I got to San Sebastián really late on a Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. (See the entry "The process of getting to Hannah and San Sebastian..." for details) The minute Datev and I walked in Hannah's apartment we were ambushed by 20 or so of the nicest and most fun people I have met in a while. Datev and I felt so comfortable with all of Hannah's friends in the first 10 minutes of meeting them. Since I had been traveling for over a day, I was starving. Thankfully, Hannah and her friends had just finished "Family Dinner" so there was some pasta leftover for me to enjoy. Well, try to enjoy...the pasta was extremely spicy and not like any I am used to. This is when I met Sam. Sam reassured me that he could just splash water on my face to cool me down if needed. I knew I would get along with that kid the instant those words left his mouth-he is a goofball to say the least. I also got to meet the infamous Morgan! I had heard so much about Morgan through mine and Hannah's daily-to-every-other-day skype dates so I kind of felt like I already knew her. No surprise when I say Morgan was awesome!
We hung out in Hannah's apartment for maybe thirty minutes before all of her friends could take it no longer and insisted on going out. Datev and I tried multiple times to let them go ahead and we could catch up in a bit, but they weren't buying it. They insisted we go out with them completely disregarding the fact that we had been traveling for two days. Datev and I were extremely tired and dirty but we got up as much energy as possible so that we could use this time to get to know Hannah's closest friends. While on our way to Buga (a bar that all the study abroad kids made their place to go) I was introduced to Kevin. Kevin had heard from Hannah that I was obsessed with the show Modern Family. Thus, one of the first things he said to me was a Phil Dunphy quote. Kevin is funny...he likes to call himself a California Golden Bear...even if he does live in Reno. The group went to Buga and then to Be Bop Bar...Datev and I slowly followed, sitting on benches whenever possible. We finally convinced Hannah to take us home so we could shower and try to catch up on sleep...jet-lag was definitely winning at this point.
The next morning we woke up a little later than usual but refreshed from the 8 or so hours we had slept. We got our suits on and headed to the first frutería that we could find. Fruterías are all over Spain and I love it! They are stores that just offer fruit and vegetables and sometimes fresh bread. It is a healthy and cheap breakfast...especially compared to the thousands of croissants around town that I sometimes indulge in. Finally, we were on our way to Zurriola Beach where all the USAC kids hang out. I really enjoyed how they did beach days...volleyball, tanning, playing in the waves, skimboarding, eating bocadillas, playing football, etc. I could do that all day, everyday.
That night Hannah had her last soccer game! She and a few girls from her program joined a girl's soccer team earlier that semester. Datev and I went to cheer her on, as did many others in the program. It was a really cool soccer complex that had multiple 5v5 games being played on three fields. There was also a neat bar area where locals can watch soccer games on TV. Hannah's team didn't win, but they did provide some quality entertainment! After, we played a pick up game against the boys...needless to say the girls won!
The next day was another beach day! Thankfully, my friends love the water, sand, and sun as much as me, if not more! Hannah was basking in the sun as much as possible so she could beat a few of the boys in program in a "Who is tanner?" competition... I think she may have won against Sam...
At night we would all hang out together at the beach or someone's apartment. It was the last few days of Hannah's program so she wanted to spend as much time with the others as possible...I don't blame her! All her friends were super nice and fun. A lot of the kids were from University of Nevada-Reno or Chico State and then a few from other places like Washington, Maine and Indiana. They have all already planned to reunite in Chico for Halloween...it is possible Hannah is already counting down the days.
Thursday night we all went to Bataplán Disco which is right on La Concha Beach. In Spain, Disco does not refer to the 70s, platform shoes, or disco balls...instead, it refers to clubs with the latest American music or techno music. I didn't understand the "disco" thing when Hannah used to talk about it...I pictured her dancing like John Travolta in "Saturday Night Fever". It was a great night, full of dancing and lots of laughing.
On Friday, Hannah, Datev, Jeff, Keven and I hiked to the top of Monte Urgull where there is a huge statue of Jesus! It is not a bad hike at all...it is breathtaking-not because of the difficulty, but rather the view.
After our hike we were all a little bit hungry so the boys thought it was a great time to try out "Doner Kebabs". I'm not referring to the sticks that have meat and veggies on them. Kebabs here are more like stuffed pitas or gyros. Hannah, Datev and I (all vegetarians) got the falafel kebabs. We ate them while sitting on La Concha Beach...simple but perfect.
Later on that night everyone went to dinner at an Italian restaurant because it was Payton's last night (Payton is the boy on the right in the Bataplán picture) and that was his choice of restaurant. After dinner we all got gelato, which has been one of my only problems in Spain. Especially after I learned how to ask for a sample in español, "Puedo probar stracciatella?"
Because it was Hannah's program's last week and they were trying to maximize their time together, they would all participate in "fort night". Kevin was the host of Fort Night...meaning he would get all of the mattresses from his house and put them in the living room floor. He even put up sheets so that it looked like we were in a tent. Datev and I knew that the USAC kids wanted to reminisce about their semester so we kept extremely quiet and still on the furthest possible inch of the mattresses. Eventually, we just fell asleep while "fake sleeping" as the others shared stories.
San Sebastián is 30-45 minutes from the boarder of France. So, on Saturday we took a bus to the last possible stop in Spain. We then walked around the small little town we were in and got some tapas before taking a small ferry to France!
This was my first time in France! We were in small town called Hendaye that had a harbor with lots of sail boats and a beautiful beach. Super cute! We walked to a little convenient store where we got cheese, baguettes, and French beer...how appropriate! It was weird being in a place that didn't speak Spanish. A lot of the places spoke Basque because we were still in Basque Country. Basque is the language that those who live in the Basque Country in Spain can speak in order to communicate with those living in the Basque Country in France and vise versa. It is kind of a mix of French and Spanish? Not exactly sure. We hung out for a little on the beach and then took a small walk to the train station. We took the train back because it was faster than the bus... plus some had gotten bus sick on the way.
That night we had "Family Dinner" at Tommy and Dan's apartment! Hannah, Datev and I were responsible for the salad. Hannah had made one earlier in the semester that everyone loved so we just helped her make it. Kevin made paella! He had learned how to make it from his Basque roommate that he had during the fall semester in San Sebastián. For dessert, Jeff and I made s'mores using a lighter and pink marshmallows. They were super delicious and I had one each time that I made one for someone else....I ate too many! S'mores s'mores s'mores.....
After paella and s'mores, we all walked down to the beach to hang out! I don't think I will ever get tired of just sitting on a beach with my friends...or even alone. I absolutely love it!
The next day was pretty sad because Hannah had to pack up her room. She stuffed all her clothes in this huge duffle bag that she was going to send back to the States. She kept a few things to put in her backpacking backpack that would have to last her the entire month of June while she and Datev explored Germany, Italy, France and Spain. Later that night we went to get pintxos at a small bar and then gelato with the group so they could say bye to a few more people. Pintxos are like tapas but more "finger food" friendly. It is usually a piece of bread with some kind of meat or cheese on top. Tapas tend to be small plates that are easier to share with others. I really really love Pintxos. Gelato...well, I can't seem to turn it down. After, we met up with another kid from the program and went to the roof of his apartment building. It had a beautiful view of San Sebastián!
The next day was our last day in San Sebastián! I was super bummed and I had just gotten there so I can't imagine how Hannah felt. Hannah loves her friends SO much and goodbyes are the worst for her so I was kind of dreading this day...I knew it was going to be so hard on Hannah. I hate seeing her sad :( but she didn't pretty good! We started off by going to lunch with Keelcy (Hannah's sweet roommate from Washington who goes to school in Idaho). After Hannah mailed her huge suitcase we headed to the beach! We were greeted by Sam and Kevin who had written a song..."Reno to Chico...Chico to Reno"...or something along those lines.
After the beach, we hurried home and changed so that we could meet everyone on top of Monte Urgull (where the big statue of Jesus is). Once there, all the kids from Hannah's program were going to pop Champagne and toast to their unforgettable semester! It was during sunset and it was one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen. Needless to say it was a bitter/sweet moment for Hannah and her friends...but it was so special and they all appreciated it so much! Datev and I even felt sad because we knew we had to say bye to all our new friends that night as well.
After the sunset, we all went to get pintxos and kalimotxos!! Kalimotxo is a Basque drink...red wine and coca cola! I never drink soda in the States but I really do like this combination! I would never have thought that before trying it. We ended up finishing the night at Buga....best night for sure! It was super fun...everyone was dancing! Hannah got do the stanky leg which made mine and everyone's night.
I'm not sure how people in Spain do it...they stay out SO late. I guess they eat dinner later, start going out later but I just can't get the hang of staying out till 5AM. However, this is what we did this night. We had a train to catch at 5:45AM so we went home at 5, took naps, and walked to the train station at 5:30 after Hannah saying her goodbyes to Kevin and Jeff. We had to catch a train that would start the journey to Paris! We knew would be on the train all day to Paris so we didn't mind not sleeping. We did that on the train so it was totally worth staying out late on our last night in San Sebastián! It was such a fun week, with no stress or problems. Pure relaxation and fun with two of my best friends and then quite a few new good friends!! I could go on and on about my week....
And we're off to Paris!!
Adiós España, bonjour Paris!
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