Road Trip – Spain

So as most of you already know, my family came to visit me in Spain this past week. And usually by saying “family” I would be saying it was the girls (Tess, Maddy, and Ash) and my parents, NO WAY is this the case; John Michael, Jane, Mike, and grandma Pauline graced me with their presence as well. I was certain that this would be a week that I will NEVER forget.
The girls and my parents arrived Monday as I was mistakenly sent to the wrong terminal to pick them up (completely my fault Dad, you were the one who told me terminal 4!) but as you can see, nothing ever runs smoothly with my family’s “travel plans.” After my family and I impatiently waited for 30-45 minutes to reunite, it was time to hop into a taxi (no way was I going to risk my family and I getting pick pocketed on the FIRST DAY of their visit). We finally got to the hotel, checked in, and realized that everyone was just as starving I was, I guess airplane food just doesn’t cut it. Maddy, arriving sick, wasn’t too happy about having to get up and move, but it wasn’t an option for my family to just lay around when they just got to Spain! So, we walked over to a nearby tapas place so that my family could try the “traditional tapas” in Spain. Must say, yes the food came fast, but definitely not even close to the best tapas I’ve had while I’ve been here! After that, we kind of just walked around exploring a little bit. We stopped by Plaza de España, Puerto del Sol (which was the original west entrance to the city), and the Palace gardens. After that, it was time to head back and get some sleep, so we dropped of the ladies, and my dad, Ash, and I headed across the street for some late night Spanish tradition.
The next afternoon, we awaited the arrival of the rest of the gang. My parents and I had to go figure out the car rental situation, while Ash and Tess had to stay back at the hotel and hang out with the sicky (Maddy). Jane, Mike, John Michael, and Grandma got there around 1:00 and we got them situated then head out to Puerto del Sol and the Mercado de San Miguel (Saint Michael Marketplace) which is my favorite spot in Madrid! They got to see how this original, late 1800s, marketplace building put up glass widows and completely renovated the inside to create a modern, home style marketplace that people could enjoy meals or just enjoy grocery shopping from homemade stands. They have everything from seafood, to homemade pasta it is such a scene! My family really liked that, but my mom and Maddy couldn’t go that day. So we swapped, my dad stayed at the hotel while Maddy slept. Here we went to the Prado Gardens, Botanical Gardens, and the Royal Park. The Royal park, my second favorite thing to see in Madrid, has a large pond in the center of it that you can rent row boats, eat lunch on the Spanish steps, or just enjoy a jungle gym with friends and family, definitely a hot spot in Madrid.
The next morning we were off to our next destination: Segovia, Avila, Toledo, Granada, Ronda, Maribella, and Sevilla.
Segovia is a little city in central Spain that is full of Roman Aqueducts, an Alcazar (military fortress) and a cathedral. This was a beautiful city. Some of us walked up to the top of the watch tower and could overlook the entire city. We also took 100s of pictures, hopefully we got a Christmas card so that we don’t have to deal with that dreadful drama that my mom puts us through, YET AGAIN, this year (I swear she always picks the most sunny days of the year; Maddy is always blinking, Ash’s hair is doing something “funky,” Tess’ “artsy ideas” for photos never work out, and I’m NEVER “really smiling.”) Anyway, we left later in the afternoon to go to Avila. Avila was beautiful, but an absolute scramble with the cars! We drove around, through, illegally, etc. You name it, and we illegally did it while driving our car through these impossibly tiny areas they called roads here. Avila is a beautiful city surrounded by a wall-like fortress. We went to see the local tourist attractions; Churches, yemas (famous dessert), and actually got to see our first “Semana Santa” procession. Although the city was neat, not much that was needed to be seen. Onto Toledo. .. Toledo is a beautiful city that has an escalator that runs up the entire hill in which the city is built on! So cool! Here, among other places, had a lot of their touristy stuff closed due to Semana Santa and their processions.
So I’m sure you are all asking yourself what Semana Santa is. Semana Santa is the religious celebration derived from Spain for their Holy Week. Every day of the week there are, depending on the city, many processions that begin at local churches, walk through the Cathedral in town, then to proceed back to their church. Every day the floats that these church groups carry have a different meaning. 70+ men carry a float at a time. These floats vary within height and weight, but the largest I had seen was in Seville and it was almost 2 stories high on a building, SOLID GOLD! It is insane, the church and Spanish people’s willingness to recreate this tradition every year. The devotion put into such an event is present with each procession you see. This is how the procession goes. There are conductors in the front (many times on horses) that lead the followers down their path. The followers are all dressed in robes that look much like the KKK robes with the cone hats. Depending on the church, the cone hat color changes with each order of brothers that runs the group. Most of these men/women will be carrying long candles that are lit at night (to show devotion) followed by some men carrying crosses (as Jesus did when he was sentenced). These people are known as the “sinners” and are being absolved for their sins in which many of them remain barefoot throughout the whole procession, ON COBBLESTONE! Following them is the large float bearing different “scenes” in the final days of Jesus’ life; then more men, a band sounding the trumpets, and the drums for the final followers. Each day gets more intense, and more followers are gained. This is a huge ritual and family tradition to be asked to be in the procession. Men strive to be asked to join the procession and lead their family tradition to join a brotherhood; it is pretty incredible to see firsthand.
Granada was an experience on its own. We drove most of the day to get there and we actually had so much time there we hopped onto a bus to see a “real guided tour” of the city. Mind you, half way through this bus tour our sound cut out, the driver stopped to tell us “don’t stand up, we’re going through a tunnel,” and we got kicked off about 5-6 blocks away from our final destination because the Semana Santa processions began and blocked off all of the inner city roads for it. As if it couldn’t get worse enough, I accidently made Grandma Pauline walk up the side of a mountain to see the sunset, but the fog blocked most of the sun so we couldn’t see the Alhambra light up at night. Meanwhile, local hippies are overthrowing the entire plaza and we are suffocated by the amount of smoke that they are all generating. After we were all feeling a little happy, we split up. Grandma, my mom, Maddy and John in one cab; Michael, Tess, and Ash in another, while Jane, my dad, and I walked back. The three of us find an ideal spot to eat, so we called everyone to meet us back in the center of the city not realizing Michael was going to be sending my grandma off with John Michael and Maddy to get stuck in the middle of the city by the procession while the three of us are waiting to eat. It takes Michael and the rest of them a solid 20 minutes to find us, meanwhile the “pre-ordered” food we got for everyone arrived about 15 minutes too early and was to be cold by the time everyone got there. That’s the McTernan family, at their best.
Next city, was a quit stop to Ronda, on the way to Maribella. Ronda is a city built on top of a gorge. Many of you have already seen the pictures, so moving on to Maribella! Maribella is a beautiful city that is right off the coast of the Mediterranean. It is right in Malaga, and is known for its beautiful beaches. This day was definitely our relaxing day! We went out to lunch, laid out by the pool, walked down the coast, and EVERYONE ended up taking a nap. The only thing about this place was that (like all of the others) we had to lie about how many people were with us. However, this time we told them we had 6 people, instead of 10! We dropped of John Michael, Ash, Tess, and Maddy on the corner and went to check in. Very tricky business trying to sneak tons of people into an elevator abroad, VERY SNEAKY! Other than that, we actually had a pretty normal stay!
Last but not least, Seville. Everyone said that it was, by far, their favorite city! I toured them around every place in Seville that I thought was worth seeing. They got to see the Cathedral (3rd largest in Europe), Alcazar, the Barrio Santa Cruz area, bull fight, and a Flamenco Show. The nice thing was that they actually rented an apartment for their stay in Seville, so we didn’t have problems fitting 11 of us (Bethany came to visit that weekend too!). The weather was lower-mid 70s while they were there, and they couldn’t have spent their time with me any better. Although we may have been at each others throats at some points during this trip, I could have not spent my Semana Santa any better. Not to mention, our family wouldn’t have it any other way, with the drama, crazy number of people visiting, and pure chaos for a week. They also got to meet my guy friends from Seville, which is always interesting. It was a blast sharing my favorite city with my family and letting them see how I live!
We also went to a bull fight which was interesting in itself! Jane, Michael, my dad and I all went because everyone else didn’t know if they could handle how gory it is. Not only was it a traditional bullfight in Sevilla but it was also the first bullfight of the season! Imagine people dressed as if they were going to the Kentucky Derby, which is how nice everyone dressed! We arrived when the first bullfight was starting, which was unfortunate because my dad and I had to climb through 18 rows in order to get to our seats that were in the center of the section. However, once we got there, it was crazy! It actually isn’t as brutal as you would think. I mean, yes, they do kill the bull but you come to understand that there is an art to it. It is not a game, it is a show put on by the most “artistic men” (matadors). I thought it was pretty insane how people were so intrigued by this! So let me tell you a little about them, I’ll keep it short and sweet (kind of). First a bull is released in the ring and people/orchestra goes insane! There are 5 matadors in the ring which are sort of like “teammates” of the main matador. They make the bull chase them around as they run for cover behind the wall, and it is during this time in which the main matador studies how the bull moves. When the matador thinks he’s seen enough he signals to the orchestra who blow the trumpets to introduce 2 men on horses that are fully covered in a metal suit. These two men get 2 chances to spear the back of the bull to break the skin. Once that is over, the trumpets sound and they leave. However, this is not as safe as you would think! We almost saw a bull flip the horse over!!! Anyway, after this the second part begins. Three of the teammates of the matadors are chosen to pretty much “dance with the bull.” I say that because what they do is they charge at the bull as the bull charges at them with two sticks that look like numb chucks. As they charge at the bull, they jump up and try to stab the end of these sticks into the back of the bull to weaken it. They only have 3 chances, so 6 sticks total. After this, the main matador enters the ring. It is at this point in which the bull is weak enough for the matador to go 1-on-1 with the bull. After he tires the bull out enough, he takes a sword and slays the bull between the shoulder blades. But, don’t forget that for a solid 20 minutes before that he is wearing the bull down and the more artistic his moves are, the crazier the crowd/orchestra gets. It was fascinating!
My family also got to meet my senora, Aurora, who accepted them as her own family, what a doll! We had them come in two shifts, first: my parents, sisters, and Bethany. Second: my grandma, Jane, Michael, John Michael, and my parents. Her house is far too small to cram us all in! She absolutely loved everyone! Even though it was difficult for me to translate back and forth, I am so happy that they all got to meet. My mom got a little sad and teary eyed when she tried to thank Aurora for everything but Aurora said in return, “Esta bien. Soy su madre Española.” (It’s okay. I am her Spanish mother.) I will miss her dearly…
Had a blast, and safe to see, that was EASILY, the craziest week of my life. Thank you for visiting you guys! I love you all and can’t wait to see you/reminisce about our trip!

Quote of the week:
“Do we need directions? Where are we going? I know French… Everybody understands French!” --- Michael, NOBODY speaks French other than you! A week in Spain and he STILL doesn’t get it! :)