A Quiet Louve, But Not Entirely

Since going to a quiet Louvre was the original impetus for our trip to Paris, we thought we would do a quick post on our experience there. While it was certainly much quieter than normal during the height of tourist season, we have seen it nearly as quiet when visiting Paris during less busy times of year. 

To begin, there were no hordes in front of the Louvre, which was likely due to the fact that you had to buy tickets with a timed entry in advance:

I spent a good amount of time evaluating when we should go to the Louvre and determined, based on the advanced-reservation ticket sales system, that late afternoon would likely be best as those time slots were not selling out like the early morning time slots. So, we reserved Monday at 3:30 p.m. Normally I don’t take pictures of art in museums – the art is there to be enjoyed and experienced. After all, you can look at a better photo of the art anytime you want. But for the sake of sharing our experience with our readers I took a few shots.

As you may know, there are 3 supposed “can’t miss” pieces in the Louvre. It was easy to enjoy Winged Victory of Samothrace and the Venus de Milo practically alone, which we have not experienced even at quieter times of year:

But the famous portrait of that Italian lady is still – even with the museum at 30% capacity – just too darned popular:

We did not get in line to see the Mona Lisa; just quickly snapped this photo and got out of Dodge. The main halls displaying the various French masterpieces by Delacroix and David were also congested but manageable. To get away from these more crowded areas, we went and visited the museum’s antiquities area, where we particularly enjoyed the pieces from ancient Persia.

After two visits to the Louvre and two to the Prado in the past two-and-a-half years, we’ve decided that the Prado is a better museum for paintings. The collection is broader and easier to visit, but the Louvre as a historical building is more interesting overall, and its antiquities collection is splendid. 

In the end, visiting the Louvre again was a great excuse to visit Paris to test drive traveling during the COVID era, it was hardly our favorite experience of the trip. Stay tuned for more details on the rest of our Paris activities.

Au revoir,

Shana & Jeff 

A Visit to Paris During the Pandemic

At the end of July, we took the train to visit Paris for five days. Our trip was inspired by reading in mid-June that the Louvre would be reopening July 6 with limited capacity, creating the opportunity to visit the museum without the normal massive crowds. We thought it was a great chance to finally travel again, still going somewhere relatively close, while Europe was experiencing some stability with respect to the level of COVID-19 cases.

We quickly made a hotel reservation, getting a great rate in the center of the city, knowing the reservation could be easily cancelled without penalty. We hesitated on reserving train tickets to see how the case numbers evolved. As the date of the trip got closer, having investigated the train safety protocols, and despite somewhat higher case numbers, we decided to bite the bullet and buy tickets. And then we watched to see what happened as our departure date approached.

Unfortunately, the COVID situation continued to deteriorate in Spain during July, albeit mostly in Catalunya and other areas not very close to where we live, which resulted in some European governments issuing travel advisories. France also had some outbreaks, but nothing alarming in Paris at least. We began to wonder if travel restrictions would impact our trip, but ultimately none did, and we left the morning of July 26..

We knew we were taking a risk by travelling, but we figured it was a calculated one with the overall benefits outweighing the risks. The biggest risk would be the train ride. While obligatory face masks and high-tech air filters might lessen the risk of contagion, it is still a five-hour ride in close quarters with lots of people. And watching people put their masks below their noses, and hearing people sneeze and cough was nerve wracking. With everyone getting off the train at the same time and exiting into a crowded Montparnasse station, the experience was not the typical relaxing one we enjoy. We arrived in Paris a bit stressed out and with a headache likely caused by wearing masks for such an extended period (nearly 6.5 hours door-to-door). Thankfully, the train rides were the only negative part of the trip.

Paris, in the middle of the pandemic, was a dream. There wasn’t a lot of traffic, there weren’t many tourists, and there weren’t a lot of crowds. It was like Los Angeles on a holiday weekend when everyone leaves town and you get to enjoy the city in a way you normally cannot. Paris has added a lot of bike lanes (designed primarily to get people off the Metro), which were filled with bikers and people on scooters. It was easy to get around and it felt laid back and effortless. We also got lucky with the weather with most days in the high-70s or low-80s. We even found we could socially distance on the metro.

Lots more details to come about our adventure in a quiet Paris, but we will leave you with a photo of the jazz band we sat and enjoyed after a visit to Shakespeare and Company, Jeff's favorite bookstore in Paris, which is right across from Notre Dame:

Au revoir,

Shana & Jeff

Jazzaldia 2020 – A Jazz Festival Reworked for a Pandemic

This past week San Sebastian celebrated the 55^th edition of Jazzaldia, the city’s jazz festival (22-26 July). As you can imagine, nearly every public event has been cancelled in the city and around the country, which is especially disappointing during the summer season. But somehow the organizers of Jazzaldia figured out a way to put on this year’s event – albeit in a highly modified way.

We love Jazzaldia and look forward to it every year, so I kept a close eye on the program as it was developed and revised. The first thing they did was cancel all the free, outdoor concerts. You might recall that last year we saw Joan Baez in concert on the beach. Well, that venue, and artists traveling to San Sebastian from outside Europe had to be jettisoned. Instead, they used four main indoor venues, determined that capacity would be limited to about 50%, invited local artists to perform, and cut ticket prices. As the event got closer, they added a few free outdoor concerts with seating at tables spaced wide apart.

Two concerts caught my eye. The first was a recreation of a famous Charlie Parker concert at Massey Hall (Toronto) in 1953, featuring Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, Charles Mingus y Max Roach. 2020 is the centennial of Parker’s birth, and this was a rousing tribute. Listening to “Salt Peanut,” in an ornate Victorian opera house built in 1912 was amazing. The quintet did justice to many jazz classics. About half of the seats were blocked off, so we were spaced apart from other guests. They even organized the post-concert exit to avoid crowding. And, of course, everyone wore their masks and used hand sanitizer.

The second concert was a piano soloist, Paul San Martin, who is from San Sebastian. This concert took place at the San Telmo museum, in the former church cloister, so it was outside. The piano was set at one juncture of the cloister and the crowd sat in two of the cloister halls facing the piano, with seats spaced apart in a zig-zag pattern. The vaulted ceilings created wonderful acoustics and the program included many easily recognizable pieces, including Edelweiss (a bluesy-jazzy version), Georgia, and Swanee River.

Both concerts were quite a treat, especially because we paid less than $20 for both. It was a terrific opportunity to do something “normal.” Whether going forward with the concerts was the best idea considering there are small outbreaks here and there in our area, but none in San Sebastian itself, remains to be seen. Life is about choices and in these times all we can do is hope that the decisions we make, and the authorities make, don’t have calamitous results.

Stay healthy and safe,

Shana & Jeff

“A Hotelcation”

Earlier this month we took a short “hotelcation.” Surely you’ve heard of a “staycation,” a vacation taken while staying home or close to home. A “hotelcation” is a vacation taken while staying in a hotel in your own city. On July 7 we checked in to the Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra, which is located right on the La Concha Beach, for 2 nights and a change of scenery. It is nice to go to sleep and wake up to amazing views:

Our friend Ploy who worked at the hotel until it closed for the lockdown alerted us to an amazing “locals only” deal to be offered when the hotel reopened. The room rate was incredibly cheap for a 4-star hotel, especially for July and August with an ocean view and breakfast included, so we decided, why not? While it seemed silly to book a room in a hotel that is 15 minutes walking distance from our apartment, it also seemed like a good way to contribute to the local economy.

It turns out that a change of scenery was something we needed. We spent the first afternoon on the beach relaxing, had drinks at the patio bar, and then went out for pizza with Ploy & Carlos. We felt refreshed and relaxed by the time we sat down to enjoy our pizza. The next day we spent several hours on the beach – something we rarely do – and then acted like tourists in our own town walking through the old city before lunch. After kicking back during the afternoon, we headed out to dinner at Xarma Cook & Culture, a restaurant we had yet to try but that had been on our list for a while. It was a great meal, with terrific service since the place was almost empty. The waiter even guessed we were from LA! We especially enjoyed the most amazing grilled vegetables, and the pork sirloin tataki with cream of carrot, vanilla, and celery root with pearls of wasabi – a house specialty.

All in all, it was a nice little getaway. While the hotel was not even one-third full, it was good to see the hotel’s high level of attention to the sanitation measures required. which also made us feel that much more confident in our decision to visit. It was a good way to test out how we will experience travel from now on.

No regrets,

Shana & Jeff

Our Visit to a Basque Food Society

Basque food societies ("sociedades") are private clubs where people (usually men) meet to cook and share food. Traditionally, the societies were a place for men to get together because their wives did not want them in the kitchen at home (Basque culture is matriarchal). In addition, most societies include groups that perform in the annual Tamborrada drum festival, also celebrated with large celebratory meals. Today, almost all of the societies admit both men and women, but the more traditional do not permit women in the kitchens -- cooking is for men only.

We had known about these food societies, but have never known anyone who was a member, at least not well enough, to get an invite. That changed last week. Our friends Carlos and Ploy joined a food society called Euskal Billera just before the start of the coronavirus-related lockdown in March. With the lifting of the lockdown, and the re-opening of the food societies, they invited us to join them for their first meal at their new club.

Euskal Billera is one of the oldest societies in San Sebastian, founded in 1901, and it continues the tradition of only allowing men in the kitchen. So, even though our meal was Thai food, mostly organized and prepared by Ploy in their home, Carlos did all of the cooking. We had egg rolls, fried chicken wings with fish sauce and a pork dish with garlic, all accompanied by sticky rice and salad.  Because we cannot get good Asian food here, we were thrilled with this delicious meal:

The society is in a two-story building on the edge of the old city of San Sebastian (and near the main beach and port). There are separate kitchens and eating areas upstairs and down. The society maintains refrigerators with all types of drinks including soft drinks, wine, beer, cider and hard liquor. At the end of dinner, we entered what we used on a computer and each member gets a monthly bill. Members do the cooking, but the society does the cleaning.

Overall, we had a lovely evening but, to be honest, we are a bit unsure about the value of belonging to a food society, which requires a significant membership fee. Other than the traditional point of getting men out of the kitchen, it seems to us that it is a difficult way to entertain friends since you have to bring all of the food from home to be cooked there. On the other hand, it has the advantage of space, which many people do not have in their homes here, and you don't have to clean up any mess.

In any event, it was a really cool, traditional thing for us to experience in San Sebastian. And we are probably some of the only people to have eaten Asian food for their first meal in a Basque sociedad.

Hasta pronto,

Jeff and Shana

Birthday Celebrations Amid the Pandemic

Last weekend we had a great time celebrating my birthday. Fortunately, Spain was about to complete the “de-escalation” process, which allowed us to enjoy it in an almost “normal” way: eating out and strolling outside.

Although my birthday was Sunday the 21st, we made reservations to have a special lunch on Friday the 19th in Getaria, a small fishing village that is about 11 miles from San Sebastian. We chose Txoko Getaria, a highly regarded fish restaurant, based on its reputation, it’s large patio with views of the harbor, and because we saw it in a scene in “The Trip to Spain,” the Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon movie that played at the 2017 SS Film Festival. During Steve and Rob’s lunch at Txoko, it starts to pour rain, which was very typical for the area and amusing to us. Thankfully, we had a beautiful sunny day without a cloud in the sky.

Getting to Txoko Getaria was part of the adventure. We took the local train (masks on!), for the first time since the start of the state of emergency, from San Sebastian to Zarautz, another beautiful beach town. From there we headed west, walking along the malecon (promenade) and then on to the coastal path towards Getaria. As you can see, the coastline is amazing:

The view from Zarautz, where we started, to Getaria:

The stunning shoreline:

The approach to Getaria:

The entire walk is about 4 miles. Just the right amount to work up a good appetite. We had the best table, with an unobstructed view of the little fishing port. As we sat down and noticed the other restaurant patios and diners around us, we couldn’t help but feel that this was no different from any other summer terrace dining experience … until the waitress approached to take our order with her mask on – that omnipresent reminder that nothing is quite normal. We started with grilled, local white asparagus (from Navarra) and tempura style prawns (Jeff’s choice, but I even ate two, they were so beautiful), and then we shared a delicious whole red seabream with a side of piquillo peppers, and, of course, a wonderful bottle of a white wine. Everything was amazing and we were too full for dessert, or to walk all the way back to Zarautz. Instead we took the bus back from Getaria and then had ice cream on our way home. It was a perfect afternoon out, with no need for any dinner since we started lunch at 2 p.m., a very Spanish time.

On my actual birthday we went out for brunch at La Madame. Brunch is not really a Spanish thing, but La Madame does it right. Before lunch we took a nice long walk on the La Concha beach:

You need to be hungry for brunch at La Madame, where brunch includes 3 courses. First, juice and coffee with either a bruschetta or a muffin. Second, a savory course; for us, huevos rancheros. Finally, a sweet course of pancakes or French toast. Of course, we added a cocktail.

As everyone should on their birthday, we overindulged and left feeling stuffed and ready to relax for the afternoon, which is exactly what we did. I especially enjoyed all my birthday calls from the US.

I’m lucky to have a June birthday, when the weather is pleasant and summer is in the air. Since we didn’t make it to Germany in April to celebrate Jeff’s January birthday, we’ve made reservations for another lunch on his half birthday next month. It’s always good to have something to look forward to, especially when it’s steak at one of the best places in the country!

Hasta pronto,

Shana & Jeff 

Pasapalabra Returns

A bit over a year ago, we wrote about our favorite Spanish game show, Pasapalabra. We did not write in October when it was taken off the air because the channel that had been showing it did not actually own the rights to the show (oops). Well, now it is back, with a new host on a different channel.

The show is basically the same as it was, but we miss the old host who was funnier and in Shana's opinion, better looking. Still, we are happy to have it back and usually watch 3 or 4 times a week. We have definitely noticed that our improved language skills have made it easier to follow along and, now we even get some of the correct answers during the final game of each episode, El Rosco.

Right before Pasapalabra airs we often will catch an episode of The Big Bang Theory, which is dubbed. We are finally getting used to the Spanish voices for the characters and can even recognize them if we are listening from afar now. We barely need the Spanish subtitles anymore, but they are helpful when the dialogue is moving fast.

Hopefully, we will have something more interesting to write about soon, but given the state of the world, who knows? The fact that our lock-down has been lifted enough so we can go to restaurants and even the gym hardly seems like exciting news, but we have certainly enjoyed our bit of regained freedom.

Stay well,

Jeff and Shana