Posts Tagged With: travel+photography

French Basque – A Day Inland

Posted on January 5, 2026 by Ziggy

Two months in and it still feels strange classifying some Basque country posts in the France section. Even though it’s undeniably French in language, food and culture, it didnt feel like the same France we know and love. It almost felt like another country, called Basque 😊.

One of the highlights of Pays Basque is the rich collection of picturesque villages spread out in the mountains. It seems like each one of a handful or so villages has found itself on the coveted “Most Beautiful Villages in France” list over the years. You dont have to see all of them, as spending ample time in the ones below will give you a good taste and more. Less is more, remember? Says the person who never learns and tried to see as many villages as possible.

Start with the longest drive of the day, an hour or so from the coast (where you’ll most likely stay. Here’s one suggestion) to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, possibly the the creme de la creme of the Pays villages. Besides having possibly the most dashes in a name (Guinness?), this town has a lot going for it. It is the starting point of one of the most popular Camino routes, and the ending point of other hikes. Its like Disney for hikers if there ever was one.

Like many such gems, the action is centered around one street, between Porte de Saint-Jacques and Porte d’Espagne. If parking by Porte d’Espagne is full, just turn around and park by the lot nearby. Make sure to walk a bit on the main car road, Plāce Chārles de Gāulle for the money shots of the river. You can do the town in less than 90 minutes

Next, a 30 minute or so drive to Espelette, one of the most famous towns in the entire Pays Basque. Even when visiting Biarritz and Saint-Jean-de-Luz (The previous dash record holder), you begin to appreciate Espelette’s fame. You’ll see Espelette stores, postcards, and the famous Espelette pepper products all over the region. The town is famous for its pepper, but even if you take the pepper out of the equation, it’s still very pleasant.

Time for lunch. This is the one area were I suggest Michelin. You will be hard pressed to find this kind of value in large cities in France or anywhere. Choko Ona in Espelette is the way to go. Not exactly a national secret however as the place most likely will be full, so highly recommend to reserve.

Take an after lunch stroll in beautiful Espelette and then head to Villa Arnaga, or House-museum of Edmond Rostand as its shown on Google. The villa is the perfect size for an attraction that compliments the rest of the day’s itinerary. Not too crowded, tastefully manicured garden, and uniquely furnished home.

This is not one of those marathon posts. Take it easy here, and learn from my mistake. We wanted to see one more village so we zigzagged through the mountains to Ainhoa. But what we found was a very sleepy village that was quite forgettable after the others. Take your time with the others, have a nice long lunch, see the Villa and call it a day. A memorable one.

Categories: France | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

24 Hours in Rioja

Posted on December 7, 2025 by Ziggy

Wine, Pintxos, Sleep, Rinse, Repeat. That’s pretty much the gist of this post and what 24 hours in Rioja may entail. Well, there was also plenty of architecture, old towns, cats, and pretty cool art. But all roads in Rioja lead to more wine, more Pintxos, and since the area hasnt been discovered like the neighbors to the north, all still quite cheap.

Since you’ll be saving on all that glorious food and wine, might as well splurge with Palacio de Samaniego, located in the village of, you guessed it, Samaniego. A restored 17th centaury palace consisting of 9 luxury suites, opened a few years ago by the Rothschild family. The personal project of Edmond de Rothschild Group CEO Ariane de Rothschild, adding her personal touch and private collection, particularly the vases. The entire place including your room looks like a museum.

Breakfast at the Palacio is superb, but dinner was a bit less so. Tierra y Vino is locally well regarded, praised by Macarfi, Michelin and more. Perhaps a series of sensational meals in French Basque and San Sebastian were a tough act to follow. Still, it gets great reviews, and your experience may differ. The beef cheeks and duck were the saving grace.

An alternative in the area would be to eat in the village of Ábalos, or at the popular meat temple SVGAR in Laguardia. All within 10 minute drive. You can also have a lighter meal at the Palacio after a bigger lunch elsewhere. During our meal, waiters were carrying some nifty looking burgers to the patrons sitting in the lobby.

Baigorri

Moving on to the area wineries. You are essentially within a short drive of some of the most impressive wineries in Europe. My advice is to see the grand and famous, but taste the small and personable. You got one of each within walking distance of the Palacio. You can pop inside Bodegas Baigorri for a quick peek or a tour. Followed by a tasting at Bodegas Ostatu across. Try the white Gran Reserva and red Gloria.

For lunch I recommend a pintxos crawl in Logroño, Rioja’s bustling capital. This is the cultural and historic jewel of the region, especially for food lovers. Once you discover the action on Calle Laurel, the epicenter of the old town, you’ll plan to come back on the way to the car for more, only to discover that it just go busier. Meaning, come as early as you can. The bonus is that after San Sebastián or Bilbao, this will be a major relief on the wallet. Here are some of the highlights for your crawl.

Bar Soriano – Start with the legend that makes one item. Grilled Cremini mushroom tower with shrimp on top and bread. Sounds kinda meh but its so satisfyingly garlicky and buttery. Even chief mushroom hater Mrs Z liked it. Places all over town trying to mimic this but you’ll want to try it here.

Bar Lorenzo “Agus Tio” – Next to Soriano you got very tasty Bocadillos, mini pork skewer sandwiches that come nicely sauced. Light and delicious.

Torres Gastrobar – For the finish, Kobe Beef cutlets with fries and green peppers. Supremely flavorful, and popular for a reason. I actually came for the squid sandwiches (solid as well), but got distracted when these cutlets were parading all over.

Its wine o’clock again, and time to finish our wine tour with two obligatory stops. Bodegas Ysios and Marqués de Riscal, in that order if you pressed for time. Ysios is an absolute stunner, maybe the most beautiful winery I’ve seen, and the building is quite accessible for your all important selfie. But you need an appointment to get inside. Marqués de Riscal isnt as accessible without booking a tour

Spend the next morning in another atmospheric old town, LaGuardia. Though dont come too early, as the town just begins to wake up at around 11. One unexpected aspect was the art, including the tree art outside the walls, and Sara Luna’s window art displayed on several shops. Along with Logroño, this is reason enough to come to Rioja.

The order here obviously depends on your schedule. Be mindful of opening/closing times of the wineries. Another winery I planned on visiting but had to cancel days prior is Bodegas Tritium for their 15th-century caves.

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San Sebastian – Random Tips

Posted on November 21, 2025 by Ziggy

This will be short, sweet and possibly or probably controversial.

Stay in Gros. This is not one of those situations where you are staying far from the action and need to travel to the center via a long boring walk or public transportation. Its an attractive, happening, residential area with plenty of interesting food options like Artean and a plethora of Pintxo bars. And the walk to the center via any of the bridges is pretty cool.

See the Sunset and surfers from Sagues. Another reason to stay in Gros or at least visit. This is where the young, the restless, and good looking people hang out, so we naturally blended in ;). Its a long promenade with a low wall for sitting and people watching, if not the glorious sunset.

Follow the path of local artist Eduardo Chillida, starting with the dramatic Haizearen Orrazia (Comb of the Wind), and the open-air museum, Chillida-Leku located outside the city. His masterpiece in Gijon (Elogio del horizonte) in Asturias worth checking out as well if you are travelling that way. You may even bump into Chillida’s grandson in Chillida-Leku.

As for food, too many to mention and I will continue writing about the highlights. Spoiler alert: Martin Berasategui worth the splurge, and Ganbara worth the wait. But its really hard these days to have a proper Pintxo crawl when you need to stand on ling lines, and due to the vastness and deliciousness of some of the menus.

Worth mentioning, if you are the “Eat to live” kind as some of my friends, as opposed to “Live to eat”, San Sebastian isnt really for you IMO. There’s really not a whole lot to do and see there.

Other day trips: Turbot village Getaria and the Flysch cliffs of Zumaia can be a very nice day. You can have an amazing lunch in Getaria at Elkano, any of its sisters, or Mayflower. Or do what we did this time, a Sea Bream feast at the legendary Xixario.

I wasnt sure whether to post the following, but I think its important to mention. Read it as an observation since this is really the intended purpose. It might be good news, or not, depending on where you stand on the issue.

In Basque country cities and villages these days, you cant really walk far without seeing a Palestinian flag, and in San Sebastian’s old town you cant walk two feet without seeing one. They are hanging from just about every poll, window, and even churches and municipality buildings. After some time, it just becomes part of the scene, but its quite prevalent at first. Even in small villages in Rioja you may see one waved in the main square. I have some ideas on the reasons, but I wont get into it here.

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    This is Biarritz and Bayonne

    Posted on November 5, 2025 by Ziggy

    A tale of two cities. Only 8 km apart, but two distinctly different cities in Pays Basque. Isolated from the rest of France in more ways than one, although Bordeaux can be reached in a couple of hours. Biarritz International Airport conveniently sitting between the two, is a good starting point for a Basque adventure. Though we opted to fly to San Sebastian which is actually in the town of Hondarribia, close to the border.

    Biarritz is the glitzy, fashionable sister. It ends with “Ritz” after all. But its one of the least if not the least Basque-looking city I’ve seen. Quite the contrast to something like the Saint-Jean-de-Luz close to Spain’s border. A small fishing village that turned into a modern resort town, with a healthy surfing culture. It has a striking coastline dominated by Rocher de la Vierge (Rock of the Virgin). Access to it was closed when we were there due to the bigger than usual waves, but it’s still quite the drama queen from a distance.

    Things began to turn in Biarritz in the mid 19th centaury when Napoleon III built a little summer home for empress Eugénie de Montijo. Today its of course a lavish, but surprisingly affordable, Hôtel du Palais Biarritz. Nearby you have a scenic lighthouse, and Playa De Biarritz, one of several beaches around. Did I mention Biarritz is the surfing capital of France? It’s also a center for thalassotherapy. These surfers need that seawater therapy when they retire.

    For food you got a very happening Halles de Biarritz, food market. And I’ve heard great things about Chéri Bibi. But since we had big dinner plans in Bidart, we took the opportunity to continue our new French tradition. A Brittany style Galette (Buckwheat Crêpe) Complète. You can find plenty of options these days everywhere, but I find the Breizh Café chain fairly reliable.

    Moving on to Bayonne felt like moving to another country. Not quite at first glance as the newer parts felt more of the same. But once you reach the old parts, your jaw slowly drops. Two stunning old towns for the price of one, separated by river Nive. On Monday many of the stores were closed, but that didnt take away from the charm.

    Both Grand Bayonne and Petit Bayonne, the two old towns are worth spending some time in. You got a plethora of food stores especially ham, cheese, and chocolates. Jews escaping the inquisition brought their cocoa beans with them, establishing the roots of a robust chocolate culture today. With that said, the most fun discovery for me was actually… Basque Ketchup. Steak with fries night cant come soon enough.

    Living near Bayonne bridge that connects to Bayonne, New Jersey gave us something to talk about with the locals. Like visiting Verrazzano castle in Tuscany. Locals told us they sometimes struggle when Google sends them to the wrong Bayonne. Are they searching for a Costco?

    Categories: France | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

    Bilbao, Part Deux

    Posted on October 27, 2025 by Ziggy

    Bilbao, the de facto capital of Basque Capital is worth at least a few nights. You got one of the most famous museums in the world, a spectacular old town, and a unique food scene. Not to mention the variety of day trips like Gaztelugatxe, Dragonstone on Games of Thrones. Spending a week wouldnt be that far fetched.

    Regardless of how many days you have, consider spending some time with Mikel from Tours By Basques. Whether its a better understanding of the Pintxo scene, or a day trip to Rioja or Gaztelugatxe, he’s your man. Note, I never ever have ads or affiliated links on this site. I make zero point zero $ here. I just like the dude.

    This was our second time in Bilbao and first stay. We spent two nights at hotel Miro, with a side view of the Guggenheim where we witnessed the puppy construction progress. In our two days we saw the famed Puppy go from covered entirely in scaffolding to being out in all its glory covered in fall flowers. Below are both summer (from 7 years ago) and fall Puppy. The Bilbao Guggenheim will make you appreciate contemporary art like no other museum I know. Its jaw-dropping outside and in.

    This time the focus was on the Abando area, an extravagant mix of high end shopping, pintxo bars, and gourmet food stores. Only noticeable once you put your head down and stop staring at the architecture. For an industrial city, not too long ago, the city today is an architectural powerhouse, starting with Guggenheim, and the striking bridges.

    The old quarter (Casco Viejo) of course requires at least a few hours. Once you consume enough Cidra and Txikoli, consider taking a stroll through the cultural center Azkuna Zentroa and its 43 colorful pillars. If it results in too much trance, and sensory overload, avoid the roof. The views from it arent that interesting anyway, but the center is fascinating.

    For food other than Pintxos, consider taking the funicular to Txakoli Simón, a Txuleta temple in the mountains. More on that on another post. You’ll most likely be surrounded by locals at La Viña De Henao, run by a young couple who will dazzle your taste buds. Meat dishes are better than the fish, and some of the best Octopus I’ve had in a while. La Pizarra Brasa y Barra is like a fun pinxto crawl under one roof. With aged meat playing an important role here, there’s even a fairly healthy burger scene, with Hambueysería Amaren leading the charge. Upgrade the beef for 4 euros or so and try the Italian style with truffles.

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    And What is This? This is Gruyères

    Posted on September 25, 2025 by Ziggy

    I’ll explain the Borat title later, but first… You know that Gruyeres cheese you get in the US supermarkets? Any idea where it comes from? Yep, you guessed it, Wisconsin! Notice the spelling without the grave accent over the ‘e’. The only other difference between the Swiss Gruyères and the American Gruyeres is everything. It can be a totally different cheese, and American has to have holes or eyes in it. Who to blame for this mess? The French, and Swiss. But mostly the French.

    The US courts including the appeal court recently ruled against the Swiss request to register Gruyères due to its generic nature in the US. When you import so many different kinds of Gruyeres from various parts of Europe, some with holes, some without, it eventually becomes generic to the Americans. In France, not only Gruyères is made for generations, but the Gruyères region is bigger than Champagne. And to complicate things further, France registered their version with the EU before Switzerland. The difference between the French Gruyères and Swiss, for your next cocktail party conversation: French, just like the US, has holes. Swiss, no holes.

    But I’m here to tell you about the town Gruyères, not so much the cheese. That’s an Educating With Ziggy bonus. I’m only beginning to scratch the Switzerland surface and so far I’m discovering an unusual amount of fairy tale villages scattered all over the country. Gruyères is tiny. Mostly a small wide street that takes a couple of minutes to walk from one end to another, but you want to spend hours doing so. Google says there’s a whopping 1k or so residents living here

    Château de Gruyères, the main attraction here is more attractive than more popular castles we’ve seen in Switzerland. The garden especially was stunning, with an incredible array of flowers. Good and bad news for me. The good is that Mrs Z really appreciated this. The bad is that Mrs Z really appreciated this. That meant spending more time there than I hoped on an empty stomach.

    There’s a tradition here that started by the Bovy family in the 1800’s to invite artists and even set up artist colonies in the castle. When we went, there was a weird contemporary exhibition. Hard to appreciate something where you have to guess the message. Like a video of three guys digging holes in the ground.

    The other big attraction here is the fondue. Maybe I should have recorded the process of me eating it and send to the Château. I was skeptical as I didnt like the fondue we had earlier in Wengen. But this was much better. In Wengen the cheap white wine was more prevalent, while here it was the glorious cheese. Two cheeses in fact as this was the signature Moitié-Moitié, “half and half”. Half Gruyères, half Vacherin Fribourgeois

    And a nice cheese and meat board since we clearly didn’t get enough cured meat and cheese from all the hotel breakfasts. All this was at Fleur de Lys btw because they were on the shaded side of the street. Thats not how I usually choose my restaurants but couldn’t help it in this case.

    The town itself is a gem. Besides the Castle and the Fondue you also got the HR Giger Museum to satisfy your Alien sex fetish. Giger was an artist whose work often combined human anatomy and machinery. He won an Oscar for his design of the creature in Alien. Much of the work in the museum is not suitable for children. Also check out the Giger Bar across the street.

    As for the title. If you are a Borat fan, you probably already know. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIRcpknXy3A

    Categories: Switzerland | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

    Lucerne Random

    Posted on September 11, 2025 by Ziggy

    Just some of the poor quality photos I took in Lucerne, while munching on pretzels and schnitzel sandwiches. But first, some tips.

    No need to stay in Lucerne central. Check out Hotel Balm in Meggen, especially if you appreciate a good hotel restaurant.

    Lucerne itself requires half a day to see, even at slow pace.

    For meals, besides the Balm hotel, check out Landgasthof Rössli, and Weisses Schloss. All popular with locals.

    Sunday is the worst day to walk around Lucerne on an empty stomach

    One reason to stay in Meggen is to see the spectacular Meggenhorn castle, missed by 99% of tourists.

    All nearby mountain visits will be forgettable if you plan on Zermatt, Lauterbrunnen, etc but Rigi is pretty cool.

    A crazy but memorable outside the box day trip with a car: Rhine Falls, Schaffhausen, Stein am Rhein.

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    This is Wengen

    Posted on September 1, 2025 by Ziggy

    Like an alcoholic in a distillery. That’s how I felt when I got off the train in this car free Swiss mountain village, and started walking. The main road is like a red carpet leading to your hotel. It took over 3 hours to get there from Lucerne, but it felt more like a year since thats how long I anticipated this. It’s a bucket list item I never knew I had.

    Wengen isnt as posh and famous as Interlaken, Lucerne and the rest of them. It has one 5 star hotel (Belvedere) that recently opened, and sticks out like a sore thumb among all the wooden chalets. It will be a shame if more opened. Says the food blogger that had dinner at the Belvedere one night. It was in the name of research of course. For the children.

    Not only you can easily spend 4 nights in Wengen, but make that your minimum. Take the cable car to Männlichen and hike to Kleine Scheidegg and Fallbodensee. On another day, see the other side of the valley (Mürren, Schilthorn, Gimmelwald). Save the rainy day to Thun and the mesmerizing Lake Thun. In destinations as such you need to have some cushion in case of bad weather.

    Listen to uncle Ziggy (instead of say my main competitor Travel + leisure that recommends the Belvedere). Stay in Alpenruhe. The hospitality and attention to detail by the young couple running the place is tough to match. The views from the third floor, and the top notch breakfasts are reasons enough.

    And might as well have all your meals at Alpenkräuter Restaurant Bären. We haven’t tried many, but this one is quite popular with the locals and the only one that felt like a well functioning, real restaurant, as opposed to a tourist trap or a hotel restaurant. Even though it is in fact inside a hotel.

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    This is Bryce Canyon

    Posted on June 8, 2025 by Ziggy

    Zion got the world famous hikes, Arches got arches, and Bryce got the Hoodoos. But that dosnt really describe Bryce very well. Bryce looks like ruins of a god made mammoth sand castle. Its an absolute stunner at any given time of the day. It will make you reach for the camera/phone even though you already took the same picture 10 times. This has to be one of the most unique National Parks in the world.

    A nice intro to Bryce is the Red Canyon nearby. A morning hike combining Navajo Loop and Queens Garden via Wall Street was perfect for people pretending to be young and fit. Plenty of parking at the Lodge while everyone parks or looking for parking at Sunrise and Sunset points. In the afternoon we did the various points like Inspiration, and Natural Bridge. And just when you thought you’ve seen everything you need to see, comes Bryce Point, the mother of all viewpoints, maybe in the entire country.

    One thing that struck was how cheap everything was at Bryce Canyon City. When was the last time you saw 60 cent water bottles?!? And Affogatos with giant scoops for $5. All at Old Bryce Town Ice Cream & Candy Shop. Overall the food wasnt particularly great in the Bryce area and Panguitch where we stayed as much as I tried to find decent eats.

    The one good eats we found was breakfast at The Panguitch House Bed and Breakfast where we stayed for two nights. Panguitch the town was… interesting. For city slickers like us it was like a different country. But the B&B was a nice change of pace from the chains hotels.

    The coolest thing we’ve done in the Bryce area was seeing the stars and learning about them with Dark Ranger Telescope Tours. Fun till you freeze close to midnight and need to escape like Cinderella. Careful when driving at night. We had a close call with a huge something. No one could tell what that was. My money was on Big Foot.

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    Turin – 10 Random Tips

    Posted on December 30, 2024 by Ziggy

    Turin is not the city people usually visit on their first, second, or even third trip to Italy. It took us 9 trips. With the post Covid revenge travel still in full swing, Rome, Florence, Venice, and the rest of them are redefining crowded these days. Even regions like Puglia and Sicily seem to be catching up and joining the mainstream. Turin still feels under the radar, but offers plenty of culture and beauty to entertain tourists for even a week. With the rest of the country having a moment, I wouldnt rule out Turin on your first visit to the Italy. Here are some tips to help you out…

    Get a proper introduction from Chiesa di Santa Maria del Monte dei Cappuccini. This is where you get the classic view of the city. Ample parking at the streets at the bottom. An atmospheric spot, well outside the tourist area

    Buy as many chocolates as your luggage allows. Turin is the city of chocolates. You’ll see chocolate stores galore all over the city selling artisanal Gianduiotto (a blend of chocolates and hazelnut cream) among other goodies. They are a lot more expensive in the states, in Eataly or Venchi. And if you feel that you didnt get enough and you are flying from Milan, you have Venchi right there in the terminal.

    Stay in San Salvario. This is partially a personal choice, as I generally prefer to to stay walking distance to the center, instead of inside it. But San Salvario is an up and coming neighborhood that reminds me of East Village in some ways. Not the most attractive area in the city, but loaded with great restaurants, bars and shops.

    Check out the park within the Parco. Turin has stunning squares and parks, with Parco del Valentino being one of the prettiest I’ve seen in Europe. In particular the Giardino Roccioso section and its unusual photogenic statues. Look for the two lamp lovers sitting on a bench. You can combine the park with a tour of Castello del Valentino led by students on Saturdays.

    Dont overlook Museo Nazionale dell’Automobile. Turin has some really impressive world class museums like the Egyptian Archaeological museum, and the Cinema Museum. But I feel like people overlook the Auto museum because its a bit out of the way. You’ll encounter eyepopping displays with extremely thoughtful layouts and engineering. I’m a movie buff, not much of a car buff, and I enjoyed the auto museum more than the cinema museum.

    Overlook the Royal Palace. Sometimes popular attractions are popular due to their location. The Royal Palace of Turin is easy to do, and a fine activity on a rainy day. But if you’ve seen palaces as such throughout Europe, this one wont stand out IMO.

    Take a food tour. We already went over this but its worth pounding the table on it. While the large food tour companies took over the larger cities, you can still find the small guys in the less popular places. Turin is a unique food city and spending quality time with a local chef helps understand the dynamics involved. And its just a fun way to experience the city.

    Book L’Acino weeks in advance. Turin has no shortage of fantastic restaurants, and L’Acino stands out among the great ones. Maybe not the typical mom and pop, but once you experience it, you’ll understand why. I’ve already covered it here

    Have your Bicerin at the Original. You’ll find this layered drink of espresso, hot chocolate, and milk (or whipped cream) all over Turin and only in Turin. One of many things invented in Turin. Caffé Al Bicerin is the place where it was invented in 1763. Opened by women, and still operated by women all these years. Drink it the proper way, without stirring.

    Have Gelato at Casa Marchetti. Full circle, ending the same way we started, with the world famous Hazelnuts. While I would be tempted to try the Hazelnut gelato, you are actually here for the Gianduia. Try both.

    Categories: Italy, Piedmont | Tags: , , , , | 2 Comments

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