Día de la Mujer and a Visit from Victoria!
- Jessica Detwiler
- Mar 18
- 5 min read
Since returning from our epic group ski trip in France, I have fallen back into my typical working-studying-running schedule with some notable highlights to share! I can't really believe that we're already past St. Patrick's Day, and I know that the 2.5 months I have left here are going to absolutely fly by. I'm still trying to find the balance between working to achieve the goals I set in January, and enjoying the life I am so lucky to lead here.
Since I am 99% sure I will be returning to the States (for good) in June, I know that the time I have left in Spain is limited and that makes everyday that much more special. When again in my life will I have the chance to run along a gorgeous coastline in a tee-shirt with views of snowcapped mountains to motivate me? When will I be able to spend an entire Monday afternoon in March at the beach with a friend eating focaccia sandwiches and sunbathing? When again will Thursday be my favorite day of the week solely because of a bachata dance lesson and social hour?
Okay, enough reflecting for now. I'm sure more thoughts and feelings about my transition home will be coming your way soon, but for right now I have some highlights to share! This is going to be a bit of a disjointed post, but I hope you enjoy it all the same <3
March 8th is International Women's Day and here in Santander the occasion was celebrated with a protest/parade and purple clothes. Anna and I went to stand in solidarity with the other women, men and children that turned out to show support for women and girls all over the world. It was really inspiring to be a part of this movement and to walk among so many passionate people.
The following day, Sunday, a group of us auxes participated in La Marcha de la Mujer which consisted of a 4 km walk/run. It was a VERY windy morning which made all of us glad that the distance was no longer than a mere 2.8 miles. Despite it being women's weekend, the American boys did not let me finish first in our group...so rude I know. However, we all had a great time and continued the celebration with some beers and bar snacks afterwards.
On Sunday night, Anna and I made a special dinner and dessert combo to try out a new recipe that my mom had sent me! We pulled out all the stops for our meal and even made our own chilli crisp oil to fry the chickpeas in. The final dish consisted of an oven roasted sweet potato topped with crispy chickpeas and a tahini sauce! Anna added some of her mom's famous roasted broccoli and the combination was absolutely perfect.
For dessert, we experimented with a tiramisu recipe and it came out better than we were expecting! Although it wasn't the most photogenic dish (we didn't make enough of the cream mixture to cover the cookie layers), the taste was just what you would want from the classic Italian dessert. The two of us are planning on doing several more Sunday dinners together before June so stay tuned for our next culinary adventure!!
After a full week of tutoring and studying, I was very ready for my reunion with Victoria, a friend from college who is currently doing the same program as me in Cádiz. She arrived to Santander on Friday afternoon and despite some questionable weather, we got right to sightseeing! We hopped on the bus to Sardinero beach and took the semi-circular walking path out to the tip of the peninsula that has the best views of the lighthouse.
Although it was raining on and off, we were still able to enjoy the raw and striking beauty that characterizes the northern coast of this country. She is accustomed to the South, Cádiz is part of the Andalucían community, and had told me that she was very excited to see lush natural landscapes we have up here! After a lovely beach walk, we headed back to my apartment to "warm-up" (nearly impossible with no heat...) before meeting Anna for dinner.
The three of us had a delicious and very Spanish-style dinner at one of my absolute favorite spots in the city, La Tasca. Starting with the time of our reservation (9:30) to our sobremesa (staying at the table post dinner to chat) for nearly an hour, we really leaned into Spanish culture. We even got free post-dessert shots from our waiter which made the whole experience better than we could have imagined!
After another drink out at a nearby bar, we called it a night and layered up before getting into bed. I cannot stress how cold it feels here when the temperatures are in the low/mid 40s. Unfortunately, this fact haunted us all weekend and poor Victoria was definitely missing the milder weather she is used to back in Cádiz.
On Saturday, we started our day off with a brunch of fried eggs, toast, and tea tucked away in my bedroom terrace. It was raining on and off again but we decided to try to go for a hike in the nearby town of Liencres. I, however, misjudged how long it would take us to get to the bus stop and although we jogged there, we watched the bus pull away without us...whoops!
Since Chris was going to come hiking with us, we met up with him and decided to take a tour of the classic Santander spots instead. We first went to the Mercado de la Esperanza and I ventured for the first time to the underground level which is all local seafood. I lasted about 1.5 minutes down there before I had to leave after watching a fisherman hack the head off of a large fish...it was just too early in the day for such an activity.
We continued our tour along the shorefront and beach to Magdalena Palace where we stopped to share some snacks and enjoy a sliver of sun. Spring has definitely sprung on the grounds of Magdalena and I was enjoying the new additions of colorful flower beds around the building. The city of Santander does not mess around with beautifying the streets and walkways and I really appreciate how much they focus on enhancing natural beauty here.
After oogling at the seals that are part of the "zoo" at Magdalena, Chris split off from us and Victoria and I continued our Santander tour with a visit to the pedestrian tunnel and a classic Cantabrian food goods store. We bough some sabao, a typical dessert of the region that resembles a sweeter and more moist version of cornbread, and picked up some ingredients for dinner before heading home.
While Victoria took a siesta, I prepped a vegetarian curry for us to have for dinner with the hope that the spice and temperature would warm us up a bit. When it was ready, Chris came over and the three of us had a lovely meal together! We stayed up talking for quite a while and eventually Victoria left for her overnight bus back to the Bilbao airport.
Despite the less than favorable weather, we really made the most of our time together here and I really hope that she comes back in May so we can do some proper hiking and maybe some surfing!! These next two weekends coming up I have small weekend trips planned: first to Gijón with Anna and then to Burgos by myself. I am really looking forward to seeing two new cities in Spain and for my first ever solo adventure :)
great to hear all about your spanish life. Memories for life. GR
Santander in the spring! Can't wait to see all those flowers. Great post lovebug!