San Sebastian, Spain
Known for: Tapas (pintxos), Real sociedad,
Ola from San Sebastian’s Spain situated in the north east of España which also extremely close to the French border (as many people fly to the nearby town of Biarritz and then catch a bus toward the township).
FOOD / PINXTOS
The main attraction of San Sebastian is the food, the town has several Michelin starred restaurants however budget constraints did not allow me to scope out those restaurants this time round. I instead checked out the numerous pintxos bars (tapas bar) and gorged myself on snack sized dishes of culinary perfection. One thing I can say about Spanish food is that it is very diverse. They have a vast variety of food options on their menus, including fresh seafood, chicken & beef kebabs and foie gras.
Some of the ‘signature pintxos’ from the area included mushroom risotto, beef steak (tender and juicy) and a simple yet sublime calamari dish.
It’s an uncomfortable feeling at the end of each meal after having stuffed your face with as much food as you can, but I’m sure my taste buds were loving it at the time! Even the solo traveler would love this concept as they would be able to sample numerous dishes without filling up too quickly.
Drink sizes follow suit and are ample amount to give you a flavour for the local drinks without overdoing it too. The pintxos staff work up quite a sweat serving loads of customers streaming constantly, but they manage to get to everyone in a speedy and efficient manner which is a spectacle in itself and they do it with a smile on their face the whole time.
MORE THAN JUST FOOD
By some stroke of luck, that weekend the town was holding a music and culture festival where various performances “popped up” throughout the town, ranging from reggae to big band to even a full on opera performance(which I checked out for the first act and left because I was falling asleep lol). It’s great to see that live music is well alive and was very grateful to have experienced it during my stay.
SUN AND SURF
Part of me was really looking forward to some sun, surf and sand. After booking this trip well in advance (6 months!) I was hopeful that I’d return to London looking like a bronzed Korean pop star.
I’ve realised that as an Australian I have never ever surfed. Don’t get me wrong I love the water (after all I’m an Aquarius) and a good beach, however back in oz the closest surf beach was over 2-3 hours away so it’s one of those things I put off till later…. Sadly it will have to wait a little longer. While the town has one of the most scenic bays and surf beach within a 5 minute walk of each other, the weather was not on our side this time round. San Sebastián is renowned for its surf scene and pro surfers pass through the town fairly regularly.
La Concha bay is one of the prettiest bays I’ve ever seen, I could only imagine a populated sand shore on a hot summers day, with the aqua waters crashing softly whilst sun bathers lay there trying to achieve their perfect tan. There are also other H2O related activities (when the sun is out) jet skis, kayaking etc.
If the weather is not so great whilst you are travelling to San Sebastian I HIGHLY recommend paying a visit to the only spa and relaxation centre in the town called La perla.
This unique spa centre offers the usual gym and spa facilities you would expect from a decent establishment, however they differentiate themselves but having salt water spa pools and a salt water ice bath as well. They have different pools which have spa jets targeting different areas of your body. It also backs on to the beach, so if you feel like taking a refreshing dive into the ocean that’s an option too!
A 5 hour pass will set you back about 35 euro…. But it’s worth every cent 🙂
If the weather is on your side I would also recommend hiring a bike to cycle around the town. The city centre (old town etc) can be explored by foot, but to cover the city fringe areas and the various lookout points its far quicker (and easier on your feet if you cycle) just remember . A day’s bike hire is around €15 but you will get to see a lot more this way.
IF YOU FEEL LIKE WALKING:
Mountain Igeldo is the mountain furthest away from the old town and has the better view of the bay and the city, you can take a cable car there or sweat it out like we did and walk up the hill lol.
There is also a dated theme park atop of the mountain. And by dated I mean 1990’s
Monte Urgull Closer to the old a 20 min hike a castle awaits at the top, a steep and scenic walk, although views are blocked by the treetops, but a good way to get away from the hustle and bustle of the ever so busy old town.
BLOOPERS
With every trip I encounter my fair share of bloopers, luckily this trip they were all concentrated in the first few hours of me being there!
Faulty GPS (again) this time the gps on my phone told me we were roughly three kilometres from our hotel. So why not take a cab…. Off we went, loaded our bags, “Hotel Silken please” I asked in my best Spanglish accent.
The driver gave me an confused/irritated look and pointed to the building 20 meters to the right of the taxi and began unloading our bag lol with this I sheepishly retrieved my bag and laughed all the way to the reception of the hotel. In the picture the hotel is the building just behind the buses!
- After successfully finding the hotel we grabbed a quick bite to eat from the pinxtos bar across the road from our hotel and the bus station. We finished our meals and paid for the delicious food. I strangely however thought it was okay to leaving the premises and take my drink and the glass with me lol… luckily my mate Kevin reminded me that I may have to return it to its rightful owner.
- Lastly somehow I managed to lose my camera charger somewhere along the way. I searched high and low but to no avail, but back in London I ordered a new one (original!) online conveniently, The only supplier of original canon chargers online hail from…. Spain how ironic!
Gracias San Sebastian for your delectable pintxos, picture perfect beach and musically talented citizens, this has been one of my most enjoyable and relaxing trips in a while and a destination I would most definitely visit again.
JD
Lisbon, Portugal
Destination: Lisbon, Portugal
Other names: Lisboa
Known for: Peri Peri, Portuguese Tarts, drinking in the streets,
Food:
At the beginning of this trip, if someone were to mention Portuguese food, I would immediately think peri peri chicken and nandos. The ‘real’ Peri-Peri Chicken is perfectly cooked and not dry at all, the peri peri sauce is brushed onto the chicken and adds a nice heat kick. We were recommended Bonjardim by a friend and it did not disappoint.
The Portuguese tarts are highly recommended by the locals. From the way they described it I thought I had tried something similar back home (egg tarts you get at yum cha)). These “sugar bombs” are the perfect afternoon accompaniment with the strong (and I mean strong) local coffee.
Seafood is astoundingly affordable and for someone who is not big on seafood I found it delicious. We had booked a restaurant on a friend’s recommendation and also our friends we were with saw the restaurant on travel show. This restaurant serves the freshest seafood and to my knowledge is the only one with their signature dessert as a steak sandwich… that’s right the real surf n turf. Garlic prawns were amazing (I’m salivating as I write this).
Nightlife:
Two words Barrio Alto . The drinking district in Lisbon’s city centre. The norm in Lisbon at least, is to purchase your drinks from one of the many “hole on the wall” type bars and take into the streets and drink. Although it was raining for the two nights we went out there I could imagine the vibe on a summer’s/spring day. Most of the locals speak English quite well (the younger generation at least) and for some strange reason heard this song at least 14 times each night lol
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITzNPZPhT64
sadly the parties we attended were not like that in the video clip 😛
Attractions/History:
The Alfama district is the where the Portuguese locals and older generation hang out. Whilst I didn’t spend a whole lot of time it was described as an area of the city that still has ‘village’ feel to it, where everyone knows everyone and you can really feel how proud they are to live in the alfama district/ old town.
Fado tour:
A common performance which can be found at most bars within the al fama district is the traditional music known as fado. It involves two guitars, a traditional 12 string Portuguese guitar and regular 6 nylon string guitar. A singer will then takes to the stage and do their thang. The music can be described as emotional, slow or depressing but we were told it is about yearning for something, whether it be for home or for a loved one. It may not be for everyone, however I found it to be very entertaining as I am a fan of any kind of live music (bar death metal).
Portuguese empire – was the first global empire (thanks Wikipedia) for myself the architecture in Lisbon reminded me of some of the buildings in my hometown in Melaka, Malaysia as the Portuguese’s landed there in early 1500s. There is a monument in belem which celebrates the accomplishments to all the the Portuguese explorers and maps out over the centuries the regions which fell under their empire.
The area of Sintra is about an hour’s train ride away from Lisbon city centre, here you will find many historic castles and parks. Be prepared to walk, or wait hours for the one bus which services the many kilometres of road linking the various tourist attractions. We visited Pena national castle which is definitely a site to check out. The castle was inspired apparently by Disney type castles and the first thing you notice is how vibrant colours of the castle walls. The inside is furnished with the finest furniture and accessories for those times. There is even a dedicated ladies waiting room, where the monarch would hold his mistresses I’m assuming before having his way with them.
Apart from the lousy weather in which it rained 3 out of the 4 days we were there, Lisbon is a city which has something for everyone. From party goers to young families, its an affordable destination and one I want to come back too in the not too distant future (hopefully when the sun shines a little brighter! :P) I should also mention the hostels in Libson are world class, in fact 3 of the top 4 hostels in the world are in Lisbon so definitely consider staying in a hostel if you can! You are bound to meet some amazing people to share the city’s experiences with.
Lastly I want to say a big THANK YOU to Celine for basically planning my whole Lisbon trip with her fantastic recommendations! Getting local insight to a city always help!
Obridgado Lisboa!
The JD Chronicles 