Category: Huesca Cathedral

Enchanting Espelette, France, by da-AL

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After a weekend of beautiful Barcelona, we drove towards French Basque country. We lunched in wonderful Huesca and overnighted in pretty Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port.

The sun shone and we were back on the road. What better way to relax than to stop in the enchanting Basque town of Espelette?

We sipped hot chocolate at a sidewalk cafe…

We shopped for edible gifts from a kindly shopkeeper, including the special not-too-hot red pepper power the city is known for…

da-AL and her honey shopping in Espelette, France

And we strolled, admiring the town’s typically red-accented white buildings…

Everything, everyone, the weather — it was all so charming, that I could easily have stayed for a nap…

…but we had more places to visit! We were headed further into phenomenal French Basque Country (Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Bayonne, and Biarritz).

Then, back in Spain (after all, my upcoming novel is titled “Flamenco & the Sitting Cat”), we’d marvel at the food and seaside dogs of San Sebastián, Spain and breathtaking Bilbao…

Wonderful Huesca, Spain by da-AL

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Huesca Cathedral.

After a weekend in Barcelona, my husband and I rented a car. I love Spain (hence, my upcoming novel is called, “Flamenco & the Sitting Cat”) so we had much to admire along the way to French Basque country.

Detail of Huesca Cathedral.

We stopped for lunch in Spain’s lovely city of Huesca. Their beautiful cathedral is in the historic district. Built on the remains of a mosque, it took 300 years to complete in the early 16th century.

Nestled in nearby ancient buildings are two restaurants. One is authentic Korean! As much as we love our kimchi, we decided that instead it was a lovely day for a modest yet elegant meal of traditional Spanish food on a pretty outdoor patio.

Huesca, Spain, courtesy of Wikipedia.

Huesca according to Wikipedia… is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the autonomous community of Aragon. It is also the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and of the comarca of Hoya de Huesca. In 2009 it had a population of 52,059, almost a quarter of the total population of the province. The city is one of the smallest provincial capitals in Spain.

Wall art across the street from Huesca Cathedral. Buster Keaton — or Jude Law?

Wall art and graffiti abound e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e in Spain! Here in the U.S., graffiti is seldom as welcome.

Our vacation had started in beautiful Barcelona.

Now that we’d enjoyed wonderful Huesca, we were off to France. There we’d see pretty Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, enchanting Espelette, and phenomenal French Basque Country (Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Bayonne, and Biarritz).

Then, back in Spain, we’d marvel at the food and seaside dogs of San Sebastián, Spain and breathtaking Bilbao…