¡Feliz Año!

Fresh off the boat from Luxembourg, we stopped home just in time to say hello to the cats before turning right back around to the airport. Uncle Bob and Barb are spending the month of January in Spain and invited us along for a few days at the beginning of their trip, so we met them in Madrid to ring in the new year.

Andrew's taking over for the rest of this:

Bob and Barb were meant to call us first thing after landing on New Year's day, but when we didn't hear from them, we figured their flight was delayed and that we had time for a trip to the supermercado. Luckily, it was a quick trip, because we returned to the apartment to find them waiting at the front door, looking panicked. It turns out dialing international numbers can be a bit tricky. We spent our first day together walking to el centro de Madrid, including La Latina -- the old town.

Just off Plaza Mayor we found a purveyor of "el mejor churros del mundo" (which was, sadly, a gross exaggeration). The slow service allowed our newly arrived companions time enough for a quick snooze.

We walked home that night through a very dark, but surprisingly populous, Parque del Retiro, which is located near our apartment and also where we began the day on Friday.

We emerged from el parque on Friday just behind El Prado, with pangs of hunger and a bit of thirst. After admiring the baroque door of San Jerónimo el Real, we stopped for a bite and a caña (draft beer). After a bit more wandering, we rendezvoused with our companions (after we had parted in pursuit of separate meal plans) at the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza for a chronological stroll through art history.

Saturday we were off to an early and frigidly cold start on not-quite-the-first (but near enough) train to Toledo. The town was stunning; particular highlights included the cathedral (Santa Iglesia Catedral Primada Toledo), the excellent meal at Restaurante Locum, the incredible views, and the absurdity of staffing the ticket office of a museum that was closed until February (thanks for nothing, Museo de Santa Cruz!). We also met Pollock's (much more active) Spanish cousin, El Pollocko.

We came back from Toledo in the afternoon, just in time to get a quick visit to the Reina Sofia, the museum where Guernica lives. We toured El Prado on Sunday before strolling down the Gran Vía and ending up at the palace. We arrived too late to get in, so it's on our to-do list for our next visit. We're excited to get back at some point again!  (More photos on flickr.)

Passengers Kennedy & Hamilton. This is the last call for your flight to Luxembourg. Please proceed to your gate immediately.

We were sitting in Schiphol, agreeing that it was one of the nicest airports we travel in, enjoying a drink or two before our connecting flight to Luxembourg, when Andrew looked very panicked. "They're paging us!" For the second time in our lives, we sprinted through Schiphol in an attempt to catch a flight.

Rest assured, we made it. KLM is possibly the nicest airline ever, with the nicest employees. They very generously called a bus to take us to the plane all by ourselves, and we even got to sit in the nicer seats so as not to disturb all the timely passengers who were ready to go when they should have been. This was an excellent start to a truly wonderful Christmas, made even better upon landing in Luxembourg with Sara waiting.

On Christmas Eve, we spent some time in Luxembourg City, ice skating and going to a Christmas market. Andrew was the fastest skater, Julia was the cutest, and I was the grumpiest. We got to ride a giant ferris wheel at the market, ate some lunch, and indulged in a bit of mulled wine.

Christmas morning was wonderful. Santa spoiled us all, but everyone except Julia was left wanting a My Little Pony or Frozen gift - it seems none were left for the rest of us.

We went chateau-ing on Boxing Day - three in one day, oh my!

Next stop Mount Everest

Our last day in Luxembourg dawned snowy and cold. I was glad to get a bit of snow for Christmas and I was pretty lucky to have a pal who wanted to play in it with me. Andrew and Paul went out cross-country skiing for a few hours before we had to pack in it and head back to Belfast. We were seriously sad to leave, as it was a really incredible trip. Check out more of it on flickr.