This Christmas break I got to spend some time experiencing authentic Spanish traditions with a wonderful family here in Spain. I spent Christmas eve and Christmas with a family in Guadalajara, Spain. I'm close with the teacher that invited me to join his family for Christmas. Antonio is like family and I call him "uncle" haha. I met his wife and two kids, his mother and his little doggy. I stayed at their house for Christmas eve, had dinner, opened presents and enjoyed the warmth of their cozy house as I sat by the lit up Christmas tree.:)) The next morning we had chocolate con churros for breakfast and drove to Madrid for the Christmas meal with the whole family (the mom's side). There were 17 of crammed into a tiny two person apartment! It was chaos but so much fun. The Christmas spread included….shellfish(looks like crab/lobster), pulpo= octopus, mayonnaise 3 layer white bread corn sandwich, turkey, veggies, pate (paste of duck and pig), wine, champagne, chocolate, coffee and more that I can not remember! There were definitely some interesting things that were consumed but the company was delightful. :) It was so fun celebrating this big holiday with such a warm hearted family and I felt so loved and included. My spanish was a bit lacking but oh well.
{My family (sister-Sydney and dad) weren't coming to visit until the 27th of Decemeber so it was really nice to be able to spend Christmas with a family and have a meal with them!}
Then !!!!!!!! My sis and dad came! I picked them up from the airport and we rented a car..dun dun dunnnn. I've been scared to death having my dad rent a stick shift car and attempting to navigate around here in Spain…but I live to tell the tale!
We stayed the first 2 nights in Madrid..at a hotel that was so 'new age' they had a glass door and walls around the bathroom..? Privacy !??? haha that was an experience.
We then traveled to Sevilla down in the south of Spain and then to Granada! It was such a blessing to be able to experience so much of the food, culture and incredible landmarks. We visited the famous Alhambra in Granada which is supposedly one of the 7 wonders of the world.
We got to see a Flamenco show, tried out an Arab tea house, celebrated New Years (with a Spanish custom of consuming 12 grapes at midnight), explored famous museums and cathedrals and had a lot of really amazinggggg food!
Flamenco show in Granada
The Alhambra
museum in Granada
No comments:
Post a Comment