Day 5 – Deba – Markina

After Gerry woke from his slumbers yesterday, we decided to be rebels and leave the dirty laundry for another day and went window shopping with the rest of Deba instead.

This little town may lack some of the tourist glitz of our earlier stops but its charms are still there. We again saw lots of banners supporting Basque and ETA members still imprisoned. It felt wrong or inappropriate to take photos of a large group of silent protesters all holding photos. Later there were bands and groups of singers and we wonder if maybe this is a Basque day of some sort? Continue reading →

Day 4 – Zarautz – Deba

Last night, not having worn ourselves out like the previous day, we managed to do as the locals do and take an evening promenade. I absolutely love the custom. It’s like the whole town goes for a walk; old, young, single, couples, groups, families with children, families with dogs… Everyone is out strolling. And when not strolling they are chewing the fat together over coffee or wine or beer or cake or pinxos. What a wonderful time of day. We decided to join them. Continue reading →

Day 3 San Sebastian – Zarautz

The alarm went off at 7:00. I looked at Gerry, he looked at me. He turned off the alarm, closed his eyes and went back to sleep. We woke again just before 9:00.

Last night we never moved from our hostel. That’s a real shame as we both love San Sebastian but this time we couldn’t muster the energy or enthusiasm to walk back into town. We had spaghetti Bolognese from the hostel bar… It was from a tin and warmed in the microwave and we shared a banana for desert. That meal sort of describes how we felt. Continue reading →

Day 2 Irun – San Sebastian

Our casa last night was lovely and the perfect place to break the stage from Hendaye.

We sat on the balcony enjoying more tea but as the sun dipped we decided it was chilly so returned to our room. Or we tried to return because the French guests had shut all the doors and locked us out; trapped on the balcony. We banged on the windows and called out but no one heard. As we wandered around I noticed one bedroom door ajar. I called out again and there was no answer so I decided to risk it… I darted in and out unnoticed and unlocked the balcony door for Gerry. thank goodness the occupant never surfaced from the bathroom as I dashed! Continue reading →

It’s December.  It’s cold outside and I’ve got a cold.  As I’m stuck on the sofa nursing inflamed sinus and a cough cough cough… I’ve kept myself happy by planning my 2018 camino… or should I say Gerry’s 2018 birthday trip.

My lovely husband is celebrating a rather special birthday in 2018 but he doesn’t want a party; instead he wants to go walking in Northern Spain.  The Camino del Norte meanders its way along the northern coast of Spain and it makes sense for us to follow this route.  Gerry is a fairly easy going sort of chap but he prefers to walk around 20-25 km a day and he’s not a fan of albergues; he prefers to know that he has a comfortable bed and a private bathroom waiting for him at the end of the day.  So whilst we’re following the camino this is definitely more of a hiking holiday. Continue reading →