Week 49: Caceres (posted by Jane)

Our second to last week was spent enjoying the festivities that were taking place in Caceres, Spain. There was a huge parade where all the neighboring towns in the Extremadura region dressed up for different holidays specific to their town.  We saw lots of similarities with the parades in Cusco! There was also free concerts in the square from 9 pm to 12 am over the weekend.

I spent a big part of my time in Caceres practicing Spanish with my tutor, Zoe.

This region of Spain we were in produced a lot of conquistadors, including the Pizzaro brothers. We took a 30 minute bus ride to Trujillo, the town where Francisco Pizzaro grew up. We even saw the mansion that Hernando Pizarro built after he returned from Peru -- he was the only Pizarro brother to make it out alive. The mansion included sculptures that depicted Inca in chains. It was crazy to see this after visiting Peru earlier in our trip.

And, of course, we went on very sunny hikes, visited old stone forts, and admired big cathedrals.

Now we are off to Lisbon for our last week of the trip!

Week 48, continued: Granada and Madrid (posted by Megan)

Our second stop with the O'Rouke family was Granada, famous for the Alhambra Palace and its Moorish architecture. The O'Rouke girls once again proved to be excellent travelers, attacking Granada's steep hills in super high temperatures. 

Our time in Granada kicked off with an obligatory visit the Alhambra Palace. The intricate designs throughout the Nasrid Palace and the sprawling Generalife gardens impressed all of the girls.

In addition to enjoying the Alhambra's ornate architecture and gardens, we dedicated a day to Granada's science museum. The girls learned about whale hearts, birds of prey, and body parts.

We spent our final two nights back in Madrid. After a morning at the Botanical Gardens, the Museo del Prado was fantastic -- Wade taught the girls about the famous Hapsburg chin. We wrapped up our time together with an afternoon wandering around Madrid and enjoying one last Spanish meal of fried calamari sandwiches, washed down with some Fanta. 

Spending time with cousins was a highlight of the year abroad. Saying goodbye made us realize that we really are almost done with our adventure. Just two weeks left!

Week 48: Cordoba (posted by Wade)

We are now in Spain with the O'Rouke family! Our eleven-day journey together began at the Madrid airport. We didn't dilly-dally in Spain's capital, though. Instead, we mobilized our army of weary travelers and went straight to the train station, making our way to Cordoba. This was an epic day of traveling for the O'Roukes -- over 24 hours, door-to-door. Needless to say, the O'Rouke girls were troupers and excited to see their cousins.

We spent four nights in Cordoba, the famed capital of the medieval Umayyad caliphate. We wandered the narrow streets, looking for shade, enjoyed ice cream, and hit up the big sites. The famous Cordoba Mezquita did not disappoint. I had been using photos of the Mezquita -- a mosque-turned-cathedral -- for years during classroom lessons on Islamic architecture, but seeing it in-person was fantastic. The Mezquita's 800 stone pillars feel like a forrest of palm trees and wowed everyone in the Morris-O'Rouke clan.

There were plenty of other highlights from Cordoba. Cold cervezas after long siestas. Tapas meals. A flamenco dancing performance. Plenty of time for the cousins to hang out and play. Jason even tried eating some olives.

My personal favorite Cordoba experience was when we crashed the annual Cordoba fair. This was a massive gathering of thousands of Cordobans of all ages. People put on their fanciest clothes; flamenco dresses and carnations for the ladies, blazers and penny loafers for the men. The fairgrounds included dozens of tents that served as dance halls. Plenty of cervezas and churros for everyone. As a final icing on the cake, there were epic rides that spun Cordobans around in circles. It was a special treat to get away from the touristy spots and participate in some local fun.