Happy New Year everyone!! Hope you all had a great holiday season. I just recently returned from my Christmas vacation and wanted to share some photos with you. I was in one of the most amazing countries in the world; Spain! For those of you who don't know, I was raised in Madrid, Spain as a kid because my father worked in the American Embassy. I was there for the first 8 years of my life.

Madrid is one of the most incredible, beautiful, charming, liveliest and magical cities I have ever encountered. The energy there is indescribable. It comes from the people, the history in the city, the architecture, the smell in the air and the all around vibe on the streets. The people are extremely friendly and the food is absolutely delicious!! My favorite happens to be "Gambas a la Plancha", which is, grilled shrimp in their complete shell (yes, that means heads too!). Now, you don't eat the shell but the flavor you get from sucking on them is oh, so good! I even ate them for breakfast every morning!!

The day I arrived and walked the streets of Madrid, I couldn't help but get emotional. I had an amazing childhood there and being back brought forth many memories. As a child, I went to school on the US Military Base in Madrid where I started learning English in Kindergarten. My mother would constantly take my sister and I to the theater (which I loved) and since it was so accessible, we frequently traveled all around Europe to experience other cultures. 

I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to go back and wanted to share some photos with you of this most amazing place. My trip also included Sevilla, Toledo, Granada & some extreme skiing in the Sierra Nevada Mountains off of Granada.

Hope you all enjoy the photos and get to someday visit beautiful España!

Con mucho cariño,
Lilian