Tuesday, September 08, 2009

madrid - getaria 4 - 6.09.2009


expand map

back to the north, and more specificaly, back to the basque country. i will probably have repeated entries on this region for several reasons. the first being i have family ties to san sebastian and also, i believe it is a beautiful place, with beautiful people, not to mention the food and the great surf (specially during september and february).

there are changes since last entry on the same trip last year. the most obvious one would be the new section of the AP-1 express way that goes from vitoria to eibar, and if you are on a schedule and need to get to san sebastian, it will save you anything from 20 to 45 minutes for just under 6€. it can be a little tricky though to get on the right path. once the first section of the AP-1 is over around miranda de ebro, make sure you follow directions to vitoria/san sebastian on the E-5 (which you´ll see in a little green rectangle in the big blue road signs indicating the different directions). after you drive past vitoria (do not go into the city if you dont need/want to visit vitoria) pay attention to the indications to get on to the AP-1 to san sebastian.

the tricky part

again, when i got to my final destination i did the same route to san sebastian through igueldo as i did last year. there are changes on this road to since they built a new access to the A-8 from the N-634 around orio. you will see a big roundabout past orio on the way to san sebastian, with all the necessary indications. make sure you follow the directions towards igueldo.

thanks eugenia for taking the pic :)
you will see this building at the roundabout on the way to san sebastian from orio on the N-634 take a left here

earlier this summer, i met
austin and sara. they are traveling around the world and ended in san sebastian almost by chance. after an unfortunate series of events which brought them from rome to santander and then san sebastian. it all ended up being not unfortunate at all and gave me and my younguest brother the chance to meet two of the most amazing persons ive come across ever. sara is a great photographer and austin is a great surfer and a talented video artist. they were nice enough to make an incredible video of me and my ride on a road that has a special meaning to me since i was a kid.



thanks so much guys :)

we spent the morning on the road, took some time in san sebastian to do things that needed to be done and spent the afternoon in zarautz at the san miguel pro surf world championship.



i had not been to this event in years. it used to happen early in september and used to be sponsored by o.p. instead. then they stopped organising it and now its back. it brought back great memories from the past, and i have to recommend zarautz during this time of the year, there are a lot less people and the weather is usually great. not too hot but still being able to swim in the ocean.

last time i wrote about guetaria i dont think i mentioned my favourite restaurant. if you like fish, you cant leave town without having dinner at "astillero", a familly owned restaurant with the friendliest service and of course, the best food. it will set you back between 30 to 50€ per person, but it is worth every cent. if you are lucky you might get one of the tables overlooking the port of getaria, which is small but absolutely beautiful.

there is another great place for lunch in the san prudencio hostel. a small hostel sorrounded by vineyards and from which you can see the hills falling into the sea. this one is a cheaper option and a great place if you visit the little village of azkizu.


i must insist, this is a great weekend trip from madrid, and i cant wait to do it again, maybe before the cold arrives. i really want to ride arround jaizkibel to fuenterrabia and see the bidasoa river (separates spain from france) from the top of the hill. so ill leave that on my "to do" list for now.