I cannot think of a better way to start off graduation month than with a trip to Madrid! The Scheers were very kind and took the whole family to Spain as a graduation present. We stayed in an apartment in Madrid and spent most of our time exploring the gorgeous city. Emily and Frank rented a car for a couple days so we could drive out to a few surrounding cities. I have always wanted to go to Spain and it was even more beautiful than I could have imagined. In school, we were taught more about Latin American culture than actual Spanish culture so it was great to experience Spain first hand. The food was fantastic and the sangria was even better. The architecture was unlike anything I have ever seen and I could have taken hundreds of photos. I was most surprised by the beautiful country scenery surrounding Madrid. We drove through gorgeous hillside towns and along breathtaking mountain ranges. I can see why so many writers and artists were inspired after trips to Spain. It was definitely a great way to kick off this crazy month.
The living room at our apartment in Madrid.
Alex and my room
Kitchen
This was the first picture I took! We were all very hungry after long overnight flights. This was the first taste of many tapas dishes to come.
Alex, Dave and I walked around the city the first day we were there to get a feel for the layout.
We had amazing weather with only two overcast days!
Our first glimpse at the Palacio Real de Madrid. It is the official residence of the Spanish Royal Family!
Jumping through the Royal Garden!
The Almudena Cathedral is across from the palace.
Posing by the cathedral
Pretty apartments
While wandering through the streets of Madrid, we found the Mercado de San Miguel. It is very similar to Reading Terminal Market, only smaller and fancier. We made several trips to the market for treats during our trip.
The inside of the market was always very crowded.
We went back on another day for oysters! They were our first oysters from the Mediterranean Sea.
We passed through Plaza Mayor on our way back to the apartment. It was full of cute places to eat and crazy entertainers.
We called this guy "Goat Man". Alex gave him a kiss on the nose and he did a little dance! He was my favorite entertainer.
On our second night in Madrid, we went to see Flamenco dancers. They were amazing!
We went back to the Royal Palace of Madrid with the family to take a tour.
No cameras were allowed inside, but I took many pictures of the outside.
Almudena Cathedral
Such a blue sky!
Alex and Michele walking through one of the parks.
We had tickets for a Real Madrid fútbol game!!
Real Madrid beat Real Valladolid four to two. It was a great game.
Michele and Dave
Ronaldo was our favorite player. He scored two goals!
I got a Real Madrid jersey with my name and number!
We went to the Museo del Prado to see famous art. It has one of the world's finest collections of European art with work from Goya and Velázquez, my favorites from school.
Museo del Prado
My most favorite piece of Spanish artwork is Las Meninas by Velázquez. It was amazing to see it in person.
We really enjoyed having nice weather in Spain after several rainy weeks in Philadelphia.
We passed through Puerta del Sol many times on our trip. Our favorite tapas place was down one of the side roads. The kilometro cero is a plaque on the ground serving as the symbolic center of Spain. Every road in Spain is measured from this point.
Our first trip outside of Madrid was to Toledo. It is a very historic city surrounded by a beautiful wall. The streets are narrow and run tortuously between the most beautiful buildings.
I loved the wall!
The Toledo Cathedral is one of the three 13th century High Gothic Cathedrals of Spain.
Inside the cathedral
I took a little siesta on this grass outside of the cathedral.
It was in Toledo that we ate at possibly the worst restaurant in the world. I do not know why we did not run away as soon as we saw the ceiling decorated with hundreds of fake pig legs. The food was awful, but the experience was hilarious.
The countryside surrounding Toledo was stunning.
Beautiful tile work!
We spent most of the day walking around Toledo.
After Toledo, we headed to Ávila. Ávila is known as the city of stones and saints and is said to have the most number of Romanesque and Gothic churches per capita in Spain. It is surrounded by a wall from medieval times!
View from Ávila
The medieval city wall!
The wall completely surrounds the city!
After Ávila, we drove north to Segovia to see the famous Roman Aqueducts.
Segovia was another town with magnificent views.
The mountains in the distance were covered with snow!
Just hanging out by an aqueduct from the 1st century AD.
Emily and Frank
There was a very strange carousel in front of the aqueduct. One of the seats was a space ship that would lift kids above the ceiling while it was spinning!
Latte in Segovia
The next day, we traveled to San Lorenzo de El Escorial. It is one of the Spanish royal sites and functions as a monastery, royal palace, museum, and school. It is a historical residence of the King of Spain.
Real Monasterio de El Escorial
It is nestled at the base of mountains.
Alex and I walked around Madrid during our date night tapas crawl and took pictures of our favorite buildings.
Pretty gate
Palacio de Cibeles is Madrid's City Hall.
Edificio Metrópolis
Plaza de Cibeles at night!
The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía is Spain's national museum of 20th century art. It has work from Picasso and Dalí.
Madrid was the cleanest city I have ever been to. There was hardly any trash on the streets and there were tons of parks and trees.
Love, love, love the architecture!
Dave, Emily, Alex and I took a Red Bus Tour of Madrid on one of our last days. It was nice to have a seated tour of the city. Madrid was an amazing vacation and a great way to celebrate the end of the Philadelphia chapter of our lives! Thank you to the Scheers and Schneiders for making the vacation so perfect!
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