Christmas in Madrid

2019 was a really rough year for me. I was busy with my masters and basically had time for nothing else. Between the scurrying to get my editing right and getting everything submitted, I desperately needed a holiday! So, I started thinking about where I wanted to go. Did I want to go on a ski trip, island hopping or visit a new city? Then it hit me (and it honestly hit me from right under my nose): Spain!

I am currently busy with my Masters in Philosophy and I focus on Theological Philosophy. One of the main Philosophers I researched was Francisco Suárez, a Spanish Theological Philosopher from the 1500-1600. I have been researching this man for months, so why not go to his home country?

Now that I know which country I'm going to visit, I needed to figure out when I was going to be visiting. I spoke to my parents and as it turned out, they were planning on going to my Sister-in-law's home town to visit her parents and Celebrate Christmas. I really didn't want to go to Port Elizabeth for Christmas, so I decided to book a 10 day trip to Spain and celebrate Christmas there with my boyfriend! 

Right, I have my dates. But wait, I don't even know which city I want to check out! There are so many beautiful places to see, I had no idea where to start. But then, like an angel sent from heaven, a website called www.travelinginspain.com made its way into my hands and I could not have been happier. The site had all the information I needed on different tours and cities to visit in Spain. I then decided that I wanted to travel to Madrid. The pictures on the site was just so breathtaking and the tours and things to do seemed right up my alley. So, it was official, we were going to Madrid!

Travelinginspain.com even helped me find an Airbnb that was within the Madrid City Center. I managed to book a beautiful studio apartment right with a balcony that a had gorgeous view. The apartment was equipped with Wi-Fi, a tiny kitchen, air conditioning and even a Smart TV. The website really made planning so much easier.

My boyfriend and I had an absolute blast on our trip to Madrid. We went on a wine and tapas tour where we learned about wine making and the Spanish history behind the craft. We even got to taste the wines and let me tell you, it was very difficult having to spit it out into that bucket. We even visited the Escorial palace, the Prado Museum and the Royal palace. For Christmas we took up a cooking class where we learned how to make vegan Paella. It was so yummy!

Overall, I was very happy with my holiday. I got to relax, see the sights in the city, enjoy some nature and eat magnificent food. I felt ready and inspired to tackle my Masters.