Spain is made of 15 regions, each with their own typical cuisine, history and culture. There is Catalonia, characterised by its art and the modern city of Barcelona; Galicia, known mainly for the Camino de Santiago; or again, Andalusia, the sunniest and hottest one, with her strong Moorish influence. I am far from seeing all of them, but this past month I went to one of the most interesting ones: the Basque Country.

This region has an extremely long history, and like Catalonia, a very strong independent movement. It is a relatively small area found in the northern part of the country, with a long coastline along the Atlantic, but also with a small part bordering France, therefore developing in the Pyrenees. The region’s capital is Vitoria-Gasteiz, but the most famous cities in terms of tourism are Bilbao and Donostia-San Sebastian. The Basque identity is felt strongly throughout the entire region: the locals speak Euskara, to be considered probably the oldest language spoken in Europe, and they love sharing their brilliant Michelin-starred-cuisine. 

I chose this destination mainly out of curiosity, since I had often heard about it and I had the impression that it was going to feel very different from the rest of Spain… And this definitely turned out to be true. Despite being able to get around by knowing Spanish, it took me some time understanding their local customs. I created an itinerary that would allow us to explore the whole region: we dedicated a couple of days to Bilbao, explored the fishing villages in Urdaibai, drove all the way to San Sebastian, hiked the Urkiola National Park and even visited the capital city. I don’t know if it was the rainy weather, but pretty much everywhere we felt a bit unwelcomed – nothing like my previous experiences in other Spanish cities and particularly in the Southern part of the country.

Despite that, Basque culture blew me away: with its pintxos (small bites of food, not to be confused with tapas), its deeply-rooted and unique history, as well as its wonderful Natural Parks. I truly couldn’t ask for a better combination of things, in such a small area that can be easily explored by car. An incredible free walking tour in San Sebastian took us through the region’s history – we learned about its flag, displayed everywhere with pride and about the Basque people. Despite the repressive period of the Spanish Civil War, the “Vascos” (that’s what they are called in Spanish) literally saved their culture from disappearing; it isn’t hard to believe that Basque Nationalists are still fighting for their independence.

Unfortunately I can’t tell you all about this region in such a short article, but trust me when I say that I will be back to explore more of the National Parks, maybe to experience the Film Festival of San Sebastian, and obviously to eat more pintxos! Comment below if you had a different experience in this region and/or if you want to explore more of it.