Recently married this is our first major travel together, with hopefully many more trips and experiences to come in the future.
We are both soccer fans (well fanatics is probably a bit more like it), love the outdoors, activities such as skiing, wake-boarding, surfing, biking, etc., obviously very active.
We woke today to walk the Gaudy Park...both of us enjoying Gaudy's works. Then it was time to have some lunch, pop into a couple shops and head to the beach to dip in the Mediterranean (those photos never appeared hen the camera was plugged in though. We return tomarrow and head out for our last dinner in a moment...See you all soon.... read more
The train ride through north Spain was beautiful! The train ride was 5.5 hours, long enough for a nap or two along the way, and arrival in Barcelona around 1:40pm. Once we arrived we quickly navigated the subway system (now being pros after London and Paris) and headed to our hotel. By this time starving we found a great pasta place close by serving very authentic Italian food and retreated once again to the hotel for a short siesta. Apparently just in time as we rolled back into the room the sound of thunder rang out and suddenly the winds picked up and sky opened and it started pouring rain harder than I had seen in a long time. Perfect siesta time. As we woke form our siesta it was no longer raining and the skies ... read more
After a wonderful time here in San Sebastian I thought it was finally time to get to Borda Berri our favorite Pinxtos Calientes spot and get some pictures of the gourmet food that we were getting to eat and say good-bye to our friends that worked there. Shortly after filling our bellies we headed to the bar we frequented since they would always change the channel for us to watch the various soccer games where we once again indulged in Kalimoxchos ( rd wine and coca-cola, also probably spelled wrong). Here we always seem to meet fun new people and this time was no different we met a lovely couple from Oakland, CA had a drink with them and made our way home by midnight, in order to prepare for an early train ride. The next ... read more
I know I have been fairly silent the last couple weeks, but with all the rain, there has not been a lot to report beyond the wonderful jazz festival. For the most part we have been holed up in our apartment trying to stay remotely healthy and dry. However today, finally the sun came out and we were reminiscent of our first days here in San Sebastian as our days here come to an end Saturday morning when we board the train for Barcelona. Today, we finally got to rent bikes and head to the other parts of town, to see the combs of the wind, and the holes drilled down to the caves so that air and some ocean water is blown through during high tides, we got to see the stadium of the football ... read more
With a brief (very brief, like half a day brief) break in the rain that has dominated our summer here in San Sebastian we headed out to a sunny day to watch the finals of the Oakley Surf Comp and a lunch outside where I once again got my favorite Bocadillo, Chaka (crab) some small canas of cerveza and sat outside for lunch. This summers theme in San Sebastian ... When its sunny go to the beach, because it will start raining soon and you don't know if it will stop again. It started raining again that evening but we forged into busy Parte Vieja for Pinxtos through rain, massive crowds and hunger we managed to have wonderful pintxos at some of our favorite local spots and make it home without being completely drenched. This however ... read more
It has been a very uneventful last couple days here in San Sebastian full of a misty constant rain and ducking into shops to avoid the sudden down pours. Every local we have talked to says the same thing " El tiempo de este verano no es normal por el verano, es muy malo". For those who don't speak Spanish they keep telling us how terrible the weather is, yup, got it I am standing in it right now and that it is not normal weather to their typical summers....well do we get a discount then? With much trepidation Seth and I stepped out to the beach with dark looming clouds to meet up with some of his fellow students to play some sand soccer, it poured rain on us twice, then stopped, so we continued ... read more
While trying to relax in Spain I have come to a couple realizations as it were... 1. I needed a vacation very badly!! 2. Travel is very important to discovery and the human spirit and... 3. Though I came to "get away from myself", discovery and change inevitably set in and you find yourself more. San Sebastian has been great, we have enjoyed the flavorful food and pintxos (tapas) for dinner, the walks through the old town and centro, the surfing, the overall beauty even through some of the not so great weather (rain, wind and clouds) is unmatched. It dawned on me just how much fun and beauty really surrounds us here ( and yes I have been missing everyone) but I have come to really appreciate the language and this city. I wanted to ... read more
Still having a great time in San Sebastian, we decided to join the USAC group day trip to Bayonne and Biarritz in the French Basque Country. We arrived in Bayonne, France at roughly 10am to be met by a great tour guide, who told that Bayonne is not just where the Bayonette was developed but was an ancient city dating back all the way to the Romans and middle ages. He spoke of the marrying of kings of England and wives that were always French, we visited a church that was classified as Roman Gothic and went to the center where major pathways to various cities and countries all intersected. We also learned that Bayonne was where chocolate became a major staple. We walked through a small Basque museum and then met back up with the ... read more
It has now been a week in this beautiful city, and still holding strong! We have had multiple surf sessions in Zurriola (which is only 3 -4 blocks from our apartment in Gros), We have spent evenings walking Parte Vieja stepping into some of the best bars for Pinxtos (tapas), walked the city endlessly and yesterday we took a day trip to Bilbao by bus, boat and surrealist art. Today a hike to spend the morning at the Urugual castle with the Jesus Christ Statue taking in the beautiful and loving city beneath. Yesterday, We left at 9am and headed directly to Guernica, not a huge city but steeped in the history of the country and more specifically a symbol of the Basque community. There in Guernica we stood in a city that Franco and the ... read more
We have been in San Sebastian for 4 days now, it is a beautiful spot in the Spanish Basque country along the beach. The best way to describe it is Santa Monica, El Centro is filled with beautiful tree lines streets, shops and cafes, Rio De Janeiro the lush greens and Jesus Christ over looking the city and San Diego with the distinct beach town feel. We stayed at pension Zurriola Waves our first night in town, putting us across the street fro the beach, and met some great new friends from Perth, Australia. Zurriola is the surfing beach in town but also had a sand soccer tournament going on so Seth was in heaven. It was fun watching all the bicycle kicks in the sand. With our new friends we ventured out into Parte Vieja ... read more
