Our next stop in Spain was San Sebastian. We were excited to arrive after a six hour drive from Barcelona.
Our hotel was on the edge of old town, and was a perfect jumping-off spot to explore the city.
Pintxos in San Sebastian are world famous. There are pinxtos bars and restaurants everywhere throughout old town. This is acorn-fed jamon. It was every bit as good as it’s made out to be.
The view from our hotel room balcony. The weather in San Sebastian was much cooler than it had been in Barcelona.
We made lunch reservations at a Michelin recommended spot. The walk to the restaurant took us to a different part of the city.
The view from the restaurant, looking down towards the city.
One of the dishes for lunch was a squid tagliatelle. The noodles themselves were formed from the squid.
We took our time walking back into the city, and ended up walking through Cristina Enea park.
This tower was on one end of the bridge that we crossed back over on.
La Concha beach
The view behind us on La Concha beach.
It was nice to sit at the edge of the beach and people watch. Dogs were having a blast on the beach.
Walking past the beach, we came upon this palace, Miramar Palace. It was commissioned by the Spanish royal family in the late 19th century.
This was one of our favorite pinxos spots we found in San Sebastian. The food here was next-level.
The next day, we drove to the largest city in Spanish Basque country, Bilboa.
The Old Town area of Bilboa reminded us a lot of San Sebastian.
The Bilboa Puppy.
Bilboa is famous for being the location of the Guggenheim museum. We didn’t have time to go in, but the architecture of the actual museum is something else.
Outside the Guggenheim
After leaving Bilboa, we drove back up to the coast to visit Gaztelugatxeko, the filming location for Game of Thrones’ Dragonstone.
It is quite a hike to the actual island, and involves hundreds of steps. We decided the overhead view was good for us.
Dragonstone is a real place! Just no castle at the end. There is a recreation of a church that burned down on the island.
San Sebastian is famous for having the highest concentration of Michellin-starred restaurants outside of France. We had dinner at one of those restaurants, Kokotxa, located in Old Town.
Basque country extends into France. We drove to the small town of Saint-Jean-de-Luz for the day to get a taste of French Basque country. Our first stop was a famous bakery in the town, Maison Adams. We’re trying their traditional Basque cake here.
The buildings in this town have a very distinct look. Most are white with red roofs.
The waterfront in Saint-Jean-de-Luz
The buildings in this town have a very distinct look. Most are white with red roofs.
The harbor at Saint-Jean-de-Luz
We ate lunch in a large open square in the center of town.
The view from our table at lunch
The Church of St. John the Baptist, in the center of town.
We made our way back to San Sebastian and spent the afternoon walking around old town. We had come here for dinner each night, but had not yet actually seen it in daylight.
This square once hosted bull fights. Each window was a room that could be rented out to watch the fights.
The next leg of our trip took us to the capital of the Rioja wine region, Haro.
Through a friend’s connection, we were able to do a private tour of the oldest winery in the region, R. Lopez. They are famous for the Rioja reds. The tour was amazing, and took us through the underground tunnels used for aging, the historic (and still functional) areas for pressing and processing, and many other areas. We were asked not to share photos publicly of the inside though.
We had lunch at a nearby winery. There are several famous wineries all within walking distance in Haro.
Haro was nice because it was a glimpse into life in a smaller town in Spain, not yet filled with tourists.
We had lunch at a nearby winery. There are several famous wineries all within walking distance in Haro.
Haro was nice because it was a glimpse into life in a smaller town in Spain, not yet filled with tourists.
We found this overlook on the edge of town with a great view of the surrounding wine region.
We found ourselves really enjoying Haro. It was a little questionable when we first arrived, because noone was out. As the day progressed, more people came out as businesses opened up. We really enjoyed the local vibe.
The tapas in Haro were slightly different than what we had had in San Sebastian.
