Recently updated on January 17th, 2020 at 08:07 pm
Flamenco and a fiancé!
I met my fiancé, Brandon Beechly (we go by our nicknames Beech and Harky), through my college roommate. It wasn’t long before we found ourselves chatting over delicious tapas at a Spanish bar, Bolero, on our very first date. Three years later, on a Trafalgar guided holiday to beautiful Spain with my family, and with our first date in mind, Beech decided it was the perfect time to propose.
Having danced most of my life, Beech knew I was most looking forward to watching the famously vibrant and passionate Flamenco dancing show in Seville. On Christmas Eve, we arrived at a gorgeous, intimate venue, filled with candlelit tables. Beech whispered he wanted to show me something downstairs and led me to a huge Christmas tree, lit up and sparkling. He began telling me how happy I make him and how he wanted to spend the rest of his life together and to my complete surprise, he dropped to one knee! He pulled out the most beautiful engagement ring and asked me to marry him. Needless to say, I said YES!
My dad (who had been hiding behind a door!) started snapping away and captured some great ‘in the moment’ pictures. We returned to our table for a delicious tapas meal and of course, the amazing flamenco show. The word quickly spread and we spent the night celebrating with all our new friends!
I found out later that Beech had been carrying the ring around with him during the beginning of our Spanish Wonder vacation, waiting for the perfect moment. As we had never even looked at rings before, I had no idea this was happening! Beech had asked my dad’s permission before the trip, so my parents and brother knew, but no one was sure which moment he would pick. I could not have asked for a more perfect engagement. Spain will always be a very special place for us.
The Insider Experience with Trafalgar
Trafalgar’s Spanish Wonder offered us the perfect itinerary. The weather in Spain over Christmas was simply gorgeous – about 60°F – we couldn’t have asked for better.
We absolutely LOVED our Travel Director, Javier – he was the best part of travelling with Trafalgar! He was so friendly and knowledgeable, and always worked hard to ensure we experienced the best of Spain. He showed us all the famous sights, and many ‘Hidden Treasures’ that we would have missed had it not been for him; in Valencia he took us to a heavenly local chocolate churros shop (yum!), detoured past a modern building shaped like an egg and pointed out a unique blue Coca Cola sign in Granada. We visited the only Russian Orthodox Church in Spain, hidden along a bendy road, and ate at an amazing local café on the beach in Benidorm, Javier’s hometown. Javier’s amazing local knowledge meant we were constantly shown special things we never expected to see!
We were amazed to see people living in the caves in the mountains; we saw an old man shaving with a straight-line razor and I realised it was a very unique moment, witnessing how these locals live. We felt truly immersed in the culture. Everybody joked it was where we should spend our honeymoon!
Our Personal Highlights
We each had a favourite part of the trip (besides the engagement of course!) thanks to Trafalgar’s wonderful Insider Experiences. My fiancé loved seeing Gaudi’s work in Barcelona – his roommate is an artist and a big fan of Gaudi’s work, so we had heard so much about it. We visited Park Guell, drove past houses Gaudi had designed, and of course saw the spectacular Sagrada Familia church. It was fascinating, huge, and very different from any church we’d ever seen.
Mom’s favourite part was our walking tour in Toledo. It was the most gorgeous day; we walked through the winding, narrow streets to the Synagogue and visited the Church of Santo Tomè, home to El Greco’s famous painting; The Burial of Count Orgaz. We loved looking down on the beautiful city from the hilltop and the different perspective of Spain it gave.
The Dancing Fountains in Barcelona were my dad’s favourite. The water was so colourful and reached impossibly high as it danced in time to Christmas music! Dad got some amazing photos. Dad also loved dinner that night, in fact, we all loved it! Non-stop authentic tapas, fresh seafood and yummy bread – amazing!
I absolutely loved our Be My Guest dinner at the Duke’s hacienda in the Andalusian countryside. We heard a fascinating description from one of the bull trainers about raising bulls to bullfight; I had no idea so much went into it. The traditional Spanish meal was sensational, and the Duke came out to meet us! I had thought it was just going to be a dinner, but it was a fantastic, interactive cultural experience.
I’m ready to try bullfighting!
Our engagement made this amazing holiday even more special, and one we’ll remember forever! My fiancé and I look forward to many more Trafalgar adventures in the future.
Congratulations to Harky and Beech on their engagement, from the Trafalgar family! We hope to see you again on a Trafalgar trip to celebrate your wedding anniversaries and more!
Find out more about Trafalgar’s Spanish Wonder guided holiday here, or visit www.trafalgar.com for more information about Trafalgar’s guided holidays exploring the romantic hot spots of Europe.