Bilbao and San Sebastian

En Route – Bilbao

I got lucky when looking for flights out of Sevilla and was able to travel to the very north of Spain on the cheap. For $80, I found myself in Bilbao.

Bilbao hosts a wealth of art and culture, including a prestigious Guggenheim museum. Unfortunately, the museum was closed. Instead, I walked through the city with new friend Tom and went out for a lunch of the Basque Country’s alternative to tapas, a tapa-on-bread dish called a pincho. In the afternoon I took a bus to my final destination in the north, San Sebastian.

San Sebastian

San Sebastian is a lovely small town next to the ocean on the northern edge of Spain, only an hour or two from the French border. It is host to the famous San Sebastian film festival, which was taking place during my time there. (We took the opportunity to go to one of the festival’s films, which was extremely boring).

The city is small, but charming. It has the “colored buildings with iron bars” look of other Spanish cities, but with the added Basque flavor of the Basque language and a plethora of pincho bars. I spent my days here surfing and sharing wine and pinchos with friends. Another highlight was lunch with my friend Maider, who I’d met in Morocco (she lives quite close to San Sebastian).