Lincoln Goes Around the World

Lincoln students enjoy Palacio Real, Madrid, España, 2013. (Ileana Straus / for Lincoln Lion Tales)

Here’s the summary of our trip to Spain last June, organized and chaperoned by Spanish teacher Ileana Straus and History teacher Kim Robey who accompanied 18 Lincoln students on a cultural tour of Spain.  Our students behaved in an exemplary manner, and had a great time seeing the world! For some students this was their first voyage abroad, and for others the first trip by plane.

 

“Captain’s Log”:

Day 1- Departure June 13, 2013

The overnight flight to Spain across the Atlantic was long but smooth, and many of us took a long nap.

 

Day 2 Madrid

Touch down in Madrid.  After clearing customs we were greeted by our bilingual EF Tour Director, and our adventure began with a panoramic tour of Spain’s capital city. We walked through Puerta del Sol, the center plaza of Madrid, passed through one of the nine arched gateways leading to the Plaza Mayor, the Renaissance hub of the city. This grand square has witnessed events ranging from bullfights to royal weddings to public executions, and political demonstrations. We walked through a web of countless streets and plazas and then returned to the hotel exhausted.

 

Day 3 Madrid

Next day we visited the interior of the magnificent El Palacio Real, the Royal Palace built by Bourbon King Philip V. Once the seat of the most powerful court in the world, it was here that Spain officially joined the European Community in 1986. The palace has more than 2,000 rooms with extravagant decorations, furniture, and priceless frescoes and chandeliers. Later that day in the afternoon, we visited the world class art museum El Prado, where we admired paintings by Goya, Velasquez, Picasso, Flemish art and more.

 

Day 4 Toledo • Consuegra • Granada

Next day we traveled to the antique medieval city of Toledo, the former Spanish capital where Muslims, Jews and Christians coexisted peacefully for centuries after the arrival of the Moors in the early 8th century until the Spanish Inquisition in the 15th century. We saw the influence of all three cultures as we toured the 12th-century St. Mary’s Synagogue, the cathedral dominating

Toledo’s skyline, and the Church of Santo Tomé, where we admired the famous El Greco painting El Entierro del Conde de Orgaz (The Burial of Count Orgaz). Then we stopped at a local damascene workshop; damascene is an intricate Muslim silver and gold craft originating in Damascus and made famous in Toledo and the entire world.

 

In the afternoon, we continued to Granada and explored the old city and went to bed early.  Next day we spent the whole morning visiting one of Spain’s most celebrated attractions: the famous castle-fortress of Alhambra, built before the 14th-century.  We recalled both The Arabian Nights and the works of Washington Irving as we marveled at intricate and exotic wall ornaments, elegantly sculpted ceilings and columns, patios, fountains, gardens and courtyards of the country’s last Moorish stronghold. Here, Christopher Columbus discussed with King Ferdinad and Queen Isabella his plans for sailing to India.

 

The next day we basked in the sun on the beach in Costa del Sol on the Mediterranean Sea, and enjoyed a well earned rest. Early in the morning we headed to the city of Sevilla, built by the Romans on the banks of the Río Guadalquivir. We visited Plaza de España, built for the 1929 Ibero-American Fair, walked through the twisting alleys of Barrio de Santa Cruz, Seville’s old Jewish Quarter, and visited the Moorish Castle of Alcázar, built for Pedro the Cruel in the 14th century, one of the purest examples of mudéjar architecture in the world.  Next day we visited the awesome Catedral de Sevilla, and climbed the cathedral’s Giralda Tower for a spectacular view of the city below. At night we attended a flamenco ballet performance, in the very town where this dance originated. Born of Indian, Moorish, Arabian and gypsy influences, the flamenco is a passionate display of intricate dancing, heelwork and clapping, accompanied by singing, guitars and castañuelas.

 

Day 8 Córdoba • Madrid

In the morning of the 8th day we headed to Córdoba, a city northeast of Seville. Córdoba was the former Moorish capital of Andalucía and was one of Europe’s greatest cultural centers in the 9th century. We could see the influence of the Moorish, Roman, Jewish and Christian cultures that flourished here at different times in the city’s history. We visited the famous Mezquita, a gigantic mosque built in the 8th century, formerly the largest mosque west of Mecca.

 

On the way back to Madrid, we took a detour to visit Don Quijote’s Wind Mills and take memorable pictures. In our last day in Madrid we planned to have free time to become better acquainted with Madrid on your own. We enjoyed discovering the city, and walking through the many picturesque neighborhoods its many plazas, monuments and shops, strolled through outdoor markets, and sampled tapas at outdoor cafés while speaking Spanish all the time!

 

It was a fabulous trip!