Dia de San Sebastian
My first job & the biggest festive of year
Salut! A warm welcome from the Basque coast to you. The weather has been amazing here for the past two weeks, it’s been between 15 and 20 degrees. This means the Spanish get out of their hibernation and the streets and terraces become crowded again. It's wonderful to witness happy families and friends sitting by the harbor, enjoying their drinks in the sun. Makes you think, I wouldn’t mind spending a life here.
El primero trabajo!
But before that, there is much work to do, and one of those tasks is, finding work itself! Last week I went around the city handing out my curriculum at every place that looked somewhat like a restaurant. And it finally paid off… This week I’ve begun working in the kitchen of one of the most iconic hotels in San Sebastian: el Hotel Londres y Inglaterra.
With three days of experience behind me, I can conclude the following: The place is HUGE, I’ve never worked in such a big place. There are multiple kitchens, cleaning stations, storage, etc. I’ve lost my way 3 times already.
Working in such a big place results in working with huge quantities. On my first day, I had to organize and execute the following pintxos for a business conference consisting of 165 people in 4 hours: Tortillas, fruit salads, mini hamburgers, bocadillos con jamon, club sandwich, tostadas & Basque cheesecake.
As you might see, it’s not the highest level of culinary education and skill you can get in San Sebastian. Even though the Londres Hotel has quite a big reputation in San Sebastian, it’s not comparable to a place like Kokotxa, Arzak, or Akelarre.
But it is great to be back in the kitchen. Even though I find myself 1,500 kilometers away from 'home', I still recognize certain behaviors in the kitchen. For example, last night I worked my first evening shift and we again had a 6-course dinner of approximately 90 persons.
With the jefe de Cocina shouting in one ear and the jefe de Servicio shouting in the other, you better make sure all the 540 plates are executed in the same way. I might not exactly understand what they were saying but I knew what I had to do. Another example is that when we were done with cleaning the kitchen, the love for alcohol came around and within no time 3 bottles of champagne were brought to celebrate the successful shift. And so, some things stay the same, even when you change countries.
This weekend I work two more morning shifts at the Londres and after that, it will be a question of what will happen. I still have to get all my documentation right to get an actual contract to get paid. Even though Spain is part of the EU it’s quite a hassle here.
Dia de San Sebastian
Another event that occurred last week was the Dia de San Sebastian or Tomborrada de San Sebastian and having no idea what was about to happen it was quite a rollercoaster. As I discovered later, this day has quite an interesting but complex history.
Dia de San Sebastian is the biggest festivity in San Sebastian which means that the whole city was in commotion. The event kicks off at the stroke of midnight on the 19th of January at the Plaza del Constitution and ends exactly 24 hours later.
The event begins with the flag of San Sebastian and the Basque Country being raised while the Sociedad Gaztelubide, one of the largest gastronomic clubs in San Sebastian, plays the drums. The members of the club are dressed in Napoleon and chef's clothing. Now, you might be wondering how gastronomic clubs, drumming, Napoleon, and chef's clothing all fit together in one sentence. Allow me to explain by beginning at the start of this festivity.
It’s origin
We go back to 1597, in the village of Pasaje which is located next to San Sebastian. This year, the city was plagued by an epidemic. In response, people embarked on a pilgrimage to the church El Antiguo in San Sebastian to bathe in the waters of Saint Sebastian. As a result, the epidemic subsided, and in gratitude, the people made a perpetual vow to adopt San Sebastian as the patron saint of the city and celebrate his festival annually on January 20.
The original celebration was a religious procession with music, drums, and flutes. The procession began at the cathedral of Santa Maria in Parte Viaje and followed to coastline of La Concha until they arrived at the church of El Antiguo. The saint’s relics were being brought from one place to another. Funny enough, comments were made by the government because they found the timing of the festivity a bit odd for a promenade along the coast. This is because January is the coldest and wettest month in San Sebastian. Again and again, the government tried to reschedule the Day of San Sebastian to a more convenient day in the summer, but the Church repeatedly said no so, Dia de San Sebastian is still on the 20th of January.
On August 31, 1813, the relics of the saint were lost during the capture and burning of the city by the English. This event diminished the significance of the procession. Due to that fact and the complaints of the government about the timing the Church to the decision to take some distance from the festive in the year 1831.
Dia del Gente
The Day of San Sebastian remained in existence but would undergo some changes in the upcoming years. Until the demolition of the city walls in 1863, San Sebastian served as a military station. Every morning, a small military parade would start at the current San Telmo museum, pass through the Parte Vieja, and conclude at the former Puerta de Tierra. During this parade, they would play the tamborra or drums.
Around 1835, the first Carnaval groups (Tamborrada) were formed. They would set out on Dia de San Sebastian around 5 am with the goal of announcing the sokamuturra (an old Spanish sport involving bulls) that would take place later that day. These carnival groups were characterized by their diverse and fun costumes, without any uniformity.
As the carnival culture grew and the military regime of the city came to an end, it is not surprising that a parodic imitation of the military parade eventually started to make its way through the narrow streets of Parte Vieja.
Surprisingly, the council of San Sebastian embraced this parody and the carnival culture. In 1881, they handed over the old drums and Napoleonic military clothing that was still being kept in the San Telmo barracks to the carnival companies. Dia de San Sebastian in 1882 must have been something special because this was the first time the Tamborrada appeared in its full glory, dressed in original Napoleonic costumes and the corresponding drums.
Dia de San Sebastian Today
In the 20th century, everything changed due to the ban on sokamuturra, followed shortly by the ban on carnaval. During Franco's reign, celebrating carnival was prohibited (1927 - 1975). The drums and Napoleonic clothing associated with carnival were hidden for so many years that they were eventually forgotten, leading to the disappearance of the Tamborrada.
From 1976 onwards, Dia de San Sebastian was returned to the city, but without the power of the Tamborrada. Little by little, the number of Tamborrada companies increased over the 20th century. In 1976 there were sixteen and in 2023 their number has risen to 158.
To start a Tamborrada, you must be sponsored by a charitable, cultural, sporting, gastronomic, or recreational association in the city. Since we’re in San Sebastian, most of the Tomborradas over here are linked to a gastronomic association. Hence why they often get called ‘gastronomic clubs.’
Every Tamborrada has to be in uniform, both in clothing and in the number of components. It is also mandatory that the Tamborrada parade is accompanied by a music band. The components of the Tamborrada are usually divided into the following roles:
Gastadores, the cooks
Tambores, the drummers
Tambor Mayor, the composer
Banda, the band
Abanderados, The ones who carry the flag of their Tamborrada
Cantineras, only women who walk behind the ones carrying the flag
Barriles, Barrel drummers
I hope the explanation is a bit clearer since it’s quite a tough topic with many interesting points during its history. I also hope you understand how incredibly confusing it was to walk around the city on the 20th when you have no idea of the tradition. It was quite an experience, however, especially as one living in the Parte Vieja, which is the center of this festivity. Drums were going for 24 hours, the streets were completely packed all the time, and you got blinded by the amount of chefs walking around. Next year I come prepared.
Hi Cesar, wat een leuk artikel, vooral je persoonlijke verhaal neemt je mee in je wereld. Succes en groet! Dinette