my queen vitoria

On Saturday two weekends (come on slow poke… right?) I traveled to Vitoria, a really cool town about an hour away from Bilbao. It’s the capital of the Basque country. The city is interestingly separated into two parts: the newer, wealthier section and the older more historic part. The older part is primarily a younger demographic and the area is quite politically charged with tons of posters lining the streets and graffiti screaming at passers by … a passionate bunch, these pais vascoans (basque people).

When I arrive I see the Artium on my right. It’s Vitoria’s answer to Biblao’s Guggenheim museum (which I visited on Friday… that place is ridiculous!). The Artium’s architecture is very modern which seems to be the general motif throughout Spain, at least in the northern more metropolitan areas. I wander through the old portion of town passing hole-in-the-wall bars with tons of Spaniards coming and going and standing and conversing. I later learned that these afternoons on Saturday and Sunday in Spain are extremely unique. People share stories over pequino beers (a couple ounces) while standing and mingling in the street… a really cool time catch up about the week with friends. Yet, can’t imagine u.s. law enforcement agreeing with such activities.

Passing the old part, I enter the realm of the new. Known for it’s numerous green spaces, Vitoria has the greatest number of gardens/parks/green stuff per capita in all of Spain. Needless to say I encounter some exotic foliage and pass many open spaces. Also, I find one of the most quiet and quaint parts of town. A long, tree lined footpath makes a perfect spot for a casual walk along side other relaxed Spaniards. Mansions line the walk as do beautifully tall and trimmed trees. I find a bench (there’s gotta be more benches in Spain than in any other part of the world. those things are everywhere). I relax. I doze. I people watch. I read. I find my next destination within the city in my northern Spain travel book (thanks Dad), which proves to be a busy little café in the middle of a large plaza.

With café con leche in hand, I relax some more. I peel a naranja (orange), and again I witness little kids kicking soccer balls, hitting the occasional passerby (ha and I’m reminded… actually today I was walking in Getxo and got nailed in the head with a soccer ball! The little guys laughed out loud as the ball that bounced off my head apparently set up a goal. That’s right, I kept that thing in play… and got an assist. Oh man... couldn’t help but just started laughing really hard to myself) and I see one of the bluest sky’s as the sun begins to set.

Oh also, I cant forget about my moment of cultural duress. I’m in a restaurant/bar and I have my backpack on, unfortunately. ‘hey everyone I’m a American tourist’… great. Anyway, after asking the waitress for a table I hear, ‘hour and a half wait’… wonderful. So I approach the bar. Yet it’s pretty full so I stand directly behind someone. Now I’m sticking pretty far out into the room. I look around and for some reason the temperature suddenly increases by about ten. Soon the glances commence and the whispering begins and the discrete but obvious laughs arrive. I feel like Mculley Culkin in Home Alone after he checks Buzz into the milk and it spills everywhere. ‘look what you did you little jerk.’ All the attention and the looks and the sneers are directed at him. In that moment the whole world seems against him. Likewise, I feel all the faces, all the chuckles and the looks. Ever experienced a fight or flight moment? Well I have an extreme desire to run on out of there… as if I’ll have to sleep… in the attic… in the same bed as the cousin who wets his bed. Somehow the situation quickly turns very uncomfortable. However, I fight the urge and stand my ground. I wrestle and stuff that guy down. A few deep breaths and finally an acknowledgement from the bartender calm me. I have a bocadillo (a sandy) and a kas naranja and my moment of cultural duress subsides. It felt like some kind of training and in a way, a slight victory.

So all in all it was another great trip to another grand Spanish city.