Week One: Finding time to blog is proving harder than I thought

Let me give you a quick rundown of what I've done in the last week:

 Tuesday morning in Spain, Tani and I met our host family (surprisingly, they are members), unpacked our bags, and set out on an adventure to help us stay awake a few more hours.  Of course we took care of first things first: napoletanas! Forgive our tired eyes and grungy appearance. It was 16 or so hours of traveling!

 

 Wednesday we went into Madrid to learn how to use the trains and metro.  We stopped for some churros and chocolate.  One of my favorite Spanish treats!

 Thursday is when the real adventures started.  TOLEDO!

Looking over the city.

One thing that has fascinated me about this trip so far has been the ceilings.  There is so much beauty to be seen just by looking up.

In the cathedral of Toledo.

Another ceiling.

I thought this was so interesting.  There have been times when Toledo has had Jews, Christians, and Muslims all living there in peace.  But the streets are marked so you know what section of town you are in.  I snagged this sweet pic in honor of my heritage.

 Skinny streets in Toledo.  Quintessential Spain.

Friday we made our next stop at El Escorial.  A palace/monastery/university.  Unfortunately we couldn't take pictures of the inside.  But the whole place was beautiful.

 

I love these purple trees.

 Another thing I can't help but notice has been these plants that grow out of the bricks or rocks.  I love the nature vs. civilazation contrast.  It seems as if nature is winning the fight.

After visiting El Escorial, we saw this castle.  A real castle!

 The story is so interesting.  There was a war, and when the new king gained power he invented titles and gave them to people who supported him and fought with him in the war so he could have his own nobles that would be faithful to him.  This castle belongs to a family that had no power or money. But because they switched sides at the very end of the war, they were given this land and money to build and titles as noblemen.

 More rocks and flowers....

 Saturday we went to a Real Madrid game!

 Real Madrid beat Real Valladolid 4 goals to 3.

Sunday was a special day for me.  It was so good to be back in church in Spain.  In the afternoon we went into the Madrid to see the temple.  It is so beautiful.

 Monday's I don't have class so Tani and I went to the market here in Alcalá de Henares.  They are so fun and crazy.

I love this picture because this woman is so Spanish.  Dressed to the 9's with her cart for the things she buys.  It was so good to be dowsed in this culture again!

Sorry for the picture overload.  But since I have a staggering 2 followers, I'm sure the both of you won't be too bothered.