The Walls of the Cave: May 2007

Goodbye Madrid

I can't believe it's over.

Almost five months away from home seems like a long time, and it has been. When I got here, the emotional high of being in a new city and getting used to a new life seemed to make time pass more slowly. At two weeks in or four weeks in it seemed like I'd been in Madrid forever. When I look back on the long list of places I've been, think about what I've seen, about all the miles I've put on my shoes, I feel like I've been away for a lot longer than one semester. I've been incredibly lucky to have had so many opportunities in five months. A good part of me can't wait to get home, relax and process everything mentally.

But at the same time, the whole experience has given me the itch to travel that much more. I've barely scratched the surface of Europe, not to mention the rest of the world. I want to go back to almost every place I visited and have a growing list of future destinations.

Madrid, for example, has grown on me more than any other city I've lived in. I'm going to miss our breakfast trips to our favorite tavern in Plaza de Tirso de Molina, the pub and tapas crawls near Alonso Martinez or Huertas, the frequent chocolate and churros runs to either Valor or San Gines, walking the length of Gran Via, and going to Zahara when I was desperate for internet or non-Spanish beer. I can't believe I'm admitting it, but I'll probably even miss the ham.

I'm going to have many stories, probably more than anyone will ever want to hear. Thanks to everyone who's followed me and supported me this semester. I can't wait to see you all. I'll definitely keep using this blog to share the goings on in my life, especially once I return to D.C.

Adios

Toledo

Since getting back from Egypt, I've been staying in a hostel near the city center and in a part of town that I really like. One of the advantages of staying in such a place is that you meet a lot of interesting people. I went to Toledo on Saturday with Marlen, who's from Berlin and decided to take a weekend trip to Madrid. I hadn't made it to Toledo all semester. It's a medieval looking city with a lot of history, so it would have been a shame if I had been in Madrid for almost five months without seeing it.

The Cathedral is said to be one of the best in Spain

Toledo is well known for the influence and co-existence of Christians, Jews, and Muslims. This Moorish flag was in the cathedral's museum.

Obligatory picture with Don Quijote

Marlen in front of the Alcazar

Synagogue of Sta. Maria la Blanca

The Mosque of Cristo de la Luz. Built in 1000 AD, it was later part of a church after the Christian reconquest (hence the name) and is currently the site of archaeological study and planned restoration.

Luxor

Temple of Karnak

Luxor Temple

Valley of the Kings

Temple of Hapshepsut

Temple of Habu

Colossi of Memnon

Felucca ride and Banana Island

Luxor

The rest of my Egypt trip was pretty much non-stop. Sunday night I boarded the quick, nine-hour train for Luxor by myself. (Quick side note: A 1st class ticket Cairo-Luxor costs about $14, my 2nd class ticket today to Toledo, about a 30 minute trip, cost more) Not only that, I was the only non-Egyptian in my car, which was an interesting experience.

I got to Luxor at 9:30 am Monday morning and somehow missed my arranged hotel pickup. I'm not sure if he just never showed, or if I missed him while I was distracted by all the other hotel solicitations. In any event, I had to find new lodging. This wasn't a problem, as it isn't tourist season because of the heat, so especially the budget hotels were competing very fiercely. I went to a backpacker's hotel recommended by Kara's friends. I "splurged" on a private single with a bathroom and air-conditioning for 55 Egyptian pounds, about $9 or so.

That afternoon, I went to the Temple of Karnak and Luxor Temple, both of which are on the east bank of the Nile, where my hotel and most of Luxor is. Karnak was probably my favorite temple of all of them in Luxor. It was huge and had a lot of history. It blew my mind walking among ruins that were over 1000 years older than Rome. I explored town and called it an early night, which was good because I wouldn't get a night's sleep in a bed until Thursday night.

Tuesday morning, I went on a west bank tour organized by my hotel. One other guest went with me, an Italian who was also traveling by herself. We visited Valley of the Kings, the Temple of Hapshetsut, Temple of Habu, and the Colossi of Memnon. As it was 107 degrees with no clouds, the $18 price of the 6 hour tour was definitely worth it if only for the air-conditioned transportation. Seeing the tombs at Valley of the Kings was pretty cool. You can't take pictures inside the tombs so I don't have a lot. The other temples were interesting, but started to run together toward the end.

We had lunch inside the street market, and that afternoon we went on a Felucca ride on the Nile with four other guests from our hotel. It was a very international excursion, representing Egypt, the US, Italy, England, France, and the Netherlands. We went out to Banana Island and ate fresh bananas, and watched sunset and drank tea from the middle of the Nile. It was a lot of fun.

That night, I got on the train back to Cairo at about 9:30, arriving Wednesday morning at about 7:30. Kara met me at the train station and we had breakfast. After that, I took a much-needed nap at Sara's apartment. I hung out on Zamalek with Sara and Kara and eventually went to the airport for my 11:45 pm flight back to Madrid. Needless to say, I've slept very well the last two nights.

Pictures up soon!