He Said:

After a long day at the train station, on Friday afternoon at rush hour during the peak of a transit strike, the decision was basically made for us that we'd be going to Toledo for the evening . We had originally planned on going there to begin with, but because I wanted to get to France by Bastille Day and possibly the World Cup final, we were thinking about skipping it. We also remembered that Pam had said it is a very unique city worth seeing, and we were happy to discover that she was right.

The entire city of Toledo is protected by the Spanish government as a national landmark, and as a result, its 3500 years of history and influence from many, many different cultures has been well preserved. In addition, the citizens of Toledo have traditionally held tolerance in high regard, so the city's architecture, art, and layout are virtually the same as they've been for hundreds and hundreds of years. When the Catholics began their expansion and pushed the Jews and Muslims from the Iberian Peninsula, for example, the Toledans did not allow religious buildings to be destroyed.

While in Toledo, we toured one of the town's two synagogues and were treated to a serene, A-frame interior, as well as various artifacts from the Sephardic Jews who inhabited Spain during medieval times. As I mentioned, the Jews of Spain, along with the Moors, were eventually driven away during the Catholic Reconquista, and they settled all across Europe, Africa, and even the New World. In our last two weeks in Spain, though, I have developed another hypothesis: the Jews left Spain because there is nothing to eat here but pork . If you ask for "kosher" in Spain they think it's a kind of pickle. Now I love a good strip of bacon as much as the next guy, but even I'm looking for a chicken sandwich at this point.

The narrow alleyways, hidden plazas, and world-famous marzipan made it kind of hard to leave Toledo after only one night (And I'm sure Alli would have loved another night at Hostal Centro off the lively Plaza Zocodover), but it was a real treat to be able to get away from the bustle of Madrid for a night and discover this medieval town, its tolerance and regard for architecture, its cathedral, and its numerous El Greco paintings.

I'm also glad we stayed overnight so our only impressions weren't the enormous day-tripping tour groups from Madrid, packing the shuttle buses and train stations with their backwards baseball caps and camcorders, laughing giddily about the street named Ohio, and talking about the Buckeyes chances down in Austin this year. I was just surprised because I didn't realize people still watch Big 10 football.

I would also like to take this space to clarify some of my former thoughts and statements that seem to have been misconstrued as anti-American. One of the goals of this trip is to truthfully analyze the differences between the United States and Europe, and I am simply stating the differences I see . Some are better, some are worse, and most are neither better nor worse.

I´m about as American as it gets. I´m in love with college football. My favorite cars are 1960s models and American made. And I´m adamantly against wearing Canadian flags on our packs so we would be treated better by Europeans. The people that do that are about as lame as it gets. But I cannot apologize for my observations - whether it be acting like a true American and enjoying a great Fourth of July with Evan and Adrienne, or noticing that too many people yap the night away in USA jazz clubs that have no cover charge. A lot of the time we don´t listen to the music unless we have to pay for it.

So, please do what you can to keep me off the FBI most wanted list. Contrary to popular belief, I do want to return to the States some day, and I´d prefer that Senator McCarthy and the Anti-American Committee not be waiting for me at the airport. In the meantime, enjoy the new season of Lost .

She said:

What are the odds that we are part of not only one major transit strike, but two? Our original plans to take the overnight train to Barcelona were ruined as the lines wrapped around the train station because there were only 2-3 strike breakers helping people. By the time we reached the front of the line, both trains were sold out. Just like that, our decision was made for us.

The train to Toledo was a fast and easy one. We arrived late in the afternoon/early evening, which we would later be thankful for as we missed all the "daytrippers". We hopped on the local bus up the hill and were quickly enamored with the preservation of this medieval town. We checked into the first hostel on our list, so as not to waste any time, and not only was there A/C and a TV, but also soap in the bathroom, YEAH!

We began to tour the town in search of Mariano the sword maker only to find his shop closed for the day. Since all other attractions were also closed, we picked one of the places off Chad's handy guidebook for a drink, and true to its word, they gave us free tapas. We then hopped over to another place a bit trendier to try the local sarten de patatas (basically like an omelette with ham, bacon, eggs, potatoes, and more pork of some sort). Since we had much to see in our one full day in Toledo and I was anxious to enjoy our nicest room yet, we called it a night .

The next day consisted of another trio-attraction day. A cathedral, a synagogue, and El Greco's home (questionably his home) filled with his paintings. I got lucky because siesta required that all places close at 2 p.m., so we had to see it all in about 3-4 hours. I will say though, it was nice to see another religious venue other than a cathedral, especially one closer to my upbringing. The rest of the day we checked email, had lunch, and people watched as the mass amounts of tour groups assembled.

Sidebar: If it seems like I am talking a lot about accommodations, it's because I truly want you all to get a sense of our daily goings-on. Finding places to stay is a large part of this adventure and requires much compromise and adaptability. Although it doesn't mean a whole lot to Chad, many of you might agree with me that it has a huge impact on how you enjoy a city sometimes. Hopefully, it also adds some humor for all those who know my phobias!

One more thing... We are reading your emails and digesting each and every one of them. We thoroughly appreciate you all keeping us in the loop with your lives, and please know that we want to continue hearing it all, good and bad. Lauren, I am thinking about you often...