Following a full few days in Madrid, we’re now in the city of Cuenca, in Castilla la Mancha. We arrived on Monday, at midday, and were promptly greeted by our new Spanish friends, who will be accompanying us on our adventures this week.
In case you don’t know where Cuenca is on a map (as I didn’t, and I’m Spanish), it’s just a two hour drive southeast of Madrid.
By the time we had finished sharing our second large meal with our Spanish hermanos y hermanas, everyone had made many new friends. The Spanish students are all very nice and excited to share their history, culture, and language with our group.
Ursula, Jen, and Sami at dinner with their Spanish siblings.
Lauren, Emma, Colin, Jack, and Roger breaking bread together with their Spanish counterparts.
Mel, Shelby, and Martha all have a lot in common with their hermanas.
Payom, Doug, Teddy, Jilly, and Sarah were all laughing and joking with their new buddies. There was even some post-dinner singing coming from this table.
After dinner, we all went for a long nighttime stroll around the historic city center, catching views of the famous hanging houses where King Alfonso XIII resided (now an expressionist art museum we will visit on Wednesday), as well as: the ancient bridge that connects the two sides of town; tall mountain cliffs, impressively illuminated in the night; and small caves where vultures dwell. Our Spanish guides told stories of ancient legends, such as the tragic story of the Sirena of Cuenca, and took us to the Plaza Mayor, where flamenco music reverberated throughout the medieval streets. We stopped for a rest at the city’s cathedral, whose incandescent lights bathed the square in a romantic haze of yellow. We were all tired from our trip, so we slowly wove our way home and said “hasta mañana” to our Castilian hosts.
It was hard to take pictures at night, but here’s an idea of what the historic area of Cuenca looks like, courtesy of Google Images. This area sparkles at night like a scene out of a rustic romance novel.
During our first full day in Cuenca we took it relatively easy and spent time with our Spanish daystay friends by the pool. We even played a friendly game of soccer and — amazingly — we tied!!!
Students went head to head with the Spaniards during a friendly game of fútbol.
Following an afternoon respite, we wandered over to the local cinema to catch a movie dubbed in the local language (most chose to watch “Encontrando a Dory” but others saw “Money Monster” – without subtitles) alongside their daystay friends. After the film, we headed over to a pizza party and then back home, to rest for the busy day ahead.
Until next time,
Camila y Daniel