Welcome to Spain

After leaving London,  I took the bus to San Sebastian, where I was then driven to Deba, which is located along the coast in the northern part of Spain, in the Basque country.  It’s a small village halfway between San Sebastian and Bilbao, with the ocean on one side and mountains keeping it a private hide away. We spent two weeks there during which I got burnt (again),drank cider like it was going out of style (I can also now ‘throw it‘ like a pro) and celebrated the feast of San Roke. If that’s not a holiday, I don’t know what is. 

Our days would be spent sleeping in before eating and heading to the beach for a couple of hours. Lunchtime was normally around 4pm and we’d either go back to the apartment or else head to one of the beach cafes and chow down on some of the best burgers I’ve ever had in my life. After lunch, it was back to the beach for a couple of hours as the tide came in and then it was time to head back to the apartment to wash up and get ready to head out. Pre-dinner drinks would take place in one of the squares where all the family and friends would meet up and the kids would run around playing until about 9pm at which point we’d head to whichever restaurant we were eating at that evening. Even in France we didn’t generally eat very late and so it did take a bit of time getting used to the new  schedule, especially after a long day when all I really wanted was to eat and go to bed. One thing to note: the Basque

All the food I ate was absolutely delicious, which is what everyone will tell you about the food in the Basque country. Izenbe had the best croquetas that I’ve yet to have (and I’ve had my fair share) as well as a delicious tortilla, which is a Spanish omelette made with potato, onions and, of course, eggs. Urgain is a little fancier and a place we visited several times. I think my favourite dish had to be a hake plate on one of our last evenings. They also have delicious peppers and calamari. For a bar I’d recommend, there’s Seven Clovers, which is an Irish bar with free wifi, which, since we didn’t have it in our apartment, made it my favourite place by default. The picture above is from Seven Clovers, and their tapas were delicious.

‘Out of the way’ doesn’t even begin to describe this part of Spain. While bigger cities were overflowing with tourists and people, Deba had occasional backpackers and yes, vacationers like us, but most of them were people who had been going for years, meaning there was a friendly, comfortable, relaxed atmosphere. Which is really what a vacation is all about.

Things I’m Loving:

+ On how we learn best – (Interesting.)
+ The best six words to say to your kids – (For all those parents out there.)
+ These shoes – (Which are really not normally my style.)
+ This drink – (Because it’s the weekend.)