If you asked any of us what our favorite day in Spain was, we’d all have the same answer, our very last full day. After exploring castles, cathedrals, ancient cities, and winding cobblestone streets, we traded history for adventure and headed to the Mediterranean coast for a day of canyoning. It was the perfect way to end our trip.
If you’ve never been canyoning before, imagine hiking through a river while wearing a wetsuit, climbing over rocks, sliding down waterfalls like natural waterslides, squeezing through tiny openings in the canyon walls, rappelling down waterfalls, and jumping off cliffs into crystal-clear pools. It was every bit as exciting as it sounds.
Once we got geared up in our wetsuits and helmets, we followed our guide into the canyon. The cold water wasn't as cold as I feared but actually really refreshing under the Spanish sun, and every turn brought a new challenge. Sometimes we were wading through the river, other times scrambling over rocks, and then suddenly we’d be launching ourselves down smooth waterfalls like kids at a water park.
One of the most memorable parts was squeezing through a tiny hole in the rocks. It looked much smaller than it actually was, but it definitely required trusting the guide that we’d fit! We all made it through.
Picture taken underneath a waterfall
Then came the my favorite—rappelling down a waterfall. Ssuch an adrenaline rush. When I reached the bottom, our guide looked over at Brad and laughed, calling me a “super mom” because I was apparently the best one in our group at rappelling. I’ll admit…that compliment may have made my day just a little bit.
By the end we were exhausted, soaked, and smiling from ear to ear.
On the hike back to the van, our guide told us there were snacks, water…and beer waiting for us. Without missing a beat, Logan looked at him with the straightest face and said, “I’ll take a beer.”
The guide burst out laughing, and so did the rest of us. It was one of those perfectly timed kid comments I’ll probably still be laughing about years from now.
Since we were already at the Mediterranean coast, we couldn’t leave without spending a little time at the beach. We grabbed some food and relaxed for a while before heading back. The beach was covered in smooth rocks instead of soft sand, which made it a little different than what we’re used to. Logan and I were the only ones who actually ventured into the water. Even with the rocky shoreline, he had an absolute blast throwing rocks, splashing around, and enjoying one last taste of the Mediterranean Sea.
It was the perfect ending to an unforgettable day.
The next morning, reality started to set in. We grabbed one last breakfast in Granada, packed up, and made the drive back to Madrid for our flight home.
Our layover in Germany quickly turned into a stressful mess. The customs line was completely chaotic and barely moved. We were so worried we were going to miss our next flight. As did everyone in that line. We stood there for over two hours, by the time we finally made it through, we sprinted across the airport only to find out that even though our plane waited for a bit because so many of us were stuck in that line they couldn't wait all day and left.
So the fastest way to get to home was, taking a flight to San Francisco before finally flying to Houston. Felt like taking the long way home on an already long flight, but at that point we were just grateful to have a way home.
During the long flight to San Francisco, I ended up chatting with the woman sitting next to me. She looked to be about my age, so I asked if she was traveling or heading home. She smiled and said she was flying back home to Berkeley after giving a seminar on her research. She's a professor at the University of California and she studies how pathogens seem to know our circadian rhythms—trying to understand why so many infections seem to attack us while we sleep at night. So impressed.
Eventually she asked what I do, and I told her I teach preschool.
She smiled and said, “Oh, we’re in the same field!”
Bless her heart. I laughed and told her I mostly teach little ones how to be students—sharing, listening, taking turns, and all the basics of school.
Without missing a beat she replied, “I have to teach my college students those same things.”
(flying over San Fransisco, you can barely make out the Golden Gate Bridge)
When we landed in San Francisco, we had one final airport sprint ahead of us. We raced through the terminal and barely made it to our gate, they were already boarding when we arrived.
As if the travel day hadn’t been memorable enough, we looked over while boarding and spotted a family from our Scout troop who had been vacationing in Hawaii. It was such a fun and unexpected coincidence.
After delayed flights, missed connections, countless miles walked, and lots of racing through airports, we finally made it back to Houston.
Spain gave us incredible history, beautiful cities, amazing food, and lots of memories We packed so much into our time in Spain. We explored so many different cities, saw some incredible historical sites, and ate an incredible amount of Tapas. We had some pretty unforgettable adventures. Glad we got to experience it together as a family.
