Espana!

Last month Anth and I were lucky ducks 

and got to skip over the pond and spend some time in Spain. 

I was feeling nostalgic (already!)

and wanted to share some pics with all you fine folks. 

So here's a great big 'ole bunch of pics from our trip. 

Cue the lights, turn on the projector, sorry if you fall asleep. 

First up, Madrid...

and our amazing view of the city. 

Thank the lord for AirBnB. 

If you're unfamiliar, 

give me a call and I'll talk your ear off about it. 

Our street was pretty great too. 

Jamon (ham) is a huge part of the diet in Spain.

Being a ham lover all my life, this meant 

I was in heaven. 

Breakfast, lunch and dinner 

were all acceptable times to eat meats and drink gin. 

It is quite refreshing when eating gobs of spiced cured meats. 

When in Spain, do as the Spanish....

I mean, I didn't want to stick out like a silly American. 

Although, as Anthony kindly pointed out, 

my Spanish accent is quite terrible. 

Oh well, even more reason to eat and drink 

as the locals in order to fit in. :-) 

The Sunday market was amazing. 

We also did some sightseeing and 

saw some of my favorite artists, Goya and Velázquez.

I had to be pretty sneaky to snap these. 

Don't tell. 

After a couple of quick days in Madrid, 

we hopped on a train, a bus and then hoofed 

it to the tiny little fishing village, Cadaques. 

Believe me, 

the trek was worth it.

We spent a couple of days relaxing in the water

and filling our bellies with tiny fishies. 

Also pretty heavenly. 

No wonder Dali and Picasso spent so much time 

in this sleepy little fishing village. 

I tried my hand at some art too....

Shadow Dinos anyone? 

Next it was off to our final spot, Barcelona. 

In the many years we've adventured together, 

we've surprisingly never had a "beach" vaca. 

Believe me, we took full advantage of the Mediterranean on this one. 

And again, markets full of meats and juices. 

(there's me, not happy at all)

The food was amazing. 

We found some great non touristy spots where we could tell the waiter 

"queremos peces" (we want fish) and plates full of tiny fishies would fill our table.

Dreams do come true. :-) 

I have to say though, 

our last day in Spain was my favorite. 

We booked a trip with Spanish Trails to hike in the Pyrenees for the day...

and it didn't disappoint. 

We almost cancelled at the last minute 

due to some crappy (literally) stuff happening at our house in Chicago, 

but I think it was just what the doctor ordered. 

We started in a tiny medieval town and saw 

an amazing Black Madonna sculpture behind the alter which is really unusual...

usually museums snatch these relics up. 

There was a service going on when we came in

and we got to partake in communion with the locals. 

We felt pretty blessed. 

Let the hiking begin! 

Have I mentioned I love mountains? 

Because I do. 

So happy I am, mmmm? 

It ended up being just Anth and I that booked

so we had our own guide for the day 

which was fantastic.

Our guide Victor was funny, chatty and 

exactly what you would want while on a day hike. 

You know those days that are eerily perfect and feel blessed? 

This was definitely one of those. 

And then there was lunch. 

Victor explained that the farmhouse they always go to for lunch

was booked for a wedding.

but....

he convinced the owner to let us dine in off the kitchen. 

Amazing. 

This was just the appetizer spread from the wedding. 

They begged us to try everything. 

This was then followed by beef cheeks and I don't even remember what else, 

because beef cheeks. 

We then chummed it up with the owners and waiters, 

drank champaign leftover from the wedding and 

took in the dreamy day we were having. 

Seriously, it was the perfect end to the trip. 

Spain, I love you. 

I want to come visit you again soon.