After a fun low key weekend, it was time for school! Monday and Tuesday had really lovely weather and after school on Monday, I went to the park to read a bit and try to tan a little because it was warm enough for shorts. I didn’t last long because it was too hot and there wasn’t a breeze in the park. Tuesday, I had my private tutoring lessons after school and then I went with Rosa and Juanjo for a coffee in the plaza. Everyone in Spain loves being outside and the beautiful weather had everyone in the streets!
On Wednesday, we had a day off because it was Labor Day in Spain. My friends planned a trip to Segovia and Pedraza for the day and I was excited for two more Spanish towns! We got to Segovia around noon and went to a café for coffee. As soon as we walked in, I saw a bottle of Desperados – the beer from Vienna flavored with tequila. Apparently, it’s a really popular beer in Spain! Who would’ve thought! I was in Teresa’s car with her, Dani and Fran. Claudia and her boyfriend, Tony, were meeting us in Segovia because they came from Madrid. We found Claudia and Tony and made our way over to the aqueduct. The Aqueduct of Segovia was constructed around 112 A.D., but the date isn’t confirmed due to a lack of evidence. The Aqueduct was constructed without any mortar holding the stones together, which is the craziest part of the whole thing. The Romans were brilliant – first thinking of finding a way to get running water to the city, but to then build this incredible structure without mortar?! WILD.
We saw the Cathedral and the Alcázar – only from the outside though because my friends have been before and to be honest, I didn’t feel like paying for more cathedrals! The weather was perfect and I really enjoyed walking throughout the city. We walked back to the Plaza Mayor for tapas and we ran into Dani’s friends who live in Segovia and have an adorable little daughter! We went to El Sitio with them for tapas and tinto de verano, which is red wine mixed with lemon soda – it’s delicious. El Sitio is a bar in Segovia that Spaniards always go to, according to Luis, who lived in Segovia for a number of years and recommended that I go there (he’s friends with the owners too). Teresa also said every time they’re in Segovia, they go to el Sitio, so Luis’s statement was confirmed!
Clockwise from top left: Segovia Cathedral, Plaza Mayor, and the Alcázar on the bottom! Friends in the bottom picture are Teresa, me, Claudia, Tony, Dani, and Fran!
After el Sitio, we stopped at another place for another round of tapas and then went to see the Aqueduct up close. I was and still am totally amazed. After taking some more pictures, we headed back to the car for an hour’s drive to Pedraza, which is a small pueblo within the community of Segovia. There’s less than 400 residents (!!!), but it’s a very frequent tourist stop because it’s one of the most beautiful towns in Spain. It was starting to get cloudy and about to rain, so my pictures don’t completely reflect the beauty of the town, but the winding streets and matching architecture was so cool to see. We walked around the town and enjoyed the afternoon before heading back to Tordesillas. As soon as we got in the car, it started raining – the timing was perfect!
Thursday was a fun day at school and before I knew it, I was boarding the bus to Valladolid for my train with Tonisha to Madrid! We took the bullet train and got to Madrid around 7 pm, checked into The Generator hostel at 8 pm, and headed up to the rooftop terrace for a beer. We met up with Claudia and Tony, who took us to the Dos de Mayo fiesta in Malasaña (her neighborhood in Madrid). Dos de Mayo is a fiesta celebrated by the community of Madrid in remembrance of their defeat over Napoleon’s invasion in the 1800s. The main square was completely packed with people and there were bands playing different types of music. We stayed for a bit and then wandered off to get dinner. We ended up at this place called Ojalá, which had Mexican food and American food (I was thrilled to have Mexican again in Madrid!). The coolest part though was that the basement floor had sand and the chairs were close to the ground like beach chairs! It was really fun and delicious, but our backs were killing us after!
Pictured: Plaza Mayor, Puerta del Sol, and Tonisha and me at Ojalá!
Claudia and Tony took us on an impromptu nighttime walking tour of Madrid (it was midnight!) to the big places because Tonisha hadn’t been to Madrid yet. Unfortunately, it was too late for the buildings to be illuminated, but it was still cool to see everything. We got back to the hostel at 1:30 am and had to be up at 4:30 am for our flight to Munich! I’m living by the saying that I’m going to sleep when I’m dead!!!
Coming up next is my post from Munich! 🙂
aventuras de alyssa 