I was really excited to cross the border into Navarra and return to the home of the Basque people where I`d spent my 2004/2005 high school exchange. Euskal Herria comprises of the Spanish Autonomous Communities of Navarra and the Basque Country, plus three regions on the French side. Immediately we started seeing road signs and restaurant menus in Basque as well as Spanish; and the political graffiti increased the deeper we got into the Basque region.
The hills started getting greener as we got closer to the coast. On our way to Pamplona we crossed the Camino de Santiago route and followed near to it for about 20km. We were astounded by the number of people trekking and cafes in the small towns were full of pilgrims.
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| Public art in Ochagavia |
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| Camino pilgrims stock up on coke and ice-cream on a 30 degree day |
Entering Pamplona was a bit of a shock to the system as we hadn't been in a busy city for over two weeks. We settled into a dorm room and met up with fellow Oamaruvian Jeremy Smit for a beer. The town was ramping up for San Fermins which was starting in a month; it was a far cry from the dark and quiet town I visited in the middle of winter in 2004. After leaving Pamplona the next day we had a couple of shorter days before arriving at my host family's place in the heart of the Basque Country.
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| Arruazu where I spent Christmas 2004 |
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| Sarah spotted some pig (her favourite animal) inspired street art |
We arrived in Legazpi after a wet day of cycling interspersed with coffee breaks to escape the worst of the rain. My host father, Joxe-mari, welcomed us and we had a great dinner with him and Isabel, and my host sister Maddi, her husband Xabi, and their son Markel.
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| Maddi and Markel |
The next day we went for a look at Isabel and Joxe-mari's hobby farm before heading to their 'food club' for lunch. These clubs are a Basque institution where friends and family get together to cook and eat in a communal kitchen. They have been credited with renewing interest in traditional Basque cuisine and helping the region become the world class gastronomic destination it is now. We were treated to cured hams, seafood paella, steak, and Basque cider.
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| Txispi at the farm |
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| Me, Txispi and Joxe-mari |
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| Paella |
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| Staples - cider and ham |
There was an annual fiesta on in one of Legazpi's neighbourhood that night. After dinner and a few beers in town with Maddi, Xabi and a few of my classmates from my exchange, we headed up the hill to check it out. Dodging hoards of 10 year olds with cherry bombs we went on a bit of a pub crawl through the neighbourhood until the wee hours of the morning. Sunday was filled with more good food and drink as we spent time with my host family.
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| Dinner with Maitane, Maddi and Ane |
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| Dessert at my host Auntie`s place |
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| Go-karting competition as part of the fiestas |
We can`t thank the Alkortas enough for their hospitality and it`s amazing knowing we have this home on the other side of the world. After saying our goodbyes we headed off towards the Basque coast and San Sebastian/Donosti.
We'd booked into a hotel for a couple of nights for Sarah's birthday and also because she had a job interview via Skype and wanted reliable internet. There was also a fair bit of rain forecast. We got up early so Sarah could start her interview at 6am (what a way to start your birthday!) and I left her alone to go out to try and take some sunrise photos. Overcast and rainy weather thwarted those plans but I managed to stay away from the hotel room until Sarah was finished.
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| Early morning in the Plaza de la Constitución |
Anyone who has been to San Sebastian will know that the famous pintxos bars can be a little intimidating for non-Spanish speakers; so we decided to take a 'pintxos tasting tour'. We spent a great three hours sampling some amazing food and drink and learning about pintxos culture - how to do it like the locals. Our group consisted of four Irish, two Aussies and us, so we all got on well and went for a drink after the tour.
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| Typical San Sebastian pintxos bar complete with cured hams hanging from the roof |
We rounded out Sarah's birthday with a siesta and then a few more pintxos in San Sebastian's old town. The next morning it was still raining be we loaded up our bikes and set our sights for the French part of the Basque Country.
- David
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