, but for the most part I have loved my time here. I have learned so much about myself, what I am capable, how I handle situations, being out of my comfort zone---waaaay out of it, becoming more independent, etc. The list could go on, and so I am thankful that I've had this opportunity to grow in this well as well as really experience the ... read more

A solo trip to a nearby pueblo was just what I needed on the last day of my four day weekend. At the Atocha Renfe station, a nice man recommended Avila. I hopped on a train and set off. When I arrived in Avila, I was, at first, disappointed. The pueblo was quiet and lifeless. All of the town, save a cafe or two, was completely vacant. Where were all of the Avilanos? I decided to take a walk near the Muralla, the old wall that fortressed the city in days of old. I was surprised at how closely the villagers live to the historic wall. Just feet away from the wall are casas full of life. Children playing, laundry hanging. Ahead of me I saw a woman walking two perritos. I approached slowly, not knowing ... read more

Viva the Spanish holiday! Hombre, do these people know how to take vacation seriously. Only two weeks ago was Semana Santa, and here we are with another four day weekend. Monday May 1st is Dia del Trabajador for the whole country, Tuesday May 2nd is the Madrileno celebration of El dos de mayo (commemorating the Madrilian uprising against Napoleon), Sunday May 7 is Dia de la Madre (signifying that no one will work the following Monday), and Monday May 15 is the day the Madrilenos celebrate Madrid's patron saint, San Isidro. Even though it's the day of Mexican independence, it wouldn't have surprised me if the Spanish celebrated Cinco de Mayo, just for another excuse to have a fiesta! To kick the weekend off right, Tracie and I took a day trip to Segovia on Saturday. ... read more

we begin today with a little story. our story is set in cadiz spain where we are as i write. but first lets go back about a week or so to cinque terre located on what is considered to be the italian rivierra. cinque terre is made up of 5 little towns on the coastline that can be visited by hiking or taking the train between each town. we set out to see all 5 in the morning but after seeing 3 we decided that as beautiful as they were, they did not compare to amalfi coast. i, in true stacey fashion, suggested we take advantage of the sun and beach and lay out for a while. so back to the first town we went and bought two swimsuits and towels. they were actually quite cheap. ... read more