Basque Country, Cantabria and ferry home

This is a big catch up from the long boat journey.

BASQUE COUNTRY

We said goodbye to our Mel Gibson themed hotel room and left San Sebastian promptly.  Arriving it Zarautz the surf was slightly smaller than the previous day but still good and clean.  I paddle out and got some nice waves including a long left.  Unfortunately I also managed to lose my finger splint (the expensive one I got made at Bupa for surfing).  I had some back up splints in the car so that is what I used so I could go out for another session and surf more.  In the sun and nice waves it was pretty epic.

I met Maria back on the beach.  We checked out the little castle which had a restaurant run by a local celeb chef but unfortunately it was fully booked until 3.  So we carried on to Getaria along the coastal road a short hop away.  This was a great little town.  We found a locals place where we had a menu for 10 Euros each and included 3 courses and Basque cider.  The main course was grilled fish which is the specialty of the town.   Feeling quite full we had a wander down towards the port.  On the eve of the vote for Scottish Independence the support as evident everywhere.  This was clearly a very Basque town.

We continued along the coast road until Zumania before getting the motorway.  We passed a couple of nice surf spots en route.  The motorway to Mungia was not so great as the bendy motorways required concentration. 

We found the rural BnB quite easily thanks to Maria chatting to the locals.  We arrived there and were let in by a labourer doing some work.  The room was pretty nice and the area rural.  We headed off to Bakio for a surf.  The waves were quite a bit smaller and breaking close to shore.  Unfortunately the session was over pretty quickly as I almost snapped my board at the nose and was all creased.  Ironically this board came from Bakio and nearly ended its life there.  We finished up in the bar for a few drinks and some food.

BILBAO TO SANTANDER

The next day we headed early to Bilbao and parked up near the Guggenheim.  We had a walk around checking the architecture, football stadium and centre of town.  We had some great pintxos on one of the streets with many bars- this included sea urchin which was great.  We headed off to watch a bit of the Red Bull bridge diving competition which was going on by the Guggenheim.  However needing to get to Santander we didn’t hang around too long.

There was a bit of traffic leaving Bilbao and also getting into Cantabria.  However we made good time passing some scenic points on the motorway.  The entrance to Santander is hardly glarmourous especially as I headed straight into the industrial area.  At the second attempt I drove by memory to the place which repaired my board last year.  Turns out the board is quite serious and I will definitely need some professional help!  Unfortunately I could not get it done in time- although I know they do a good job and the 40 euro they quoted me is much cheaper than equivalent in England.

Post board stop we headed to Liencres beach where I had a surf.  Waves were quite small and weak but as the last surf of the trip I needed to make the most of it.  Maria enjoyed the beach which is in a national park and has plenty of interesting rocks.

We headed to our motel style hotel and checked in, before going into Santander. After parking underground we wander around the town. In the first bar we had some pintxos.  This was followed by some amazing octopus at another restaurant.  All was topped off with the best ice cream (Regima which I first found in Santander).

FNAL DAY AND FERRY HOME

The next day was our last day of the trip.  We headed to some prehistoric caves.  There was a little Museum and a walk around one cave with a few paintings.  The rest of the caves were off limits.  We then headed to the beach at nearby Suances for a nice swim in the scorching sun.  Not many waves to speak off so just a swim.

This was followed by a picnic lunch in the park at Liencres.  We then spent most of the rest of the afternoon at Eroski hypermarket stocking up for the boat and on Spanish food.  One big bill later we headed to the ferry terminal.  We were quite early but by no means the earliest.  We enjoyed watching the various types of people including one biker who looked like Santa Claus.

We have now been on the boat nearly 24 hours.  Most of the food and alcohol we bought has been consumed.  I managed to catch the Man City vs Chelsea game.  We have wandered round the deck, seen some films in the cabin and had a long sleep.

Bayonne-> San Sebastian

We decided to stay an extra night at La Villa and used it as a base to explore Biarritz area.

The day started with a trip to Biarritz.  Nice weather and walk along the sea front, but not much else to do there.

Headed to Anglet post lunch.  No shortboardable surf so went for a swim.  Kind of regret not rying to rent a long board.

Headed to Guethary for  a quick walk a long the sea front there.

Next day was Spain day.  I opted for the scenic route and the traffic was pretty horrendous up to San Jean da Luz.  However after that the route became scenic and lived up to expectations.  Getting in to San Sebastian was easy as was finding our rather expensive Hotel (the Astoria).  All the rooms are themed by film stars and we have the Mel Gibson room.

A wander around San Sebastian- including trip up the mini mountain and good food (tapas and ice cream) followed.  I went back to the hotel to grab my board for a surf at Zurriola.  Waves were pretty small.  The session was ended by a large thunderstorm which meant getting a bus back with  lot of old people.  Once the rain had cleared we headed in town for a pintxos dinner and drinks.

The enext day Maria was not feeling so good- so I headed to Zarautz alone to surf.  Waves were really good- Hurricane Edouard had delivered the goods.  Did get quite big a times and was hard work but well worth the short journey.  Weather as so nice I hung on the concourse for a bot

I tried to surf later in the day in Zurriola- but in the end proved to be a waste of time as most the waves jut closed out.

Finished the day with more pintxos and beers.  There is this craft ale called Gross which is brewed locally- highly recommended.

Brittany->Bordeaux->Hossegor->Bayonne

Brittany

Full day in Brittany involved oysters by the golf (when they finally arrived) and a tour of Vannes.

This was followed by a swim (sadly no surf) at the big beach near Plouharnel.  Dinner at Auberge Saint Anne was indeed superb.  A gastro treat.

Brittany to Bordeaux

A leisurely morning and lunch in sunny Brittany.  A long drive to Bordeaux- how is it only meant to take 4hours.  This involved a traffic jam at Nantes and lots of motorway.

A stop at Buffalo Grill for dinner- first time at one of these restaurants which aren't too bad at all- certainly good value.  However finding the Hotel Premiere class was not great especially as a major Bride (of Aquitane) was closed.  Needless to say the Hotel Premiere class was not great- we got there at 1 in the morning and left prompley the next day.

Bordeaux and Dont take girls camping!

Saw a few sites of Bordeaux before heading to Dune de Pyla.  Stocked up in huge Leclerc (hardly any people in the Arcachon store).  I like big Leclercs.

Dune de pyla was quite impressive, you get a great voew of the forest.  After that it was onwards to Biscarosse.  Quick surf check revealed continued flatness, not much swell showing yet.  I was curious to see this place but to be honest it was not interesting,

We go to Seignosse before dark to camp.  I had even booked an expensive campsite.  Maria did not like camping.  It was not good. Dont take girls camping!

Hossegor- waves

Finally got in the water.  It was quite sizey first thing and clean.  Unfortunately my fitness and abundance of surfers including good locals meant I did not get my share of the best ones, but had some fun ones on the inside.

After a stock up on a Gateau Basque nd checking itno a hotel- headed back to Seignosse.  This time for a session whoch was a bot onshore but still some alrite waves.

Headed into town in the evening for a few drinks.   Some of the people out were quite strange to say the least.

Hossegor Bayonne

Pretty small gutless waves in the morning from a dying swell.  No oysters either as all the places by the lake were full.

Headed early to Bayonee and checked into the comfort of the nice hotel.  Also had a wander round Bayonne and good pizza for dinner.

Paris, Paris-> Brittany

Headed to Musee D’orsay.  Much better than I expected- although the building is one of the impressive parts.  It was also free!

Walked towards the Effiel Tower.  Lunch ended up being at  brasserie, which for me was one of the worst ever.  This veal escolope arrived with pasta it was like something from a motorway service station.  Desert was from this specialist mereingue place which was much better.

Effiel Tower was really for pictures for Maria, which included crossing the river to trocadero

This was followed by heading to the arc d Triumphe, down the Champs-Elysee, past the Louvre and onto towards Chatlet and Pompidou after stopping at one of the bridges.

Finally in the evening we ate by far the best food in Paris, which was at an Auvergne restaurant.  Although it was touristy the food was epic and the meat so good that in the end had to order wine.  Even if the service was slightly prickly, it made up for the below food par of so far.

Next day headed to Vincennes for a walk around the park followed by lunch at Bistrot Dagorno.

Took the Metro towards the Louvre- the first time I had ever visited.  Thanks to the tip from my Mother we went through the shopping centre and did not have to queue at all.  I was free thanks to being below 26.  Saw various ancient stuff and this Mona Lisa.

Afterwards we headed to the banks (of the Seine) for a drink with one of Maria’s friends. 

After walking for a while without finding much restaurant wise we headed bback to the Effiel Tower so Maria could get her night photos.  We finaly arrived back late at Nation and I was starving.  Fortunately a Bistro was still serving and the food wasn’t bad either.

Today was more of a driving day- onwards to Brittany.  Generally an easy drive although in such nice weather it was not great to sit in a car without air con.  The weather was so nice that on arrival at the house jumped into the see and had 3 swims.

Paris 1 and drive from London

Left London with plenty of time, which was just as well as navigating my way through Croydon was a bit of nightmare.  What an awful place, I would hate to live there.  So far out, yet so terrible.  I eventually joined the A23, which eventually became the M23.  This was fairly quick, although the road signs had my worried as they said the A23 was closed- which thankfully it wasn’t.  In the end got to Brighton quickly, then it was not far to Newhaven.

Didn’t see much of the town, but is a standard grotty port town.  The ferry was pretty knackered out hulk with the Transmanche branding on it.  Cabin was a bit musky and knackered but in the end it was a short crossing.  After a bit of deck time watching departure I bedded down.

I slept, but not for long as the journey was short.  I almost questioned the point in having a cabin.  Having said that we arrived in good time.

It was a pretty smooth journey pre morning daylight across and through and I was able to get to Roissy to pick up Maria in good time.  Equally good was the journey to the hotel which was smooth as anything, helped by knowing where I was going.  This is the advantage of staying somewhere you have been before.  Less good was parking in the hotel car park box, whereby I put a bash on the front of the car.   It was a tight space.

After this we headed to Bastille and the Place de Vosges.  This was a tad touristy and we ended up eating a bit of a disappointing lunch at a Brasserie.  When I say disappointing I had a steak tartar which you can’t really go wrong with, but Maria’s duck was pretty average.

Later headed to Montmartre and the Sacre Coeur. However in the process, we got off the tube Barbes Rochechouart which views with Croydon in awfulness.  The area was full of police and dodge.  To be honest I didn’t really like going up the Sacre Coeur, it was full of bloody tourists.  As was the rest of Montmartre. 

After walking down Pigalle, past some pretty grim looking street workers we headed to Butes Chammont which was really good.  It is one of the few things in Paris I had never done so was good to go.  As was the sunset.

I decided I wanted to go this bar called La Fine Mousse, which I heard about on some blog.  Basically it services good French beers (hard to believe in a land of s*** beer).  Unfortunately it was difficult to find so after having drinks in 2 bars, then a crepe we got chatting to someone with internet pointing us towards the bar.  In the end we did find it and it was worthwhile.  Tucked away and local but great beer and a nice bar to match.  If you don’ drink beer they even served decent cider (Breton style).

Runton surf

Was heading home and there was chance of some surf.  The biggest of it was Friday night before and looking at the webcam there was not much hope.  However the tides were on my side (for once).

So I chanced it- and scored (for Norfolk anyway).  1-2ft and clean, warm and sunny.

Few other guys- took the 6'10 orange rocket out.  Waves were kind of weak but got a few ones.  Got out as my parking ticket ran out.  Having not easten or drank I headed back rather than topping up the meter.  Wished I had stayed longer!

Last night in Rio

It was a big bonus arriving in Rio early.  It made the evening more relaxing.  I was keen to have a proper Brazilian meat dinner having never had the experience before so we headed to Porcao. Initially we discovered that the jockey club one was not the complete one, so we headed to the Ipanema branch.  It did not disappoint.  Lots of meat and a buffet that included sushi- was in the element.  I ate less than I would have expected- but still very good.  Meat ranged from cuts of beef, to chicken hearts, pork and great lamb- served Brazilian style.

We awoke reasonably early the next day and headed to Leblon beach.  The waves were small and clean.  Had an average Leblon session catching a few waves and was pleased to get in the water.  Headed back to finish packing before lunch at Pizzeria followed by ice cream and time by the beach.  We even built a sand castle and I got my last coconut. 

I got taxi quite early to arrive at the airport in good time, and fortunately I was able to get him to drive to both terminals as I couldn’t remember which was BA.  BA fly from terminal 2 at Rio!

Salvador- the verdict

Regarding Salvador, we had had passed through on the way but not really seen it.  I was unsure exactly what to expect.  I had heard mixed things from dodgy, historic and culturally completely different.  The centre is certainly much older than most of what I had seen in Brazil.  It kind of reminds me a little of Lisbon.  There are plenty of churches, colourful buildings.  But the place is really grotty. 

We checked in to our hostel, which was a bit weird as we were just up the street in another building.  At first we lucked in and ended up at a free concert.  The night we arrived was a festival night.  We grabbed some beers and followed locals from concert to concert all open free and happy.  

We continued our walk around eventually looking for a restaurant.  In one of the squares a guy came up to us- beware of the friendly ones.  Then he started saying he sold Marijuana, so politely tried to move on.  I could not get Maria to move on fast enough.  The guy then started wanting money for no reason at which point I knew we should leave.  He went on some rant, which fortunately Maria told me the next day translated as ‘I am going to stab you with a knife so you get my AIDs’… charming.  I may add we were in the centre among people and the guy looked quite pathetic, but still.

We had a Bahian dinner in a restaurant near the hostel.  When I got back I fell straight to sleep and slept until the next day.  Clearly the ferry took it out of me.

The next morning we explored the town.  To be honest it was a bit disappointing.  We did not go into any of the Museums and didn’t really leave the small part of the centre where we saying- due to safety- which was probably a bit over precautious.  

We did the famous elevator.  At the bottom there was not much the market was touristy and here were a lot of abandoned buildings.  At the top we also got hassled by this woman in a Bahian costume.  She got photos with us but then tried to demand a stupid amount of money (10 reals).  Fortunately Maria got her to bugger off in the end, but I’m sure many have fallen to her scam.  We wandered around before getting the taxi to the airport.  In general Salvador was quite grotty and poor. However the worst thing was the rudeness of the people in general.  Compared to Itacare which was so clean and happy this was a world away.  Even the hostel owner was rude to Maria.  As an English guy had said the night before of Salvador: ‘see the centre and then get the f*** out’.  I have no idea what the beaches or Barra area are like- they could be quite nice, but I doubt they would compare to Itacare.

However we lucked in at the airport.  My insistence we arrive early, meant seasoned traveller Maria was able to get us on an earlier flight to Rio.  No hanging around, straight onto the plane and great seats to ourselves at the front.  It was an easy flight and we even got our luggage right away.   The wait for an accredited taxi was a bit long unfortunately.  However I made my moment on Iranian TV.  I was interviewed regarding the World cup and Rio airport infrastructure- I was quite blunt in my assessment- sorry Brazil, but it is true.

Itacare- the last day and to Salvador

Final full day in Itacare.  Kept seeming to wake up slightly queasy.  Not quite sure why- maybe Bahia water?  I have called this ‘Bahia belly’.  Most of the day was spent at Tiririca- with 3 separate surf sessions and time on the beach. 

The first session was quite fun in small but fairly steep waves.  Didn’t catch a lot at first but it picked a few waves.  A local photographer caught some shots- which show my lack of style in the water.

The second session was less successful.  There was this weird rip running through at low tide- everything was closing kind of Rio style.  After sitting on the beach the rain arrived- and there was a heavy shower.  This was the point we headed to have lunch (latish) at the bar.  We had a fish stew which was pretty nice and avoided most of the rain.

The wind had got up a bit and the waves were slightly larger.  I paddled out- I think I was the only non-local.  The line-up was really competitive with Brazilian rippers, which was frustrating.  The best wave I had I was dropped in on although after some shouting the kid pulled out.  I think this was the best session of the day- but the ultra-good crowd slightly curtailed the wave count.

I got back earlier to watch the Chelsea Atletico game which sadly went the wrong way.  This was followed by a light Tapioca dinner.  The evening was passed at favela bar where the music was good.  I had a fair few beers and we chatted with some English guys at length who were staying in the hostel. All in all a good night.

The next morning we were due to leave.  Originally I had planned to surf but again Bahia belly ruled that out.  After breakfast we opted for the earlier 11 bus.  It was really smooth journey, the only thing that annoyed me was 3 reals extra for the board- just the principle.  On the way we passed the same towns, including one which seemed to have a football match/ festival.  The bus was quite comfortable so no complaints.

On arrival in Bom Despacho we got straight on the ferry which was handy.  However as previously documented the ferry is grotty, crowded and hard work with luggage (especially the amount and size we had), so something I’m glad to do one last time only. 

At the other end a taxi whisked us up the cobbled streets of Salvador.

Itacre so far

I felt slightly queasy the first day.  However it soon passed.  We headed down towards Tiririca beach which is 10 mins from town and is the main surf beach.  To be honest conditions did not look great- it was small and there was loads of wind.  However I got in and managed to get a fair few small waves so better than expected. 

We spent most the day at the beach (in the wind) although it was quite sunny.  Maria tried bodyboarding for a bit.  I had a coconut on the beach.  The surf seemed to improve with the tide pushing.  There were a load of local guys who were really good and absolutely tearing it up.

I paddled out for a second session which somehow turned into the best of the trip as I managed to string a load of waves together- before getting out to avoid spending too much time in that sun. 

Later walked around a bit before heading back for an early dinner- which consisted of octopus in a nearby restaurant.  This was followed by an amazing desert at a nearby patisserie.  We passed the rest of the evening in the hostel bar- I had two Caipirhinas which turned out to be strong.

Again this morning I felt slightly queasy but this soon passed.  We hiked up to the beach ‘Praihna’, which is only accessible by trail.  Maria thought it was best to get a local guide, which turned out to be a good idea as there were lots of trails.  The hike was quite interesting, through the jungle, but not too strenuous.  

We ended up on a nice quiet beach.  In the strong wind I gave the messy surf on offer a miss.  Two guys tried and failed to paddle out.  Later some other guys got out the back, but it looked hard work for the very messy waves.  Instead had a kick around with the guy at the bar, including a brief penalty shootout.  Consumed 2 coconuts and enjoyed the beach before the trek back.  I kept thinking of spiders, but fortunately did not have to see them. 

We stopped off in Tiririca on the way back for a late lunch (4:00).  It was still pretty windy.  I decided to give the surf a go, but unlike the locals didn’t really make it out the back, as the current seemed to drag me down the beach every time.  Caught one inside section wave but that was it.  Slightly frustrating really.  Had a wander back in the rain and due to go out for a light dinner.

Back to Rio, Off to Bahia

It has been a while since I last posted.  We headed from Recreio to the National Park.  That day was pretty windy and the weather was not so good.  I went in for a surf at Recreio beach corner which was a bit more sheltered but didn’t really catch any decent waves with the intense crowd.

The national park was very scenic.  I had never been beyond Grumari before so was interested to see the rest.  We grabbed lunch at this restaurant in a fishing village.  The portions were huge and it was cheap.  We drove around a bit before heading back into Rio (Copacabana) to stay around that area for 3 nights.

The next day we dropped off the car. It was a relief in a way to get rid of the car as though as I was a bit fed up of driving in Brazil.  I had an unsuccessful ses at Arpadoar.  Only chose to go in as it was the nearest surf spot.  Never really had a good surf there and don’t think I ever will.

Later headed into the centre, Uruguaiana market, where we picked up some football shirts.  Maria was keen for me to get a Colombia shirt sowe both ended up with Falcao 9.  Ended up having a Feijoida for dinner.  Maria was keen to go to Lapa for the night so we headed out. Walked around the area a bit, had some drinks and ended up in Rio senarium which was a strange place with lots of antiques as well as music. 

Having got in at 3am the next day was a bit of a slow start.  Ended up not doing much.  Instead of going to Santa Teresa, it was nice to walk along the beach in the sun.  There were actually some pretty heavy waves in Copacabana- I was tempted to body surf.  I even saw one surf get a barrel and make it out.  Maria went to see a flat in Ipanema which to be honest was not that nice, but I don’t think it is an area where you get much for your money.  We wandered up to Arpoador to see the beach.  I seemed to get a lot of positive attention in my Colombian shirt, mainly from Colombians who thought I was one of them.  We didn’t do much in the evening except pack the Salvador trip.

This morning we left around 7ish to the airport.  The flight was all fairly hassle free and we arrived to a rainy Salvador.  We got a taxi through to the port, which turned out to be half the price we expected.  I was really happy when I saw the Chelsea result on the way- particularly as I hate Liverpool. 

The ferry port was where our adventure began.  The ferry was fairly old and grotty.  There were many locals and few tourists.  Many tourists were heading to Morro Sao Paulo- which is an Island in the Salvador bay- we were not.  The ferry journey became wet as a rain storm hit.  It was a bit of a mission getting on and off with all our baggage.  When we arrived in Bom Despacho (otherside of bay from Salvador), we had to walk out with all the car. 

Fortunately the bus to Itacare was right there so we got it with no hassle.  However as expected it was a long journey of 5 hours with the bus stopping in many random towns- with people getting in and out everywhere.   Things take a while in Bahia I think.  There were some drunk local women at the front which was the cause of great laughter among the bus.  An hour before Itacare some English people got on.  Turns out they run a hostel in town and were able to give us some tips on restaurants, the area and show us to where we were staing which was quite handy.  After 12 hours of travellung we have arrived.  And despite the time we were lucky overall, as we never got lost, ripped off or had to hang around anywhere.

Had a local dinner of crab stew, rice and other accompanying foods.  Washed down with 1 litre of Bohemian beer.  Ended up chatting to the table next to us as well as buying some locsal Bahia chocolate.

Last few days- Buzios, Saquarema, Recreio

We stayed in Buzios.  During the day we hired a sea kayak and paddled around with sea turtles.  I was less convinced of the idea of paddling one of these things at sea so we did not stray too far.  The turtles were quite cool, although only saw them from the boat.  Later on had a quick surf but the waves were kind of small and weak, with a few short rights and a left

Headed out into the town and I bought some boardshorts- was short of non-salty ones.  We finished off with drinks by the port near the hotel.  Maria said ‘really romantic’. J

The next morning I awoke and wandered down to the nearest beach.  Sadly the waves were smaller than expected- again got a few short ones but nothing too special.  I also couldn’t remember where I put my Brasileiro Haviannas which I bought last time so had to walk back in bare feet which was not great.  We headed back to the same beach surfed the previous day, but by now the wind was on it and it was still small.

So headed towards Saquarema- the drive was not too bad as well- along the highway this time.  At Saqua we grabbed a cheap lunch at a local place.  The woman at the bar was quite interested in us and the colour of my eyes- not many people visit Saqua.  She also told me I should not get a Neymar haircut. 

We found a nice Posada nearby after cruising the town a bit.  I was able to catch 15 mins of the first half of Atletico Chelsea on the TV. It seemed a tight match as expected so headed to surf.  The conditions were not too bad considering the wind was on it.  However I ended up getting quite smashed and catching no waves which was a bit s***. L

On the way back we passed a bar which had been playing the game- I chatted a bit to this bloke who said he (lets call him Junior) was backing Chelsea- with the standard ‘Oscar, Luiz, Ramires, Willian’ talk.  We grabbed a snack dinner and played some pool.

The next morning’s breakfast at the Posada was great.  Headed down to the beach around 9.  Conditions were really good and clean- although there were a few out already.  Again didn’t have the best surf but got a few- the best one ended with a local dropping in on me.  Also got a few wipeouts.  There was a really nice right over towards the Church but was a bit packed with Brazilian rippers so gave it a miss.  Nice wave though. 

Whilst we were about to go I saw this 6 yr oldish kid come out the water- he had a bodyboard, but sadly only one arm.  We had a great deal of respect for this guy who was in pretty solid waves at a young age.  Really inspiring to see.

We left Saqua to head to Recreio which is where I spent a brief period after my last Saqua trip.  The journey was alright expect for some of the Brazilian driving which is frankly dreadful.  We stopped for a quick lunch in a shopping centre that turned out to be a lot more of a journey from the motorway than signposted.  Finally got into Rio- I glad I don’t have to cross that bridge again- long and scary.  Actually the journey here was quite easy in the end.

Sadly I didn’t have a chance to surf.  Staying in a different place- it’s not so great, but we are only here one night.  For dinner we headed to this all you can eat buffet which was actually good- it included nice sushi too.  The walk back was okay although Maria found it a bit dodgy and we were careful after this guy seemed to be following us briefly.   Unfortunately it confirmed Maria’s fears about this area being a bit dodge.  Tomorrow we are going to explore the nearby National park and coast- making use of our last hire car day.