ETA-TBD

Oct 18 – Nov 18, Kelly

The best thing that we discovered upon our arrival to Granada, was that our apartment for the next four weeks was two floors above an incredible bakery, El Dulce Angel! Every day the 6’ x 6’ plate glass window displayed a new and different selection of incredible cakes, sky-high meringues, croissants, tarts, pies, empanadas, … And every day, like kids looking in a toy store window around Christmas time, young and old would stop and have a look and drool. 

The Alhambra is clearly Granada’s franchise player, and I’ll talk about it in a separate post, but we found some of its other sites really amazing as well: the cathedral with its ancient graffiti (painted by university students in bull’s blood!), the Sacromonte Abbey (with its 16th century underground cave chapels), “El Banuelo” a 12th century hammam with its little star skylights, the Monasterio de la Cartuja on the hill (that had a cross painted on a wall in a side-chapel that looked so real that a little bird tried to perch on it!). 

As for the rest of the mid-sized city, there is an abundance of churches, abbeys, monasteries, Roman and Visigoth bits and pieces, and important nods to Queen Isabel the Catholic and her husband Ferdinand. We loved the Albeicin neighborhood perched on a hillside just across from the Alhambra. It’s narrow, cobbled, winding streets and stairways are squished full of ancient moorish homes. Charming! And we will never forget hearing and seeing the flamenco music and passionate dancers as we sipped wine tucked into a small cave in an ancient gypsy neighborhood.

But the lasting impact, for me, was the Moorish influences that have remained through the centuries and cling like glitter to Granada. Of course, the Alhambra sitting up on the hillside is a reminder, but I’m talking about things like the stone water troughs (still in use!) In small neighborhood squares, an ancient tiled archway glimpsed through an open door of a private residence, a richly carved ceiling in a restaurant, worn marble steps leading up a narrow passageway, or a giant stone archway looming at the end of a shadowed alley. As we walked to the many “named” points of interest, we always kept an eye out for the “unnamed” relics tucked into the most normal of spaces! 

Legend has it that in the late 15th century, as the last Sultan Boabdil left Granada after centuries of Moorish rule, he reigned in his horse just before losing sight of the city, and turned to look back for one last time upon lovely Granada… and he let out an audible sigh. I get it.

October 15-17, Kelly

We rented a car to get from San Sebastián to Granada, and decided to stop for a night each in Toledo and Cordoba.

TOLEDO was the first stop and it looked exactly like a set from Game of Thrones. In the 3rd century the ROMANS built a palace in Toledo, and then the VISIGOTHS ruled there for a while. In the 8th century, the MOORS took control of the town and the whole Iberian Peninsula. Then, in 1085, after succumbing to a siege, it became a CHRISTIAN outpost. After that, it was intermittently home to CATHOLIC ROYALTY until 1561 when the Spanish court was moved to Madrid. Throughout portions of its history, Jews, Muslims, and Christians co-existed in the walled city resulting in the awesome architectural clash of cultures that is on display today – there are mosques built on roman ruins, synagogues built on old mosques, mosques built over Visigoth church ruins, and cathedrals built over mosques. To the victor goes the spoils. There were also horrible periods of persecution, forced conversions, and mass murder. Like I said, Game of Thrones.

CORDOBA has a similar history, which is clearly visible when you visit the marvel that is Mezquita-Catedral de Cordoba. In 785, a huge impressive mosque was built that featured row upon row of incredible interior striped double arches that would make Ronald McDonald swoon. Later on not to be outdone, in the 16th Century the Catholics built an entire full-sized, renaissance cathedral right into the middle of the mosque! It’s an architectural turducken of epic proportions!

10/15/202, Kelly

Winding up our one month stay in San Sebastián, we feel it’s appropriate to commemorate our top things.

TOP FOUR PINXTOS:

[We could usually get two of these fabulous pinxtos and a glass of wine each for about ten bucks.]

1. Taco Talo at Menduar Berria – Lightly grilled calamari with some special sauces and micro greens on a small soft tortilla. The first time we had it, after ONE bite, Jim shouted over to the departing waiter “tres mas, por favor!”
2. Grilled Shrimp at Bar Goiz Argi – a small skewer of grilled shrimp on a little slice of French bread with some sort of sauce. We asked the cook what was in the fresh tomato-y sauce and she explained it in detail… in Basque. We couldn’t understand a word. But, wow!, that was some pinxto!
3. Atun Rojo at Txakolina – The combo of the super fresh seared tuna topped with perfectly grilled onions, paired with thinly sliced seaweed and balsamic glaze on the side just melded into one perfect bite after another.
4. Grilled Cod & Octopus at Hemeretzi – (A late arrival) Neither of us are octupus fans, but at the bartender’s urging we tried this pinxto on our second to last night and it was muy bueno!

TOP FOUR ACTIVITIES:

1. Body Surfing at La Zarriola – This picture perfect beach was fun and happening whether it was breaking big or small. There were always lots of surfers in the water, coming and going, and Jim made it a point to body surf every day he could. He enjoyed it immensely (despite the tiny percentage of nude swimmers). Funny fact – while there were always lots of folks sunning on the beach, hardly anyone uses beach chairs here.
2. Drinks after dark on the basilica steps – Koroku Andre Mariaren, an 18th century baroque minor basilica, faces a small square surrounded by restaurants and bars. Late in the evening the stairs of the church fill up with folks who grab drinks from the nearby establishments, bring them over to the stairs and just hang out sipping, chatting, and watching the world go by.
3. Drinks and/or dining at K21 in Plaza de Constitucion (formerly a bull ring!) – Built in 1817, this gorgeous square has so much character! The little numbered flats’ surrounding and overlooking it were originally used to host viewing parties for the bull fights! Sitting in the outdoor cafes of the square and watching the kids play soccer as their parents relax over a glass of wine, or the tourists wander into this cool space for the first time, or even watching a quiet protest march through, is a lovely way to pass some time.
4. Climbing Monte Urgull – Nearly every day, I climbed this hill all the way up to the 12th century fortress on top that is capped with the Sagrazo Corazon statue (picture a smaller version of Rio’s Christ the Redeemer.) With the various trails, paved paths, and ancient staircases and tunnels winding and weaving their way up to the top in and out of ancient turrets, fortress walls, and watchtowers – I never went the same way twice. It was always a great workout adventure with a view!

Runner Ups: Drinks at Urgulleko Polboriña bar at sunset on the top of Monte Urgull; the east end of the Nuevo Paseo (walkway along the beaches) ends at a rugged point (Peine del Viento) where the big waves break over three sculptures by Eduardo Chillida, and wind and water burst up through holes in the ground; and the little fife and drum corps that marches through the old town on Sunday mornings.

It’s hard to leave this little city which has won us over and now sits at the very top of our list of “Favorite Vacation Spots of All Time.” The beaches, the views, the architecture, the art, the history, the food, the culture, the people, the hikes, the vibe. Just everything. If you ever get the chance., Zoaz! (That mean’s “Go!” in Basque.)

October 2022, Jim

One odd aspect of San Sebastian’s great surf beach, Playa de Zurriola, “bares” mentioning: full nudity is permitted. And before I go into full complaint mode, let me clarify that the people taking part in this little exposé are not exactly Victoria’s Secret models. Or women. Or people who haven’t been retired for quite some time. These are pretty much very old dudes, and by “pretty much” I mean one hundred percent.

I have nothing against old guys. Or naked people. It’s only when those two categories are combined – and present at the beach where I happen to be – that I’m in vocal opposition. It’s just that I can’t seem to unsee things that I really didn’t want to see in the first place.

Let’s analyze what’s going on here. My approach: uncovering the naked facts, stripping everything down to the bare bones to expose these guys. (Sorry.) They can be grouped into several categories:

Group 1 (The Full Frontal Lingerers): These are the dudes that emerge from their beach towels and go into the water at normal speed, but then seem to linger excessively when getting OUT of the water, as they happen to be FACING the hundreds of other people on the beach who are wearing swimsuits and trying to mind their own business. Kind of a Saggy Slow Mo Show.

Group 2 (The Towel Hunters): These are the dudes that get out of the water and somehow forget where their towels are and how to see anything from beyond three feet and therefore have an excuse to jiggle around in front of every single other beachgoer at an uncomfortably close distance while squinting and enjoying every moment on center stage. Those with a lot of experience under their belts – well, not belts, but you know what I mean – can milk the Unclad Scavenger Hunt for a good twenty minutes of showtime.

Group 3 (The Former Postal Workers): These are the dudes that put in a full appearance under ANY weather conditions. Chilly, overcast and drizzling? No problem, they’ll still show up in all their glory. Seems they need to show off parts where the sun don’t shine, even when the sun don’t shine. With this kind of commitment to service under any meteorological conditions, I think we can start making assumptions about their pre-retirement employment, eh?

That’s all I got. Any additional analysis of the Zurriola Beach Naked Old Geezers Club membership would require a level of research that I’m just not willing to do.

Jimmy, out.

Sept/Oct 2022., Kelly

GETARIA and ZAURATZ – A half hour bus ride west of San Sebastián brought us to the charming little fishing village of Getaria where we climbed a headland called El Raton (The Mouse) to take in the views. It seems like everywhere we go here, we climb up a hill to take in a view. Surprisingly, we are never disappointed. This village is famous for being the home of Juan Sebastian Elcano. While Magellan is often given credit for being the first to circumnavigate the globe, he “only” organized the expedition and made it part way around (he died in a skirmish with natives on a Philippine island.) His second in command, Elcano, managed to carry on and made it all the way around finishing the perilous journey in Seville three years from when they disembarked. As well as Elcano, Getaria is famous for its grilled fresh fish, and as we walked along the ancient narrow streets we saw coals glowing on grills out in front of many of the restaurants. After an amazing meal of some delicious local fish whose name we never did translate, we headed off for a 2 kilometer walk to the next coastal town of Zauratz (“I promise, it’s really only 2K this time, Kel.”) Low and behold, as we came around the corner of another headland, just on the other side of a cute old palace, we found another amazing surf beach! Again, SO many folks in the water – short boarders, long boarders, young, old, girls, guys, beginners, shredders, and everyone in between! With more than 250 kilometers of coast, the Basques sure love their surfing! Another great day, my dudes!

Sept/Oct 2022., Kelly

HONDORRIBIA I – We took a half hour public bus ride east to this pristine, charming Basque fishing town. The Marina Neighborhood is where the fishermen lived for many centuries in their colorful painted homes, and you know we got some great seafood pinxtos there! The still-in-tact walled fortress section is a wonder. Walking through the original medieval gate, it’s easy to imagine you’re back in time as you walk the narrow cobblestoned streets, past still-inhabited buildings, charming little squares, and soaring churches. The Plaza de Armas overlooks the city, and is bordered on one side by Charles V’s castle (which now houses the Hotel Parador – I peaked inside and it looks amazing!) We really loved this town which also includes a giant surfing beach which we stumbled upon while we were lost, a harbor, and views across the inlet to France.

HONDORRIBIA II and HENDAYE (France) – We loved Hondorribia so much that when our daughter, Megan, came for a short visit in October we went back to show it to her. Again we explored the incredible fortress town, found several more charming squares that we’d missed the first time, more great pinxtos, and drank some of the local txakoli (a Basque sparkling white wine.) In addition, we hopped on the little ferry that took us across the inlet to the French town of Hendaye. On this portion of the Basque coast we were surprised to find a long sandy beach with great waves all the way down and SO many surfers in the water. We walked along the wide boardwalk and enjoyed watching the experienced surfers, just as much as the first timers! I didn’t expect to see such an amazing surf beach like this in France, but it is apparently where surfing got it’s start in Europe. “A vos planches!” (French for “To your boards!”)

Sept/Oct 2022., Kelly

We were so happy with our little town of San Sebastián, that we only took four day trips into the surrounding Basque Country – and two of those were to the same place! The first one was a test drive for a future trip.

A DAY ON THE CAMINO – A lot of folks have The Camino de Santiago on their bucket list, including me. The various routes all end at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, and the coastal route goes right though San Sebastián. We picked a nice day and went to check it out! Jim told me we could hike on the route for about 2.5-3 kilometers over the headland to the next little town of Pasaia. It was great to experience a little piece of the decently-marked Camino. Walking up and down the trail, in and out of the headlands, high above the Bay of Biscay offered one great view after another up the coast toward France (we were walking The Camino in the opposite direction of the pilgrims.) We saw several ruins of age old farm buildings and small fortresses, a beautiful Basque mansion/light house, and an old Roman (yes, Roman!) bridge. The trail actually was ON a cobble stoned, circa 400 AD, roman road for a little while! SIX kilometers later, and after Jim saying more than a few times “it must be just over this next headland, Kel,”, we arrived in the tucked in, cool little port town of Pasaia, where a glass of wine and a pinxto made the extra length seem like a blessing! “Ultreia e suseta!” (Pilgrim cry meaning, “onwards and upwards!”)

10/5/2022, San Sebastián

Halfway through our month in San Sebastian, it’s time to evaluate how we might have benefited by taking crucial steps that others typically take before they travel internationally. Like planning, for example.

But first, I gotta say San Sebastian has already become one of my favorite places in the world, and not just because I can body surf in October without a wet suit, or even because nobody here knows or cares who the Kardashians are. It’s got it all. Big enough to have an endless supply of places to explore and small enough to do it on foot. Great weather. Two beaches only a couple of minutes stroll from anywhere in town. Cool architecture, with towering centuries-old churches around every corner. Tapas bars everywhere you look, serving great seafood and local wines that are not only good, but cheaper than water. Spectacular, panoramic views of the city and Bay of Biscay from any of the surrounding hills. (Hiking up one on our first day, Kelly and I agreed it was the most impressive view we’d ever seen. Within a few days, that view was only the third best we’d seen that week.) So, yeah, I dig it here.

Now, back to that planning thing. Once we’d decided on San Sebastian, all I had to do was pick out a decent Airbnb. Shoulda been a slam dunk. And I found a perfect one, I thought, in Parte Vieja, the quaint Old Town section, crisscrossed by narrow cobblestone lanes lined by small shops and restaurants. I didn’t give much thought to a line I read in a tourist guide: “The Parte Vieja area has more bars per square meter than anywhere else on earth.” But I should have. Sure enough, from the balcony of our third-floor apartment I can probably read the time off patrons’ wristwatches at any one of eight tapas bars below. Nothing like convenience, right? Right.

At midnight on our first night, I looked down from our bedroom to see dozens of people standing around high-top tables, nursing drinks, talking, laughing. “Ah,” Kelly said, “it all blends together like white noise. How relaxing.” We left the windows open and went to bed. But the revelry was just getting underway. By 1 am, it sounded like the entire student section from a Duke basketball game had squeezed onto our block. I closed the windows. Didn’t help. By 2 am, it seemed that the Duke student section had merged with a Metallica concert. And all were ordering another round. Now I know why there are so many churches here: everybody needs a quiet place to pray for their raging hangovers to go away. Finally, at 3:30, there were only a few stragglers left on the streets – mostly couples who figured it was the ideal time for high volume arguments. During these hours of sleeplessness, a lot of thoughts were going through my head, like:

• Maybe I can put myself to sleep and practice my Spanish at the same time by counting sheep in Spanish. Nah, I can only count to ten. And I don’t know how to say “sheep.”
• I wonder if Spain would be willing to trade San Sebastian for Kansas. Wait a minute, Kansas is quieter! Maybe we should’ve gone there for a month! Nah, it’s still Kansas.
• Why was that guy on the boardwalk this morning wearing a t-shirt that said, “Still Alone on Valentine’s Day,” in September? Or, for that matter, even if it was February 14th ? And did he buy it for himself? And does he realize that his willingness to wear that shirt might, by itself, explain why his calendar is empty in mid-February?

Finally, I decided to use that awake time to pick up some Spanish street lingo from those 3 am couples’ arguments on the cobblestone lane below. Yep, I figured that by the time we started attending the twice weekly Spanish lessons Kelly booked, I’d have an expanded vocabulary. And sure enough, arriving at our first class, I’d already taught myself to say:

• “You idiot, you were in charge of finding out the time of the last bus back to the hotel!”
• And, “But honey, how was I supposed to know she was your sister?”

Our Spanish teacher didn’t seem that impressed. On a positive note, I can now count to 11. And sleep is overrated.

9/23-9/30, San Sebastián, Kelly

Our second week in this little coastal city was overcast and rainy. While the stormy seas didn’t seem to keep the locals off the beach, we decided to turn our exploring focus indoors, and inadvertently became more cultured for the experience! We went to a nearby museum housed in an old convent that included an exhibit featuring two famous Basque sculpture artists (we prefer Chillida, but feel Oteiza did some fine work, too.) We explored the sanctuaries of the incredibly grand and solemn churches that are sprinkled throughout San Sebastián and were awed by their frescos, carvings, paintings, stained glass, and architecture. We accidentally attended the premier of a Moldovian film at the San Sebastián International Film Festival (SSIFF), and then purposefully joined the local surf community for opening night of a surfing documentary filmed in El Salvador (both had English subtitles.) We’d finish each day at the pinxto bars, drinking wine and discussing art, architecture, and film – but mostly cheering with our fellow patrons for Real Sociedad (the local futbol team) proving that we are still primarily sports fans at heart.

9/15-9/22, San Sebastián, Kelly

Our first week in this little coastal city was sunny and warm. It’s honestly a little slice of heaven here in the Basque part of northern Spain: blue skies, the Bay of Biscay’s twinkling turquoise water, green hillsides, layers of mountains off in the distance. Of the two beaches, one has consistently nice waves, the other is calm with picture perfect views. There are ALWAYS surfers out at Zurriola, and we’ve joined them and bodysurfed a time or two (Jim more than me – the water’s a bit chilly, comparable to Southern Cal.) Other than that, we’ve spent our time walking, hiking, swimming in La Concha (the calm beach), exploring, people watching, nibbling on pintxos, and drinking wine in outdoor plazas. Each day we work out, do a little work, and then we head out to explore. We’re learning Spanish, but that is a long slow road to fluency and right now we are just pulling out of the driveway! Pequenos pasos! (Baby steps!)

What’s different? If you don’t understand what it says in Spanish – no problemo! – they have it translated into Basque right next to it (#NotHelpful). Restaurants and shops shut down from around 2-5, every day and many of the bars serve only drinks until 7pm – no food until later. Sometimes Jim and I go out to eat at 8pm and feel like we’re my grandparents hitting up the early bird special at Bob’s Big Boy (Muchacho Grande de Roberto). This is a late-night country!