Wilmington Friends School 2022 Spain

June 16, 2022

Hard to believe we’ve only been in Spain one day. We arrived to Madrid after a long journey and not a lot of sleep.  After getting our luggage we met our global works leaders: Fabricio and Ari. They are awesome .

The 1st thing you notice when walking through the city is the crazy heat. Not only is the sun out, but but it almost rises from the pavement.

After checking into our hotel we went for our 1st Spanish meal. A three course meal from Andalusia.  Some had gazpacho, others tried paellea, and some ate flan for the first time.  Everyone was stuffed.

Although all we wanted to do was go to bed, we kept pushing through the day and it was well worth it. We got to tour the Royal palace, which really reminded us that we were no longer in the United States! We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the city and playing some get to know you games that left us all laughing and feeling a little bit closer. After another delicious meal everyone could barely keep their eyes open and we went to pass, excited for our next day in Spain!

-Group blog entry (Student writers to come tomorrow!)

June 17, 2022

We woke up early, had a quick breakfast and then we went to the Plaza Mayor where we met Sebastían, our tour guide. During the tour, he told us about the history of the city including the story of the stinky horse, the name of the city, the flags, and the suspicious nature of the Spanish lineage. Then, we had lunch at “Ginger,” where we had a 3 course meal. After a quick break at the hotel, we went to “El Prado,” one of the largest art museums in the world. Fascinated by a story we heard from our tour guide, we bought cookies from cloistered nuns. Then, we went to the market place for grocery shopping. After, we went to a park to relax and kick around a soccer ball. Then, we took a long walk to dinner, where we had traditional tortilla and chorizo! After dinner, we went back to the hotel to prepare for tomorrow. This was all in 104 degree weather!

By Greer, Brooke, and Jaxon

June 18, 2022

This morning we woke up bright and early. After eating a great breakfast at the hotel, we traveled Segovia where we explored the city, Roman aqueduct (longest in the world), and Alcazar de Castillo (Former Kings Castle). Our tour guide Pedro told us over 22 kings stayed at the castle during its active life. A family-style lunch at Pandora and some shopping our afternoon in Segovia was over and our venture to Amayuelas began. Before reaching the small town, we stopped at a grocery store for much needed snacks. This small town of ~30 people is focused around sustainable agriculture and preserving the original way of farming. We had a delicious home cooked meal and are headed to bed with full stomachs and eager minds excited for tomorrow’s adventure.

By George, Brooke, and Greer

June 19, 2022

This morning we woke up for breakfast and split into groups to do service. Group number one helped build the foundation for a shed in a nearby field. Group number two took on the task of feeding goats, chickens, and geese, then went on to pick some zucchini. Group then went on to clear weeds out in the donkeys field. We took a break for lunch which was lamb (Drew had pasta). After, we split into groups to go out and do other tasks. Group one made 14 kilograms of bread while group two made bricks. We had some time before dinner so, some people had a improvised workout. Soon after we had homemade pizza for dinner then watched the sunset.

By Andre & Isabelle

June 20, 2022

We woke up this morning to hot Spanish coffee and homemade scrambled eggs straight from the farm. After breakfast, we got right to work. We split back up into our two groups and swapped tasks, continuing from where the other group left off. Group 1 continued the hay bale structure and group 2 tended the animals and kept clearing out the goose pond. It started to rain and we ran to take refuge in the house and in the donkey shelter. After it cleared up, the gardeners mulched the vegetable plants with paja (hay). The builders worked on constructing the roof structure for the shelter. We enjoyed lunch together (everyone had pasta) and fresh chicken from the farm. After lunch, we took a nice long siesta, playing foosball, napping, working out, and learning origami from our friend in Amayuelas, Bruno. We headed out to the next town over for a big game of fútbol with some local boys, followed by ice cream. A pleasant stroll back to Amayuelas de Abajo brought us to a delicious dinner of fish, chips, and green beans. We headed to showers and to bed looking forward to our final day on the farm.

By Jace & Steven

June 21, 2022

We continued our group work by each taking turns at the farm and the hay refuge. We completed clearing the pond at the farm and we completed the hay refuge. After  lunch, we took a long break before separating again into our different workshops. Again, one group made bread and pizza while the other group made adobe bricks. We returned for a pizza dinner, then moved to the pigeon house to celebrate our last night here with María José, David, Melitón, and Bruno.

June 22, 2022

Today on June 22nd, we woke up on our last day at Amayuelas for a workout at 7:30 and breakfast at 9:00. We packed our bags and got in our bus after our farewells and left. After the hour long drive, we arrived in the city of Valladolid. We split into groups, and we started to explore the streets. The groups ate lunch, did some shopping, and we all got our laundry done. We then left the city and headed out on another hour long drive to the campsite that we will be staying at for the next 2 nights. We got settled in our cabins, some of us walked to the town nearby, and then we all came together to a dinner of pasta. We all did a group activity to end the day, excited for tomorrow, where we will go out on the water to kayak and swim.

By Ray, Steven & Jaxon

June 23, 2022
Today we woke up to a sunny day after expecting a rain filled day. We went kayaking through valleys and  caverns in the second largest vulture sanctuary in Europe. During our trip we learned about the bird, land surrounding us, and historical context of the land. We came back to a hot fried egg and rice lunch followed by a well timed siesta. We had burgers for dinner as well as a birthday celebration for Drew, as he turned 16 today! We ended the day early in preparation for a long travel day to Barcelona tomorrow including buses, subways, high speed trains, and more.

– George & Brooke

June 24, 2022
We woke very early in the morning to a long bus ride back to Madrid. Once in Madrid, we got on a super fast and exciting speed train! The landscapes seen out the window were breathtaking. Eventually we arrived in Barcelona. We arrived at our new hotel excited for the fun to come. From the hotel we took the metro to Gaudi’s garden, where we saw the longest bench in the world and some amazing architecture. From there we had some feee time to shop around the city where we found a lot of 30% discounts in every copy and paste souvenir store. Finally we went to a restaurant where we experience pinxtzos, a Spanish dish that consists of a variety of tasty topping on bread; yummy.

-Drew and Aidan

June 25, 2022

We woke up and had a buffet breakfast at our hotel. Then, we went off to go biking across the city where we learned about many historical landmarks. In the middle of the bike tour, we all met up and took pictures at the park. We continued on the tour where we saw the beach, which we will be visiting tomorrow. After our tour was over, we went to the Boqueria market where we each got our own lunches. After some down time, we traveled to Camp Nou via Metro. We saw the Football museum and got to see the ginormous field. After heading back through the subway, we had a short rest. Then, we went to lunch, where we had several different cuisines.

-Greer, Steven, and Andrew

June 26, 2022

We woke up to a hot breakfast at the hotel and rolled out at 9am to head to the Sagrada Familia church. We walked through the city, stopping to admire significant architecture. Once we arrived at Sagrada Familia, we were met by our guide, Almudena, who took us through the Gaudi masterpiece and explained to us the history of the building. After the Sagrada Familia, we went to lunch at La Rita. We took another walk through Barcelona to the beach. The Mediterranean was beautiful and we all had fun in the waves before drying off and hopping back on the bus for a hotel siesta. Everyone got dressed up and Fab and Ari took us to the metro again to head to our surprise final dinner. We found ourselves at an old bullfighting ring converted into a mall. Five escalators later, we had our dinner on the top floor overlooking the city. For our final hours in Barcelona, we watched a beautiful fountain show in the dark. Back at the hotel, we all shared what the trip meant to us. We went to sleep in Spain for the last time, with heavy hearts and eyelids but memories to last a lifetime.

– Jace & Greer