August 27th, 2007

Hmmm, actually I hate my cell phone. Well, I mean I like the model and stuff but I hate it when it sounds and it is not my bf's tone. I know that they are useful and can save lives many times, but I just hate those things. First, because I always have the awful feeling that the call is gonna mean bad news :(I dunno why, the sound always startles me in the worse possible way. And second, because I find them totally intruding.

Like when I am having a good time with my bf and then someone calls. "Hey, where are you? I'll be there in a minute". I am like "Wtf? Everoccurred tu youthat maybe we want to remain alone?" :evil: Yes, anti-social me. I like spending time with my friends, but when we meet to do things together. I hate being intruded like that. Even if I love those people who are intruding. I don't get it. I am the anti-social of the century, but everyone seems to like me. Bf cracks up, because even his friends and which is worse, his friends' girlfriends call me to meet up. Well, I reckon that I pretty much get along with everyone, but hey, gimme a break.

Ahem, I kinda started venting. Sorry guys. Ur...back to topic. Needing to call him before you can go to sleep? Sure, my bf is usually the last person I see before going to bed (we live at a 2 minute walk from each other and 95% of the days we have dinner together and then go for a late walk down to the lighthouse or watch a movie or something) but if he is not, I like to listen to an "I love you" last thing of the day :)

Calvin and Hobbes is propriety of Bill Watterson and Universal Press Syndicate.

On the personal note...ok so yesterday we covered stage 2, aka the New Promenade and its waves. Today moving on to stage 3, the Port and the Old Part. Actually, this bit is not particularly beautiful, because the most interesting thing abut the Port is that it leads to the Shell Beach and the most interesting thing about the Old Part are its tapas and its music bars. But hey, Penny is gonna love his pics too because she walked through these places, so there we go.

Once the walk around the Mount Urgull through the New Promenade, we reach the Port. There is a nice old Aquarium with a cool huge whale skeleton and a couple of Naval Museums with old boats, explanations on the old fishing techniques and so on. It has been a while since I have last visited those, but I don't think that they have changed a lot. In the last century, whales were fished in the Basque Coasts using the traditional basque boats where 12 men rowed together and struggled with the whale. I still can't belive that they were able to fish a whale from that boat. With the time, whales stopped being fished but the boats kept being used a sport means and nowadays, the boat competitions are huge in here. Next month the biggest boat race of the calendar will be held in our bay (as every year) so I'll tell you a bit more about it then.

This is the old Aquarium, right at the end of the New Promenade.

This is the water tunnel of the New Aquarium, which you access from the old one

This is a typical basque boat, called "trainera"

Old whales fishermen

Boat race

This is the Naval Museum

The port is filled with tiny picturesque houses, which were the old fishermen houses. The city used to be attacked so a defensive castle was built (remember I told you about it yesterday) and huge doors were built in the main entrances to the city. Such door were closed in the evening, so the fishermen, who usually arrived after the doors of the city had been closed, weren't allowed in. So these tiny houses were built right in the port, so the fishermen could spend the night. They are scarcely 8 metres apart from the water. Nowadays, they are private houses and restaurants which offer fresh fish and seafood are established at the bottom of them :)

These are the old fishermen houses

These are some of the walls of the city. Penny and us walked through this one to access to the Old Part :)

It was like 10'00am, and the Old Part was deserted. Being the festivities of the city, the bars in there remained open until 06'00 am so they were either closed or restocking. The old part is the best place to try some typical tapas, but it was impossible, so we walked a bit through its narrow streets. Penny liked St Mary's church. It's main façade is supposed to have engraved somewhere a shell but although I was told where it was, I totally forgot.

You can see St Mary's chuch in the background

Then we walked through the August 31st street, which name comes from the date when if burnt. Every August 31st, the lights are turned off and people put candles in the windows to remember those who died. We reached the Constitution Square, the heart of the Old Part. It was used as a bullring *sigh* so it's windows still keep the numbers of the old audience boxes.

Back into the port, we reached the Nautical Club, which closes the Port. The Nautical Club is a funny building which has the shape of a ship. It's top floor is a disco, and it has great views of the bay. We leant in the wall right by the Club and relaxed a bit. This wall is used as a meeting point.

View of the Port from the Aquarium

View of the Port from the Nautical Club

The Nautical Club

The Nautical Club and the Port in the background

The meeting point wall where we relaxed

This is the Nautical Club in the distance. Behind it, you can find the City Hall and at the right, The Shell Beach, second beach of the city, our bit of the route for tomorrow.

P.S. By the way, I finally managed to watch "Little Miss Sunshine". I know, I'm not precisely up to the minute as far as movies are concerned, but hey. OMG, I totally loved, it was so LMAO. You guys were right, it was worth the waiting :D Acording to my sis in law next one is 300. Ash told me that it was alright, because she doesn't get impressed with too muchblood :? Alright, I'll give it a try.