Espana.

I recently returned home from a trip to Spain with my friend Holly. After three years of high school Spanish (two of which were in a school in El Paso, TX-also known as "Mexico") you would think I would have NO problem in a Spanish speaking country. Wrong. Way wrong. Well, I will give myself some credit-I was able to understand about 60-70% of the Spanish I heard, but I learned that I no speakie the Spanish very well. And by not very well I mean that many Spaniards probably confused me with a mute and/or thought my IQ was much lower than it actually is (not that its too high to start with). Luckily Holly had just finished a two week immersion course and I used her as my Spanish interpreter for the trip! Woohoo!

I spent my first couple of days in Madrid. Our hotel was super charming--I thought that the cross dressing prostitutes lining the street by our hotel was a special touch! (don't worry, mom, we were safe). Seriously though, very charming hotel (Hostal Adriano)-highly recommended. Madrid is a pretty cool city and the tapas are yummy...and super if you are working on a muffin top. Holly and I spent our days wondering the city and eating. We pretty much ate all the time. Breakfast was followed by a three course "menu del dia" lunch which was followed by a large dinner or Tapas. Fantastic! Also-I think the Spaniards might have the best cafe con leche that I have ever had. Speaking of building a muffin top-Madrid is known for its Churros with Chocolate. This has to have been the most decadently delicious snack I have ever had. When you order this tasty treat, you get a mug FULL of melted chocolate and way more churros than you can possibly eat. My stomach still hurts from eating all that chocolate...so worth it.

After Madrid, we boarded the bus to head to a town named Segovia. This is a very charming town with a fairy-tale-esque castle, a Roman aqueduct and many winding medival streets. We stayed in a hotel called Los Linajes which was very nice, but has not been redecorated since 1950. The room came complete with a sitting room with a gold coffee table and white pleather couch--Klassy! Holly got some insider info from a couple of American students studying abroad who told her that Oso Blanco (a bar in town) had THE best sangria in all of Spain. After seeing the sights of Segovia, Holly and I walked circles around the town until we found Oso Blanco. Oso Blanco must have been designed at the same time as Los Linajes because it was a total blast from the past-and completely perfect. We ordered the Sangria (which, lucky for us, only comes in 1 liter) and the first taste was heavenly. To our surprise the bartender supplied us with some free "tapas" meant to bring out the flavors of the Sangria. Who knew that corn nuts, peanuts and gummy sharks were the perfect accompaniment to fantastic Spanish drinks!? Also on the tapas menu was another tasty "treat" called Murros. Murros, as it turns out, is cow lips. Holly is adventurous and tried them...and ate the whole plate to the astonishment of all the locals in the pub. I stuck with the gummy sharks...

<---The Aqueduct in Segovia

The country side of Segovia---->

After Segovia we headed to Toledo. Toledo has a LOT of churches, monasteries and convents. Toledo also has many of the famous works by El Greco...an artist from the 1400's. Holly and I had a great time wandering the city. In following the theme of this blog (food), Toledo is known for its Marzipan. Marzipan is a delicious mix of sugar, almond paste and honey. Yum. I am definitely impressed with the food in Spain! Our hotel in Toledo had a roof top terrace that overlooked the city--Holly and I spent the better part of an afternoon drinking a bottle of Spanish wine and reading our books--it was the perfect last day of our vacation.

I highly recommend Spain to anyone who hasn't yet been. Make sure to order some Murros and gummy sharks with your Sangria!