To start our day on Thursday, we headed to Lacuzna International School, where we attend our daily Spanish class. Heading to class involves a beautiful bike ride along the shoreline of San Sebastian’s infamous beaches. This has been the highlight of my mornings since we arrived. After school today, we were given a free afternoon. What better way to spend free time in San Sebastian than at the beach? So, that is exactly what we did. After class, we headed to the beach, where it was already packed because the high for the day was 87\u00b0F. Although it felt there was pressure to do more with our afternoon since there was only minimal free time during our trip, my friend and I chose to relax on the beach. The beach is, in my opinion, the highlight of the city. All ages, ethnicities, and languages flock to the beach to spend time together, enjoying the beautiful scenery and weather. After almost 2 weeks of Spanish classes, I have been able to understand more and going to the beach gives me a great opportunity to listen to real Spanish conversations. Although I still struggle to understand a lot of Spanish, it is exciting to be able to understand some words and phrases while listening to the people around me.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After a long afternoon of soaking in the sun, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for the evening. Since it was a Thursday, this meant Pintxos Pote was happening in Gros. This is the San Sebastian version of \u201chappy hour\u201d. You can get a drink and a pintxo for only three euros. This deal brings in all of the locals as well as the travellers who know about it. As our group made our way across town, we were greeted with hundreds of people lining the streets with drinks and pintxos in hand. Every bar was completely packed, which is usual for most of the good bars around town, but this was another level. After finding a bar that had fewer people, we all headed in and grabbed food and drinks. Pintxo Pote is such a great way to get people out of their homes to socialize. Everywhere you turned, there were people crowded having fun, and most importantly, off their cell phones. This is something I have noticed spending time here in Spain. People here are devoted to spending time with each other without the distraction of cell phones. Rarely do we ever see a local with their phone out when having a meal or interacting with their friends. This is something I want to take home with me. I want to be able to go spend time with the people close to me and forget about the burden of my phone. Or really, the addiction we Americans have to our phones. Through this trip, I have learned how to enjoy myself and have my phone nowhere near the excitement. And I can thank San Sebastian for that!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
To start our day on Thursday, we headed to Lacuzna International School, where we attend our daily Spanish class. Heading to class involves a beautiful bike ride along the shoreline of San Sebastian’s infamous beaches. This has been the highlight … Continue reading