We arrived in San Sebastián on January 20, which our Contiki trip manager told us was actually San Sebastián Day.

What are the chances we get there on the one day a year the city is most alive!

She told us people throughout the city would be in costume, there would be a parade in the evening, and then at midnight there would be a drum festival and a party in the main square!

So obviously we arrived at the hostel, dropped our things, and then went out for a walk around the town.

While I’m on the topic, I’d like to give a huge shout out to Koisi Hostel, which was easily my favourite accommodation of the trip.

The rooms were immaculate, the beds were so cozy, the lobby and bar space were modern and welcoming, and the staff made themselves reachable by text if we needed something.

The hostel felt like home away from home, even though we were only there for two nights.

So once we’d dropped out bags, a few of us went for a walk along the beach. It was a little chilly, but still beautiful to see the water. San Sebastián is shaped like a curve, so you can actually see one side from the other across the bay.

Every ten minutes along our stroll, we’d come across someone else dressed for the San Sebastián Day festivities, and on our way back from the coast, a parade had started to build.

That night, everyone in our group was keen to go out and party. I mean, you’re only going to party with the locals on San Sebastián Day once, right?

I agree, but I also know myself. I’d been on the go for a week straight at this point, and everything on this trip was going to be once in a lifetime, so I made the decision to stay behind and do some relaxing solo activities like journalling or just scrolling through my phone for a bit.

One month on-the-go is a marathon, not a sprint, and it’s important to take your mental health seriously. Sometimes it’s better to sit out on things so you can have the energy to enjoy other things later.

The following morning, most people were too hungover to get up before noon, but a new Aussie friend and I were up fairly early and headed out for a nice day on the town.

*Found Dory at the San Sebastián aquarium*

We headed to a spa that our trip manager had recommended (La Perla) to book an appointment and then killed some time until then just walking by the beach, watching all the dogs running along the sand, talking about Real Things in a way I hadn’t really yet with anyone else in the group.

When it was time, we headed back to the spa for a massage, which was honestly much needed after that sand dune climb.

After the spa, we met up with another friend and walked over to the aquarium to take a look at the fish. I was pretty impartial to it, but once we got there and bought our tickets, it was so much fun to see all the different fish, sharks, octopuses, of course the jellies – it was all so pretty!

Once we’d left the aquarium, the three of us decided to hike up Monte Urgull, a nearby trail that lead up to a Jesus statue, as well as a beautiful view of the whole town.

The walk itself wasn’t very taxing, but once we hit the top of the hill, we didn’t realize how high we had climbed. Of course, this led to impromptu photo shoots with gorgeous Spanish backgrounds.

After hiking all the way back down the hill, we decided to grab lunch at a small sandwich shop and then find a good hot chocolate. I’m a fan of the very thick, pure chocolatey European hot chocolate, but a lot of our group was not, so we found this place that asked ‘with milk?’ when we ordered, making my friend very happy.

That evening, we met up with the rest of our Contiki group for a pintxos crawl. Like a pub crawl, but with San Sebastián-style tapas called pintxos. So all 25+ of us stopped in three different places, grabbing a small bite to eat and a cheap sangria at each restaurant.

The last stop of the crawl was a cheesecake place called La Viña. I’ve never had San Sebastián-style cheesecake before, but it was delicious. Super buttery and creamy, but not too heavy or sweet. I could have had an entire one to myself! But a friend and I shared a slice, and then walked all the way back to our hostel to digest all that food.

I’d never even heard of this town before booking this trip, but all of a sudden I was sharing cheesecake, walking down the streets of San Sebastián, along the beach at night with two girls I would have never otherwise met.

A week into my solo Contiki adventure: I felt like I was beginning to find some solid friends, I was pulling the most out of every experience I wanted to participate in, and I was getting very comfortable with constantly being uncomfortable.

All the things I was always very hesitant about doing before, I was now totally excited about. And there were still three weeks of this to go.