July 11, 2015

San Sebastian, Spain

I woke up at 08:30, showered, dressed, and got ready. I then met Michelangelo at 09:00 in the hotel lobby. Together, we walked to the bus station in Pamplona, where we found the bus to San Sebastian and boarded it. At 09:30, we departed the bus station and made our way through the cloudy mountainside (so much for ideal beach weather).

Street leading to the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd in San Sebastian.
Street leading to the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd in San Sebastian.
The Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, which was built in 1897 AD in the Neo-Gothic style.
The Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, which was built in 1897 AD in the Neo-Gothic style.
Inside the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd.
Inside the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd.
The facade of the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd.
The facade of the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd.
The beach at the Bay of La Concha in San Sebastian.
The beach at the Bay of La Concha in San Sebastian.
The Town Hall of San Sebastian (formerly a casino that was built in 1887 AD).
The Town Hall of San Sebastian (formerly a casino that was built in 1887 AD).
Another view of the Town Hall.
Another view of the Town Hall.
Street in San Sebastian.
Street in San Sebastian.
Looking at the beach to the northeast, seen from Urgull Hill.
Looking at the beach to the northeast, seen from Urgull Hill.
The city center of San Sebastian from Urgull Hill.
The city center of San Sebastian from Urgull Hill.
Steps leading up to the Castillo de la Mota on Urgull Hill.
Steps leading up to the Castillo de la Mota on Urgull Hill.
A cannon placed in the Castillo de la Mota.
A cannon placed in the Castillo de la Mota.
San Sebastian and the Bay of La Concha, seen from near the top of Urgull Hill.
San Sebastian and the Bay of La Concha, seen from near the top of Urgull Hill.
A historic depiction of San Sebastian when it was heavily fortified.
A historic depiction of San Sebastian when it was heavily fortified.
Statue of Jesus Christ at the highest point of Urgull Hill.
Statue of Jesus Christ at the highest point of Urgull Hill.
Constitution Square.
Constitution Square.
Closeup of the buildings surrounding Constitution Square.
Closeup of the buildings surrounding Constitution Square.
Another view of the buildings in Constitution Square.
Another view of the buildings in Constitution Square.
The six tapas and beer I had for lunch.
The six tapas and beer I had for lunch.
Sculpture of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza.
Sculpture of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza.
A restaurant/cafe built on the beach.
A restaurant/cafe built on the beach.
A man drawing in the wet sand.
A man drawing in the wet sand.

We reached San Sebastian at 10:44 and exited the bus at the station. Michelangelo and I then walked toward the old city, stopping off at a café on the way to have a small breakfast (I had a cappuccino and a cream pastry). We then walked to the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd (also known as “San Sebastian Cathedral”) and entered inside. The cathedral was built in 1897 AD in the Neo-Gothic style. We walked around its nave, looking around, before exiting the cathedral. We then walked to the beach, which looked nice, but (unfortunately) the weather was overcast and it was about to rain; Michelangelo and I had brought our towels and swim trunks since we were planning on dedicating at least two hours to the sun and ocean; however, at this point in the day, we would have to postpone our plans (surprisingly, the beach had quite a few people on it, undeterred by the shitty weather). Next, we walked through the old town and up Urgull Hill to Castillo de la Mota. At this point, it began to rain, but we pressed on, entering inside the museum inside the castle, where we looked around at the exhibits (which were all in Spanish – two types). We then continued up to the highest point of the hill and castle, where – since 1950 AD – a tall statue of Jesus Christ stands. From this high point, we took many photographs of the surrounding area and Michelangelo and I both agreed that San Sebastian was much better than Pamplona in terms of its natural beauty, historical buildings, and small town atmosphere – it also helps that San Sebastian has a few nice beaches. We then decided it was time to eat, so we descended the hill and reentered the old town. We walked to Constitution Square (which I really liked thanks to the uniform buildings surrounding three of its sides) and had lunch (I had beer and a plate of six tapas). We then walked to another bar and each had a cup of beer. After that bar, as we started to wander around, it began to rain; so, we took cover under another bar and had another beer. After the rain stopped (thankfully for the day), we wandered around the city some more, going down to the beach to check it out and then in to another café, where I had a cappuccino and a chocolate muffin. Then, since we could see some blue in the sky and since the weather had improved slightly, we both went down to the beach, changed in to our swim trunks, and laid out on the sand. The air was warm and the ocean was a bit cool (though I was able to get used to it after immersing myself inside for a while), the only thing that would’ve made this better was the sun. We stayed out there for almost two hours before packing it up. After 18:00, we walked back in to the old town, found a small square with a bar and two restaurants, and sat down. We ordered beer from the bar and food from the adjacent restaurant (I had slices of pork loin, French fries, peppers, and fried eggs – it was delicious). After dinner, we walked back to the bus station and stopped inside a nearby café where we both had a cup of coffee (today was nothing but beer and coffee). We then found the bus back to Pamplona, climbed aboard, and departed San Sebastian at 20:16.

Drunks out and about in Pamplona on Friday night.
Drunks out and about in Pamplona on Friday night.

We arrived back at Pamplona after 21:30 and walked back to the hotel, agreeing to meet up with each other around midnight to see the town, which was now as crowded as ever with people (Saturday night during the San Fermin festival is apparently the night to party). I relaxed inside my hotel room until Michelangelo called me after midnight. I changed in to my San Fermin uniform and met up with him downstairs in the hotel lobby. We then walked in to the old town and could hardly believe the debauchery before us; there were so many people drinking, vomiting, and pissing everywhere. In fact, I’m certain that 90% of the wet spots on the street were due to urine and in some places, there were small puddles and streams of piss. The guys didn’t care and I saw a couple of them urinating with everything in full view. The girls tried a little harder to conceal their shame. Michelangelo and I walked from bar to bar and we drank a good deal of beer throughout the night. At one point we returned to the Café Iruna (having vague memories of going there on the night of the seventh) and then we went to a nearby underground club; each indoor bar/club felt like a sauna with the crowds radiating body heat and the outside, with its unseasonably cool and breezy weather felt rather nice. Later on, we made our way to a bar on some small street and drank there for a while before calling it quits around 04:00. We both returned to the hotel and went up to our separate rooms. It didn’t take long for me to pass out and fall in to a deep sleep.

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