Sobre Toledo, la comida, y mis dos familias españolas

It's been a week, and a lot has happened, but I'll keep it short.

First, Toledo. It was the capital of Spain before the monarchy moved to Madrid, and it truly lives up to its medieval reputation. It's a city filled with massive cathedrals and palaces, mosques and temples. The new Madrid students joined us, along with the full-year Madrileños, It was great to see Lori and Jake, to be reminded of life back home and friends at Tufts, in Los Angeles, and elsewhere. Lori made me a beautiful scarf for my birthday, and in this cold-ish weather, it was the perfect gift. Jake and I talked the whole way to Toledo, but our visit was cut short when we arrived at the hotel, and the Madrid students, who had been traveling for two days straight, needed siestas. Us Alcalá students decided to go on a walk through Toledo, and we got lost in the small alley-like streets, passing giant monuments and annoying the locals. Saturday night, we went out to a bar and tried "calimocho," or Coca-Cola with red wine. Surprisingly refreshing.

Sunday, we went on a walking tour of Toledo's sights. The Madrid students slept from lunch until their conferencias, which gave the Alcalá group more time to bond over Mafia. The best game ever invented. We managed to get a 16-person game going. Probably the most fun I've had in a while. That night, we decided to stay in, thinking that a Sunday wouldn't have that much to offer in terms of dancing or "marcha" activities. I invited some people to my room, and we ended up watching the softcore pornography that fills Spanish airwaves. I got to hang with some of the full-year students, who were all incredibly funny and interesting. All the more reason to visit Madrid.

Monday we visited La Primada Catedral, the first cathedral of the Catholic monarchy in Spain. Along with the Vatican, one of the most beautiful Catholic structures I will ever see, mostly because this one has Arab, gothic, and Barroque elements that mix to create an architecture not seen anywhere else. The big tower at the top of this blog is part of that building. Una ciudad maravillosa, but I'm glad I didn't stay any longer. The tourist shops, with their medieval gifts (swords, knives, shields, Don Quixote statues, etc.) were getting to me. But we tried marzapan, which blew me away.

Today, I felt like a fool with my mom in Alcalá. I forgot to tell her about my schedule for the day, and that I had to leave for Madrid at 2:00, leaving less than an hour for la comida. But Pilar freaked out when I told her at 1:00 that I would have to leave in an hour, and she ran to the store to get some sandwich bread. She quickly whipped together a jamón sandwich, and told me to leave a note next time if I forget to tell her something. But she was too sweet...I'm just a deaf-mute in her house, but she still treats me like her own. After our afternoon in Madrid, we returned to Alcalá and tried the hookah bar down the street near la Plaza de Cervantes. Us Alcalá students talked about past relationships, past embarrassments, and more of my favorite subjects. I have two families in Spain: my host family, and my amigos del programa. I think I love them all.