Bandera Day
On Sunday morning we had a lazy breakfast in the flat of scrambled eggs, bread, Serrano ham and yoghurt, very tasty. On our walk to the beach, we saw lots of people heading towards the cathedral. I assumed they were all good Catholics going to the Sunday Mass. But they walked past the cathedral to the seafront, where we joined thousands of people on the promenade. The big event was a regatta for traineras, twelve metre long boats with thirteen rowers and a cox steering with a big oar stood at the back. The coastal towns of the Basque Country compete against each other, and with thirteen oars in a carbon fibre boat, they can really make them shift. The course is 5.5 km long and the prize is a flag called a Bandera. The Kontxaco Bandera in San Sebastián was founded in 1879 and is the most prestigious in the Basque Country. This year the Bandera was won by a crew from Hondarribia.
Weaving our way through the crowds celebrating/ commiserating outside bars, we walked through the old town and took a steep zig-zag path to the top of Mount Urgull. It was fortified against the horrible English and there are several old batteries where cannon would protect the port.
At the top, there are more great views over the beaches and the town, with Mount Igeldo at across the bay. Josie ascended the steep path in her Birkenstock sandals, which are not suited for walking uphill, and she let us know that she wasn’t happy. At all. Not a bit. Fortunately, we found a quicker way down and crossed the bridge over to the Gros district of town behind the Zurriola beach and found somewhere for lunch.
After all that fresh air we were (to quote Monty Python) tired and shagged out after a long squark. So I got some food at the supermarket and made a paella for dinner at our flat. We managed to connect up the TV to my Google Chromecast and watched clips from Withnail and I, one of my favourite films.
timharnesstravels 
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