©Alexandra Tremblay-McGaw

“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.”
~ F. Scott Fitzgerald

Right now I am laying in my bed with my feet up. It is a beautiful evening and the weather is turning from colder and rainy days, to the lighter and brighter days of Spring. Being from San Francisco, I have to confess, I feel like it is summer. My feet are tired and I feel the sun on my skin. I just got back from an amazing trip to Toledo with the Tufts-Skidmore Spain program. I had an incredible time!
On Friday we all loaded into the two big buses waiting for us at the program at noon. As we drove to Toledo (only an hour away) we sung happy birthday to two girls in the program, talked with our friends in the seats next to us, and some of us slept. Sometimes I can’t help falling asleep on the bus, but I like to stay up and watch the scenery change as we drive.

Carcamusas toledanas ©Alexandra Tremblay-McGaw

When we arrived in Toledo we checked into our hotel and had free time to get lunch and walk around. We had a hard time deciding where to eat, but in the end around twelve of us ate at a close by restaurant. I got the carcamusas toledanas and it was incredible! I loved the food. After walking around we ended up at a bridge with zip lining. Three of us zip lined across the river. The fresh air and the view was a truly unique experience! We laughed a lot and had a great time.
Later in the evening we all met up at the hotel and went on a guided tour through Toledo. We saw a discoteca that was in an old church, narrow streets, museums, and we even walked under ground! After a quick nap we grabbed dinner and got ready to go out to some nearby discotecas. The music wasn’t my favorite, but it was fun to see everyone in the program dancing and enjoying the night.
In the morning I was exhausted and definitely did not want to get out of my comfy bed, but the day was beautiful and it was nice to be able to step out onto my balcony and see mountains in the distance as bids chirped. After breakfast we saw two churches and a synagogue, got lunch, and headed back to Madrid.

Alex Tremblay-McGaw, student blogger

Toledo is incredibly beautiful and overall I think everyone really enjoyed the program trip. It is absolutely amazing to be living in Spain and to get to experience and live a different life. While I believe it is important to fight against the current (as I have done many times in my life) I also recommend allowing the current to take you where it will while you study abroad.

Additional Recommendations:
1. Bring a warm jacket to Spain because it does get cold. One day we drove through snow on our way to El Escorial!
2. Go on the program trips! You have plenty of time to travel on your own and outside of Spain. Don’t miss out on seeing Spain with other people in the program.

Next program trip: Extremadura! Sign up here.