Almanac Travel: Sal’s Travel Diary 2024 – More of Spain and end of the journey
Basque-ing in Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
Throughout all our bookings and organisation we had no idea what Donostia was. It is the Basque name for the town. A slower Intercity train took us to our destination but at least there were no change of trains so no shifting luggage. Not a taxi to be seen anywhere and Uber is not in the town. We solved the problem in the usual way, beer and wine and learning the best techniques to get around from the locals in the bar. With that Susannah hijacked a cab that was doing a drop off, and we left the poor muckers still waiting at the rank. We checked in to Casa Nicolasa before heading out to get the lay of the town.
Our location was great – right on the edge of the old town. We ventured in for dinner not really sure how the whole Pintxos thing works plus it was a big day so we simply found a place to sit and eat. We got the Pintxos thing on our way home with a wine stop, which became our local, where the bar and street was packed with patrons picking and choosing from the various morsels on offer.
The next day’s activities were to learn the city, it began with a walk around La Concha an amazing beach inside a bay protected by Isla di Santa Clara, and as the name suggests the beach is in the shape of a shell. At our walking time there were only a handful of folks in the drink but we did have plenty of company with other walkers and runners. Had to wait till 9:00am for coffee and went into a cafe on the beach as it opened. Competition for a table at the front was fierce but I managed to claim one. We enjoyed our coffee and left as the person I had beaten out for prime position got up from her table and parked in 1A.
Our first tour was a free walking tour of the city with Alberto from Italy as our guide, then later a Pintxos tour with Sandra, very much a native to the area .
The Romans, the Vikings, the Poms with the Portuguese all had a crack here so plenty has been rebuilt over time. The grand boulevarde area that we first went through had a very French influence as the reigning Queen Isabel II was keen on Paris. We then headed to the the old town, part of the walled area and the port (all on the side we stayed in). Alberto played to script not really knowing much about the chap with the largest statue in town but certainly knew how the city worked ad gave us a few pointers and bars to visit.
A quick siesta and it was time for our Pintxos tour. We had a group of six for our tour including Sandra, joining us was a girl from California and a couple of Irish chaps catching up with each other one from Dublin and the other Dubai. Sandra took us past the market lamenting how much the nature of the market had changed since they moved it out of the original buildings and put it underground. It was a similar sentiment we got with the market in Porto, perhaps a couple of Melbourne City Councilors could take heed and not stuff around with the Queen Vic!
We were told that we would be visiting 5 Pintxos bars on the night, what she didn’t inform us was that she didn’t know which ones. Sometimes the best fun you have is winging it and so it was. At each stop we had 3 to 4 offerings plus the obligatory drink. As an extra bonus our Californian friend was not really a drinker so most of hers got shared around! It was a lot of food and a lot of fun as Sandra lurched into bar after bar to see if we could be accommodated while we cavorted and chatted outside. Our final official stop was at La vina 31 Agosto whose Basque cheesecake was written up in the New York Times as the best in the world! A close second IMO to Susannah who makes a very good one also. After all this we ended up having a a drink or four with the Irish boys. One of them very familiar with the careers of the Irish players in the AFL and all over Zac Tuohey’s retirement. Also, very familiar with Carlton as he was an avid watcher of Underbelly, we had to correct his shady thoughts of all of Melbourne. The next morning, Sandra sent through an email with the places we visited, the foods we ate and drank, plus further recommendations of places to visit. From that moment on we decided that we’d do our own little Pintxos tours for our meals!
“Rail Replacement Buses” is one of the most dreaded signs in Melbourne, we had received an email from Renfe (Spanish Trains) letting us know that the first part of our upcoming journey to Barcelona would be on a bus! So, our morning walk was to go to the station and understand exactly when and where to be in two mornings time. It meant we had to cross the river Urumea Itsasadarra to the Gros district and its magnificent Playa de Gros. On the day it was light offshore winds that provided surfers perfect conditions. The waves seemed to get larger from west to east, where several riders gathered on the west end while at the other side of the beach the better and more experienced plied their craft. Would have been in excess of 100 riders in the water. Navigation holiday again in our search for the station, and so we finished up walking along the river, but eventually got the information needed and wandered home past too many shops.
We began our own Pintxos tour for lunch using the recommendations received. All were a hit, a great way to eat as you can have as little or us much as you want plus a drink is encouraged.
The Txuleta is a famous (or infamous) dish in the Basque region, it is a huge T-Bone-ish steak cut 5cm wide, and one of the renown places to eat Txuleta is at Bar Nestor, San Sebastián, Spain in the old town. Their menu is limited to four items and it’s all or nothing. Along with the steak their is tomato salad, fried peppers and Spanish potato omelette, although you might miss out on the omelette! They only make two omelettes a day – one for lunch and one for dinner and once they’re gone, they’re gone. The bar is tiny with one table for six and a table for two being the only seats, there are about eight spots to stand at the bar and two bar tables outside.
They do reservations, but in reality you have to queue for those. I lined up at about 6:30 but was about 12th in line, after a while a window opened where the first 20 in the queue had their name taken and told to be back at 7:45 – the rest of the queue had to wait until those 20 finished their meals. The bar still does OK serving drinks to them as they wait and salivate over the meals they can see. We arrived back on time and were allocated one of the bar tables outside. After our drinks order is taken the waiter appears with two monstrous hunks of meat to choose from, no choice of how it’s done – they are the experts. We did get a piece of the omelette and it was everything it was cracked up to be! The meal was amazing – steak cooked to perfection and we particularly loved the fried peppers. A bit of bar hopping before heading home as Monte Urgull awaited.
We had shirked it for a couple of days, now we couldn’t so our morning walk was to the top of Monte Urgull overlooking the town with spectacular views back to La Conche. At the top we explored Gatzelua Castillo (or Motako Gatzelua in Basque). The 135m climb was particularly steep but the descent via the road at the back we found a little easier.
While all this was going on Susannah was implementing her cunning plan to get me to another museum and booked us into the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain along with the bus tickets there and back. About an hour in the bus through Basque Country – just spectacular. Arriving in Bilbao we walked to the museum through a park alive with activities from a concert to a children’s carnival. On arrival Susannah presented our tickets only to be told that they were for New York! Fortunately, we were able to purchase tickets at the counter. The size of the museum is perfect three floors of modern art that we were able to cover in a couple of hours. Some fantastic and enlightening pieces in there along with stuff that didn’t hit the mark. That’s art!. In our time inside rain had set in for our journey back.
It subsided after we got back and we continued on our Pintxos tour trying a few different things along the way. The only Pintxos bar we hit twice in our time in San Sebastián was the cheesecake joint. It was an earlier night than normal as it was an early start to catch our bus to the train to Barcelona as our journey enters its final week.
Here is a list of the Pintxos bars we went to and a couple of the highlight dishes for anyone that makes it here. Although you can’t go wrong by just heading into any bar and giving it a try!
Bar Sport
- Txistorra – Fresh Sausage with paprika, pork, and garlic
- Txipirón plancha con vinagre de Modena y salsa de ajo y perejil – Baby squid with Modena balsamic vinegar and parsley and garlic sauce
- Txipirón relleno de txangurro- Baby squid stuffed with crab
- Guindillas (Piparrak) – Local green peppers
Casa Urola
- Gilda – First pintxo (pickled peppers, olives and anchovy)
- Vieira en salsa ajoblanco – Scallop in ajoblanco sauce
- Verduras de temporada con bacalao – Green beans with cod , black olive pate and potato foam
Borda Berri
- Risotto “puntalete” con Idiazabal- Fake risotto with Idiazabal (Sheep’s milk) cheese.
- Ravioli con gamba y bacon – Shrimp ravioli with bacon
- Magret de pato con berenjena – Duck breast with aubergine sauce
- Tomate con mozarella – Tomato with mozzarella
Gandarias
- Brocheta de txuleta – T-bone skewer
- Brocheta de Cordero – Lamb skewer
La Viña
- Revuelto de hongos – Omelette with wild mushrooms
- Albóndigas con tomate – Meat ball with tomato sauce
- The best cheesecake from the city
- Pedro Ximenez – Sweet Sherry
Muxumartin
- Pintxo ganador de ternera – Tender beef with red and green peppers
- Zamburiñas con salsa curry y wakame – Small scallops with green curry sauce, wakame and sesame seeds
- Croquetas con papada – Ham croquettes with bacon
- Carpaccio de presa ibérica con queso y jenjibre – Carpaccio ibérique with local cheese and ginger
Polka
- Taco talo Sto tomás – Local sausage “txistorra” with guacamole in corn bread
Bar Itxaropena
- Hongos plancha – Grilled wild mushrooms
- Zamburiñas con cebolla encurtida- Scallop with pickled onions and leek cream
Bar La Cepa
- Pulpo con vinagreta – Octopus with vinaigrette
- Jamón Ibérico ( Ración – Portion)
Rambling through Barcelona, Spain
We had our rail replacement bus to catch early, it all worked very smoothly on the bus to Tafalla via Pamploma. Was able to watch the first half of Carlton-St Kilda via wifi with a few disruptions as we went through the tough Basque terrain and a few tunnels. Once at Tafalla we were to switch onto the more comfortable train through to Barcelona. Not quite, joining us on the train were a couple of over tired youngsters and no wifi. Had to resort to radio commentary before relenting and eating data to watch the last quarter and that kick from Higgins. In reality the effort from the Blues at the three prior stoppages was terrible and they got their just desserts – or so I thought. The train was smooth but at limited speed till we got to Zaragoza when we joined the Madrid-Barcelona line from there we hit warp speed and it was not long before we arrived, in the meantime I became a Port supporter while watching the scores on the journey.
The railway station Estación de Barcelona Sants would be as busy as any airport I have seen, really well organised though, and we were in a cab quickly to Hotel Catalonia Catedral. Another cabbie that got their directions wrong and dropped us off at a public square indicating we needed to take our luggage and walk through the square to reach our hotel – arriving to find a couple of cabs directly outside. The walk was worth it though, directly across the front of the square is the magnificent Barcelona Cathedral dating back to the 1200s.
We checked in, Susannah headed straight up to the pool, I headed for the closest laundromat I could find. Where we will next wash our clothes has been a constant discussion over these nine weeks. Once completed I joined the bride and took in siesta. We had a recommendation from Tina Westacott for ORIO BCN Gòtic for dinner and headed off, after our complimentary cava at the hotel. Orio is a large restaurant with several wooden tables with benches as seating but only a few patrons. That was likely because we were way too early for this city, however it was great for us as we were able to chat to staff and understand the food and how they did Pintxos. Quite simply you selected what you want directly from the counter to the plate and they charged you by the number of toothpicks on your plate when you leave. We enjoyed some great dishes before heading back. The place was filling up nicely as we departed. Off to La Rambla, Barcelona the main drag of the city, a lane of traffic in each direction and in the middle a wide path to promenade lined with restaurants and souvenir shops.
I figured a red wine was in order before retiring, so we stopped at one of the promenade restaurants and asked for a glass each. The waiter returned with a half bottle of Pedro Ximenez telling us it was red wine! After explaining that we knew what red wine was and this is not, we decided simply to move on. We were to learn that it might be the main drag but being the tourist trap it does not offer the best value, quality or service.
We headed back down La Rambla in the morning toward Port Vell and the marina where the America’s Cup is currently being hosted. At the end of the street we found Monument a Colom – Monumento a Colón – Columbus Monument before heading back to get ready for our next appointment, Basilica De La Sagrada Familia.
We off the Metro at Sagrada station and turned around to be struck by the sheer grandeur of the building. What an amazing piece of architecture and still not completed. The expected completion date is 2033, 151 years after construction began. Through all that time it has been kept to Antoni Gaudi’s plans and techniques despite progressive changes in styles as various portions are completed. The current main entrance has the depiction of the birth of Christ completed years before the depiction of the Crucifixion, which was over the exit we used, both incredibly detailed but in different styles reflecting the different times at which they were completed. Interesting to compare the roman soldiers in the crucifixion with George Lucas’ storm troopers from Star Wars. This building dominates the skyline as does the Eiffel Tower, Paris, France and we are so grateful to have experienced both.
We committed to visit the other Hardware Societe in Barcelona so made our way there from the Sagrada. On a loud busy street we chose to sit inside as had all the other patrons. The menu was similar to the Paris version, just with a bit of Spanish flavour. Great to see Melbourne businesses having a crack around the globe, unfortunately this has not taken off like Paris and will be closing in a couple of weeks. Hope the team can have another try here or another European city. We will be heading to the original Melbourne version on our return.
Gaudi’s influence is well beyond the Sagrada with a couple of houses we wanted to see. The first was Casa Batllo also known as the House of Bones, then La Pedrera-Casa Mila Barcelona they are open to the public, just too much public at the time so we stayed outside. The other trap was they are both adjacent to the high end shopping precinct, although there is shopping everywhere in this city. It was siesta time so we headed back to the hotel without too many distractions.
We had a Tapas Tour that night and made our way to the meeting point to find our guide, Anna from The Barcelona Taste and our accomplices for the next couple of hours. A couple from Florida and two women catching up one from Alaska and the other Montana. Our tour was advertised in the Gothic Quarter, Barcelona but Anna was prepared to cross boundaries and took us into the Quartier El Born. These were two of the four quarters in the old town the others being Raval and Barceloneta. Throughout the tour we were pointed out various aspects of the city and its history. Our first food stop was at Bodega Vasconia where we got to taste shrimp, peppers and oxtail dishes plus our choice of beverage. Anna tried to sell us on vermut, very popular here, we tried it in Madrid and found it too sweet for our palate so opted for the vinos tintos. The girls gave the vermut a crack and liked it while our Floridian friends preferred a beer.
We then crossed the line into El Born where we saw Catedral De Santa Maria De La Mar, Barcelona the city’s other cathedral. The Gothic cathedral close to the hotel was built by and for the aristocracy, the people wanted their own and built Santa Maria it is symbolised as being built by the people with the workers carrying stone shown on the doors. It was then off to a trendier establishment BAR Pimentel for more tapas dishes and vino. We were consuming Iberian Ham everywhere, here we learnt about what makes it Iberian and why it is so expensive. The Iberian Pig is a particular black pig native to the peninsula that has some special living arrangements. Each pig has at least one hectare to roam and forage, the restriction is they can only forage for acorns – that is their complete diet. At this place one of the dishes served was grilled pork from said pig – almost tender rare beef. Even I had some.
Along the way we past a Caganer.com store. A traditional Caganer is a chap dressed in a red hat, white shirt with his black pants pulled down around his knees while taking a dump. Incredibly they are also part of the local nativity scenes where it represents fertility. Caganers also represent egalitarianism – everyone does it! Of course, now any celebrity, politician or sportsperson is available in caganer form! We were then off to our final stop for dessert, La Vinateria del Call Barcelona. We were not getting Crème Catalan as “you can get that anywhere” according to Anna, this restaurant is famous for its Chestnut Cake and Fig Ice Cream. The drinks provided were the regular, however we also bought ourselves a Pedro Ximinez as this was dessert!
The next morning’s challenge was to find La Boqueria, La Rambla, Barcelona, the famous market in Barcelona. This city seems to get moving earlier than others we have visited, however business doesn’t really kick off till about 10. We arrived to find only a few stalls open, so had our coffee and headed back.
Later in the morning we had a “free” walking tour, they are funded by tips and can be hit or miss. This one was a hit with Mika our guide. Originally from Argentina, she was well versed in the city, Catalunya and Spain and she could go off script. The starting point was in Placa Nova, Barcelona in front of the Gothic Cathedral where we learnt that all the gothic stuff is a facade. While built from the 13th to 15th century it got a facelift for the World Fair in 1888. Our next stop was the other market, Mercat Santa Catarina, Barcelona, we had noticed the building from the square earlier with its colourful curved roof and correctly suspected a bit of Gaudian influence – although not his work. The locals shop here leaving the tourists to have La Boqueria, so it is also much cheaper and easier to walk around.
We then went further into El Born and got a history lesson on the War of Spanish Succession. Fossar de les Moreres is a monument and eternal flame at the site of a mass grave of the vanquished when Barcelona fell on Sept 11, 1714. Our tour finished at Plaza Sant Felip Neri where evidence of the Spanish Civil War could be seen with holes in the buildings from shrapnel. Mika also detailed the various flags we would see the official Catalan banner of red and yellow horizontal stripes, then their independence flag with a blue triangle and white star representing Cuba and Puerto Rico the last two Spanish territories to gain independence. We then enjoyed a couple of drinks with Hayley from Elwood who was on the tour with us and had lived in this beautiful city 5 years earlier.
Our friends from St Remy had suggested Restaurante Boca Grande – Barcelona was worth dining at, so Susannah had made bookings for the evening. A bit of fun on the Metro to get there and a walk though the Eixample Barcelona with all those shops. We were one of the first to arrive but it quickly filled with couples, family groups, friends catching up and the business diners. The service was excellent from the presentation of the specials to the sommelier who was at our table as soon as I put the wine menu down. We enjoyed a great meal with the wine recommended a perfect compliment. As we took our respective leave to the bathroom, it became an experience in itself with some incredible works of art. A wonderful restaurant experience and many thanks to Tessa for putting us onto it.
The next morning we walked to Barcelona Beach, Spain after learning how to get there the night before. It was 8:00am with all sorts of activity was going on. Paddle Boarders, canoes, swimmers, joggers, volleyball and crews preparing for a day on the water. No surprise really as the temperature was already in the mid 20s.
The walking was not done as we made our way to Parc Guell, Barcelona, we thought catching the Metro would get us close. It got us closer but we still climbed one of the biggest and toughest hills we have encountered on the whole trip! Imagine Susannah’s demeanour when she realised if walked one more block at the bottom, the next street had an escalator. We eventually got to the gate and it seemed pretty quiet – we had come to the rear entrance at almost the highest point of the park and frankly it appeared a lot of effort for not too much to see. Eventually we got an idea of the size of the park as we wandered further into the amazing and beautiful work that Gaudi had put into it. From the aqueduct, to the arches, the houses, the terraces everywhere you looked it was spectacular – the walk up the hill was so worth it. Every city needs its Gaudi to leave such a magnificent imprint!
Picasso also left an imprint but not as visible in the city although there is one Picasso on public display in Placa Nova. Not to far way in the Born quarter is the Museo Pablo Picasso, Barcelona. The great feature was how it displayed his transition from an almost classical artist through to the cubism style he is so famous for.
It was time for our final dinner in Barcelona and we had yet to have Crème Catalan, so the search was for the best we could find nearby. We were directed to La Vinateria Del Call not realising we had been there on the food tour. The tapas were excellent especially appreciating the advice from the waitress suggestions of half serves of the Iberian Ham and Cheese Plates, which allowed to also have some anchovies, mushrooms and of course Patatas Bravas. We then went to order dessert, she halted us and suggested the Chestnut Cake as they were the only place in town were you could get it. After having it before we stuck with the original plan and were not disappointed nor with Pedro who joined us.
We only had a couple of hours the next morning before collecting the car and driving to Tossa De Mar, Costa Brava Catalonia, Spain Needing a long walk before the drive we went to the beach again but returned via Mercat di Santa Catarina with a plan to pick up goodies to enjoy a picnic on our way. (And maybe a coffee). Iberian Ham, sardines, cheese, breadstick, figs and tomatoes – we just needed a plate and a knife! With all that we collected the car and made our way to Tossa de Mar, arriving a little early but the room was ready and we were in straight away. The hotel assisted with the plate, knife and red wine for a picnic on our top floor balcony overlooking Menuda Beach. We were at our final destination of the trip, Gran Hotel Reymar.
Our plans here were pretty simple relax, pool, relax. No plans for dinner just in the hotel restaurant – not one of our finer meals of the trip. The other angle from the hotel was across the main beach to the largely intact Muralles De Tossa castle and wall built in the 14th century. Our mission in the morning was to climb that and explore the town. A very lively tourist town with all sorts of shops, bars, restaurants and hotels to cater for the throng of tourists that descend. Many of the throng were on the beach which was sandy and enticing, so off we headed. Well it was sandier than the Croatian sand but very gritty and mainly rocks once you were in the drink, The temperature in was perfect reminding us of the time we spent in the water off the boat in Croatia. Can we please get that Mediterranean temperature to Port Philip Bay? More of the same for the afternoon before finding Popo for dinner and a great last meal.
We are on our way home now and reflecting on the most wonderful two months. So many unforgettable places and experiences, none more so for me than going to Dasà and meeting Maria Rosa. So many other great people we met the Nonnas in Dasa, Katriona and (Dad) and family in Sicily, Julie, Mike, Karen and Monkey Arms (Jenny) who made our Croatian Cruise so much fun, the bartenders at La Terrasse in Paris, our wine guy Christoffe in Lyon, Tessa and Richard in St Remy who were so generous with their recommendations, the Irish Lads in San Sebastián and Hayley from Elwood in Barcelona. Personally, I was most thankful for spending a wonderful nine weeks with the greatest friend I could possibly have in Susannah – and a very good travelling companion.
We say Au Revoir to Europe as we return to a windy Melbourne Spring
See you at the finals,
Cheers, Sal
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Thank you for your wonderful account of your travels in Europe Sal. Obviously you had a fantastic time, and it reminded me so much of my travels, and the beauty of travel, and how it broadens one’s outlook on life from the experiences gained.