Miramar Jauregia

In the evening I visited Miramar Jauregia (Palacio de Miramar). It was a summer residence of the Spanish royal family before 1931. It is now owned and operated by the city. University seminars and conventions are held here, as are some events, like receptions for the SSIFF.

The beachside road passes under a man-made tunnel as the palace connects to the sea above the tunnel. The part of La Concha to the west of the tunnel is Ondarreta beach.

And here's the view from the palace gardens.

Another view. Santa Clara Island is in the middle.

The architect of Miramar Palace was English and this is reflected in its features.

I liked the flower beds.

Other visitors did too.

The part of the lawn above the road tunnel.

People relaxing at end of day.

Ok, I think you're tired of seeing La Concha so I'll end with a picture of Artzain Onaren Katedrala (Cathedral Buen Pastor de San Sebastián) in the city centre. It's part of the Camino del Norte.

Tomorrow you'll get a new city, I promise.

San Sebastian by day

So, the first of a couple of full days in San Sebastian. I must have had some breakfast cereal in the hostel kitchen before venturing out. It was a sunny morning but a bit chilly as you can see from the street thermometer showing 12°C.

San Martin Merkatua is a shopping centre, and there is a produce market in the basement.

It was small but seemed to have the full complement of shop types.

Must have seafood of course.

I liked this giant pumpkin. I guess most people would buy a section of it.

At the beachfront, pigeons were warming up.

A beautiful azure day.

Tide was out, providing a canvas for sand artists.

Detail of one design.

The whole scene.

Igueldo, marking the western end of La Concha. I walked up the last visit and didn't take the funicular.

The ayuntamiento or city hall.

I would be attending a film screening in the evening in the San Sebastián International Film Festival. I noticed that it was on during my visit so I bought a ticket for one of the films. At last I can say that I've visited this prestigious festival.

The statue of Christ on top of Urgull in a telephoto shot.

A view of La Concha from the old town harbour.

On the way back to the centre of the beach, the political slogans in the sand.

London again, by day. The hotel that is.

A familiar saying rendered in Spanish: Life is too short to drink bad coffee. 👍

There is a gap of about 2 hours to this picture of my lunch. I seem to remember I shopped in a centre and bought some music CDs.

What looks like noodles in my salad are gulas. They are an ersatz version of the real thing, angulas, baby eels. The latter are so rare, expensive (think thousands of dollars per kg), and seasonal that a substitute was developed which allows gulas to be served in an ordinary lunch. It's made of the same stuff as surimi.

Next episode will be after siesta.

Evening in San Sebastian

I liked the ambience of San Sebastián, the buildings, the streets, and the people enjoying their evening stroll.

By the way, the Basque name Donostia is simply another form of San Sebastián. Don is a term of respect, from Latin Domine, equivalent to San or saint, and you can see the similarity between stian and stia.

I hankered for a pizza and I found a good one in a pizzeria near the main beach, La Concha. I had a napoletana which matched the name of the establishment: Neapolitan Authentic Pizza, or NAP. I love anchovies.

Hunger sated, I took a walk along the esplanade. One of the attractive features are the clusters of lamps at a couple of locations. They made a lovely contrast to the twilight.

Here I'm looking at Urgull, which marks the eastern end of La Concha, and is adjacent to the old town.

A curve around view of the bay.

People enjoying the lamplight.

You can also access the beach. I sent a picture to relatives, saying wouldn't you like to stay in London, well the Hotel Londres facing the beach, actually.

If I could afford it…

The clock and barometer towers at the middle of the esplanade that I remembered well from my first visit almost 30 years ago. Good to see them still there despite the beachside development.

This edifice wasn't there the last time.

Day's end on the beach.

I was curious how much it would cost to buy a bayside property. You'd have to be a millionaire it seems.