Spain! Part uno

The alcazar in Segovia

Finally! I have gotten around to posting some pics from our travels to Spain back in May. With this wonderful vacation time called maternity leave, Jon and I rushed to have a passport issued for baby and packed a travel crib, carseat, stroller, Baby Bjorn, and one giant suitcase of mostly her clothes and some for ourselves. We spent three weeks wandering through Spain, beginning with eight days in Madrid, followed by a train trip north to Basque Country (San Sebastian and Bilbao), then a flight south to Andalucia. It was more than just matadors and women in frilly dresses who danced with fans; it was a whole Arabian world, a land of late lunches and dinners, of narrow alleys and cultural perseverance, evenings of 2-euro wine and Picasso, siestas and economic turmoil and rapid-tongue language, ever-changing scenery, roasting late spring weather, plasticky diapers, strong religion and historic cobblestone streets that ripped up our stroller wheels. I believe taking such a crazy trip with an infant forced us all to become very flexible, accommodating, patient and efficient – all of us. She’s been the easiest baby ever since, as well as the most well-traveled, and for that we were able to enjoy our time there. Here are some select pictures from the first week of our trip, through Madrid, Toledo and Segovia, at random.

Parque de Retiro, Madrid

Conservatory in Parque de Retiro, Madrid
Marche San Miguel, Madrid