Destination #20 - San Sebastián, Spain

The day started off with a gruelling 7 hour bus ride to San Sebastian, or Donostia for the locals. Before leaving my hostel in Barcelona, I was waiting for a couple who I had agreed with the night before to leave together as they were heading off to Madrid. I got down to the lobby shortly after the agreed time which was 8, expecting to see them there waiting for me. Alas, they were not there and I wondered if they had left without me. The hostel staff knowing every face that stayed there let me know that they had, in fact, not left. I waited for some 15 minutes before thinking I should probably go and see if they are indeed still sleeping. I barged into their room and sure enough, Isaac and Lydia were still fast asleep! They had a little panic, quickly got ready, and we walked together towards the train station. It was sad to see them go but I am happy I was able to help them make their train.

Once arrived in San Sebastian, I carried my heavy bag to an apartment situated close to the beach that I booked through AirBnB. I knew that the lady who owned the apartment didn't speak any English but I didn't realize it was going to be a disaster trying to communicate with each other. I entered her apartment where she started speaking a bunch of Spanish. I think we both agreed that I didn't understand one word that was coming out of her mouth but she continued to speak Spanish to me for a solid half hour anyway. She was very polite though and I did my best to try and understand what she might be saying. Her apartment was absolutely spotless and I very much appreciated that despite only having a room, not the entire apartment. Once settled in, I took off to go hike up the nearest mountain, Monte Urgull, (this much I did understand what the lady was trying to say when showing me where to go and what to do). The hike offered some great views of the city along the way but to my disappointment, you couldn't actually really see much at the very top, where a big Jesus statue was situated. Once I reached the bottom of the mountain again, it was already getting late. I did a walk around some of the old town and got some food. There were quite a few gelato places around so not being able to contain myself, I got an Oreo gelato cone and it was legit! I ended the night by sitting by the Centro Kursaal before heading back to the apartment to rest my weary head.

I woke up the next morning expecting it to be pouring rain outside as this was the forecast the day before but praise the lord, it was cloudy with bits of blue sky. This has been an ongoing theme so far on this trip as they forecast 2 days of rain in Barcelona as well where I didn't see one rain drop. Somebody needs to fire the meteorologist responsible. Today was hike #2 as there another mountain close by called Monte Igueldo.

Sight of the Day: As I walked towards Monte Igueldo, I noticed some guys playing volleyball. But wait. Although there was a net and a ball and formation set up like volleyball, they were only using feet and heads to hit the ball over, no hands or wrists. I guess that’s how one can get good at soccer!

Monte Igueldo was a bit more work getting to the top but it was definitely worth it.

After the hike, I decided to hit up the beach and I got super lucky as just as I sat myself down, the clouds started to move and the sun came out. I laid there for quite some time before my stomach let me know it was time to go. I headed into the packed streets of the Old Town to find myself some Pintxos, the Basque Country (where San Sebastian is) version of Tapas. This was a real test for me as I had to boot myself out my comfort zone to go and experience this. Firstly, I don’t speak Spanish so I have no idea what all the chalkboards full of choices say. Secondly, you supposedly go in and they have these counters just full of cold tapas with toothpicks in them. I think most of the time, you grab what you like off the counter, fill your plate, and at the end you show the barman how many toothpicks you have and you pay. You can also ask for hot tapas as well that they cook to order but in my case, I had no idea what the chalkboard said. I had finally decided on a place and went, grabbed a couple of items off the counter, ordered a glass of sangria, and I actually just paid right there instead of at the end. It is very cool culture and there are endless amounts of ‘bars’ to choose from in the Old Town. I can only imagine how much fun it would be do some ‘bar’ hopping here with friends or family. It would also help if you had somebody who knew Spanish!

Because the ice cream was legit the previous night, I had to grab another one, this time Ferrero Rocher. And yes, it was legit as well. I sat on the boardwalk by the beach in the twilight enjoying my ice cream when a few fireworks shot up into the sky. Perfect way to the end the night in my mind.

I really enjoyed San Sebastian. However, I might not suggest it for solo travelling. It reminded me a lot of going to Hawaii. There were A LOT of couples and A LOT of kissing going around. Maybe I didn't read somewhere that this is a romantic city. There was also a lot of old people. It is very beautiful though and the buildings there are gorgeous. It’s not overly touristy but then again, there isn't a whole lot to do but relax, eat, and hike if you feel like.

Next:
Madrid
Seville
Faro
Lisbon
Porto
Marseille
Nice
Turkey
Rhodes