A birthday in Spain

Thursday, 15^th December – MY BIRTHDAY!

Today I woke up and had a lovely shower and then had a great skype session with Mat. It was fantastic to be able to talk to him on my birthday and have some connection with home. After our chat I went to Britt and Sharna’s room to see what they were up to. When I entered the girls sang me ‘Happy Birthday’ in Spanish and gave me a lovely card with some really sweet birthday messages. I also got a box of delicious Ferreros wrapped in Dora the Explorer stickers! So awesome! We had breakfast downstairs in the hostel and I had a traditional Andalusian breakfast with toast, pureed tomato spread and dried ham. It came with tea and orange juice and was pretty tasty. Afterwards we went to the Alcazar de los Reyes Cristianos. It was a Visigothic fortress that was used by Abd Al Rahman III and then became the residence of Ferdinand and Isabella for a time. It was incredibly beautiful and had spectacular gardens attached with beautiful fish ponds and fountains. We went up the tower (Torres de los Leones) which had incredible views of the city and the gardens below. We explored for over an hour and I felt incredibly happy and grateful to be there. 

Afterwards we walked along the Puente Romano (Roman Bridge) which was so picturesque and then went up the Torre de la Calahorra (tower) which had the Museo Vivo de Al-Andalus inside. It was really interesting and the girls and I were feeling so positive and amazing. The weather was absolutely incredible – the sun was out and we were feeling fabulous. At one point I was down to just a little summer dress and tights (unprecedented) because the weather was so lovely.

We then had lunch at a cute little cafeteria, and I had a chickpea casserole thing (not amazing but not terrible). It was so lovely just hanging out with the girls who are super fun and very generous and kind.

We then went to the Hammam Banos Arabes (Arab Baths) which were SPECTACULAR. I don’t have the words to describe how completely amazing this was. I have never felt so relaxed and amazing. The bath house is absolutely stunning, with beautiful candlelit arches, amazing scents and smells and a extremely relaxed atmosphere. It only cost us about $30 Aus for a 2 hour session – ridiculously amazing value! When we entered we got changes into our swimmers and put our bags in the lockers. Entering rooms with the baths was incredible, I just could not believe what I was seeing. There was three rooms with cold, warm and hot baths and massage tables were set up around the warm bath.

We entered the warm bath first and then rotated in and out of the others. The baths were dimly lit and there were incredibly gorgeous cut outs of stars in the ceiling that let the natural light shine through. The girls and I all chose the jasmine oil for our massage which was extremely relaxing. I don’t think I have ever smelt so good. We all bought a small bottle of the jasmine oil afterwards so we could take it home and always remember the experience.

That evening we initially intended to go out but ended up sitting in our hostel room eating lollies and snack, drinking juice and wine and just relaxing. It was so lovely to just sit and chat with the girls and learn more about their families and lives back in Australia.

Sam, myself and Sharna in the beautiful gardens surrounding the Alcazar

Overall it was such a PERFECT day, definitely a birthday to remember!

Muchos besos, Clare