Without a doubt, hands down, hold the fucking phones, the greatest city and the greatest vacation of all of my semester’s travels. San Sebastian, in 4 short days, blew every other travel experience I have had so far out of the fucking water! With the epic combination of deliciously delectable tapas called “Pintxos” (pronounced Pinch-ohs), the most amazing golden sand beaches with turquoise-blue waters, an idyllic bay complete with its own centrally located island, the dopest hostel of the century, and a cast of best-friend-worthy characters, its hard to imagine where on earth you would rather spend a vacation.
The Hostel- Urban House: When I rolled up, the music was bumpin’, Moroccan lanterns were hanging from the ceiling, the sea air was wafting through the halls, and the super relaxed hostel dwellers were hanging about the cozy lounge with their sandy bare feet, enjoying the after-glow of an epic after-noon. In that instant, repressed, grouchy French-Andrew disappeared and fun, sunglasses wearing, no shirt, no shoes, no problem with nipple-rings Andrew came alive! My room had a killer balcony with an amazing view of the beautiful town hall, the beach, and the streets of old town, and in it I instantly befriended 2 awesome Aussies (from Melbourne) with whom I went out that night, to an authentic Basque Cideria.
The Cideria: The Cideria we went to was this amazing Brewery/Restaurant combination in the hills above San Sebastian where you drink unlimited cider poured from 8 foot in diameter barrels, while enjoying the most amazing Steak and Seafood of your life. The steak was this gorgeous slab of meat that was salty crisp on the outside and virgin-pink on the inside, creating this savory melt in your mouth (blood clot in your arteries) experience that you’ll never forget. Food is served family style where everyone eats off of one plate, and if you feel that annoying itch of sobriety coming on, you just head into the cider room and barrel hop to your liver’s content!
The Beach: In San Sebastian there are essentially two beach areas, La Concha Bay and Zurriola beach (a.k.a. the “Surf Beach”). I spent most of my afternoons on the beaches of La Concha Bay and oh what wonderful afternoons they were. The golden sand of the beach slides into the crystal blue waters of the bay and in the distance there is this little island that acts as a natural breakwater, giving the bay constant tranquility and gentle baby waves. The bay is egg shaped, opening onto the Atlantic, so you not only look out to the stunning sea but also charming fisherman houses and verdant, green mountains on either side of you. There is so much beauty surrounding you that you feel guilty averting yours by reading or napping. Luckily, I found a Spa with a beachfront location so I was able to lift weights, get my cardio on, and relax in the Thalassotherapy baths all while scoping the sights. Running on a treadmill with a beachfront view is the only way to go.
The Food: As I mentioned above, the Tapas (small little bites of food) in San Sebastian are called Pintxos (Pinch-ohs). A “Pintxo” usually consists of seafood, ham, sausage, cheese, vegetables, or various combinations of the aforementioned, placed on top of a slice of bread and secured with a toothpick going through the center, holding everything together. I believe that Pintxo actually means toothpick. Anyways, the wonderful thing about Pintxos is that there is no language or culinary understanding needed; you simply walk into a bar, look at 20 different varieties of Pintxos, pop whatever looks good into your mouth, wash it down with an excellent 1 euro glass of wine, and then when you’re ready to leave, you show the bartended how many toothpicks you have and he charges you accordingly! You eat them standing up, with tons of other hungry tourists and Spaniards, and you can just hop from Pintxos bar to Pintxos bar late into the evening!
The People: Lets just say the Australians are slowly taking over Europe. I have met thousands of them in my hostels over the semester, and San Sebastian was no different. They’re always fun, always down to have a good time, and always speak my language (literally and figuratively). After going to the Cideria with the two aforementioned Melbourners the first night, I found 2 more Melbourners and a Canadian to spend an epic evening drinking bottles of Spanish wine on the cliffs overlooking the sea for my second night. On my last night, the stars aligned big time. I met a really chill girl from Sydney at my hostel who I went Pintxos hopping with and then later in the night, who should I run into but one of my best friends from Highschool, Nicole! She lives in Paris and is fabulous so its really no surprise that she would be found in such a happening locale. After exploding with joy and hugging the crap out of each other, we went to a bunch of great bars and at our last stop, a club called BeBop, I was tapped on the shoulder by a friend from the Claremont Colleges (where I currently go to school), Jackie, who goes to Scripps College! What are the odds? Needless to say there were many celebratory drinks involved and it took all of my strength to walk back to the hostel (ok it was more like a crawl) and climb into bed. After 4 hours of sleep I awoke early to a stunning morning (and an equally stunning hangover), had some great breakfast banter with a South Carolinian hostel-mate, and hopped back on my train to France.
Without a doubt the best ending to my semester abroad that I could have ever asked for. Well, my birthday party in Paris tomorrow could be pretty dope as well… stay tuned people, I go big before I go home.
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