San Sebastián What a Great Place

April 28 - I'm still not feeling great and we got a late start today. Aparna makes a cup of coffee and we are offered a slice of rice cake. It's not overly sweet and has a very smooth texture. We finally head to the train station to make our plans for Barcelona. We are staying outside of the old town in a neighborhood called Gros. It is less than a mile to the old town and it has its own beach. It's not quite so central but it's a good location, a little less touristy and cheaper. The beach isn't as protected but that makes it the surfers beach. 

We take the long way to the train station so we can walk along the waterfront. The train station isn't well marked and we end up circling around a bit. Finally we realize this small building is the train station. The gentleman at the ticket booth doesn't speak much English but between my bad French and my app showing train schedules we make a reservation for Barcelona on Sunday. The original train we wanted is sold out so we won't be getting in until 10 pm. 

From there we head to the the tourists bureau. They redirect us to a fancy hotel for wine tours. I'm pretty hungry at this point so we find some food. Aparna wants to sit in the sun but I find a place in my stay.com that is near by. Luckily some of the staff speaks English. It's strange to be handed a plate and just start grabbing food off a counter. It's like you are at a friends house. 

Sardines

Peppers with anchovies and a mushroom crepe. 

Grilled squid stuffed with crab. 

Now that we have some food we head to the Maria Christina hotel. They have a cooking school and tours but they are really pricey. They want 300 euro per person for wine tours. Ouch! Even their tapas class is 110 per person. I can eat a lot of tapas for that price. We pass and head back toward Gros. Our hosts told us about a wine shop that may be able to help us. 

Along the way we stop for more food. I order cider but they don't understand English. Google translate to the rescue -sidra. 

They have more rustic food here. 

Tripe and snouts. This would be great over pasta. 

Blood sausage - we try to remember what it was like in Seoul but that seems so long ago. 

We start towards the wine shop but I'm dead. We vaguely remember where they said it was. We don't see it and I need to nap. We go back to our room so I can crash. Aparna finds the wine shop but they are closed late afternoon and open up after 6. While I'm sleeping she enjoys the waterfront. 

I slowly get motivated after my nap and meet Aparna down by the water. We stop for a decongestant for me. The wine shop is a tiny place. The owner speaks a little English and a customer there does as well. However I fallback to Google translate. 

I feel a little dumb but it gets the job done. It's great I hold up the phone and he goes through a bunch of flyers looking for an English one. He asks if I want him to mark wineries. I ask if I can hire a driver. They talk some more and mention the Maria Christina hotel. I tell them how expensive that is they agree. Oh well, we will just have to settle for drinking. 

We start with cava. 

I order some sardines. These are crazy good and in very flavorful olive oil. 

We stay for another drink so more food. 

Iberico ham. 

A local even offers us a taste of a sweet wine he brought in. This was a great experience. We head back as we are going out to dinner with our hosts. I told them after 9:30 so we can see the sunset. We go to the beach but it's not the greatest conditions for a sunset. We stay for it and head back. 

We are eating at local place just down the block. Thursday night in this neighborhood is cheap pintxo and beer night so the streets are crowded and loud. There are a lot of college kids here. Fortunately the restaurant we are going to does not  participate so it's not crazy. I order sidra as I know Jordan likes it too. 

I can't pour from the same distance. It's to aerate your cider like wine. 

The omelette here is really good. Also the tomatoes are super fresh. 

We got to try bacaloa here. 

What a great meal. Over dinner we discuss our day. They are impressed we ate tripe and snout. Pilar offers to make us a meatball dinner. Wow what great people. We graciously accept and call it a night. 

A small bite of rice cake before bed.