Our last morning in tiny picturesque Laguardia. We had another scrumptious brekkie before heading north again. Today’s destination: San Sebastián- a name that brought smiles to everyone we mentioned it to. Apparently all of Spain loves the beach there so we must investigate.
The drive to the coast was beautiful- the scenery was much greener than we had previously seen and there were LOTS of mountains. Our little Fiat struggled to get over some of the hills but we managed. Eventually even the road builders must have gotten tired cuz they switched to tunnels – I swear we passed through at least a dozen. And that’s probably how many time my ears popped!
We arrived in town about noon, parked the car, and commenced touristing. The old town is lovely with shops and pintxos bars. We toddled about picking up some souvenirs and necessities (Frank really needed a hat to protect his scalp while driving. Do NOT say thinning hair! 😂) We got a little culture visiting the Church of Santa Maria before deciding it was time to eat.
We stopped for pintxos and a glass of txacoli – the slightly effervescent white wine that is like vino verde no matter what the Basque folks tell you. Since so many pintxos are bread based, I opted for the tomato salad: a large bowl of tomatoes, greens, burrata, and tuna. Absolutely yummy!
Then we decided that it would be a shame to visit a beach town without spending time on the beach. Our swimwear was in the car so back to the parking garage where we proceeded to change behind the Fiat in the garage. Yup, it’s exactly what you are thinking. Then off to the famous playa la concha for an hour or so of splashing about in the beautiful water. A lovely ice cream (in a GF cone!) to top off the afternoon and we were back out on the road to Bilbao where we would be spending two nights.
More hills and grey clouds greeted us on the drive and we arrived in the very large city with very overcast skies. We got checked in to our very funky adult-only hotel – which provided condoms in the room in a packet marked “Let the games begin!” 😳 This was 180 degrees from the quaint Spanish hotel with the four poster bed that we just left.
But we adapt. A quick showers to get rid of the sand and a change out of our swimwear, and we were off to explore. Our hotel is right on the Nervión River across from the old town. The neighborhood behind us did not look like a place where tourists went so we crossed the river to find somewhere to eat. Our choice was suboptimal: unfizzy tzakoli and over salty paella but we made do. Then more wandering past mostly closed shops and busy bars before calling it a day
Highlights of the day:
- Noticing the Basque language everywhere now that I know it’s a thing. Every sign is written in both Basque and Spanish. (Hint: Basque is the one with the Xs and Ks)
- Watching kiddies play on the beach. I don’t care who you are, you have to love the joy of small children digging in the sand and jumping in the water.
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