Historic. Vibrant. Medieval. Food. Cycling. This is Girona, Spain and a place I call home. Girona is an ancient city more than two thousand years old in Catalonia, Spain. It is just an hour long train ride north of Barcelona. In Girona you won’t see in any Spanish flags, only the red and yellow striped Catalan flags… Read more →
Let me preface this article by saying that I love Italy. Every part of it I find absolutely fascinating. I love the food, I love the people, I love the language, I even love driving, I love it all. So on the long and rather somber drive back to Spain from the Dolomites of the Giro d’italia, it was… Read more →
Today Was the start of the 2015 Giro d’Italia. It was anything but normal as the racers faced a short and intense Team Time Trial held on a narrow bike path along the ocean. This was my first grand tour stage, as well as my first Team Time Trial so there was a lot for me to take in. First… Read more →
Stage 1 of Pais Vasco was a 162 km stage that started and finished in the beautiful city of Bilbao. The stage was made up of three categorized climbs on the Alto de Morga, and twice up the Alto del Vivero from 2 different directions. Right from the start three riders broke free and formed the day’s breakaway.… Read more →
We are taking our journey west to Pays Basque, a region located in the western Pyrenees that spans the border between France and Spain on the Atlantic coast. Our first stop, San Sebastian, a little town situated on the North Central Coast of Spain. Known for it’s tapas and wine. A destination frequented by foreigners but it doesn’t feel touristy at all. I stayed at the Astoria7 hotel about a mile from the beach, when traveling I try and always pick hotels with restaurants and activities that I can walk to. My only regret is that I didn’t stay longer. Here’s a peek into my mini-trip.
First things first, a bike ride. We checked out the second to last stage and time trial of Pais Vasco. Which started in Orio and includes the steepest climb I’ve ever seen (28% grade) which can only be described as a death march. Get your compacts on!
It ended like this.
Lucky for us the weather cleared up and we were able to walk to our dinner reservations on the beach. As I walked back to the hotel I thought to myself, San Sebastian, just like the rest of Spain has taught me it’s okay to slow down and not always be “doing.” To eat my meals slowly, to get off my phone, to live life and just breathe it all in.
Happier and warmer times.
Old Town, San Sebastian
Astoria7 a beautiful hotel with a cinematic theme. I especially loved all the Audrey Hepburn memorabilia.
With love,
-Kourtney
The day after the race we decided to stay overnight in Barcelona and explore. Barcelona is a beautiful city nestled between mountains and the mediterranean sea. I wanted to see as much of it as I possibly could. (and we did with about 15 miles of walking)
We grabbed a Starbucks, did some shopping, checked out the Boqueria Market and walked all around the city. Then we hiked up Montjuic and took the cable car up to the Montjuic Castle. After, we saw stunning views of the city from the Torre de Sant Sebastià cable car which dropped us off right by the hotel. Here are some photos from our adventure.
The La Boqueria Market is one of Europe’s largest and most famous food markets and a must see in Barcelona. A truly magnificent maze of stalls selling fruit, meat, cheese, spices and everything else under the sun. It is packed wall to wall with tourists and locals a like.
Fresh fruit juice for 1 euro.
People always rate their travel experiences by what went wrong. Well my flight was delayed, I missed my connection, the airline lost my luggage and I left a “personal item,” in the seat pocket in front of me AGAIN. Unfortunately for you, many of these things are bound to happen and outside the limits of your control. You’re really just… Read more →
