The journey

Catching a taxi at 3:45 AM was interesting. We had arranged for one to pick us up to take us to the airport the day before and we were all excited and hyper. The flight to Kiev was 4 hours, with a 4 hour layover and then another 4 to Madrid.

Once we boarded the plane (AeroSvit) and were up in the air, we all settled down for a nap. Once refreshed and fed (I had made blueberry muffins for the trip), Olivia and Noah began reading and playing. I noticed walking down the aisle a little girl, maybe 3 or 4 years old. As she walks past us she looks in our row and sees the kids and their toys. (I might add that she was walking around by herself....) On her way back up the aisle she decided again to stop at our row, and this time she climbed on in! That's right - this little girl decided to take Noah's empty seat (he was sitting on my lap as I was reading a story), and then proceed to try to take Olivia's stuffed pig (named LUCY) and Noah's stuffed sheriff Woody.

Noah quite indignantly pushed her hand off his toys and rather loudly objected to her being in our row. Olivia tried to be pleasant and share...but things got out of hand quick. :)  The lunch they provided came with a salad topped with olives. The olives were not pitted. This little girl grabs one of Noah's olives (again vocally objected by Noah) and popped one in her mouth. She then made her escape back up the aisle. After Brett and I stopped laughing we settled back for the rest of the flight. A few minutes later here she comes again! Only to deposit the pit of the olive on my tray! She then climbed under my tray and into the seat in-between Noah and Olivia. She remained with us for at least 10 minutes before her mother came back and forced her down for a nap. We know it was forced, because we heard the scuffle :)

Landing in the Ukraine we climbed out of the plane onto stairs leading to the tarmac (Olivia was thrilled), and then climbed onto a bus that took us to a terminal (not ours we discovered 2 hours later). Once we arrived in our correct terminal we had a surprise. TGI Friday's! Ordinarily we would not have given it a second glance, but after living abroad for 3 months it sounded fantastic. And the honey mustard was awesome!

The flight to Madrid was pleasant, and as we descended into the city area I caught my first glimpse of Spain. I have always wanted to go to the Iberian peninsula, and I was richly rewarded. The patchwork of vibrant colors was spectacular. Emerald greens blended into fresh spring green. Rusty reds and deep browns criss-crossed into a magnificent tapestry. I was awestruck.

Driving to our hotel that night I was delighted by the wildflowers that were growing so abundantly. Red poppy's and a delicate white bloom weaved together cheerfully, and we were excited and humbled at this opportunity for our family.

Brett was able to attend the temple Thursday evening, and I attended the next morning, after which we headed off to Portugal. As we drove north of Madrid and headed toward Porto (a city in northern Portugal) the wildflowers began to change to include a highlighter yellow flower. Nearing the border we found a quaint little village, seemingly deserted so we took advantage and wondered off the beaten path to take a LOOK at Spain. The old walls that ran throughout, not only this village, but many old farms enchanted us.

Northern Portugal was more mountainous then we anticipated, which created breathtaking scenes of red tile roofs, and white washed walls amidst the rugged mountain terrain. Again the flowers changed to include bushes boasting yellow and fields of purple flowers.

We drove to meet a woman named Tina (whom Brett had met during his time in Cape Verde). We enjoyed our evening with her and her husband in his family's Fazenda. Olivia and Noah LOVED the animals (rabbits, turtles, dogs, goats, chicks) and I was amazed at the giant lemons.

We retired exhausted to our hotel in Santa Maria de Feira, not knowing what surprise Brett had in store for us the next day.