Happy Easter everyone!

Another rainy morning beyond the curtains today. We’ve been having yogurt and fruit for breakfast every day since we left, so we thought that today some heartier fare would be a welcome change. When we had coffee at Santa Eulalia yesterday we’d browsed their brunch menu and it looked pretty good with several egg dishes in various configurations. Eggs sounded nice so umbrellas in hand, out we went.

It was Easter morning and there were far fewer people on the sidewalks. A few restaurants were open and others were in the process of raising their grates. The rain wasn’t brutal, but it was bad enough to dampen our sleeves and shoes. At least the wind wasn’t blowing.

There were tables available at the coffee shop and we took one near the coffee station. The waiter came over and what ensued next was comical.

MLW likes a Chai latte with a couple of shots of decaf. She tried using her standard Spanish ordering routine to ask for that and the waiter clearly had no idea what she was talking about. A second waiter came over and offered to speak French which of course was going to take us even deeper into confusion. We declined that offer so they called over the head barista who, in theory, had some English. I knew we were still on thin ice because I’d said something to him in English and he smiled and said, “Of course sir.” He tried English when Spanish would have worked just fine and more or less got the point out that the Chai he had was Mango flavored. MLW ordered a latte.

We both had scrambled eggs, me with bacon, and MLW with spinach. Honestly, we’ve had better but the change was nice and the preparation probably had a lot to do with local tradition versus how we would have made them at home. Adding to the experience was a dog, belonging to a local (he was known to the staff and we’d seen him yesterday) that insisted on barking and lunging at anyone that came near its owners. We left and went to the coffee shop at El Corte Inglés where I had another Americano and MLW finally got her Chai with two shots. Tomorrow it’s back to yogurt and fruit.

There was one last Semana Santa event that we wanted to see, La Tamborrada. La Tamborrada originated in the north of the county in San Sebastian in the early 1830’s. Its origin is a bit murky, but it’s said to have started with the locals making fun of Napoleon’s troops during the occupation of their city by standing along the roads and beating on cans and buckets to mock the daily military procession. Tambor means “drum” in Spanish and Tamborrada means “the beating of the drums.” Today the San Sebastian Tamborrada is the biggest in the world and takes place during Lent. The tradition has spread to other cities in Spain and the Madrid version celebrates Easter and the end of Semana Santa.

The rain had stopped and Plaza Mayor was crowded. We were able to get within 3 layers of people of the barricade and waited. On the short walk over, we could hear band music in the street as we entered the plaza. A few minutes later, the music reached a crescendo as the band entered through a tunnel at the north end. It was very loud, echoing off the surrounding buildings, and you could feel the bass line straight in your chest. They marched in, 100 strong clad in purple and beating all kinds of drums. They circled the barricaded area and came to a halt. An emcee would talk about something in Spanish followed by the band playing. After a couple of tunes, they rotated 90 degrees and faced us. Again they played a couple of songs and they repeated the process. Once they’d turned completely about, they exited along the same path.

Over breakfast, MLW and I had a discussion about why people travel. Some like to brag about how many countries they’ve visited, and some love the cocktail party talk. Some people think travel makes them better people or more interesting. And then there are those like us – we travel to spend time together, to vacate our regular routine, and to see things. And today’s event was one of those things. Completely new, completely different, culturally rich, and unforgettable.

There are two videos at the end of this post. Please take the time to watch and listen, the sounds are extraordinary.