Summer in Spain

 Summer in Spain 

Work Hard- play hard! That's what we do as expats living in the UAE. One of our highlights every summer is escaping the brutal desert heat and jetting off to a change of scenery. This summer- it was Spain. 

Now that the kids are older, what a joy it was. Much easier- hallelujah. :) We arrived in Barcelona. Stayed a couple of nights, giving us one full day to explore the city. We very well knew that our kids would complain about walking after 15 minutes; so, we decided to rent bikes and tour the city that way. On our walk to the bike rental shop, we stopped in our tracks with a cop yelling what I could only imagine was "stop him" in Spanish. Suddenly, this man (who our daughter described as a 'theif' and 'bandit' haha) bumped into us as he was dashing away from being arrested. An older, but very fit construction worker, getting ready to start his day by having a coffee with his work buddies got up and sprinted after the 'thief'. When they turned the corner, we didnt get to see the end outcome but I vividly remember Olivia saying, "Oh My Gosh, We aren't in Dubai anymore." No, we weren't. Part of the joy of visiting different places, is having the children see that this world- while it can be small, is also very big. 

We reached the bike shop, pumped up with adrenaline. We got two bikes with two kid seats on the back and toured beautiful Barcelona. We found stunning gardens, had lunch by the ocean, saw the breath taking Cathedral 'Sagrada Familia'. So exquisite with it's vibrant colors and it's massive size (being the largest unfinished Roman Catholic Church) 

We also had the adventure of navigating the roads by bike in this very busy city and I probably got a few more grey hairs in the process. 

After our full day in Barcelona, we got in our rental car and drove to Moraira, Spain. Where we stayed for 12 days. I had never been there; and it was pure magic. We stayed in a beautiful townhouse- steps away from the ocean. With the friendly people, delicious food, calm way of life- It was the type of place I could see myself living forever. Making it very hard to leave when the time came. 

Will and I also decided to finally have our wedding. While being legally married for 8 years, we never had our wedding celebration. It was just with our immediate family, exchanging vows we wrote, with our kids by our side. Wouldn't have wanted anything more. It was also quite special writing vows 8 years into a marriage instead of right the beginning. For we now know all the hard work it takes, all the ups and downs and the beauty of commitment in doing all of life's twists in turns with your partner by your side. 

With my Mom and in-laws there, Will and I got the chance to go to Alicante for the day- just the two of us. We had such a wonderful time, stopping at cafes, strolling the cobble stone streets hand in hand. I also couldn't get over how beautiful the doors were there. Will and I even fell asleep on a bench by the beach haha. We were able to be that relaxed without the kiddos. 

On our way back to Barcelona to catch our flight, we stopped in Valencia for the day. Since it was such a hit using bikes to get around that first day, we did the same in Valencia. The kids had big smiles on their faces and it was such a cool way to explore a city with little ones.

Thank you, Spain for a magical summer. We will definitely be back.