Segovia, Spain

We started our morning in Segovia with a walk to the cathedral.  We were walking up the narrow medieval streets in the final minutes of delivery time and it was terrifying.  Trying to keep all 4 kiddos out of the way of the trucks trying to beat the clock was not fun.  If you visit Segovia after 11 am it is a different city, lesson learned.  We ended up finding a different side street where we could walk safely and things got better from there.

At the entrance of the cathedral I spotted a store with baskets, LOVE.

The entrance to the cathedral.

I love the floors in this church.

The organ was stunning.

I love the colors of this piece of art that dates back to the 1530s.

The art here was just beautiful!

These floors, I love them.

The gate, the ceiling, it was all so much to take in.

From the cathedral to the Alcazar was our next adventure.

I love how the architecture here is different form France, that blue sky was pretty beautiful too.  

The view from inside.  

There used to be an Artillery School here, Jon was an artillery man in the Army so the big guns always have a special draw for us.  

The artillery school had their own china made by in Sevilla by Pickman.  There was something for everyone.

In the courtyard of the Alcazar.

On the way back we found a playground!

And then we found the souvenir store. 

A little something for each of the kids along the way.

As we walked back towards the car the aqueduct loomed in the background.

Structures like this will always be so astounding, no matter how many we get to see. 

I made a quick climb up the stairs to snap a couple of photos.

I love these old aqueducts dotted across Europe.

You can just see the vintage carousel behind the aqueduct.  it was one of the most interesting carousels I have ever seen, but they were still putting it together when we left.

I would recommend going to Sevilla if you are in the area.  There is a great parking garage across the street from the aqueduct and it is a very walkable city, despite the vehicles we encountered.  The kids were thrilled to see a Burger King and a MacDonalds.  I can not believe we ate at Burger King while we were there, but there are some sacrifices we make for the kids while we drag them ll over Europe. Burger King was a treat because there is only one in Paris that I know of and we never go there.  

I hope you enjoyed this peak at Segovia, only a couple more stops on this Hilton Family Road Trip.

Manzanares El Real

On Sunday we had a nice slow morning.  There was supposed to be a rastro, Spanish Brocante or flea market, but the rain in the area kept everyone away.  I had fun supporting the local economy anyway by visiting a few boutique clothing stores.  I love Spanish clothing stores, even if all the clothes were made in Italy.  After lunch the clouds cleared and Jon found a castle for us to visit.  We loaded up the car and drove less than 30 minutes to Manzanares El Real.

The sky was just gorgeous and we were all thrilled to be visiting this beautiful castle.

The castle dates by to the 1400s, but was repaired in the 1970s.

They did a great job on this location, you could still feel the age and history.

The valley the castle in was beautiful too, Jon took the camera from me again.

We were the only people at the castle at this point and the kids loved having some room to run.

Headed in!

These kids love to climb on everything.

Malachi hates being left behind.

The central courtyard.

There was one portion of the castle that was not prepared.  It would have been in this area, a 3-4 store central tower that would have housed the throne room and chapel.

These stairs were lots of fun.

How beautiful, every time Addie sees a royal bedroom she says that is what she would like.

The views were so peaceful and beautiful.

We did lots of exploring through the castle and its towers.

This set of stairs was intense.

This sign basically says that if you are claustrophobic you should not go down these stairs.  

After the castle we made our way to the playground next time.  There are so many things I love about this picture.  Bennett is a champ at monkey bars and how amazing is this view?

Can you see Addie's tongue sticking out in concentration?  This is another favorite photo.  I remember doing monkey bars until my hands bled when I was Addie's age.  

These birds were EVERYWHERE.  They are huge and their nests are massive.  I thought of my bird loving friends as we saw them through out the region.

As the rain clouds started roll back in we headed to a local pizzeria.  Finding a place to eat that is open when we are hungry is not easy in Spain.  Thankfully this little local pizza place was great.  We had cheese, Hawaiian, and BBQ pizza.  It was fresh made and delicious and we had the place to ourself.  We enjoyed watching a spanish soap opera and finished off our evening with ice cream.  It was one of our favorite afternoons in Spain.

Madrid on the Hilton Family Road Trip

Our main intended destination of this trip was Madrid.  We drove in on Saturday morning and parked near the Plaza Mayor.  We walked around for a bit before we got our bearings.  We made a stop at a Starbucks and then headed to the Palace.  Addie got a new necklace, and while we were waiting Jon and the boys walked over closer to the palace. 

Addie's necklace turned out great.

I promise Garrett was happy, he just doesn't like to smile right now.

While at the palace Jon realized something was going on.  There were a ton of people gathering outside the building.

It seemed like an important ceremony so we picked a spot and waited.

Ben decided he needed a little movement so he did some jumping jacks.

Here I am! Jon took the camera from me.

Back to Jon and the kids.

Then Malachi decided he n ended to do a little more moving, so we went for a walk.

I was ready to throw in the towel and move on, but Jon said we should wait just a few more minutes and then the troops started marching in.  The band was playing, people were laughing, it was very special.

Can you see the pick axes on the soldiers' backs? There are a couple of other very important people in this picture, we just didn't know who they were.

We left mid ceremony.  My pretty girl next to the pretty flowers.

After lunch and a nap in the car we were ready for more walking.  We made a quick stop at Dunkin' Coffee for an afternoon snack.

Malachi got a lot of smiles as we made our way down the sidewalk.

These guys got lots of smiles too, The Bike Bar  guys seemed like they were having a great time.  

We had been told El Prado had free entry for the last 2 hours of the day.  We made our way to the museum and I got in line.

The beginning of the line is all the way at the corner of the building in this picture.

This picture shows all of the people behind me, at least 30 minutes before the free ticket hours.  I had no idea that this many people would be willing to wait, but I guess it should come as no surprise.

I was so happy to get to visit this museum, unfortunately they do not allow any photos inside the museum.  

My sweet girl and I.

Madrid was not one of our favorite cities, but I am so thankful that I got to go.  It was definitely an experience worth having.