Semana Grande 2026 Adventures: Part 1

If it’s August, then it must be Semana Grande – our 10th Semana Grande to be exact. At this point, we enjoy the various activities on offer, including music concerts, but we don’t go overboard and generally keep to our usual routine. We did have two unique experiences this year though that made the week truly grand: (1) we got to watch the fireworks from the La Concha Bay on a sailboat, and (2) the near total eclipse on August 12.

The nightly fireworks are the weekly highlight for most people, many of whom watch from the beach. As we can see most of them from our balcony, that’s my preferred location. The crowds on and around the beach are so big that what is normally a 10-minute walk home becomes 30+ after the fireworks. And the view from our balcony is pretty good:

While you miss the lower fireworks from our balcony, you get a private viewing and can go to bed immediately afterwards. Or, if you’re Jeff, you can go to sleep earlier and sleep right through them. (His sleeping skills are a gift.) But I really wanted to see them from a boat at least once. As our flysch sailing trip last month was such a pleasure, I knew we had to get out again with my new “friend with boat.” So, I organized a group of friends for an afternoon-evening outing.

After two cancelations due to weather, on August 11 we set sail from Zumaia to San Sebastian, about a 3.5-hour journey. The scenery and camaraderie were terrific. Along the way, we stopped to swim a few times, making sure to avoid the Portuguese Man-o-Wars that have been frequent visitors in the water this summer. Thankfully we were successful in that regard!

We had a terrific sunset:

And it was worth it to see the fireworks from the bay:

We all had such a good time that we are already planning to do it again next year. After the fireworks, our captain dropped us at the port and then returned to his home port. He was looking forward to watching the Perseids meteor shower on the trip back.

And we were all looking forward to the eclipse the next afternoon. An embarrassment of riches, to be sure.

Next post, the eclipse!

Hasta pronto,

Shana & Jeff

Summer Art and Music

In July, we always enjoy attending two different music festivals: Jazzaldia in San Sebastian and the Bilbao Blues Festival. This year, the two overlapped again, which meant we saw less music at Jazzaldia than we might like, but we did get out to see two free concerts, the second of which was a popular performer named LP who peformed on the beach.

On Friday, we skipped the gym to go paddleboarding in La Concha Bay before heading to Bilbao. It was a beautiful morning and we really enjoyed being out early when it was quiet.

We arrived in Bilbao, and after a yummy Indian lunch went to the Guggenheim to see a Jasper Johns exhibit, which we were not impressed with. That night, the Festival started and we enjoyed watching the music from across the river. The music was very good, and we even stayed to watch a bit of the 10:45 p.m. act, the very talented Judith Hill.

On Saturday morning, we had signed up for a chat by a blues historian about the impact of women on the blues, hosted by the Guggenheim. The talk was fantastic, and accompanied by a singer and guitarist who performed seven or eight songs to demonstrate the historical process that the speaker was talking about.

Before the presentation, we walked through the retrospective exhibition dedicated to San Francisco artist Ruth Asawa. We thought this exhibition was extremely interesting both for the work presented, and also because she had an extremely interesting life, including being interred with her family during WWII. Asawa's most well-known works are abstract looped-wired sculptures, some of which represent natural forms despite being made of cheap metal. She also did several sculptures that perhaps we'll seek out during our next visit to the Bay Area.

We had lunch at Kokken, which does a "surprise" tasting menu, which was fun. They start with 4 dishes, plus dessert, but after 4 plates you can choose to continue with 2 more dishes, then 2 more. We were more than satisfied with the 4. 

On Saturday night, we got rained on, and so spent less time watching music. However, before the rain came, we saw th Bilbao Blues All Star Band, with their 95-year-old Blues Hall of Fame guitar player, Bob Stroger. Bob also sang the blues classic, "I Am The Blues." Pretty impressive for a guy born in 1930.

The next day, as we watched music at the secondary stage before heading home, Shana noticed the members of the All Star Band who were set to go on next. Of course, she had to get a picture with Bob who is pretty spry for a 95-year-old (not that I know many people his age, but he had no problem sitting down to look at his cell phone (of course), and getting back up for photos). That's him on Shana's right, with Jimi "Primetime" Smith.

As always, we enjoyed our local music festivals. It was also a great way to celebrate our 9 year anniversary living in San Sebastian. Now on to August and Semana Grande.

Hasta pronto,

Jeff and Shana

Old Friends, Good Times

Earlier in July we had visitors. Jill returned, this time with her husband Peter. It was a pleasure doing our favorite San Sebastian activities with some of our favorite people. This time we did it with a few new twists.

While we’ve hiked between Zarautz and Getaria admiring the vineyards many times, we’ve never stopped at one of the wineries along the way. Hard to believe, right?

For the first time we stopped at a txaikoli bodega to do a tour and tasting. During our visit at Ameztoi, we learned a few nuggets about the history and development of the DOC (denomination of controlled origin) for local txaikoli, which was created mostly for market expansion purposes, and about the growth of export markets for this little-known wine. The grapes will be harvested next month and were already looking promising on the vines.

Having just explained to Jill and Peter about Getaria’s famous son, Juan Sebastian Elkano, we were amused to see that the winery had painted one of its ceramic tanks to display his voyage around the globe. The tasting on the terrace was a lovely break before a fabulous fish lunch, which of course included more txaikoli.

We spent part of a day at the beach paddle boarding and relaxing. Later that afternoon we walked out to the Peine del Viento before dinner.

We’ve taken many visitors to see the flysch in Zumaia, but this time we did it on a sailboat! What a treat! While the explanations of the flysch were less detailed than the bigger group tour, the experience was fabulous.

Peter and Jeff hung out on the front of the boat talking politics, while Jill and I sat with our feet in the water calculating that we’ve known each other 39 years come September!

After spending 2 hours on the water, we had a terrific lunch at a bar that was named to Spain’s top 10 list. And then we went out to the shoreline to show Peter the flysch up close.

It was such a fabulous visit – we tired ourselves and our guests out! And now I know someone with a boat, which could come in handy for future adventures.

Hasta pronto,

Shana & Jeff

Northern Italy Wrap Up

It was a fabulous trip to Northern Italy. The views in the Dolomites blew our minds. Lake Garda was scenic and fun. And there were a few more stops along the way, which we wanted to include here, with a few highlights from Milan.

On the drive from Bolzano to Garda there were several options to explore, but because we did the trip on Sunday, the local wineries were closed. While wine tasting will generally be our first choice, storming a castle and learning a bit of history is a good alternative. We did not regret our visit to Castel Beseno, the largest fortified complex in the Trento region. The castle extends across a hilltop with views of the surrounding valleys. Built initially during the medieval period, the fortress went through several restructurings in the first half of the 16th century. From the ramparts it was easy to understand the castle’s strategic position, which allowed for control over a major trade route between Germany and Italy.

We had a good laugh taking the photo of the “castle” chess pieces in the castle courtyard. Very “meta.”

And we did get a wine tasting in while in the Garda area, enjoying a visit to Villa Calicantus in the Bardolino DOC.

We made a pilgrimage to see the Madonna della Corona sanctuary, which is built on the side of Monte Baldo. We hiked down from Spiazzi and marvelled at the location, a truly unique site.

Our trip ended in Milan, where we’ve been before. Having already visited the Duomo, we went to see Anselm Kiefer’s Le Alchemiste exhibit at the Palazzo Reale’s Sala delle Cariatidi. Kiefer painted large scale depictions of women “forgotten by history.” We were not impressed as all the pieces were similar and not particularly inspiring. So we went and found a wine bar, where we enjoyed some great recommendations.

What we enjoyed most about Milan was the impressive array of fabulous Asian restaurants, where we ate lunch (Chinese) and dinner (Taiwanese). A treat we so rarely get to enjoy. Of course, we had one last gelato before departing.

Although we didn’t go in the Duomo, the hotel’s water featured it, which led to another “meta” photo.

It was a memorable trip and a great way to celebrate our anniversary and Zoe’s high school graduation. We already have plans to be back in Italy in 2027, again with friends to explore new places. Viva Italia!

Ciao,

Shana & Jeff