Last week, an amiga and I embarked on our first visit to Northern Spain, Santander to be exact. This was a no-brainer trip for me as I'd heard great things about Santander last semester from a close friend who had studied there before, I was curious to compare Northern Spain with my home base in the south, and the Santander flight route is one of the cheapest you'll find direct from Sevilla (about €30/$40 roundtrip).
Although the flight into Santander was one of the bumpiest I've experienced (easily the windiest city I've been to while abroad), it was another painless domestic flight in which the take-off/landing processes were longer than the actual flight time and with Spanish flag carrier airline Iberia experiencing fairly regular strikes until this past week, I had to be all the more grateful for Ryanair.
The first thing I noticed when flying into Santander was how green and mountainous the terrain was, as opposed to the relatively brown flatlands that can be found surrounding Sevilla. At around 180,000 people, Santander is the 35th largest city in Spain and therefore a lesser-known travel destination. This fact was evident through the quiet streets and our accommodation, one of few budget hostels located in town in which we had a decently cheap two bed private room with a far different atmosphere to those I've experienced in Berlin, Barcelona, or even Marrakech. However, I obviously expected Santander to be a different experience to those global metropolises and it played its role to perfection. Although Santander and the rest of Northern Spain has a reputation for being rainy year-round, we lucked out by having to dodge downpours just one night. This made our day-to-day trekking much easier and it allowed us to explore some of the coolest natural scenery I've seen in Spain or anywhere.
Bilbao, home to around 350,000 people (Spain's 10th largest), the famous Guggenheim Museum, and the center of the globally intriguing Basque Country, was next on the list and a short, scenic bus ride away. With Kaixo being Hello, Eskerrik asko meaning Thank You, and Ez dakit euskaraz hits egiten translating as I can't speak Basque, it is very easy to see how the Basque language is not related to any language across the globe (somewhat supporting their consistent pleas for independence). Coming into the trip, I knew the Basque Country was an extremely proud region and I wasn't sure which action among speaking fluent English, decent Spanish, or butchered Basque would offend them most, a feeling I had experienced with my first taste of Portuguese in Lisbon last term. Luckily, Spanish is just as common in both areas so while I'm eager to gain some skills in Portuguese, I steered clear of Basque for this time around.
Language aside, I found my first trip to Bilbao and the Basque Country to be incredible. Formerly known as "Spain's Pittsburgh" due to its rich history in heavy industry, Bilbao has been transformed through numerous projects of urban renewal including a new airport, rapid transit system, distinctive buildings like the Guggenheim, and numerous green spaces like the former steel factory turned park overlooking the city known as Etxeberria (probably my favorite part of Bilbao). As urban planning is one of my favorite subjects, I find it all the more fascinating that an example of such successful revitalization is occurring in the Iberian Peninsula, an area currently plagued by economic crises.
Overall, my brief four day tour of Santander and Bilbao left me with great impressions of Northern Spain. While I absolutely love calling Sevilla home, having mountains and beaches next to alluring urban architecture was a refreshing change to life here. Unlike major cities involved in my past travels, I came to Santander and Bilbao with no set expectations and left appreciating the added understanding they had given me towards my host country, precious knowledge I consider as valuable as learning a language.
It's an amazing experience to see a country's most prized city like a London, Paris, or Rome and all the treasures they have to offer but at times the most rewarding adventures lie beyond the beaten paths. I've been fortunate to have lived in Spain long enough to be able to explore some of its roads less traveled and hidden gems and I hope to get the opportunity to do so with as many places as possible in the future in order to get an inside look on what constitutes each country and makes it stand out from the rest. This trip reflected that inside-look philosophy and I look forward to seeing where the next cheap flight takes me and what it teaches me.
With a fast-approaching break in Sevilla, for the world-renowned Semana Santa (Holy Week), due to begin next week, I'm off to take a closer look at neighboring Portugal and experience one of Spain's most renowned festivals. As always, my not-so-pro trip pics can be seen on my Facebook.
!Hasta luego!
Although the flight into Santander was one of the bumpiest I've experienced (easily the windiest city I've been to while abroad), it was another painless domestic flight in which the take-off/landing processes were longer than the actual flight time and with Spanish flag carrier airline Iberia experiencing fairly regular strikes until this past week, I had to be all the more grateful for Ryanair.
The first thing I noticed when flying into Santander was how green and mountainous the terrain was, as opposed to the relatively brown flatlands that can be found surrounding Sevilla. At around 180,000 people, Santander is the 35th largest city in Spain and therefore a lesser-known travel destination. This fact was evident through the quiet streets and our accommodation, one of few budget hostels located in town in which we had a decently cheap two bed private room with a far different atmosphere to those I've experienced in Berlin, Barcelona, or even Marrakech. However, I obviously expected Santander to be a different experience to those global metropolises and it played its role to perfection. Although Santander and the rest of Northern Spain has a reputation for being rainy year-round, we lucked out by having to dodge downpours just one night. This made our day-to-day trekking much easier and it allowed us to explore some of the coolest natural scenery I've seen in Spain or anywhere.
Bilbao, home to around 350,000 people (Spain's 10th largest), the famous Guggenheim Museum, and the center of the globally intriguing Basque Country, was next on the list and a short, scenic bus ride away. With Kaixo being Hello, Eskerrik asko meaning Thank You, and Ez dakit euskaraz hits egiten translating as I can't speak Basque, it is very easy to see how the Basque language is not related to any language across the globe (somewhat supporting their consistent pleas for independence). Coming into the trip, I knew the Basque Country was an extremely proud region and I wasn't sure which action among speaking fluent English, decent Spanish, or butchered Basque would offend them most, a feeling I had experienced with my first taste of Portuguese in Lisbon last term. Luckily, Spanish is just as common in both areas so while I'm eager to gain some skills in Portuguese, I steered clear of Basque for this time around.
Language aside, I found my first trip to Bilbao and the Basque Country to be incredible. Formerly known as "Spain's Pittsburgh" due to its rich history in heavy industry, Bilbao has been transformed through numerous projects of urban renewal including a new airport, rapid transit system, distinctive buildings like the Guggenheim, and numerous green spaces like the former steel factory turned park overlooking the city known as Etxeberria (probably my favorite part of Bilbao). As urban planning is one of my favorite subjects, I find it all the more fascinating that an example of such successful revitalization is occurring in the Iberian Peninsula, an area currently plagued by economic crises.
Overall, my brief four day tour of Santander and Bilbao left me with great impressions of Northern Spain. While I absolutely love calling Sevilla home, having mountains and beaches next to alluring urban architecture was a refreshing change to life here. Unlike major cities involved in my past travels, I came to Santander and Bilbao with no set expectations and left appreciating the added understanding they had given me towards my host country, precious knowledge I consider as valuable as learning a language.
It's an amazing experience to see a country's most prized city like a London, Paris, or Rome and all the treasures they have to offer but at times the most rewarding adventures lie beyond the beaten paths. I've been fortunate to have lived in Spain long enough to be able to explore some of its roads less traveled and hidden gems and I hope to get the opportunity to do so with as many places as possible in the future in order to get an inside look on what constitutes each country and makes it stand out from the rest. This trip reflected that inside-look philosophy and I look forward to seeing where the next cheap flight takes me and what it teaches me.
With a fast-approaching break in Sevilla, for the world-renowned Semana Santa (Holy Week), due to begin next week, I'm off to take a closer look at neighboring Portugal and experience one of Spain's most renowned festivals. As always, my not-so-pro trip pics can be seen on my Facebook.
!Hasta luego!
