Nephew Knights

My nephew Sir Josephus and his family came to visit us here in Salamanca.

Sir Charlemagne did a good job of recording informative videos for his classmates.

I enjoyed showing my brother (the astro-physicist) the astronaut carved into the cathedral.

My brother and I both prefer the old cathedral to the new.

Old on the left, new on the right.

Good knights these days need reflector strips when gargoyles are around!

I enjoyed taking my nephew knights places they could never go in the US. (In my opinion, even if you could see things like this bell-tower, you could never touch and climb it for safety's sake.)

"My scared went away!" - Sir Josephus in the bell-tower.

Storks' nest from their bird's eye view

Sarah

Sir Josephus in the university patio . . .

Charlie got to play tag (in Spanish, of course) with his cousins' friends in their school patio.

If you see enough statues, there is no telling what might happen among cousins.

Some of the best, in my opinion, cultural experiences happened on playgrounds. Sarah had hilarious observations after this park adventure! Another time at a playground, a middle-school boy was talking to one of my nephew knights who said, "Me no Español." In shock, the kid hollered at Scott, "SEÑOR! You no espeak espanish?"

Of course pharmacies are also different here. I loved getting to be with Sarah.

We took our kids out of school for a couple of days to go to Valencia.

These knights built a castle on the Mediterranean Sea.

Paul helped me choose the photos for this post, but he did not understand why I wanted to include this one. "It represents a happy memory of enjoying adult conversation after a big, good meal while the 5 of you played soccer in the harbor."

Maybe Sam didn't know the soccer game was over.

This photo makes me laugh. The boys were playing cards in a saloon while waiting for a late-night (typically Spanish) dinner, because the restaurant next door wanted to serve us there, where there was more room.

Sam is asleep. There is a huge hunk of raclette cheese in front of me, food in my mouth, and a lot of empty serving plates. The bar owner, restaurant owner and waitresses laughed hilariously about the fact that the blond boys speak Spanish but the brunettes do not, so they tried to teach my nephew knights Spanish hours past their bedtime. All true.

When we weren't eating in Valencia, we were in the central food market . . .

where the queen of Las Fallas (Valencia's big festival the following week) was parading around with fifes and drums in front of pigs' legs.

There she is coming out of the central market.

More Las Fallas revelers

These spiral columns are in a former bank,

where the floor was just right for playing Q-bert.

Sir Josephus in the dungeon

Sir Charlemagne enjoying churros and chocolate!

Is Samuel learning from Pinocchio's mistakes?

This was the view from our condo: cousins playing in the Mediterranean while Anthony waited with the picnic blanket.

Picnic on the beach

Our sweet friend Laura babysat so that we could celebrate Sarah's birthday at an outstanding paella restaurant.

Thankfully, Paul's teacher recommended La Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias in Valencia.

The exterior is so surprisingly and beautifully modern.

They have now played in the gills of a fish.

Inside of the science museum, the boys prepared for the Valencia soccer game.

If you know languages, you might notice that the Valencia stadium welcomes you in Catalan.

Go Valencia!

The electricity in the stadium and the surrounding neighborhood (including the restaurant where we ate bocadillos before the game) went out a couple of times,

but the game was able to happen!

Big futbol fans.

Goooooool Valencia! It ended Valencia 1 - Bilbao 1.

Anthony, the Tongen boys, and Laura went back to work and school while I got to go with my nephew knights to Sigüenza.

We stayed in this castle!

We had a beautiful walk along a Don Quijote Trail and a tiny bit of El Camino de Santiago.

Can you find the hideout of my nephew knights? The more impressive feat happened that night -- my brother carried a sleeping Sir Josephus all the way up to the castle from a gourmet restaurant that was down in town. Have I mentioned that restaurants don't typically open until 9?

I had a great time with my nephew knights in the castle.

The reward for protecting the castle through the night was the most amazing breakfast buffet of my life. Yes, I had champagne and carrot cake for dessert after enjoying numerous meats, cheeses, wild berries, fruit juices, and (according to Scott) "more pastries than I could try."

Three great pieces of our region of Spain -- a soccer field, a castle, and a tractor working in a field. Plus, the blue sky represents how the weather was spectacular while my nephews were here. Honestly, I asked God many times for the blessing of good weather for them. I am very thankful.

In Bilbao, we went to the Guggenheim Museum.

Sir Josephus and the lilies.

I was surprised by the changes in architecture as we traveled through La Rioja wine region and through the mountains to the north coast of Spain.

In Santander, my nephew knights (you might be able to spy Sir Charlemagne in blue on the rocks) got to play along the Bay of Biscay.

I am continually impressed by Sarah. I love time with her.

We were excitedly welcomed home to our apartment in Salamanca!

Sir Charlemagne found that the Plaza Mayor is an ideal place for doing homework!

My nephew knights found every single item on their Salamanca scavenger hunt, including this bull without a head.

I am consistently surprised at how all 5 boys I have introduced to the Roman Bridge get thrilled by the idea of walking across (or throwing dandelions from) a bridge built before Jesus. 

I especially like this photo of two students walking home from the Plaza Mayor together.

Sarah is an excellent mom.

Even when some members of both families had to pull out their fake smiles from lack of routine or something, we did not want them to leave. We had so much fun together in Spain.