It´s so great having Ari with us for a couple of weeks in Barcelona!  Fortunately, all our respective businesses slow down around the holidays and Ari was able to take a chunk of vacation time from Microsoft to join us in Spain.  Adding to the merriment shortly will be Ruthie – even more fun!  Ruth will be coming from a 10-day trip to Israel and then we will have the whole gang together.

After a few days of showing Ari around our neighborhood and some of our favorite barrios, and touring him through selected restaurants we have come to love, Andrew plotted out a short getaway for us four to see a part of Spain none of us had seen yet.  San Sebastian and Pamplona are in the northern part of the country – the Basque area close to the French border.  Basque country is known for amazingly good and hearty seafood, and for an indigenous language (Euskera) that has a unique history.  While Catalan has a very conspicuous and plentiful use of ¨x¨, Ursque uses ¨z¨ just as liberally and names seem to go on forever (How about abertzaletasunari?  Or idatzizko estandarizazioari dagokionean?).  Makes for lots of fun trying to read signs and hysterical snorts when the GPS lady pronounces them. Part of the cross-cultural experience, of course.

Our first stop was San Sebastian (Donostia), sitting right on the Bay of Biscay that pours eventually into the Atlantic Ocean to the west of Spain.  We all agreed that this seaside city is by far as picturesque as Barcelona – and in some ways, more so.  Running right through the center of the city is the River Urumea, crossed by beautiful bridges that in some places have ornate towers and statues adorning their entrances.  Along one edge of the city is a port area and lovely beaches looking out at the bay – and a miles long boardwalk perfect for strolling, running or just sitting and contemplating where the best next meal might be.  We have heard that the city is jammed in the summertime as are most of the coastal areas of Spain, but now in the winter it was pleasantly busy with holiday visitors – most seeming to be from the surrounding countries or other parts of Spain – and the pace was relaxed.  On one of the days Ari relished taking a 9 mile run along the water while Andrew and I hiked up to the top of an incredible Castillo (fortress) built around the year 1000 AD.   The view from the top of the Castillo took in the bay, the surrounding coastline, and we are pretty sure we could see France from that vantage point.

I also noticed that much fewer people in San Sebastian spoke English – not surprising but it did force us to really use our ever-improving Spanish to ask for interpretations of an Euskera menu and get directions.  We are always grateful that – like Italians and Jews – Spaniards do use their hands to embellish their speech so we do manage with a bit of pantomime and puzzled looks to get what we need and where we want to go.

Andrew and I agreed that San Sebastian would be a great spot to return to for a romantic weekend or with another couple – just to drink in the scenery and enjoy a less urban, more Spanish townlike feel…but we´d likely fly next time as the drive is beautiful but long (over 7 hours with rest stops).

On our way back to Barcelona, we stopped in Pamplona – famous for the running of the bulls.  The big event actually happens at a different time of year, and it´s apparent that this claim to fame drives much of the city´s tourist trade (there´s even a countdown digital clock across from the bullring that shows days.hours.minutes.seconds until the next run (Encierro).  The run ends at the bullring where the event ends in an actual bull fight!   If you are not familiar with the tradition of the running of the bulls, once a year people gather from all over to watch a herd of bulls run across town.  But that´s not the whole of it…many extremely insane people decide to run WITH the bulls and risk getting trampled in the process. They even wear traditional red scarves to no doubt get the bulls attention.  Each year there are a few horror stories of what happens when you mix bulls with lunatics…the streets these huge animals charge down are no wider than a car lane or so, and spectators rent the balconies of the onlooking apartments to get the best view of the pandemonium.  Go figure.  >> Checkout this video!

Each time we make a trip like this it drives home for me just how diverse the culture and traditions in Spain are.  Sure, there are some throughlines, but whether its caganers (the little pooping guys in Nativity scenes) in Catalunya, pinxos (big tapas) in Basque country, or running bulls in Pamplona, Spain continues to both amaze and amuse.

Hasta pronto!