Friday 4 December 2009

from St Jean de Luz to San Sebastian

I escaped from St Jean de Luz for an evening out in San Sebastian. The short 30 minute drive is always fun. I never cease to take pleasure from crossing a national border. Having spent too much time as a kid looking at maps I always imagine everything will be red in Spain as it was on the map, then again not everything in France was blue.

San Sebastian, or Donostia as it is known in Basque, is a splendid place to take dinner. The old town with its grid-like narrow streets are crammed with bars offering tapas, or pinxtos as they call them in Basque-land. Weaving through the omnipresent throng we arrived at my favourite haunt and enjoyed several plates of braised beef in red wine, sauted octopus, fried gambas and cured veal.

Taking some air after dinner we heard singing. Following the sound we arrived at a large tent on the central plaza. Inside a multitude of locals were sitting around tables speaking Basque. I eventually figured out that they were working on ideas for the town's bid to become European City of Culture in 2016. It seems like yesterday that it was Glasgow. How time marches on.

Basque of the day:- time :: denbora