San Sabastian

[Ryder]

hey everyone, I'm going to try and convince my mom to let me go to San Sabastian for the summer(im in high school) but i was talking about spain with her last night and she was like: "spains getting blown up, 7 blombs exploded last week blah blah blah ETA" anyways, i was wondering if the people who've been there can right a little something about what the area and the city is like, is it a big ETA controlled city like my mom is thinking? i already know it isn't, but she wants to hear it from someone else. is it safe? are the people friendly? anything you think my mom would want to hear. what kind of stuff is unique about it? i'm going to show these to my mom to try and get her to change her views about it. thanks everyone!

[beergal]

Like everything once your time is up there is nothing you can do about it, right?! Britain has been constantly on a terror alert for the last 30 years because of the IRA and yet we still attract a massive tourist population...

[worldwidemike]

Tell her to read beyond the headlines...the ETA bombs are usually small and they phone in warnings ahead of time. They're just to create a stir in the papers and publicize their cause.

Anyway, Spain is safe. I've been there two times, many other Tpunkers have been there, she shouldn't worry. More people die on the roadways every day in the U.S. than die around the world because of terrorism. She still lets you drive, right? Explain to her that if you don't go and stay home and drive your car around she's taking a bigger risk of losing you than if she let you go to Spain.

worldwidemike

[bellelass]

My mother had the same concerns when I ran off to Morocco last summer. Ditto mike. I'm travelling and studying extensively in the mid east next year myself, the way I presented it to my parents is that these are isolated instances, that I'm more likely to be run down in the street by a crazy driver than blown up.
The way I see it (this is a bit morbid, dont tell you mother this), if I am so unfortunate to see something like that happen, then it's a good story, and I have a more complete understanding of terrorism. If I am even more unfortunate and am maimed or even killed, its as good a way as any to go. Right?

[bellelass]

Anyway, from what I hear you mother should be more concerned with you meeting up with us TPers and sleeping in the park and drinking all night and running with the bulls and doing god knows what .... hehe

[Ryder]

Anyway, from what I hear you mother should be more concerned with you meeting up with us TPers and sleeping in the park and drinking all night and running with the bulls and doing god knows what ....** hehe

hahahah i either have or will be doing if i go everything on that list. oh, and whoever asked about driving.....i don't have my lisence yet....i'm 14, will be 15 in 2 months. haha.

conversation summery:

mom: 7 bombs last week all around spain
me: they were small....
mom: madrid train bombings
me: 9/11
mom: you'd be in the middle of the basque country!
me: they wouldn't attack their own place though! so theoreticaly it's safer!! (someone back me up there haha.... have any bombs ever exploded in the basque country?)

also, im also going to bring up that we have different risks, here, my first idea is that there are more murders per day here then there, which i'd assume is true, but does anyone just know off the top of their head maybe? haha.

also, i talked to a spanish teacher at my school who i think is from Bilboa, and he put in some good words about it, i asked him about the ETA there and he lauphed at me, hahaha.

anyways, thanks for replying everyone. also, does anyone knwo anything about san sabastian as a city? is spanish spoken there more then basque?

[bellelass]

I can't believe your mum is so hung up on spain. Then again, you are 15... And my own mum is worried about me going to the UK. There's no accounting for mothers.

I dont know much about S.S., but I know about convincing las madres-
Do you take or plan to take spanish? Then, this is the perfect learning opportunity for you. Really pound away at that. Stress how important it is to you to learn about other people and how they think, that you really feel the need to get some perspective. Works for me. Well, and its true.

You'll work for your $$. I don't know if you can technically have a job, but where there's a will, there's a way.. Show her you dont just expect to be handed something, that you are very much more than willing to work hard to attain a goal.

Tell her you'll be around people who know where they are and what's going on.. But then again, you'll have to say you know them from the internet and that wont be likely to calm her fears... Heh.

About the Basque stuff.... If I'm not mistaken Jake got caught up in some riot protest thing last summer... He was alright...

That said, I would have serious serious doubts as a mother before letting my 15-year old go to europe alone. I'm not saying anything about you, personally, just that the world is a scary weird bad place most of the time.. Best of luck..

[Ryder]

I do take Spanish, I have been since September but if I can go I'll move up a level in January.

Also, my mom let me go to Europe alone last summer. I stayed in this teenage youth hostel in Southern France on the France/Monaco border and traveled all aroudn the area(and Italy) with just friends that I met at the hostel, so going to Europe really isn't the thing for her, haha.

The main thing really is that I'm simultaniously trying to convince her to let me go to Portugal for the year my junior year (06-07) which is a bad idea to do it at once. I think that one major issue is just money. The other issue is what the hell is this place where i'll be in San Sebastian, and the other would be she's worried about me going to Spain because of ETA.

I sent e-mails to people who have been there, so I'll hear from them.

Also, I still don't really know much about San Sebastian as a city, so anyone whose been there it would be great if you could tell me about it. Thanks!

[Ryder]

Oh, also, about the money.

I'm going to try and apply for a scholarship through my school. That would be SOOO helpful, I've applied at the only place that will hire anyone below 16 here, the grocerie store, and they never called me back, and I've tried calling them 5 times but the person I need to speak to is always: "out for 15 minutes" so I'll call again tommarow....I also have $1000 in the bank which I would put towards this....some of it at least.

[llemus7]

I have been to san sebastian twice, and it is a beautiful city to see, and i believe it was one of the most cleanest cities I have seen in spain.

It is very relaxing to go to the beach and relax, walk around and hang out at there plaza, and have great dinners in nice restaurants. I give San Sebastian a 2 thumps up!

I would definitely go back there myself.

[U2fan]

Originally posted by bellelass@Dec 8 2004, 08:34 AM
Anyway, from what I hear you mother should be more concerned with you meeting up with us TPers and sleeping in the park and drinking all night and running with the bulls and doing god knows what .... * hehe

Yeah I completely agree with Bellelass on this one.

Anyway, I was there this summer, what can I say, it's a nice place, good beach but not all that much to do otherwise, unless I completely missed a bunch of stuff. Bilbao and the Guggenheim are only an hour by bus, as is Pamplona. Lots of bars in a really pretty old town area not far from the beach.

Wow I don't think I have ever quoted anyone before; not sure I knew how. Ok, I'm a dork.

[Somnambulation]

Yeah you neednt worry about ETA in San Sebastian. Its thier capital city or something so they wouldnt attack civilians there. You probably face more of a danger from police reprecussions.

[urOZm8]

You probably face more of a danger from police reprecussions

like when we had guns pointed at us?

ev

[Somnambulation]

Hehe, good times.