VAMOS A ZUMAIA
- Hannah McDonald
- Jun 9, 2017
- 3 min read
Today is Friday: the last day of our first week of classes. In our first class, we reviewed the past tense again and finished our investigation. Turns out I wasn't very suspicious, except for accidentally fully confessing. At the end of class we got to play Mafia. Makaela was one of the killers, which I guessed. During our second class, we learned a new game called Psicólogo. In case I ever play it with one of you, I will not spoil it. Just know it was fun.
After lunch in the park, our group caught the bus to Zumaia. Zumaia is about an hour, by bus, down the coast from San Sebastian. It wasn't a direct bus ride, so it took longer than it would by car. During the drive, Mike explained to us that part of The Game of Thrones, a television show, was filmed here in Zumaia. On the way, we got to drive through other towns, which was interesting to see. There seem to be several cute little towns near the city. Toward the end, the road got windy along the cost and the driver was going fairly fast. Many of us were starting to feel it and were ready to arrive.
Driving into the town was beautiful. There is a river flowing through the town that leads to the ocean, and there are fisherman boats anchored to each side of the river. After getting off the bus, we walked through the town and up to an overlook point. Being in the city for almost a week now, it was strange to not have people always walking around us. Zumaia is much calmer. The lookout was beautiful. You could see the beach, the cliffs, the town, pastures, and, of course, the ocean.
The original plan was to go to the beach and swim. However, it was on the chilly side for swimming, so we chose a walk instead. There was a piece of land that extended out into the ocean, which we hiked along. There were cliffs on either side, but it was a large and wide expanse of land. Looking down the coast and back at the beach was captivating. Words can't do it justice, so I will leave the pictures to do the talking.
We took a different route when we walked back toward the town. Instead of staying above the ocean, we hiked down to be level with it. Let's just say it's a good thing we're from Colorado because I was wearing flip-flops and Makaela was wearing birks. Walking back into the village, we passed farms and cows, something we hadn't seen in a while.
Our bus back to San Sebastian was at 6:00 pm, so we didn't have much time in the town. We walked through a few more of the streets, went to the top of one of the buildings, took some pictures of the river and fisherman boats, and then boarded the bus. The ride back was slightly easier because we sat in the front half of the bus. The front and back half of the bus is separated by a connecting piece that spins when the bus turns. It was slightly discombobulating on the way there when the front half of the bus would turn and you wouldn't.
Back in San Sebastian, Makaela and I said hasta manaña to the group and returned home. I talked to my host family again for awhile tonight. During dinner, we talked more about the kinds of foods I eat at home versus the kinds of food here. In middle school, there was a student from Spain studying at the school for a semester. I remember her saying that, before coming to the United States, she had never had peanut butter. Throughout the trip, I have been keeping an eye out for it in the markets partly because I am curious and partly because I would love to have some. I asked my host family tonight if they had it or had heard of it, and they actually had some in their kitchen. It was the first I had seen of it here, but it appears there is peanut butter in Spain.
Tomorrow my La Cunza group has our first Saturday excursion. We are going to Bilbao, another city about an hour away. I get to sleep in just a little later than usual, which will be nice since it has been a full week.
I am enjoying my time here and feel like my Spanish is improving. However, immersing into an unfamiliar language is exhausting, so I need my sleep for another busy day tomorrow.
Comments