Spain Trip 2025
March 22nd, 2025
Our explorers met their host families on Saturday afternoon.
Leanne said the party was a pleasure to travel with – exhibiting the patience (without complaints) required to travel over 4,000 miles. “Estoy muy orgullosa de todos.” She is proud of everyone.
Here are few views of Málaga coming in from the airport and along the Paseo Marítimo.
March 23rd, 2025
“Cuando Fuimos a Granada” – We went to Granada
Our students traveled 2 hours north to Granada, the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Kylen provides us with this wonderful photo tour of the ride, with the Sierra Nevada mountain range as the backdrop.
“La ciudad de Granada y después” – The city of Granada and after
They visited the Alhambra and the historic center of Granada. We had wonderful guides, walked a lot, got soaking wet, and had a great history and architecture lesson. The Alhambra is a palace and fortress complex that is one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture. It is also one of the best-preserved palaces of the historic Islamic world. Additionally, the palace contains notable examples of Spanish Renaissance architecture.
March 24th, 2025
For the next day of the trip Anna reported that they attended class at Malaca Instituto for a couple hours that morning.
After class they headed to the Málaga city center and visited the birthplace of Pablo Picasso. They also saw other landmarks from the 1937 Battle of Málaga in the Spanish Civil War. Next they explored the Roman Catholic Renaissance Cathedral of Málaga, which Anna describes as huge and very beautiful.
March 25th, 2025
Pax shares with us:
¡Hola padres! Hoy fue una mezcla de lluvia y sol mientras continuábamos con nuestras clases de español. Nuestra excursión de la tarde nos llevó de vuelta al centro o al centro de la ciudad, ya que encontramos el almuerzo y vamos de compras. Nos levantamos el día con una visita al Museo de Málaga donde vimos artefactos de la prehistoria, los Fenisenos, Romanos y Mulsemas, junto con arte de todas las edades.
– “Hello parents! Today was a mix of rain and sun as we continued with our Spanish lessons. Our afternoon excursion took us back to the city center, where we found lunch and went shopping. We started the day with a visit to the Málaga Museum, where we saw artifacts from prehistory, the Phoenicians, Romans, and Muslims, along with art from all ages.”
March 26th, 2025
Olivia shared with us that after classes today they ventured to the little mountain town of Frigiliana, which is considered one of the prettiest villages in Spain. Other student groups joined them as they toured the streets and learned about the history of the area. Afterwards, they visited Nerja, a town in the historic region along the Málaga coast. They were able to explore the beach and shops of this beautiful sea front town more freely. And they enjoyed more ice cream!
March 28th, 2025
After morning classes, Jupiter took us on a deep dive back in to the city centre.
“From there, we all visited the Picasso Museum, constructed in close proximity to his childhood home. We got a chance to look at the evolution of his art style, its connections to Málaga, and take a tour at our own pace. Afterwards, we enjoyed some free time…which we used to shop and explore the city. Finally, we returned back to the beach where we split up into some smaller groups, got some ice cream, watched the sunset, and went home.”
Leanne also shared this gorgeous photo below looking down on the Plaza de Toros, Málaga Centro, and the Mar Alborán.
March 29th, 2025
Tyrique’s summed up the group’s next day for us here:
“Today we woke up early to leave for the beautiful town of Riogordo. We learned about some of the town’s history, and stopped at a museum showcasing traditional living in a home. The home was also an olive mill and press, and grapes were pressed to create wine as well. Once we were finished touring the museum, we got back in our bus and headed to DCCOP, a cooperative store, where we were shown how olive oil was made, and got to test it afterwards by sampling bread dipped in the oil. Once we were finished with the tour we all enjoyed lunch as a group at Antonio Moreno Restaurante and headed back to Málaga, where we had free time and split into smaller groups, shopping or visiting the beach.”
March 30th, 2025
Emma walked us through their very delicious day…
“Today we had a cooking class at the Malaca Instituto where we learned how to make Paella. Paella is usually made with seafood and meat, but the one we made was with vegetables. Afterwards we had the afternoon free, and most of us spent some time on the beach. Later, we had dinner at Carta Verum, where professional Flamenco artists performed for us!”
April 1st, 2025
After their last full day of normal classes, some of the students went shopping at a mall in the center. Evalyn was happy to try out the “authentic Spanish food” at the Taco Bell there.
A succesful trip
Our students and teachers wished Malaca Instituto goodbye and returned safely to Roanoke with many stories to tell.
By engaging in experiential learning through exposure to new traditions and perspectives, our students were offered a deeper connection with another part of the world.
