We have just returned from our most recent Mjaanes family adventure to Espana! (That's Spain to those of you who don't feel the need to sound cooler than you actually are.) One thing that became very clear on this trip is that the kids are really becoming great travelers. I think they have finally taken pity on us and realized that we don't have a clue how to travel with little kids. They seem to have given up the hope that things will go smoothly and now just suffer through our ridiculous traveling escapades with a look on their faces that says "I can't wait until I'm 18 and can ditch these dorks". I don't have high hopes that we'll end up in the nicest of nursing homes....
Like any intelligent parents of young children, we booked an early morning flight and woke the kids up at 4:30 to head to the airport. We were shocked when they all woke up excited for the adventure and treated each other with kindness and respect throughout our morning of traveling. I kept waiting for the arguing and fighting to break out, but they honestly acted as if they liked each other. They must have been delirious from lack of sleep. It was a beautiful thing.
When we arrived in Madrid we realized that packing 2 giant suitcases and a stroller was traveling mistake #1. Apparently Spain doesn't much like their disabled citizens to ride their Metro system so they keep them out by not installing elevators in many of their stations. So while I carried the backpack and the stroller up God knows how many flights of stairs while holding E's hand, Bryan dragged our giant suitcases up them while we both tried to keep an eye on the boys. After an hour of riding and lugging suitcases through the subway, we arrived at our stop in the middle of Madrid and headed to our rental apartment for the next 5 days. It was at this point that I realized that Madrid in June is about 12 degrees hotter than hell. We looked like we were on a death march with our red faces and sweat soaked hair. But fortunately our apartment was only a block from the station. As we approached the building, Bryan mentioned that we were on the 5th floor and as I began to mutter, "It better have a freakin' elevator" he opened the door to a building that clearly had no elevator. Exactly 103 steps later we arrived at our rental apartment.
Some might call our apartment the penthouse, as it was located on the top floor. However, attic would be the appropriate term in this situation. We walked in to find the ceiling sloped so severely that we had to hunch over just to stand at the kitchen sink. It was pretty hysterical. There was about a 5 foot wide area the length of the apartment in which Bryan and I could stand up straight and a small dormer that led to a balcony. The owner showed us how to work the air conditioner and kindly asked us to just make sure we turned it off when we weren't in the unit. From this point on, the air conditioner was cranked to 16 degrees celcius for the next 5 days. I'm sure she'll be cursing the sweat soaked American renters when she receives her electric bill.
The best part of the trip was that we got to spend time with Bryan's brother's family. His wife Mercedes is from Madrid and was our personal tour guide for the next 4 days. The kids LOVED spending time with their cousins Gabriela and Lucia and I don't think they cared what we did as long as they were with them. Bryan and I loved that they were entertained and happy and we got quality time with our tour guides Jeff and Mercedes. It doesn't get much better than that.
On Friday night we began the process of eating our way through Madrid. Seriously, it was kind of disgusting. If you can think of a Spanish dish, I can pretty much promise you one of us ate it. Z walked around with a chorizo stained face for a large portion of the trip, and E spit out more olive pits in one weekend than most people do in a lifetime. We had Churros and chocolate for breakfast, paella for lunch, and cerveza and sangria in the afternoon before indulging in tapas for dinner. We're hoping that between the pounds we sweat off while walking the city and the suitcase lifting workout we endured at the beginning of the trip, we didn't come home too many pounds heavier than we left.
On Sunday, Bryan and his brother decided they wanted to take a day trip to Segovia Spain for Father's day. We took a bullet train that traveled almost 200 mph and the boys, including Bryan, were pretty excited. We visited the beautiful cathedral in Segovia and although there wasn't a service taking place, I'm still taking credit for getting the family to church on a Sunday. We should be good until Easter Sunday now unless we shock the good Lord with a visit on Christmas Eve. Anything's possible.
We also visited the castle in Segovia and all 5 kids made it to the lookout point by climbing up a winding staircase of 164 steps. After the castle it was time to (surprise, surprise) eat again. I watched in quiet horror as my brother in law enjoyed the local specialty of roast suckling pig. Although they didn't serve it with the head on, we had great fun taking pictures of him gnawing on the pig hoof. I'll never look at Winnie the Pooh's piglet in quite the same way again. As we left the restaurant we passed table after table of people stuffing their face with roasted piglet. Very disturbing....
Probably my favorite part of our trip was when we sat at a cafe in Madrid's Plaza Mayor and drank sangria while the kids played in the plaza. It was one of those moments when you suddenly remember what it feels like to be relaxed. We sat there for 2 hours watching the kids play and get absolutely filthy. We laughed as we ordered another pitcher of sangria and hoped the waiters would continue to take care of the kids for us. By the time we finally left, E was so filthy she looked like an orphan child who had just crawled out of the sewer. And I'm ashamed to say she had been sitting in a dirty diaper longer than I'd like to admit. But in my defense, she was having a great time and the pigeons she was playing with didn't seem to mind her stink.
After a couple pitchers of sangria, we chanced upon Z's childhood idol as we left the plaza. It was such a special moment for my superhero loving son. There, in the flesh (and there was a LOT of flesh) was spider man. He stood in the plaza with a box to collect change, and happily let us take a picture of him with the kids. At the time, I laughed so hard I cried. Later in the evening, I wondered if Z would need therapy after seeing such a disgusting display of anti-superheroism. Sadly, he later told me he thought it was the real spider man. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Sangria may not bring out the best of our parenting skills...
All in all, the whole family had a great time in Madrid and I was so proud of what troopers the kids were. When we were offered the opportunity to spend 2 years in Switzerland, the idea that we could show our kids parts of the world that they wouldn't otherwise see, was too enticing to pass up. We've frequently asked ourselves whether the kids will remember any of our travels, and I'm not sure if they will or not. But I can already see that our adventures are opening their minds to trying new things, whether it be new foods or interacting with new people. They are becoming more independent, adventurous, and confident. And whether they remember our trips or not, I feel like they will walk away from this adventure with a broader perspective on life that will hopefully carry with them as they grow older. Now let's just hope they don't carry with them the memory of the creepy Spanish Spiderman for too long...
