Journey to the center of my tastebuds

Tomorrow morning I will be renting a car with four good friends and traveling seven hours north to San Sebastian, a small city on the northern coast of España.

I am paralyzed with excitement.

In case you didn’t know, San Sebastian is a sort of food-lover heaven located in Pais Vasco or as it’s better known in the States, The Basque Country. The region is world-renown for its food, beaches and the unwavering nationalism of the Basque people. From the bits and pieces I’ve learned from some people around Valencia, not all Basques are ETA supporting crazies. However, it seems that many of them feel that Pais Vasco and everything about it is the best in the world. Luckily for me, I’ve heard that they just might be right when it comes to their food.

The first thing I ever read about San Sebastian was an article on the gastronomic societies. Basically, these are men-only clubs that are devoted to cooking great food, eating said food, talking about other foods and drinking. Club members are in for life and the only way to get into a club is when a former member dies. Apparently the waiting list is ridiculously long. Without a doubt, this is a club I need to join. I’ve read that there are anywhere from 106 to 300 of these clubs, so if I start applying now, I may have a chance for membership within the next 10 years.

I will be in San Sebastian from Wednesday morning until Saturday night. I plan on eating as many pinxtos as possible and drinking nothing but sidra natural—a delicious type of alcoholic apple cider—and txakoli—a bubbly white wine like beverage. There is a good chance I may never return from this delicious location. If this happens, assume the best—I was an honorary inductee into one of the many gastronomic societies.