Winding Up Our Stay in San Sebastian

On our last morning in San Sebastian, we get up and look out our hotel window to be rewarded with the incredible view.  What a hook to bring us back again soon.

 Another beautiful morning

 Messages in sand

We take a final (for this trip) walk through the city, strolling on Playa de la Concha beach, following Paseo Nuevo around Mount Urgull, and then heading through Old Town into Constitution Square for lunch.

 Strolling on the beach

 Along Paseo Nuevo

 Constitution Square for lunch

We've had the octopus appetizer here before, now it's time to have the octopus main course (with spicy potato puree and kimchee mayonnaise), along with the taco special.  They mistakenly bring the octopus starter instead of the main course, so we have both!

Tacos and octopus starters, octopus main course

On our way out of the square, we pass a shop selling Iberian ham and chips.  Too bad we're full!

Iberian ham and chips

The streets of Old Town are packed on this sunny, rain-free day and everyone is out having a great time shopping, dining, and catching up with friends and neighbors.

 Everyone is enjoying the sunny day

Soon it is time to go and we head over to the bus station to catch a bus to the Bilbao Airport, where we'll fly to London and connect the next morning to San Francisco.  The bus winds through the beautiful Basque countryside and we get a final view of the region.

 Basque countryside

At the Bilbao airport, we get a last chance to purchase Iberian ham near the gates.  Unfortunately, we won't be able to bring it home, so we regrettably must pass.

Iberian ham shop at the Bilbao airport

And, in London it's a whole different culinary experience as we dine on fish and chips with mushy peas and tartar sauce.

Dining in England

Toto, we're not in Kansas any more (from The Wizard of Oz)!  But, we'll return.

Dining in San Sebastian, Spain

We head out to dinner in San Sebastian and stop at a pintxos stop that looks good as we walk by.  They have several kinds of octopus and I have to have them all!

Mussels and octopus ready to serve

Octopus two ways, another octopus, plus ham/mushroom and pepper/sardine/olive

We continue on our pintxo crawl (it is my birthday) and, at the next stop, have a glass of wine as we watch the diners inside and the passing traffic in the street.  The sausages on baguette look good, but we're full

 Next stop

Very tempting!

The next night, we decide to try San Sebastian fine dining and wander the streets of Old Town in the afternoon, reading menus posted outside the restaurants.  We choose La Muralla and return in the evening for an incredible experience.

 La Muralla

We start with Iberian ham cut by hand and mushroom and fungi ravioli.

Iberian ham, mushroom/fungi ravioli

The starter is followed by roasted hake on confit potatoes and sliced squid in black ink.

Roasted hake, sliced squid

And, for desert, baked cheesecake and a Basque cheese plate.

 Cheesecake, cheese plate

At the end, a glass of local liquor for the happy diners.

 Finishing up

Wow, we have to do this more often!  And, we do!

For our final dinner in San Sebastian, we wander back into Old Town and pick another pinxtos restaurant for great assorted plates of ham, vegetables, shrimp, sausages, and cod.

Final pinxtos stop

Our choices

We then wander through Old Town and stop for a glass of wine at a familiar spot, before heading back to our hotel.

Final stop

The walk back through Old Town and along the promenade is beautiful and we enjoy the sound of the water in the bay and the sights of the city as we stroll along.

 Through the park in front of city hall

 Along the promenade

What a great city!

Aiete Park and Walking Back Through San Sebastian

Aiete Park (Parkea Aiete) is known for its impressive gardens and for the mansion in the park that served as the summer residence of Queen Isabel II, Queen Victoria of England, and Queen Maria Cristina along with Alphonse XII.  The mansion is currently a cultural center for the city of San Sebastian.

To get to Aiete Park, we walk along Playa de la Concha and, in the middle of the beach, take steps up into town, turning right onto the street Aldapeta Galtzada at the top of the steps and walking about 2 km (1.25 miles) to the park.

 Steps up from the bay

 Mansion in the park

The gardens and floral displays in the park are spectacular and we wander the paths into the ravines and along the streams.

 Paths and gardens of Aiete Park

From the park, we descend to the Urumea River (Urumea Itsasaderra) and walk along the river through the city to its mouth between Gros and Mount Urgull.

 Along the Urumea River

At Gros, we're back on familiar ground and head around Mount Urgull on the Paseo Nuevo, once again enjoying the sights and sounds of the ocean and the island and hills in the distance.

 Sights of the Sea along Paseo Nuevo

And, we reward ourselves with a gelatto (pistachio) for finding our way through town to the park and back.

Reward