More Rain and Free Tour

Tuesday March 24 was another all rain day - high about 8C.  We decided to take the Go Local San Sebastian Free Tour which started at 11:00 a.m.  We went for a coffee first at Cafe Panchito, our morning coffee stop.

Cafe Panchito

We got to our rendezvous spot and met our tour guide- Lineri, who filled us in on the history of San Sebastian.  There had originally been a small community of Basque fisherman on the Bay who became famous for whaling and cod fishing.  San Sebastian (Donostia in the Basque language) was at one time the port of Navarre.  The Basques retained their independence and were not brought under Spanish rule until the16th century.  There was a large shipbuilding industry and a number of explorers were of Basque origin.  Lineri told us that no one really knows the origin of the Basque language.

What is called the Old Town now, was the location of the original city.  It was surrounded by a wall with two locked gates until the 19th century.

In 1808, Napoleon captured San Sebastian and in 1813 the English and Portuguese came to the city, with the permission of the Spanish government, to drive out the French.  However, on August 31, 1813, they destroyed the city by burning all its buildings and killing most of its residents.  Only two churches and one street survived (where the English and Portuguese had been quartered).  The city was rebuilt and the population is now around 190,000.  

In 1845, the city attracted Queen Isabella II, who was seeking relief from a skin ailment in the icy Atlantic waters.  She was followed by much of the aristocracy of the time, and San Sebastian became a popular summer retreat for Madrid's well-to-do.  They brought their entourages and chefs from France, which helps explain the rise of the food culture.

Basque explorer

Lineri told us that there had been three casinos in San Sebastian at one time. They had also housed cabarets and restaurants that the aristocracy frequented.  Only one casino remains.  The present City Hall occupies the site of one of the former Casinos.  The post-modern convention centre and concert hall, called the Kursaal, was designed by Spanish architect Rafael Moneo and built in 1999.  It is located at the mouth of the Urumea River.  It was built on the site of another casino, that was a building well-liked by the residents.

According to Lineri, the older locals have a mixed view of the Kursaal.  The building is known as Moneo's cubes.   However, the building does fit with the dramatic setting and is quite a stunning building.  The waves crash against the rocks and it is quite dramatic.  Lineri said there have been flooding problems in recent years when it is stormy.

Kursaal- convention centre, concert hall and restaurant

San Sebastian's City Hall housed in a former casino

There are three Basque provinces and San Sebastian is the capital of one of them.  We walked over to  the Provincial building.  The Basques have a unique fiscal relationship with Madrid.  They get the tax money collected for the area and can then disperse it as they see fit.  Lineri said the Catalans are presently seeking this kind of fiscal autonomy.

Lineri in front of gazebo near Provincial Building

Provincial building- designed in 1878 and finished in 1890 after a fire

There is a beautiful green space in front of the Provincial building, with lots of trees, most non-native, including a lovely monkey puzzle tree.

Foreign trees in Gipuzkoa Plaza in front of Provincial building

We walked over to the outdoor and indoor Market we had visited earlier in the week.  Nearby was a statue of a drummer and a plaque with the words to "la Marcha de San Sebastian." the city anthem. written by Raimundo Sarriegi.  January 20 commemorates the 1813 destruction of San Sebastian, but has been turned into a 24 hour party, where everyone drums and sings the anthem.

Marcha de San Sebastian

Drummer in front of plaque

Lineri sang us the tune.

We also learned that chocolate is a big thing in San Sebastian, as the cacao bean was brought here from Venezuela.  She showed us an interesting looking chocolate store in the Old Town, but it was closed on Tuesdays.

We walked over to the wide street called "The Boulevard", where the tourist bureau is located.  The row of tulips delineates the line of the old city walls.

Tulips delineating old walls of the city

We headed into the Old Town to Constitucion Plaza where the balconies have numbers.  This dates from the late 19th century when the square was used for bullfighting and spectators could rent balconies from the city to view the bullfights.  The square also housed Donostia's old City Hall.

Old City Hall in Plaza Constitucion

We passed a shop with clay figures representing Basque sports.  Handball is very big.

Clay figures representing Basque sports

 We saw one of the churches (San Vincente) that had survived the 1813 fire in Old Town.

San Vincente Church- late Gothic

Handball court- where old prison yard used to be

We saw one of the few old houses that had survived the 1813 fire.

                                                                            A survivor of the 1813 fire

At one end of a street in Old Town, one could see in the distance the Cathedral Buen Pastor (Good Shepherd), which sits in the Plaza where our Pension is located.  The Cathedral dates from the 19th century and was constructed in the neb-gothic style.

View uptown to Cathedral Buen Pastor

We also passed Santa Maria Basilica, which was the other church that survived the 1813 fire.  It has an image of San Sebastian on its facade.

Basilica de Santa Maria

We walked up part of the big hill (Monte Urgull) for a view of the wonderful urban beach, Playa de la Concha (sea shell).  Lineri said that the tide comes in a lot further than it used to and people are always having to move their towels back.

View of Playa de La Concha

Our Tour ended once we walked back down the hill.  Lineri recommended Araba Etxea for lunch.  We really enjoyed our private tour and Lineri was an excellent guide.

Araba Etxea

The pintxos were beautifully displayed and we had a nice meal.

Tuna with anchovy and smoked salmon with egg, shrimp and olive pintxos

Display of pintxos

Patatas Bravas with an aioli sauce- very good

We also got a piece of chocolate from Otaegui, a shop dating back to 1886.

Chocolate goodies

We wandered back to the Pension, stopping for a coffee along the way.  We needed to change our socks and shoes which had gotten wet in the rain.

For dinner, we went to La Cuchara de San Telmo, which had been highly recommended and hadn't been open on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday lunch. The kitchen is amazing, focusing on all things pig, which are cooked with flavourful sauces and beautifully plated.  We chatted to a very nice couple from Phoenix who had just arrived in San Sebastian Tuesday morning and had already taken a cooking class.

At the bar with our veal cheeks

We had veal cheeks in a chickpea pure; roasted pig's ear; suckling pig; and foie gras with a pineapple sauce.  The red wine was also excellent.

Veal cheeks with chickpea pure

Fois Gras with pineapple

Suckling pig- slow cooked in beer

Roasted pig's ear- beautifully presented.

As we were leaving, it started to rain heavily again.  Luckily, the Pension is only a ten minute walk from Old Town.  The food in this town is measuring up to all the hype. So many flavours and no need  to order large portions.