A Great Holiday!

Hi friends!

My mom and sister have just gone home, marking the end of one the best Christmas holidays we've ever had. I thought I should recap our adventure as it was packed full of new experiences for them, and a few new ones for me too!

They arrived on December 23rd and after a tearful reunion at the airport, we settled into our accommodations. I was tasked as being the tour guide for our time spent here in Madrid, and it's safe to say we hit almost all the highlights. We did a Christmas Light Bus tour, had a lovely picnic lunch and dinner out on Christmas Day, tried lots of typical Spanish foods (like chocolate and churros), and toured the Opera House and Royal Palace.

Light Bus Tour

At Retiro Park for a Christmas picnic lunch

At the Opera House, with the Royal Palace in the background

At our lovely Christmas Day dinner!

Sightseeing

Waiting in line to see the beautiful Belen (Nativity)

We also headed to Toledo for one day while in Madrid and had a great time exploring.

Next, we headed south to Sevilla, which I think was all of our favourites. We enjoyed seeing the Alcazar (after a quick 5-hour wait in line), saw an incredible Flamenco Show and the Flamenco Museum, walked by the river and visited "The Golden Tower".

At the Flamenco Show - my favourite part of the whole trip!

Five hours later, we are in the Alcazar

The garden in the Alcazar made it worth the wait.

Outside of the Alcazar

The Golden Tower in the background

Mom's new Pashmina

Being silly at the Flamenco Museum

After a few days, we headed even further south to the beach town of Cadiz, where I was once again a tour guide as I was there not too long ago. We didn't have too much on the agenda, so it was nice to be able to relax at the end of our holiday. We visited the beach many times, rode the Catamaran into the neighbouring town of El Puerto de Santa Maria, learned about Cadiz's history by visiting a few museums, and had a great New Year's Eve (complete with eating twelve grapes).

Model Status

All in all, it was an amazing trip and I'm so grateful for the time spent with my family. I'm looking forward to what 2020 has in store for me, and I am excited to get back to Spanish class! I hope everyone had a happy holiday and best wishes for the new year!