Oops I Did it Again! Or Pop Goes the Kneecap

So I joined the kiddos in a friendly game or five of volley ball.... and let's just say the student liaisons/coordinator's saying of "joven plus" (young and then some), we are of the same general age, no longer really applies for me.  I feel creaky with worn out parts.  So all week long I've been icing and elevating my leg and today we left for a weekend excursion. 4-ish hours on a bus and then probably a 10k walk through out the the town of Zamora left me hobbling.   The snap or "clac" in my knee region I heard has me mildly concerned.  But I'm taking it easy tonight and cranking up the ice, bought some probably icy-hot type gel and going to give my knee a break!

So I missed updating the Recital of the Epic Adventures of Tanya (though keep in mind that it's Friday night and I'm laid up in bed so I don't know if epic is the absolute best word - the fact that it's super comfortable probably doesn't really balance the scales, huh?).  Last week we went to Segovia - my oh my, what a beautiful city... despite weather that would indeed indicate that the rain in Spain falls mainly in the plain... I  would have happily explored it further.  We visited the Alcazar  (castle) - fun fact... 👸Disney modeled Snow White's castle or maybe also influenced Cinderella's - the interwebs differ - after that we also did a walking tour of the 'old town' which I find fascinating. Lovely churches and THE AQUEDUCT - dang, it's an amazing feat of engineering - and while it demonstrates the wonders of Roman construction and was built for utilitarian means, it is a work of art!  So there I was walking around in awe, trying to grasp that these same buildings have been lived in and had businesses conducted within for hundreds of years - it's crazy!  We braved the rain, had a fantastic lunch, grabbed a cuppa after, and then made our way back to Toledo where I took advantage of a free weekend to - you guessed it - study.  Argg regrets are a waste of time... but I probably should have gone to Madrid or Sevilla or done SOMETHING!

Well despite that lapse... I hope you enjoy tbe pics 🤗 I'll catch you up with Zamora in the subsequent post!

Royal bedchamber

That thar is a full sized adult suit of armor... look who's not so short now, eh?!

 Attempt #1 at being artsy

                Artsy attempt 2⤵

 Super creepy eyes... I'm going to have to ask again why that was done that way... don't quite remember at this moment 🤔

 Selfie mode on this bad boy at work!

 By the way... no mortar in this chef d'oeuvre - pure engineering genius!

 Boy was it raining gatos and perros!

There were two camps in our group: Prepared with umbrellas or improvised with trash bags!

Artsy attempt 3⤴

Do you hear the barking?

That would be my feet.

Wow... So this weekend has been pretty awesome. We took an excursion and there's about 50 of us all traveling together... which is really... interesting!? I really AM enjoying being with a lot of these guys and the experience of visiting new cities and regions of Spain... well, I'm loving it!  Though I wish I could have spent more time in Cordoba, but it was only that very brief afternoon. It was beautiful and I must return some time. We arrived Friday and get nearly two days in Grenada.  It is an unbelievably beautiful city and the food is amazing, amazing...  just in case I didn't put enough emphasis on that, the food is amazing! Somehow in a group of 50... I've managed to go off on my own, which is kind of funny because now that I'm actually traveling with other people... the fact that I went off by myself is kind of hilarious.  So yesterday we went to the mosque in Cordoba.  Then when we got to Grenada, we went to see some flamenco dancing last night.  Omg... it was intense! Today, I just got back from a tour at the Alhambra and the palacio. What an incredibly beautiful experience! Afterwards I meandered back to the hotel and bought some souvenirs from a store ran by the artisan that made the products.  I stopped to watch him and talk for a while - it was an amazingly good time!  but... I was stopping for about 2€ of postcards and left with about 85€ of his work! Then off for a 3pm lunch.  I was semi-hijacked by the waitress to eat at her restaurant.  I must say it was the happiest of hijackings!  Sangria, olives, paella, gazpacho,  chicken in a garlic sauce... with perfectly cooked french fries, and watermelon for dessert! So. Full.  Someone's going to have to roll me home now!!  Here are a few collages of my weekend!