At my school, I'm in a choir.
Chamber Choir.
They go on a tour every year.
And this year, it was Spain!!!
We just came back from our adventure,
And I'd like to state how GORGEOUS Spain is!
First we spent a few days in Madrid.
The first day, we arrived Monday morning when we left Sunday.
Because we lost a day, and we arrived in the morning,
We had to stay awake all day.
It was a long day.
Basically, we just walked around Madrid.
The Plaza Mayor was beautiful.
The buildings in Madrid are so interesting.
Some of my friends and I had empanadas for lunch.
But they weren't very delectable...
We also took a 15 minute nap on a grassy park area.
Then that evening, before we went to the hotel for an early night,
We were taken to a grocery store to buy some little snacks
Because we had a mini fridge in our hotel.
I bought 12 Coca Cola cans (of course because I love it!)
Then we went to the hotel.
It was quaint and cute.
Not the best hotel, but not the worst.
However, the beds were hard.
That night, my roommates and I were taking turns for showers.
I was waiting for my turn, when I fell asleep, in the most uncomfortable position.
I don't know how long I was asleep for, but there was a knock at the door.
My other roommate had come back from hanging out with other friends.
I went to answer it, and I was too tired to hop in the shower, so I took it that next morning.
The next day, we toured the Royal Palace in Madrid.
So BEAUTIFUL!
We did an impromptu performance in the little hall before the tour.
It was absolutely Amazing!!!!
And our tour guide was the funniest thing.
She reminded so much of Edna Mode from The Incredibles.
We also visited El Prado, an art museum.
I fell in love with Goya.
We then had a formal performance that night at an LDS stake center.
The next day, we toured Segovia.
Segovia was probably one of my absolute favorite places we visited.
We had a performance at the University of Vollodid.
But then we walked around Segovia.
We saw the Acueducto.
And we toured the Alcazar de Segovia.
That castle is absolutely divine!
And the climb of 152 steps up the tower was worth it!
THE VIEW IS AMAZING!
Then, after another night's sleep, we were changing hotels and cities.
We were now traveling to Cordoba.
Along the way, we visited Toledo.
There was a cathedral there that we visited.
SO BEAUTIFUL!
Our Tour Director was incredible
And somehow was able to get us to sing in the cathedral
That was absolutely a once in a life time chance,
And it was THE BEST!
Back on the road to Cordoba,
We stopped in Consuegra to look at the windmills.
It was very windy, but gorgeous!
The view was splendid!
That night, we had the wonderful opportunity to see a Flamenco show.
That was absolutely WONDERFUL!
I loved it!
Our first day in Cordoba, we had a lot of exchanges and performances!
That morning we had a short informal performance at the college in Cordoba.
Later that day, we had another informal performance at a high school.
The high school had a cathedral because it used to be a school for boys going to become priests.
That was probably my favorite performance because it was so FUN!
The students loved us and asked for many encores!!
Then we had an exchange with a Children's Choir at the Conservatorio de musica!
They were so adorable!
Later we had another exchange with the Adult Choir at the Conservatory.
And that night, we had a performance at the Conservatory.
The second day in Cordoba wasn't as busy.
We had breakfast with Alberto de Paz.
Alberto is a remarkable pianist in Spain!
We then had an exchange with a choir at the college.
Then we were able to tour Los Patios de Cordoba.
Basically it's a time of year in Cordoba where everyone decorates their patios in flowers!
IT WAS GORGEOUS!
After that, we had lunch with Alberto.
That was the best thing!
He did a private concert for us.
First he played a bunch of different film scores, without music!
Then he did a magic trick.
And then, my favorite!!
He played a bunch of disney music!
Obviously, I was singing at the top of my lungs!
I LOVE DISNEY!
Big surprise there.
That night, we had a performance at La Iglesia de la Magdalena
It was a gorgeous setting to sing in,
Though it was just a little hard to sing in the space.
The next day we traveled to Malaga
But first, we visited the Mosque in Cordoba.
And our Tour Director was able to get us to sing in there!
Along the way to Malaga, we visited Granada
In Granada, we had tickets for Alhambra, but we were 5 minutes late
But, our remarkable Tour Director, was able to get us new tickets a couple hours later.
So we toured the Gardens and surroundings
And then we toured the palace.
It was GLORIOUS!
Our first full day in Malaga, we had nothing major planned.
So... I slept until 12:30!
And our hotel was on the beach!
DIRECTLY ON THE BEACH!
Later that afternoon, we went shopping in the Plaza Mayor in Malaga
I bought some shoes!
And some things at H&M!
Our last day in Spain, was a chill day.
I went shopping along Beach and bought souvenirs.
And then:
BEACH
For a few hours!
It was wonderful!!!
I had lunch with some friends at a cute Chinese place around the corner.
And I did a little more shopping.
Then I took a nap.
And finally:
Tour Dinner
Of course I cried. Everybody did.
And when they handed out awards,
for some reason, I got the
"most likely to know all the words to the songs Alberto plays at lunch" award.
Why on earth would I get that?
I mean Disney!
HELLO!
And then,
It was time to go home.
On the way home. We had a flight to Madrid.
In Madrid, I was selected for a Special Security Screening.
Because of it, I almost missed my flight.
Then we flew to Chicago.
On that 9 hour flight,
I watched movies I hadn't seen before:
Interstellar, Hobbit: Army of the 5 Armies, and X Men: The Last Stand
And, of course, I watched Sherlock before they turned off the screens.
And I took a nap too.
In Chicago, we had to go through Security again.
And of course, I was selected AGAIN for another Special Security Screening!
ARE YOU SERIOUS!
That was a pain, but I had a lot of time before my next flight left.
And then I came home, and ate a burger, and went to sleep.
Overall, it was an amazing experience!
IT WAS GORGEOUS!
And it was a complete culture change for me.
I loved it!
And I grew to love the people in my choir even more!
If I could, I would go on and on about my experiences and stories,
But, it would be better to explain in person,
And to keep this simple.
If anyone is considering visiting Spain,
DO IT!!
You won't regret it!!
Outfit Of The Day:
Top: H&M (in Malaga)
Skirt: Shop in Segovia (I don't remember the name..)
Necklace: H&M (in Malaga)
Earings: H&M (in Malaga)
LOVE,
KM
