Donostia – San Sebastián Bring us all the Pinxos. Then climb another mountain.
Looking out over Bahia de La Concha at night.
We both had been looking forward to coming back to San Sebastián. We visited two years ago while walking the Camino with Christine and Cecily and did a fantastic food tour that helped us all learn to love Pinxos. Not that much help is needed, but the scene can be a bit intimidating. Here in San Sebastián they prefer that you pay as you go, order drinks and pinxos and tap your card to pay. In less busy towns and cities you could pay once you were ready leave. When the popular bars open there can be quite a rush of folks piling in.
Stop one on our first night, Bar Txepetxa. A rather famous bar with photos of famous people on the walls.Antxoa con jardinera. Anchovies with jardinera sauce, peppers, and onions. Gildas: anchovy, olives, and guindilla peppers. Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Tuna (Pimentos del Piquillo Rellenos de Atún).It was a bit crowded so we moved on. Hungry from the ride. Need more Pinxos. Loads of youngsters outside, let’s try this one!Belfast Irish Tavern! With Pinxos, of course.Two boccadillas and another round of drinks.A stroll around old town to keep our appetites up and admire the graffiti. “The fire you light lights the way.”Probably the same food tour we did two years ago, Mimo Bite The Experience. An excellent tour.Bar Martinez. We scored two bar stools at the side counter which meant we got table service. It was nice to have a menu to order off of. (We ate more than the stuffed peppers)La Viña. Our final stop of the night. We had a nice conversation with the Spanish couple to our right after Rich copied her red wine order – it was excellent and we thanked her.La Viña is famous for their Basque cheesecake, left. Anchovies on the right. Don’t get those two confused.Basque Cheesecake. Our final dish of the evening. We over ordered and had two plates with two slices per plate! Time to waddle back to our hotel.The street scene in old town is lovely and relaxed.Through the decorative railing along the promenade.This guy makes art in the sand. You throw coins onto the white sheet to show your appreciation.On our first rest day we walked a lot and visited the small maritime museum which had a decent history of Basque seafaring history and a cute exhibit about animals on board ships.
On our second rest day we had a bus failure trying to get to an outdoor sculpture park. On line info was not just confusing but incorrect. There are two bus providers in town and we walked around searching for the stop for the bus that would take us right to the sculpture park. Fail. Asked people. Fail. Finally found someone who helpfully pointed us towards the stop, on a totally different street! and we watched the bus roll by since we were a block away from the stop. Schedule wrong. Next bus probably in 45 minutes. When Rich can’t figure out a bus system you know it’s confusing. So we walked around town, took a small community hill bus and had a lovely conversation with a young woman who grew up in San Sebastián but now works as a nurse in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Dinner in our neighborhood at La Cervecería del Antiguo. It’s fun to try a neighborhood place and enjoy inventive Pinxos. Baked confit tomato with sheep cheese flakes and walnuts.Gamberro bluefin tuna tartare and pulpo.Heading out to ride to Saint-Jean-de-Luz, France. Only thing between us and France is another big climb.Not every mile is beautiful and picturesque. I try to remember to take photos of the less glamorous parts of a ride. Turning up the road to the Jaizkibel summit.The spine is the Jaizkibel mountain range. Our climb started in Lezo and had a gain in altitude of 455 m (1,493 ft) over 8.0 km (5.0 mi).Fueling for the climb with chocolate milk.
I never seek out climbs, but Rich loves them, and I’m never daunted by them. I say my spirit animal is a Shetland pony. I’m not setting any Strava records but I’ll get there eventually. Rich waits at the summit. So, big climbs are not a deal breaker. This one was again made fun by the Basque road cyclists. They are the nicest riders ever. I don’t think a single one went by me (me as if I was standing still and them in their sleek cycling kits) without a greeting. And the work crew chopping back vegetation for which traffic was held one way at a time? The guys in their fluorescent yellow with safety googles and gas powered weed trimmers and chainsaws? My personal cheering section as I ever so slowly rounded a hairpin turn.
And this is what I was wearing. Pink flowery top and a straw hat helmet cover. Sandals. Sun gloves. Hilarious. Rich waiting, not at the summit yet, but up the worst of the climb.At the summit. The view back to San Sebastián. Saucy riders! What a beautiful day we got. Rich and the summit sign. King of the Mountain! That’s my downhill face. Big smile.I like the signs put up to inform cyclists how steep the road is. Motivational?Mountain bikers, road cyclist, and faint words on the asphalt from the Clásica San Sebastián road race.A shade break at the Hermitage of Guadalupe. Familiar to us from our Camino which started in Irun, just down the mountain.Down we go.Rich points to France!Across Etorbideko Zubia, the bridge over the Bidasoa River, the border with France.We give the nod to France over Spain for bike infrastructure. But Spain wins for super nice cyclists and considerate car drivers. Hendaye, a sunny day at the beach before the storm blowing in. Still fascinated by these sheep.And how cute is that lamb?Over another hill. Coming into Ciboure, the town before Saint-Jean-de-Luz where we’ll spend the night.More beach goers. It’s a Friday and this weather is not going to last much longer.The happy travelers overlooking the Grande Plage of Saint-Jean-de-Luz. Our Basque horseshoe. The blue dot is us in France again. We’re actually still in Basque territory, French Basque.Celebrating with pizza right before the wind blew in. All the other outdoor diners headed inside. The next day’s ride will be a bit wetter.
So did we enjoy our Spain bike tour? Yes! The Coast around Barcelona was not our favorite, as we’ve explained we both avoid hot weather and I’m about as sun phobic as they come. I think we just hit the right season for us, any hotter and there would have been epic meltdowns. And, as I’ve repeated, Basque cyclists are so welcoming and friendly. Spanish car drivers are among the best around cyclists, maybe the Swedish are just a bit better but that’s also due to better cycling infrastructure that gives bikes their own space. Spanish car drivers behave admirably well around bikes even without much infrastructure. Food – yum! Late dinner hours – eh, we adjusted and slept later than we usually do. There is no fighting local customs. All in all a lovely small dip into Spain. And now we are even bigger fans of the Basque Country.
After decades of living and working in wonderful San Francisco we gave it all up to travel the world. Not owning a car allowed us to save money and live hyper-locally. Now we’re living around the globe. Follow along to see where we are and what cats I manage to pet.
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Less Car, More Life 