Biarritz, France and a hike

Just a short drive from San Sebastian is Biarritz, France. Another beach city, Biarritz was a nice place to eat lunch and visit a casino.

We only spent a few hours in Biarritz but it was very relaxing and quiet. Although packed with tourists, it was still a nice destination for the afternoon. It smelled like flowers and the sea!

Back in San Sebastain we took a VERY long hike up the hill in this picture. If you look very closely you can see a statue of Jesus at the very top. That was our goal. I know there must be a direct rout with signs and a paved path, but of course the Biasi family took the back way. We always do. It seams like that is a metaphore for our entire life. We always get where we need to go but somehow we take the path you would least expect!

Halfway up the mountain/hill we found this tombstone. It was such a steep path that I think this fellow just didn't make it. I felt like there might need to be a place for me right next to him! It was a hard climb!

Resting along the way...

I knew we were taking the back way up to the top when we walked through this passage way. We woke up a sleeping homeless man as we cut through his resting place!!!!

We finally reached the top and it was beautiful. (and so is Maria) The new picture at the top of the blog is also from this location.

A few pictures from Spain

Jamon and Rioja

More on Spain...Bob has been to Spain so many times and talked it up so much. We knew that our trip would be filled with all kinds of wonderful foods. Jamon, or Spanish ham, is everywhere. We ate it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. If you click on the picture you can see how much it is per kilogram. In restaurants you see the entire leg/shank part of the pig.

This lady is carving off very thin slices of Jamon Iberico, considered one of the very best. This pig was fed only acorns. I know it sounds weird, but it is one of our favorite foods.

Each evening around 7 all the bars open up for tapas or pintxos. They cover the bar with bite size portions of delicious foods, including that jamon we love. You just get whatever you want, pay the bartender, eat and go to the next bar. Even the kids were welcome in the bars.

This restaurant was excellent. If you are in San Sebastian, eat there. Make a reservation first. It isn't very big.

Ahhhhh. Spanish wine. Rioja is Bob's favorite and mine too.

San Sebastian, Spain

While Maria was still visiting us in Belgium and the twins had a long weekend, we took a mini vacation to beautiful Spain. I have to say that Spain could possibly be my most favorite place in the world to visit. It was perfect! Our first stop was San Sebastian with its white beach and sunny days. Leah and Jenn on the beach. They look so grown up. They are so lucky to always travel with their best friend. As a bonus on this trip, they also got to hang out with Maria.

The inside of this church was just as beautiful as the outside. It is the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Chorus and located on 31 August Street. This street commemorates the day this 1000 year old city burned to the ground leaving only that avenue untouched.

Us girls after a long hike above the city.

San Sebastian is a very beautiful city and much bigger than you would think. It is in the heart of the Basque country which means the people are kind and they really know how to eat!

We walked through this square many times. It was originally a bull fight ring!

These numbered doors were the seats where people sat for the bull fight. Imagine the spectators watching from those colorful seats.

At night it was very pretty. We would walk from one end to the other on our way to eat tapas.

Our hotel might have been one of the reasons why we loved San Sebastian so much. The Maria Cristina made us feel like Spanish royalty.

Concert

Did you get to see it? Did it work? If you haven't watched it yet, it is still available to see. Just go through the same directions as below. Leah and Jenn play at the very end of the show around the 38 minute mark. Leah's duet is the 2nd to last song of the show.

Strings Concert on Thursday!

I will give this blog a full update on Friday...I promise. But until then, you might enjoy watching Leah and Jennifer perform at their strings concert on Thursday night. The link below will give you a live stream of the show in real time.

1. click on the link.

www.livestream.com/private/isbdirect

2. type in the password

1170bxl

Then you will be directed to the screen where the show will play.

The concert starts at 7:00pm Brussels time which is 12:00pm in Chicago, 1:00pm in Indiana and Georgia, 10:00am in Arizona and 11:00am in Colorado. Did I miss anyone? :)

If you can't watch it live, you will be able to see the concert anytime you want after the actual performance. Leah is in the back on the right and will play a duet. (It is great!) And Jenn has earned her way to the front row, first chair to the right of the conductor.

Enjoy!