Hola Espania!

This summer Nabil and I were able to take the trip of a lifetime. I mean really, the trip of a lifetime. I may have mentioned a time or two, that Nabil's brother Yacine currently lives in a little town called Jolly Ol' London. You may also know that there was a little event there this summer called... the OLYMPICS! Yes we got to go to London 2012! It was absolutely incredible, but more on that later.

We figured that since we were making the trip all the way across the pond, we might as well hit up a few other countries while we were there. I mean, it's so easy to get around, we couldn't really say no. Enter, Espania!

We first stopped in to stay with a friend for a few days. They live in a little town called Benicassim. I don't think this town could be any cuter. It was right on the beach and every morning, our good friends Laura and Raul would make us an amazing breakfast. We would eat on their balcony, and yeah, check out that view!

The food was so good! One of my favorite parts of eating out was that most of the outdoor seating was on the street inbetween the restaurants and houses. Laura and Raul would make fun of me because I kept saying "This is SO European". But seriously, it was! Like in a movie. You don't really see that in the states. It was pretty awesome. And just look at that handsome hubby. So cute.

And there he is again, just chillin' by the Benicassim sign.

Pretty sweet huh? The second day we were there, Laura and Raul took us on a little jaunt to Vilafames, Spain. It's about half and hour inland from Benicassim. This town is the definition charming. If I ever become a multi-millionnaire, I am going to buy a little house in this town and stay there every spring or summer. The town was so amazing, I don't even know where to start.

Look at those cute little Spanish, soon to be parents. Such great hosts.

There was a tiny shop in the town where we bought jam, honey, olive oil, and wine. Check out the wine. Apparently, in Spain each vineyard has a quota that they are not allowed to sell over. If they make over that amount, they leave them unlabled, give them to small vendors (usually friends) who sell them for like $3 a bottle. It's like a fun, wine, grab bag. A surprise in every bottle.

The other great thing about this town, is that it is thousands of years old. Many of the houses were built into the side of red rock, which is the primary foundation of the whole town. One of the stores we went into had the red rock as the back wall. No drywall or finishes, just red rock. Pretty sweet.

We kept walking up and down the streets, and guess what we saw?! I real CASTLE!! That's right. Those things us Americans only learn about from text books, and battle movies.

Okay, it's a run down castle. But, for something built in the 16th century, it looks pretty good. Spectacular view too.

This is inside the main tower.

Since the castle was mainly used as a fortress, there are windows that surround all of the exterior walls. They are wider on the inside and narrow on the outside to allow archers room to shoot out, but narrow to keep the arrows from entering. See, history can be fun!

Those are the highlights. Up next, Barcelona! (Update: check out our trip through Barcelona here)

Until next time...