DAY    1            DEPARTURE FROM NORTH AMERICA
Enjoy full meal service on your scheduled wide-bodied flight to Malaga.

DAY    2            ARRIVE MALAGA - ANTEQUERA - GRANADA
                          (5 NIGHTS HOMESTAY)
Upon our arrival in Malaga, we will be met at the airport by our tour manager/guide and we will begin our journey to Granada. En route we will visit Antequera, a busy market town, strategically important first as Roman Anticaria and later as a Moorish border fortress defending Granada. After time to explore the town, we will explore the hilltop Castle built in the 13th century on the site of a Roman fort. We will enter through the Arco de los Gigantes before taking a walk around the Castle Walls. We will have wonderful views of Antequera from Torre del Papabellotas on the best-preserved portion of the walls. Next we will stop just outside the town to view the massive Dolmens, thought to be burial chambers of tribal leaders dating from around 2500 - 2000 BC. We continue to nearby Granada where we will meet our host families. (Arrival day sightseeing is subject to flight arrival time).

DAY    3            LANGUAGE CLASSES & GRANADA
This morning we will begin our Spanish Language Classes. Our exploration of Granada begins with a leisurely stroll in the Albaicin Area. We will enjoy a Walking Tour through the streets of Albaicin, where we will view the white-walled houses and the long walls that enclose luxuriant gardens of prosperous town houses. This afternoon we will also visit the Capilla Real where we will view the tombs of Ferdinand and Isabella. We will also have time to eat churros y chocolate in the Cathedral Quarter, and shop in the Alcaiceria, a silk market in Moorish times, and now a kind of oriental bazaar with craft and souvenir shops. We return for the evening to our host families.

DAY    4            LANGUAGE CLASSES & JAEN
This morning we will have our Spanish Language Classes. After lunch we journey north to Jaen, a gateway between Andalusia and Castile, located in the center of Spain's major olive-growing district. Upon our arrival we will embark on a Walking Tour through Jaén's Moorish Old Town, where narrow cobblestone streets hug the mountainside. During our walk we will visit the Catedral de Santa Maria, where the formality and grandeur of Jaén's cathedral stand witness to the city's past importance. We will also visit the Iglesia de la Magdalena, the oldest and most interesting church in Jaen. The Gothic church was once an Arab mosque, and in the cloisters we will view several tombstones from the era of the Roman occupation of Andalusia. Our afternoon in Jaen concludes with a visit to the Centro Cultural Palacio de Villardompardo. The Centro includes some ancient Arab baths (known as hamman) and two museums - the Museo de Artes y Costumbres Populares and the Museo Internacional de Arte Naif. The Arab baths are underneath the palace and represent some of the most important Moorish architecture from the 11th century ever discovered in Spain. We return for the evening to our host families.

DAY    5            LANGUAGE CLASSES & GRANADA
This morning we will have our Spanish Language Classes. This afternoon our sightseeing begins with a tour of the Alhambra and the Generalife, Spain's finest display of Moorish architecture. Set high upon a hill overlooking the city and shadowed by the picturesque Sierra Nevada Mountains, the Moors built this city-within-a-fortress as a symbol of power and strength on the outside, and of "Paradise on Earth" on the inside. Our guided tour will include the Palacio de Carlos V, a classical-styled building housing a magnificent art collection; the Alcazaba, the oldest portion of the Alhambra; the Palacios Nazaries, which features magnificent patios; the Salon de Embajadores, the throne room; and the Palacio del Partal, a beautiful pavilion that leads to the well-groomed gardens. Our visit will also include the Generalife, the country estate of the Nasrid Kings, where they could enjoy tranquility high above the city, a little closer to heaven. We return for the evening to our host families.

DAY    6            LANGUAGE CLASSES & NERJA & FRIGILIANA
This morning we will have our Spanish Language Classes. After lunch we travel to the southern Spanish coast, known as the Costa del Sol. Our first stop today will be in Nerja, where we will visit the Cuevas de Nerja, a series of vast caverns discovered in 1959. Wall paintings found here are believed to be about 20,000 years old. Our day continues with a visit to the "Pearl of Axarquia," Frigiliana. This is the last of the unspoiled whitewash villages in Andalusia. We will take a Walking Tour through the streets, which have not changed for centuries, we will likely pass mules taking materials to the hilltop homes and businesses. We return to our host families for our "farewell" evening.

DAY    7            LANGUAGE CLASSES - CORDOBA (2 NIGHTS)
This morning we bid "adios" to our host families and will have our fifth and final Spanish Language Classes. After lunch we journey from Granada to Cordoba, an important town in Roman times and a city of kings during the Muslim domination of Spain. This afternoon we will visit the exquisite Mezquita-Catedral, originally built as a mosque and later transformed into a Christian cathedral. The hundreds of carved arches and pillars, grillwork and mosaics, dazzle the eye in this 1200-year-old building. We will also explore the Juderia, Cordoba's ancient Jewish quarter, with a nest of tiny streets with interesting shops and cafes, as well as uniquely designed synagogues and houses with beautiful flowered patios. Our final visit will be to the Sinagoga, a 14th-century synagogue featuring walls covered with Hebrew script. This evening we will enjoy a Flamenco Show, where we will observe the art of Flamenco dance and music.

DAY    8            DAY TRIP TO SEVILLE
This morning we journey to Seville and begin our sightseeing with a Walking Tour through Seville's Barrio Santa Cruz, a tiny, exceptionally lovely quarter of narrow streets and whitewashed houses. It is the true homeland of everything Sevillano, with flower-bedecked patios and iron bound windows. We will continue with a visit to Seville Cathedral, the third largest cathedral in Europe. We will begin with an ascent of La Giralda, the magnificent bell tower crowned with a 16th-century bronze weathervane portraying faith. From the tower we will enjoy breathtaking views of this beautiful city. Our cathedral tour will include the Patio de los Naranjos, with its central fountain and orange trees; the Treasury; and the Capilla Mayor, which is dominated by the Retablo Mayor, dedicated to the cathedral's patron saint. Finally we will view the grandiose Tomb of Columbus, moved to the cathedral in the 1890's. Our afternoon includes a visit to the Reales Alcazares, the former Moorish palace taken over and partially remodeled by the Christian Kings. We conclude our day in the Parque de Maria Luisa, Seville's grand and beautifully landscaped park. A highlight of the park is the Plaza de Espana, a building and square designed for the 1920's Exposition, featuring Baroque towers, fancy bridges, immense colonnades and over a million azuelos, painted tiles depicting maps and historical events from every province in Spain. We return to our hotel in Cordoba for the evening.

DAY    9            CORDOBA - TOLEDO - MADRID (2 NIGHTS)
This morning we depart Cordoba and travel to historic Toledo, picturesquely sited on a hill above the River Tagus. Our sightseeing commences with a Walking Tour to explore central Toledo, with streets barely wide enough for a man and his donkey. During our walk we will have the opportunity to visit spectacular shops that produce and sell Damascene gold jewelry, as well as medieval swords. Our day will also include a visit to Toledo Cathedral, the spiritual heart of the Spanish church and the seat of the Primate of all Spain. Our afternoon concludes with a scenic drive through Andalusia, into Don Quixote's La Mancha, before arriving in Madrid, Spain's cosmopolitan capital city. This evening we will take a stroll down the bustling Gran Via, one of Madrid's liveliest streets, and finest areas to shop.

DAY    10          MADRID (TREASURES OF THE BOURBON MONARCHS)
Our day will begin in the Plaza de Espana, where we will admire the stone obelisk dedicated to the Author Cervantes and the statues of Don Quixote, Sancho Panza and Dulcinea. We will walk from the Plaza along the gardens and statues that lead up to the richly decorated Palacio Real, the home of Spain's Bourbon monarchs until 1931. We will take a guided tour through the Gasparini Rooms, the Throne Room, the Porcelain Room and the grandiose Dining Room. We will also have time to visit the Pharmacy Museum and to relax in the Plaza de la Armeria. We continue our morning with a walk through the Plaza Mayor, Madrid's most famous square, lined with outdoor cafes, and the Puerta del Sol, Madrid's most popular meeting place. We will view the Kilometre Zero marker, which is the starting point for all of Spain's roadways, and see the Madrono, Madrid's symbol, a bronze statue of a bear reaching for the fruit of a strawberry tree. We will begin our afternoon at the Puerta de Alcala, the ceremonial gateway to Madrid erected by Carlos III. We will walk along the Calle de Alcala to the Plaza de Cibeles, featuring a magnificent fountain with a statue of the roman Goddess Cybele. We will continue along the beautiful Paseo del Prado, where we will admire the fantastic Hotel Ritz, with its amazing architecture, before visiting the Prado, one of the world's finest art museums. We will take a guided tour that will feature important works by Raphael, Roger van der Weyden, Bosch, Rubens, Titian, El Greco, Caravaggio, and of course the fabulous collection of works by Velazquez and Goya. This evening we will explore Madrid's Parque del Retiro, once the grounds of Felipe IV's royal palace complex, and today one of Madridians favorite places to relax. We will stroll through the park and view the Monument to Alfonso XII, the Palacio de Velazquez and the Palacio de Cristal, before hiring Row Boats on the lake.

DAY    11          DEPARTURE FROM MADRID
Our enjoyable and rewarding tour will come to an end as our Tour manager/guide accompanies us to the airport for the return flight home.