The City That Time Forgot . . Prof. Raleigh's name for Pedraza

Hola! The next stop on our tour after Segovia was a small town in the mountains called Pedraza. Prof. Raleigh calls this place, "the city that time forgot". What a great name for this unique place. So, from Segovia, we hopped back on the bus and headed up into the mountains on curvy curvy roads. Well, I know and accept that boats make me sick, and really bumpy planes can make me a little sick too. But, really? Now buses?? As we went up and up into the mountains, I thought . .uh oh. . .where is my Bonine?? (motion sickness medicine) Note: After this trip to Pedraza, I kept a few motion sickness pills in my purse constantly. Who knew I would need so much Bonine in Europe? Lesson learned! Thankfully, I didn't get sick; I just felt a little icky. But, I'm wondering if the only mode of transportion I'm going to have left (in which I don't feel sick) is walking?!?
Nevertheless, we arrived in Pedraza, got off the bus, and all of us immediately took pictures of the amazing view. See beow.

Below is the entry way into the town of Pedraza. Great photo opp!

As we walked along the narrow streets of Pedraza, I could see what Prof. Raleigh meant. I've never seen anything like this town before.

In the picture above, look at the top of the columns. Each one is a little different; these are actual Roman columns that people used when building Pedraza. It's amazing to see these ancient unique Roman columns everywhere through the town. We then arrived at a local taberna where we took a little break, had some homemade cheese and bread from the town. Most of the students liked it . .Note about the food in Spain . . .I've loved almost everything I've eaten. How could I not? We have eaten a ton of potatoes and bread . .2 of my favorites, and also a lot of fish (which I like).  This cheese was one of the few things I wasn't a fan of; however, I admit I'm not a sophisticated cheese eater so it wasn't for me. I usually stick to sharp cheddar or mozzarella. What do you expect? I grew up with Velveeta! :)

Pedraza is a town known for beautiful wood-working. However, look at the students sitting at the little table in the little chairs. It felt a bit like Snow White or Alice in Wonderland.

When you gotta go, you gotta go. :) Even the bathrooms look ancient but cool in Pedraza! (See below!) Note that I'm wearing the same black flip flops all through Europe! New blog game: see if Jodi ever has any other shoes on in any pictures! They will be worn out for sure by the time I get back to the states.

But, what ancient Taberna would be complete without some artwork of a bull and of course . . . . a foosball table??

Then, we headed out to have lunch. Dr. Sicius told us that this was going to be a one-of-a-kind lunch, and he was right! First, we entered this small restaurant with long wooden tables with blue and white checked tablecloths. (Again, I kept thinking Snow White or Alice In Wonderland.)

2 women were preparing our lunch of salad, lamb, and bread. It sounds so simple, yet it was so delicious. In the pictures below, you can see the open wooden stoves that are cooking the lamb and the women chopping up the meat. Daddy, you would have loved this place (the salad was only lettuce, tomatos and onions with oil and vinegar (but it was perfect), and I can imagine you would have been in there with the 2 women checking out the Pedraza, Spain version of a Tennessee BBQ pit.

And, here it is! Ready for us to eat!

To end our afternoon, we walked around the shops of Pedraza, and then stopped by an old castle to take a couple of pictures. Here I am with Paulina (see pic below); it looks like the ground is level behind us, but there was actually a drop-off behind us which is why both of us look like we are hanging on tightly. I didn't realize that Spain has mountains and hills everywhere. Finally, Paulina, Lucia, and I headed back to our designated meeting place. At first I was surprised to see that the students were already there. (Typically, everyone is running a little late, not early.) But, very quickly I realized why! There were a bunch of young men without shirts setting up an event (moving chairs, etc.) Our female students were sitting nearby watching them. So much for the ancient history . .they had found something else to take pictures of in Pedraza. However, you will have to ask the students for those pics. I didn't take any! :)

Hasta luego!