Marti Buckley is an American writer, chef, and cultural expert hailing from Alabama, who has lived in Basque Country since 2010. She's the author of the acclaimed cookbooks 'Basque Country' and 'The Book of Pintxos,' each detailing and archiving the immense cultural gastronomic significance of Euskadi.
Marti Buckley is an American writer, chef, and cultural expert hailing from Alabama, who has lived in Basque Country since 2010. She's the author of the acclaimed cookbooks 'Basque Country' and 'The Book of Pintxos,' each detailing and archiving the immense cultural gastronomic significance of Euskadi.
Show Notes:
00:00:00:07 - 00:00:26:09
Jordan
Welcome to the Prix Fixe Podcast, where the new voices in the culinary world should share stories in their own words. The show is produced and edited by me, Jordan Haro with original music by Shawn Myers. In the summer of 2022. My wife and I traveled to Basque Country for part of our honeymoon. Everywhere we went, our jaws were on the floor, finding ourselves bewildered and amazed at every sight, sound and flavor of this special place.
00:00:26:11 - 00:00:52:02
Jordan
For those who don't know these Vasco is an autonomous region on the northern coast of Spain and France, with a fiercely independent cultural heritage dating back thousands of years. Their language, Euskara is the oldest spoken language in all of Europe. The area is also a gastronomic Mecca. Its inhabitants pride themselves on having the best food on the planet, from the markets to fine dining restaurants to the pintxo bars in everyday establishments.
00:00:52:04 - 00:01:18:03
Jordan
And they're probably correct. Although I would never argue with a Basque person because they seem to have everything figured out. Marti Buckley is an American writer and chef from Alabama, who has lived in Basque Country since 2010. She's the author of the acclaimed cookbook Basque Country, and she coauthored Wallpaper City Guide, Bilbao and San Sebastian. Her blog, travel, cook, eat, is where she writes about the latest goings on on the Basque food scene.
00:01:18:05 - 00:01:41:04
Jordan
She lives in San Sebastian with her two daughters, where she writes extensively on Basque and Spanish culture cuisine for American and international media outlets. She's currently working on her second cookbook. Marti’s cookbook proved to be the perfect companion before and after our trip. I'm constantly pulling recipes from and doing my best to recreate the magic that exists above the Bay of Biscay, in my home kitchen.
00:01:41:06 - 00:01:54:00
Jordan
I couldn't help it reach out to Marty to talk more about her journey and chronicling this wondrous place through its foundational elements. Food. Let's dive in.
00:01:54:02 - 00:02:22:02
Marti
My name is Marti Buckley. I'm an author, cook, and journalist living in San Sebastian, Spain. I wrote The Basque Country, a cookbook about the traditional cuisine of the Basque region in Spain and France. And I am a vermouth obsessed person. I feel like my story began the day that I did not get into the colleges that I wanted to get into, and that's like so long ago.
00:02:22:02 - 00:02:42:11
Marti
But that's kind of where this track, this whole track started to get me here, which was, you know, I ended up not going to Harvard or Yale or Notre Dame. I ended up going to LSU, which was a perfectly great place. and what happened was I got a scholarship, and that scholarship enabled me to do a study abroad program.
00:02:42:13 - 00:02:59:19
Marti
again, like the hand of fate kind of intervened. And instead of allowing me to study in Madrid, which is what I thought I wanted as a 20 year old American in 2005. I got placed in Pamplona, which is a small town just about an hour away from here, San Sebastian. and I just had my mind blown.
00:02:59:19 - 00:03:17:05
Marti
And that six months was just life changing for me. Just seeing this whole different culture, the Basque people, seeing the way that they lived, the food that they ate, the surroundings in which they live. And that just kind of got me on this track of just full on obsession with the northern, northern Spain.
00:03:17:07 - 00:03:23:17
Jordan
What was that like? Just like on a day to day like. Were you fluent in Spanish?
00:03:23:18 - 00:03:45:17
Marti
Well, I had done, you know, Spanish in high school. I figured it didn't count for anything, so I started over from scratch in college, so I had, like a little bit of, base. But when you move somewhere, and especially when you learn Latino Spanish in America, you move to Spain. And you're like, what? Because it's basically, you know, like the British version of, Spanish.
00:03:45:23 - 00:04:02:08
Marti
And so it was totally different. It was mind blowing. I didn't know what was going on, but you kind of get your footing and you get into a little routine. And I look back really fondly on that time in my life because, like, I had no idea what I was doing. I had no expectations. I'd never been outside the country, really, and I had no money.
00:04:02:14 - 00:04:20:20
Marti
And so I was just kind of like living this poor student life, which was great, you know? No, nothing to really do. of much importance. looking for the cheapest glass of wine and sitting for hours, like nursing it in the cafe, watching people walk by. I mean, that's like. That's the, like, the life I'm working towards now.
00:04:20:22 - 00:04:32:22
Marti
Like, I just want to be back in that same kind of stays. So. Yeah. it was it was incredible. just being able to kind of enjoy a city like that and, soak it up.
00:04:33:00 - 00:04:37:03
Jordan
And where was food for you amidst all this?
00:04:37:05 - 00:04:58:10
Marti
Well, I had, a pretty standard. I feel like standard American upbringing, you know, back in the 80s and 90s, like, my mom was a product of the 50s in the 60s. And so she did, like, a lot of prepared stuff. But then our family lived for, a few years of my childhood in New Orleans, and that's when my dad started cooking, and he started cooking all of the Cajun and Creole food from New Orleans.
00:04:58:10 - 00:05:18:04
Marti
And so it started kind of getting, you know, more interesting for me. And I was always kind of, a cook and a baker, but, the level that I knew from my parents. And so when I moved to Pamplona and I lived also with these two French girls who literally were making everything from scratch every day, and like, sitting down for lunch every day.
00:05:18:06 - 00:05:41:18
Marti
And so that was kind of like, a pivotal moment for me where it was like, oh, like, you can cook, but you can cook like this way. And so when I went back to finish my college degree, that was I, you know, that I went like full on foodie back in the day when that coined. And that term was just getting coined and, you know, started like making pasta from scratch in my dorm and doing all that kind of stuff.
00:05:41:20 - 00:06:03:05
Marti
And that's when I really started to just kind of gain a greater appreciation for what food is. And what food was for me. and that sort of led me on a path of kind of cooking professionally.
00:06:03:07 - 00:06:07:02
Jordan
And where did cook where did you begin cooking? Professionally?
00:06:07:07 - 00:06:25:13
Marti
I tell the story all the time about, and I start in the kitchen because it was so accidental. I actually graduated with an English degree and started working in journalism at Southern Living magazine. And I got married very young, and I got pregnant as soon as I got married. So I ended up staying at home with my daughter.
00:06:25:13 - 00:06:44:10
Marti
And because of that, I stayed at home for about a year, and I was kind of aimless, like, didn't know if I wanted to go back to where I was before. And so I was like, I really like cooking. Like maybe I'll go see what a kitchen is like. And so I thought I would go spend a night in one of the best kitchens in Birmingham and in the South.
00:06:44:12 - 00:07:03:21
Marti
with chef Frank Stitt at Botega Restaurant in Birmingham, Alabama. And I had a friend that works behind the bar there, and he kind of got me in for the night, and it was excruciatingly frightening. I mean, I was the only girl you quickly realize when you go in a professional kitchen that you have no idea what you're doing.
00:07:03:23 - 00:07:21:00
Marti
Like, I was picking parsley wrong. I was cutting onions wrong. I did everything wrong. And so I remember, just like waiting for that night to be over and getting to wait to leave and, like, check it off my bucket list. But the chef de cuisine kind of followed me out, and he was thanking me for coming, and he told me to come back whenever I wanted.
00:07:21:00 - 00:07:37:21
Marti
And I was so nervous that I agreed to come back the next day. And as soon as I did that, I, like, went to my car and just started hitting my head on the steering wheel. I was like, why did you do that? And I was just, you know, so nervous. But I went back the next day and that just kind of led to me going back kind of just every day for a few weeks.
00:07:37:21 - 00:07:41:14
Marti
And then they kind of hired me. And then I kind of worked there for two years.
00:07:41:16 - 00:07:47:16
Jordan
That's amazing. It's incredible. What were you. Were you on the line there?
00:07:47:18 - 00:08:06:05
Marti
Yeah, yeah. So I started, you know, at the lowest point possible, expediting, you know, with help and then gradually moved on to garde manger and, and hot garde manger And then I moved onto the line and I was doing by the end of my time there I was doing the pasta, which was an Italian and Alabama produce farms, table restaurants.
00:08:06:05 - 00:08:26:04
Marti
I was doing the pasta station. And yeah, you know, every time I would get comfortable, every time that I would feel like I had everything under control and they would like, move me up, they could just tell. And so, you know, it was a it was a restaurant where we did on really busy weekends, like 250 covers. So it was like, it could be really, you know, insane.
00:08:26:06 - 00:08:43:14
Marti
And it was just such a great experience. Just, so glad that I got to learn how to cook, you know, doing it at the hands of people who really value, like, their values, really align with what I care about. And you know, what is seen around me here in this country, which is just like, produce utmost importance.
00:08:43:15 - 00:09:10:15
Marti
Like I look back now and see some of the Alabama, you know, produce that would come in tomatoes, oysters, all that stuff. And I'm just like, wow, that's that was so incredible. You know, and just seeing a chef that was able to really teach all of us to appreciate that was just really inspiring. And so to this day, you know, John Rowland, who is a chef de cuisine, and Frank Stitt, of course, who is just like one of the godfathers of southern cuisine, there's still like my two, some my two biggest mentors.
00:09:10:15 - 00:09:17:00
Marti
And so I just yeah, that time was just so, so incredibly valuable for me.
00:09:17:02 - 00:09:25:13
Jordan
Walk me through where like, what happened after the two year, experience at Bottega.
00:09:25:15 - 00:09:52:02
Marti
Yeah. Well, so during this whole time cooking in the kitchen, I was obviously also living my life. And I was literally that annoying person who, like, they drink Spanish wine and, like, wanted to watch all the Almodovar movies and, like, I took, like, a long distance, like, Basque learning course. I mean, I was obsessed, you know, within my little confines of my little, like, suburban Alabama world.
00:09:52:05 - 00:10:21:02
Marti
You know, I would walk to the grocery store even though there was like, no sidewalk. I was just determined to make my life as famous as possible in Alabama. And and so I ended up, really another just like, moment of fate or destiny. I was still freelance writing at this time, so a lot of days before I go into the kitchen, I would go sit at a coffee shop and write and, sitting in a coffee shop in Birmingham and I see this girl that I haven't seen in six years from high school.
00:10:21:04 - 00:10:40:07
Marti
So I go to greet her and I'm like, hey Lauren, how are you? And and she was like horrible. And and I was like, oh, because I don't know about LA, but in Alabama you don't say horrible when somebody asks how you're doing. And so I, I was like, what's going on? what's wrong? And she's like, I just got back from Spain yesterday.
00:10:40:07 - 00:10:56:16
Marti
I been living there for a year, and I did not want to be back here. And I was like, oh my God, tell me everything. How did you do it? Tell me how you did it. And so she told me about this program that she did and, teaching English and through the government of Spain. And I was like, okay, I want to do that.
00:10:56:16 - 00:11:22:22
Marti
And so I waited till the applications opened and I applied. I waited to get in, and it was this long process, but I ended up, convincing my then husband and my two year old daughter to come to Spain with me, quote unquote, for a year. And I put it in my notice, really regretfully, I Bottega I mean, I'd probably still be there to this day, but, put in my notice there just because I knew, like, I just felt like I had to take this opportunity.
00:11:22:22 - 00:11:46:16
Marti
It's a great program. The Spanish government is probably getting like a huge ROI on it because they bring, you know, thousands of Americans over every year. they come here for their year, their year abroad, and they teach English, English in a native tongue, in a native accent, to older people, to high school students, to younger kids, for a really low price.
00:11:46:16 - 00:12:15:07
Marti
And while they're here, of course, they fall in love with Spain. probably like at least five people come to visit them, you know? So it's like, boom. Boosting the tourism economy while creating these return visitors. While improving the the English of people here. Because here in Spain, it has some of the worst English in Europe because it's for so long, they were under dictatorship and also like they still tend to dub all their movies, all their, all their everything is like dub.
00:12:15:07 - 00:12:28:10
Marti
So they're not even hearing, like, English in their ear. So Spain has been kind of behind in that sense. So this program is like really a boom for, for me and for the Spanish, people and country.
00:12:28:12 - 00:12:31:02
Jordan
Where were you specifically?
00:12:31:04 - 00:12:54:10
Marti
Well, I did a little sneaky thing where at this point, obviously, being a cook, I knew that I wanted to be in San Sebastian. I already knew, San Sebastian. and so I wrote a letter asking to be put in San Sebastian, and my wish was granted. So I was in the same neighborhood that I'm sitting in right now, which is Gros like the cool young surfer neighborhood in San Sebastian.
00:12:54:10 - 00:12:56:21
Marti
And, I've been here for 12 years.
00:12:56:23 - 00:13:03:23
Jordan
Yeah, that's amazing to hear. You're so lucky.
00:13:04:01 - 00:13:24:04
Marti
I know, I know, I won't I will not argue with you. I feel like it's easy to trace the dots when you look back on your life. But, like, all these pivotal moments were not decisions that I made. And they were not like plans that I had. They were just like they happened. And, you know, I just kind of kept moving towards what felt right.
00:13:24:04 - 00:13:33:19
Marti
And I just feel so lucky, like, yeah, to never to not have been place in Madrid, to have been in that coffee shop when that girl walked in. And, you know, it's just like a lot of, a lot of luck.
00:13:33:21 - 00:13:42:20
Jordan
Was there were there any lumps in that like, arrival process? I mean, that's a big like with, with a young kid and your husband like.
00:13:42:22 - 00:14:03:06
Marti
Well, yeah, it was it was interesting. My first rude awakening was when I realized that the real estate prices in San Sebastian are not exactly similar to the real estate in Pamplona. What I didn't know and could have actually researched a little closer if I was a more responsible adult, and not a 25 year old was.
00:14:03:08 - 00:14:25:02
Marti
That said, Sebastian is the most expensive city in Spain for rent and for buying property. it beats Barcelona and beats Madrid. And so I came here, you know, I'm like this kind of mini salary. That would have been okay in Pamplona. But it was, like vastly not enough in San Sebastian. So we ended up, that first year, sharing an apartment with a girl who ended up being wonderful.
00:14:25:02 - 00:14:46:01
Marti
But we, like, agreed to live with her sight unseen. I mean, it could have gone horribly wrong, but. Right? No, everything went okay. And you know, there was always the paperwork is just an incessant issue and, you know, really hard. Really. The people at the office are not, you know, excited to see you, no matter how excited you are to talk to them.
00:14:46:03 - 00:15:14:11
Marti
and so that was just a constant thorn in my side for like the first ten years I was here. But but beyond that, you know, there's just like the culture shock. But I feel like perhaps the culture shock of an American coming here is like kind of agreeable in many ways. And whereas the culture shock of somebody going to America might be like a little bit more shocking, but coming here, it's more of like a, oh, you expect me to eat for four hours instead of 30 minutes?
00:15:14:11 - 00:15:25:00
Marti
Okay, I'll try to. I'll try to fit in this.
00:15:25:02 - 00:15:39:03
Jordan
I mean, I found there being a lot of people, who spoke decent English at this time, like, just now, but based on what you said 12 years ago, like, was that much harder?
00:15:39:05 - 00:15:59:14
Marti
I think 12 years ago, it was a different city. And I hate to say that, but it's true. Like, I remember the first five years we lived here, nobody even crossed the bridge to come to our neighborhood like no tourists. Everyone stayed in the old part. Everything was centered in the old part. there was a lot less English spoken.
00:15:59:18 - 00:16:24:18
Marti
But in San Sebastian, to be fair, has always, since the beginning of the 1900s, been a tourist city, and tourism has been a constant industry for the city. So there's always been kind of this feeling of like cosmopolitan air, or despite the fact that we're 180,000 people, there's always been money flowing in from outside. And and there's always been many languages spoken.
00:16:24:18 - 00:16:43:11
Marti
It just used to be French versus English. But yeah, I think nowadays, you know, in 2020 to everyone I see a lot more English spoken. I see a lot more like older Basque waiters like going for it in English. Whereas, you know, that was definitely something I did not see back in 2010.
00:16:43:13 - 00:16:47:07
Jordan
For people who just have no idea. Like what? Like why?
00:16:47:08 - 00:17:24:20
Marti
Yeah, sometimes I forget that not everybody knows about San Sebastian. you know, my book is about Basque Country and as like any creator, entrepreneur will say, like they're their worst audience. Like, I'm not my audience because I'm so deeply immersed in this. But yeah, I mean, just imagine, like kind of recreating my first visit to the city, pulling into the bus station and, you know, you get hooked up to the main road walking into town, and it's like this beautiful river lined with trees and these, you know, gorgeous buildings from the early 1900s made of this kind of dusty colored, sandstone.
00:17:24:20 - 00:17:48:03
Marti
And you just kind of are walking, strolling. There's almost like a Parisian vibe, but without any of the dirt and grime and hustle and bustle. And so, yeah, you're just walking and walking and suddenly you hit like this gorgeous green, like mini mountain, with a statue. And there's like, oceans on both sides of it. And, and then mount more mountains in the distance.
00:17:48:03 - 00:18:19:11
Marti
And so you're thinking, oh, my God, this is so beautiful. And you're like, oh, I'm hungry. And so you just walk into a random bar and in this random tiny bar, like the bar top is totally laid in with snacks, just pinxtos, you know, snacks, like stuff on bread, fried croquettas, pieces of foi, and, like, you know, not just food and not just quantity, but like, really products that outside of here are considered luxury products.
00:18:19:11 - 00:18:39:06
Marti
And it's a playground for anybody that loves to eat you, walk in, you take what you want, you eat it. Nobody bothers you except you have to kind of bother them for a glass of wine. And then when you're ready to go, you just pay them for what you had. And it just feels like like this place that is just, like, too good to be true, especially when you first come.
00:18:39:06 - 00:18:46:09
Marti
It's just like what? Your mind is blown. Everyone falls in love with this city. Everyone.
00:18:46:11 - 00:19:13:17
Jordan
And what is it about the culture of the Basque people? Because that's its own whole deep rich thing. Like, I feel like particularly to a lot of Americans, they are kind of an unknown quantity to, to like. Yeah. What what is what is their story here relative to this town.
00:19:13:19 - 00:19:37:12
Marti
Yeah. So this is something that a lot of visitors come through San Sebastian and they don't even, like touch on it and they don't even know. And they don't even notice, you know, that they are in one of the most unique corners of Europe and maybe even the world, Basque Country is this tiny region that occupies the north north part of Spain, a small corner of the north of Spain, and a small corner of the south of France.
00:19:37:14 - 00:20:15:21
Marti
And these people have not moved from here since they you know, came into existence. These people have been here for thousands of years. They have a language that is has no one, no linguists, not not nobody has been able to trace to any other living language or dead language. so it's this totally unique language, and they've just kind of been in this kind of mountainous, very dramatic landscape, kind of defending against the Moors, defending or defending against the Romans, defending against the Visigoths and defending against the Moors, and then defending against the, you know, Spain itself.
00:20:15:21 - 00:20:40:07
Marti
And so they've really managed to keep this really hermetic culture, very homogenous. And it's a beautiful thing. And, so they have their own special language. You can also see they have genetic traits that are very marked, for with the Basque people, they are also they have, you know, a personality traits that, you may or may not be able to pick up on.
00:20:40:07 - 00:21:02:22
Marti
I mean, they're kind of the stereotype of the best person is more closed, more quiet. It's harder to penetrate. they it's harder to make friends. But then on the flip side, they say if you make a best friend, you make them forever. So for me, that really sums up how they're like this. Really honorable people like you can take a best person at their word.
00:21:02:23 - 00:21:20:14
Marti
they might be suspicious of you at first, but you can definitely, you know, trust in them, you know, make a deal in a handshake. They're just like this really good, honorable people. And, also very proud of their culture that has been around for so many thousands of years.
00:21:20:16 - 00:21:27:05
Jordan
It's it feels unique in, in today's world that like, any of that can still exist.
00:21:27:07 - 00:21:47:20
Marti
Yeah. Yeah. I mean it's really, really special that they have managed to sort of fend off every invasion. And I guess right now, like we're sort of in this invasion of like tourism and like it sort of remains to be seen whether this like 21st century invasion of like tourism and the internet, they'll also be able to fend it off.
00:21:47:22 - 00:21:50:04
Marti
that's like remaining to be seen.
00:21:50:06 - 00:22:12:12
Jordan
I mean, I noticed this way more in Barcelona when we went there of like, like people from deep corners of my life sending me like, Google lists and like all these places in Barcelona, you got to go to these like 60 places. We were so surprised. Like we I think we were going to be in Barcelona for a week and we cut it for.
00:22:12:14 - 00:22:12:23
Marti
just.
00:22:13:05 - 00:22:16:09
Jordan
Let's just go there and get out of here and go to Basque Country,
00:22:16:11 - 00:22:20:20
Marti
There's so many better places to be for sure.
00:22:20:22 - 00:22:37:03
Jordan
Yeah. And like what? What is the the tone with that narrative with these restaurants, they kind of like, defy the internet's, like, expectations of what is good. Like, there's so much there that is just of its own. How how do you see this playing out?
00:22:37:05 - 00:23:05:15
Marti
Yeah, yeah I think yeah. Barcelona is definitely an example of, you know, death by success. And I almost look at like what's happening in Barcelona as just like kind of Spain, like getting what's coming to them, you know, like they came in sort of ravaged the Americas. And now, like the Americas are coming and like ravaging them. You know, it's kind of like this weird karma for, you know, everything that they did, you know.
00:23:05:15 - 00:23:29:22
Marti
So, not that it's comparable at all, but like, for me, it's like an idea of, like, colonization, but in the 21st century. but San Sebastian is different from Barcelona just by sheer size, it's just small, like you just can't, you know, fit that many people here. it's landlocked, it's surrounded. So it's not landlocked. It's, bounded by the sea and then by a bunch of mountains.
00:23:29:22 - 00:23:54:15
Marti
So you can't really grow. And then also, just to give you an idea, like they added in the last three years, they've opened like, 30 new hotels. So that is to say that they're definitely expanding, you know, capacity. But the capacity was very limited before. they've we've been saved by the airport is tiny, like the communication to other places is not that easy.
00:23:54:15 - 00:24:11:08
Marti
So it's doesn't make sense for people really like trying to save money and just go somewhere cheap and sort of, you know, make it what they want it to be for their bachelorette party or for whatever. Like it's just not built for that kind of traveler. So that's kind of saved the city in a little in a little way.
00:24:11:10 - 00:24:40:11
Marti
And also, honestly, like one of the saving graces of the city is one of my absolute least favorite parts about it, which is the weather. So it rains like 220 days a year here, and I hate it so much. But what that has done is it has saved it from like sun seeking Brits who have made their mark on the south of Spain and it also, I think, you know, discourages people from coming here and setting up shop for like, you know, two weeks for a sun and find a holiday.
00:24:40:11 - 00:25:04:15
Marti
So like it's really been a place that has really kind of found its niche with these cultured people who are traveling for food and have the money to get here. And so you don't get as many stag parties or bachelorette parties or just madness of people coming to just like, soak up whatever part they want, like vampires and leave, you know, it's more like people who are like, tell me about this place.
00:25:04:15 - 00:25:10:21
Marti
Tell me about your culture. And so that, in a way, has been like a really good thing for the tourism in the city.
00:25:10:23 - 00:25:28:18
Jordan
I guess, to like, what is it about the culinary scene there that makes it so unique? Why was that the the promised land for you, like a young culinary mind that, you know, it's like, no, like I have to be here, this is this.
00:25:28:20 - 00:25:48:15
Marti
You know, San Sebastian is not just a promise land like for me. Like it literally is the promised land. Like, it's just this perfect storm, okay - It's this place who has this marked culture. So they have a tradition of cooking. They live to eat. They love to cook. It's something that, you know, every demographic does and cares about.
00:25:48:15 - 00:26:20:10
Marti
Its built into the culture. So that already is huge, right? But it also just happens to be this region with these cold sea waters and these like fertile lands and a pretty varied climate actually. So you have like really wet areas and then you have like drier areas, you just have this abundance, like from the soil. everything from in Navarre you can get like down into the south of Navarre you can get olive oil even, and then here, you know, there's like tons of, vegetables.
00:26:20:12 - 00:26:59:12
Marti
peppers, asparagus, peas. Just really fertile. Delicious, delicious produce. So you have, like, the best prime, raw material to work with and then, like, kind of closing it all up or putting all together, like, moving into the 20th century, the proximity to France, really kind of is the icing on the cake, because when 1900 rolled around, and this became like a hotspot for tourism and royalty, the Spanish royalty and even some of the French royalty would come here and they would bring French chefs because they were the ones that knew to cook back then.
00:26:59:13 - 00:27:18:03
Marti
And so they brought all these French chefs to the city. A lot of them stuck around when the war started and just stayed. And so it began, this transmission of knowledge, like on a higher culinary level, that was sort of continued, in the 1960s, 70s with this whole group of young cooks who are now like pantry names.
00:27:18:03 - 00:27:41:19
Marti
Or how do you say staple names? Arzak, Subijana, some lesser known ones like (?) but they all made, they made this kind of group that swore to kind of bring Basque cuisine to the map. And so they were trained in these French techniques and they were passionate about their, their area. And so they opened the restaurants.
00:27:41:21 - 00:28:09:06
Marti
And okay, so these guys over in the restaurants, big deal, like five restaurants are going to change the world, but they really grew to be on the top of the culinary scene. And they were working with like the stage, you know, method. And so they had hundreds and thousands of people have gone through their kitchen. Some of those people are from other countries, but a lot of those people are from Spain, and a lot of them end up staying in San Sebastian for a while and cooking in a restaurant here and cooking in a pintxo bar.
00:28:09:08 - 00:28:36:18
Marti
And so just like the the average bar of cooking here were like, you're probably getting something from someone that has worked in a michelin starred restaurant, even if you're in like, a regular place. And so I just find that has that has been like one of the deciding factors of just bringing kind of world renown to San Sebastian just because it has, you know, it's always tying with Tokyo for the most Michelin stars per person.
00:28:36:20 - 00:28:56:19
Marti
and it's because of this, this like culture that we all like, live and breathe and then like, you can't deny, like the role that pintxos has had in capturing the public imagination, you know, being able to walk into a bar and try a snack and, you know, like just kind of party, while you eat all night.
00:28:56:21 - 00:29:19:06
Marti
there's nobody that can resist that. And so, like, there's just kind of like it's it's like a perfect storm, you know, the product, the tradition, the haute cuisine, the training and the, you know, the different ways of eating. That was just the best place to eat in the world.
00:29:19:08 - 00:29:34:21
Jordan
You're in San Sebastian and like, you're becoming awakened to all of this history and all this significance of more than just the city. But like the whole area, the whole region. Like, what was that journey for you?
00:29:34:23 - 00:29:57:00
Marti
Well, that for me was really, really important. The idea of kind of getting to know this area because as the obsessed person that I was, I had consumed pretty much everything in English about Basque Country and there wasn't much. And I was like, why is there like only one kind of book that doesn't even have, like, pictures? And it's not even really like a recipe book.
00:29:57:05 - 00:30:14:07
Marti
Like there's nothing about Basque cuisine in English. And so I knew coming here that that was something that was missing. And I got really passionate, you know, you move somewhere, you get the lay of the land, you think you know it. So six months and thinking I know it. And then I really start to like, meet people here.
00:30:14:07 - 00:30:33:15
Marti
And I have friends that take me to their villages or take me to see certain things or do certain restaurants. And it was over the course of that first year that I realized, like, oh, actually, like, I don't know anything. You know, I would, I would go to a friend's village and they would like, take me to this festival that was devoted to beans and I had never heard of any of it, and it was just incredible.
00:30:33:15 - 00:31:02:16
Marti
And so like, I was like, okay, Marti, like, maybe you need to chill for a second because I wanted to write that book because, you know, I had training as a journalist, write about food, training as a cook. I wanted to write the cookbook, but it was at that moment, sort of in the second half of my first year here, where I was like, if you do this now, like, not only are you not going to do it justice, you because you don't have like the broad enough knowledge of this place like you need you just need more time.
00:31:02:16 - 00:31:21:19
Marti
And I felt like I needed to write more, cook more, study more. So I kind of shelved that idea, and I was really nervous about doing that. But I thought somebody was going to come like from New York City and like, write this book after being here for two weeks, you know, and I just like, didn't want that to happen, but I just, like, shelved it for a little while.
00:31:21:21 - 00:31:36:02
Marti
you know, kind of lived here, wrote about here. I have a blog as well as writing on my blog, just kind of like living it and, learning as much as I could. And then after about four years, I felt kind of like worthy of taking that idea back up.
00:31:36:08 - 00:31:39:08
Jordan
What what changed?
00:31:39:10 - 00:32:00:00
Marti
It wasn't so much a change as it was just like kind of learning the lay of the land and being like, I know the names of these villages. I know the names of these dishes. I, you know, know like a lot of Basque words. I know a lot of people I have like friends that are chefs now. And it was just kind of feeling more at home here and more like I personally felt like I could do it justice.
00:32:00:00 - 00:32:12:21
Jordan
Do you have any of the, like, any anecdotes that were particularly like interesting, just in terms of being like, a little out of my element here or, I don't know, like.
00:32:13:01 - 00:32:34:14
Marti
Yeah, I mean, I had, you know, I'm living here. I have a sense of like being an outsider, and I'll always have it because, Basque is a really difficult language. And no matter how hard I have tried, I can't master it yet. and so I remember this isn't so much in the culinary realm or to do with me even.
00:32:34:14 - 00:33:02:11
Marti
But I remember we did go for three months, one summer to live in, this tiny village in the center of, like, the province that we are in. it's actually a place it's, gorgeous, gorgeous village called Ataun And there's, like, a legend that it's where the Garden of Eden is or was, and that when the apple fell from the tree, it stayed in the ground and it fermented and it turned into Basque cider.
00:33:02:13 - 00:33:21:04
Marti
So it was like Basque cider was started in the Garden of Eden. and so we went to this town. I had a friend from there, and we went to live there for three months. And my daughter at that time had been here for a couple of years, and she was about five years old. And she speaks, she speaks and she spoke Basque.
00:33:21:06 - 00:33:43:13
Marti
And so we walked into the one bar of the village, and there were these Basque men sitting out front, and they saw us coming up and they started saying stuff, and I didn't know what they were saying, but my daughter did. And she looks at them, and in Basque she goes, what did you say? And they just like fell out of their seats.
00:33:43:15 - 00:34:06:09
Marti
They were like, oh yeah, they just couldn't believe it. And they're, you know, started talking to her and she was like holding her own with these literally 70 year old men, five year old blind, American girl speaking best to them. And I was like, okay, comfort. Like, if I will never fit in and I will never be fully Basque, but like, my daughter has that chance and so, so yeah.
00:34:06:09 - 00:34:35:18
Marti
So that was just, like one example kind of feeling just so far out and the contrast made even greater by like my own kid being able to kind of get in there. But really, I mean, there's been just so many times where I've just kind of had to just like, shut up and listen. and when I was making the book, especially like I felt this immense pressure, mostly self-imposed, but due to the kind of book that I wanted to make, I just wanted everything to be very Basque, very authentic.
00:34:35:18 - 00:34:57:16
Marti
I didn't want to put my imprint on the book. I didn't want to change any recipes for American tastes. And so I was kind of obsessed with getting like the perfect recipe. But as I, you know, started talking to people and about different recipes, I really realized I would talk to one person, mirrors and fashion, and they would say, of course, that recipe has onion in it, but you can't make that without onion.
00:34:57:16 - 00:35:23:22
Marti
And I would talk to somebody from the neighboring province where Bilbao is and they'd be like, I would never, ever put onion in that dish. And so you just get like, that was like a moment. I was like, okay, everything's going to be okay. Like even between themselves amongst themselves, they can't agree. So like that kind of just took the pressure off a little, but also showed me just like even among the Basques, like they don't fit in with each other.
00:35:24:00 - 00:35:49:05
Marti
the culture was formed so long ago that, you know, it wasn't easy for them to move distances. So a person from west of Bilbao could hear a person from, east of San Sebastian talk. And they can, like, have trouble understanding each other in Basque. And that's like, you know, so, so even within the Basque Country, there's like a lot of diversity, which helps me, I guess, feel a little better.
00:35:49:06 - 00:35:53:13
Jordan
I do, you know, now serving the cookbook shop here in L.A.
00:35:53:15 - 00:35:55:14
Marti
Oh yeah, I love it. It's such a fan.
00:35:55:16 - 00:36:41:07
Jordan
Yeah, yeah. So I went in there and like, I always just, like, buy too many cookbooks. It's a problem, but I, I think it was after the Bourdain episode, about San Sebastian. And I was just like, I need to. I need a cookbook about this. And, I remember, like they said, like they were like, yeah, the problem, like, there's there's so many cookbooks that are like, either just like the Zach, like, or, you know, just some big fancy restaurant with, like, really gnarly, like, this is never going to like, this is hard to recreate, like in a home kitchen or whatever.
00:36:41:09 - 00:37:29:00
Jordan
and but they pointed to yours and like, what was so interesting was it's not it's not like a traditional cookbook in the sense that like here, the like here are the recipes, here's the technique. Like a lot of the stuff I don't like, I don't think I'd be able to do in my home either. But it's all stuff that if I had the ingredients like I could and it more was like it more felt like I was learning about, like all these people that you're discussing, like here we have felt like the real like like this is the one, example of like thousands of different possibilities of this thing which which I feel
00:37:29:00 - 00:37:39:21
Jordan
like was really cool from like an educational standpoint. So like, really like, like definitively open ended in a correct educational way.
00:37:39:23 - 00:38:10:13
Marti
Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Well, when I wrote the book, you know, I knew that I was presenting like a cuisine that had its very own, like, marked traits, and that was very different than what people would be familiar with. So, and also like for me, one of the most important things about Basque Country and about understanding the cuisine, like you can't just read a bunch of recipes and get the cuisine and you can just have somebody like, talk to you about the different ingredients and get the cuisine.
00:38:10:15 - 00:38:33:19
Marti
The cuisine is like so entrenched in the daily life of these people, and so many of the dishes come. They have a reason for existing. You know, they have one of the most famous dishes, at this time of year is marmitako. And it's a soup, hot soup in the middle of summer that has tuna in it, which is like so weird and so, so counterintuitive.
00:38:33:19 - 00:38:53:17
Marti
So but if you know that it was created by people who in, you know, high fishing season for tuna, were out on the boat for weeks at a time and would, you know, just use like the dried peppers and the potatoes that they had on board and mix it with tuna in water and cook it in a single pot?
00:38:53:19 - 00:39:18:07
Marti
Then you understand, like where this recipe came from. And so I knew, like even from the beginning, that I didn't want to separate that, the origin stories of the recipes, but also like the culture of the eating here and like, you know, it's important to know when to eat certain things. And it's important also to talk about seasonality, which is a huge deal here.
00:39:18:09 - 00:39:38:18
Marti
And so I just like I just knew, like, I can't present the Basque cuisine without presenting the tradition, without talking about the culture, without talking about the geography, without talking about, you know, the ingredients and where they're grown and when they're in season. And so, yeah, for me, from the beginning, this book had had to be like pretty text heavy.
00:39:38:20 - 00:39:56:04
Marti
And, you know, I think it's not a guide. I went out of my way, not to mention, like any restaurants, hardly in the book. but it is a guide if you if you're coming here to eat it is a guide to like knowing what to what to order, when to eat it, where it came from. It's like a different kind of guide.
00:39:56:06 - 00:39:58:02
Jordan
But what is your next book?
00:39:58:04 - 00:40:22:06
Marti
So right now I'm working on, well, I'm almost finished with my second book. so with the first book, I could really only include like a few Pintxos. I wanted to mostly focus on the traditional cuisine. And that left, you know, this gaping hole in this part of the cuisine here that everyone loves. Everyone's fascinated by it has an incredible story behind it.
00:40:22:08 - 00:40:48:23
Marti
It's a relatively recent history, the history of the pintxo. And that means that, you know, that here it has not really been written down. So in the process of researching and understanding for this second book, almost everything, all of my research basically was like first person interviews with owners of bars, people who lived through this, different people on the scene.
00:40:49:01 - 00:41:08:13
Marti
And so in that way, it's a very different book than the first book, which I also did, you know, a lot of traveling for a lot of like reading about. But this book is very much sitting down with the people who lived it. Well, almost all of them are still alive. you know, and if not, you know, second generation is still at the helm of the bar.
00:41:08:13 - 00:41:30:13
Marti
And so it was just like such a pleasure to kind of research and investigate this book. And it's going to have about 75 recipes. most of the recipes will have, like the story of the bar where they were invented and the story of how the pintxo itself was invented. And I'm really excited about it, because I think it's just like a really approachable way of cooking.
00:41:30:15 - 00:41:48:03
Marti
I think a lot of the recipes will be easily adaptable for, people outside of Basque Country. And so, yeah, I'm really, you know, honored to write this, this book as well, and kind of capture, like the chronology of the history of the pintxo on paper.
00:41:48:05 - 00:42:13:08
Jordan
Like you said earlier, it's just immediately a yes. Like when you see like, yeah, let's go. Like, let's let's get all these like, you, just you becomes a game to just, you know, and you see the way that the, the, the one place does the crazy stuff with the anchovies and this one does the white chocolate with the foi gras like they all have their own little like thing amidst all the like usual ones.
00:42:13:08 - 00:42:20:20
Jordan
And then you go to the other towns and they've got their own little spins. Like what? Where did this all begin? And really.
00:42:20:22 - 00:42:43:22
Marti
that's the million dollar question. Where did the pintxo begin? that is why I'm so excited to be writing this book. Honestly, because in the 1990s, here in San Sebastian, we have a newspaper that I love called The Old School, and it always is updating us on like the most, you know, provincial small things about the city.
00:42:44:00 - 00:43:10:13
Marti
In the 1990s, they put out an article about a bar here that is amazing. It's called cassava use. It's one of the older bars that's still open and running today. And they said that that was where the picture was invented and it was called the Gilda. And that's it. And because of that, one article, you know, everyone says that the first pintoxs invented in 1946, it was called The Gilda.
00:43:10:15 - 00:43:30:20
Marti
and it was these three things, whereas that is totally untrue. The pintxo was this version of the pintxo and the Gilda this version is that is like, called the banderia. So it's like a toothpick with a couple of different ingredients on it. And that was like the very first version of the pintxo.
00:43:30:22 - 00:43:59:16
Marti
And that part is true. But they have been making that since the 1920s. And it was never it was not called The Hill. And it was different combinations. And so the history of the pintxo dates back to about 100 years now. And in my book, I hope to dismantle like, this kind of urban legend and kind of set the record straight, although, as much research as I've done, I don't really have like the answer as to who was the first person to ever put some stuff on the stick together.
00:43:59:16 - 00:44:30:05
Marti
And so I'm kind of afraid that the inconclusive ness of my research is going to mean that it's not like, you know, catchy enough for people to grab onto a new legend, but at least I will rest easy knowing that I have uncovered the truth about the beginning of the pintxo. But it's kind of crazy because everyone kind of thinks about it as something that's been around forever, but really, it only, you know, didn't exist until the end of the 1920s, and it didn't really come into its own until like the 1950s.
00:44:30:05 - 00:44:33:03
Marti
And so it's actually a pretty recent phenomenon, really.
00:44:33:04 - 00:44:35:08
Jordan
What's your favorite pintxo?
00:44:35:10 - 00:44:45:10
Marti
Oh my God, oh my God. This question that is like the most difficult question and one that I will have to get a better a good answer for.
00:44:45:12 - 00:44:56:12
Jordan
Yeah, it I know, like whenever someone asks like what's your favorite movie. Like I it's impossible. But like like what is what are you really loving right now.
00:44:56:14 - 00:45:19:14
Marti
Well so the on one hand I will always say that like my favorite pintxos is like the tortilla, the tortilla, it's like this workhorse pintxo. It's basically almost like a frittata, but like a million times better, cooked on both sides and like the inside, it should still be kind of creamy, with caramelized onion if you know, you're eating it in a good spot.
00:45:19:16 - 00:45:41:13
Marti
so that one is just kind of good at any time of day. but pintxos which tend to be, you know, a little bit more elaborated, one that I always come back to and that when I am there, I can eat like five of in a row. It's called la delicia, which means literally the delicacy. And it's from La Espiga which is one of the longest running pintxo bars in town.
00:45:41:13 - 00:46:14:05
Marti
Family owned, been open since the 1920s, and it's basically a slice of bread. a couple of salt cured anchovies. Just delicious, like really high quality, hardboiled egg, a dollop of mayonnaise. And then this vinaigrette, with onion and parsley in hardboiled egg, in it and kind of, you know, sprinkled on top. And then there is a they give it a little glimmer of Worcestershire sauce right before they serve it to you.
00:46:14:05 - 00:46:24:21
Marti
And I don't know, it's just like this umami bomb. And it's just perfect. And one of my joys in life is taking people there who say that they don't like anchovies and watching them eat, like five.
00:46:24:23 - 00:47:07:15
Jordan
Like, I love Bodegon Alejandro. And like, that place was just amazing. And the way that like, there's places like that. I know, like when people talk about, like the Michelin like star numbers, like relative to Japan or, you know, the like most per capita. And then there's the pintxo world, too, like, you get these like three, like the traditional Basque cuisine, the Pancho cuisine, and then like the fine dining and like, how do you like, synthesize all that when you're making a cookbook, like, obviously you've you're doing a feature in a cookbook now.
00:47:07:15 - 00:47:13:15
Jordan
But like especially more for the Basque Country, one, like, how are you able to kind of like make sense of all that?
00:47:13:17 - 00:47:40:05
Marti
Yeah, because of the, the very nature and the different ways that they eat here. turning that all into a cohesive book, would have been really difficult. So with the Basque Country book, I really just focused on traditional cuisine. I did not include like a single haute cuisine recipe, because, you know, these chefs, they have their own recipe books, and it's also stuff that people aren't going to be able to make at home.
00:47:40:05 - 00:48:01:20
Marti
And so I just as much as it is part of the scene here and just didn't, I wanted to focus purely on traditional cuisine from the seven provinces of Basque Country. And within that, for me, felt like, you know, the idea of the Pintxo and some of the most emblematic pintxos And so that's why I included, I think I included about 10 or 11.
00:48:01:22 - 00:48:20:11
Marti
So it was definitely a decision that I didn't, you know, take lightly. And we thought about and considered. but the book really sort of begin to kind of shape itself. after we started the planning process for it, like, you know, it. Yeah. It felt it just felt right the whole time, really.
00:48:20:17 - 00:48:57:04
Jordan
I saw a copy of it in a panaderia, right near where you live. I think it was. Yeah. Like maybe like a couple blocks from that beach right there. and I guess I'm like, the reception seems to be positive. I would, I would get, I would assume, like, in, in, like in the town, like the, the people that like you were very careful about, like not wanting to be like offensive to like it seems like you really achieve that.
00:48:57:06 - 00:49:32:12
Marti
Yeah. Yeah. yeah. Like my main I mean literally like my main goal when writing this cookbook, besides turning in a manuscript, was to write something that, like a Basque person would be proud of. and, and, you know, also like, because I sincerely felt like even even after doing my research, which I did in Spanish and some Basque books as well, I sincerely felt that like there wasn't a recipe that someone could follow to the letter if they didn't know this dish before, because even Spanish cookbooks, they're very different than American cookbooks.
00:49:32:12 - 00:49:59:13
Marti
They're very like, sometimes they don't even have measurements. they often don't include, like, the steps for the recipe. Like they're just weird. Like, they don't, you know, you're like, if you don't literally already know kind of how to make it, you're not going to get the idea from the recipe. And so part of my goal was to like, oh my God, like, what if there's the basque person that, you know, it was disconnected for a generation or didn't have, anyone in this house that cooked like, I want them to be able to find like a version of their recipes.
00:49:59:13 - 00:50:14:07
Marti
And so that was in my head the whole time. And I had actually a really cool moment. So, like, when you're doing a big project like this, you know, the moments that you think are going to be a big, big deal, like, aren't it all in in the moments that you least expect are the ones that really stick with you.
00:50:14:07 - 00:50:33:08
Marti
So like, for example, when I got like the first copy in the mail, yeah, it was exciting, but it, it was kind of like, oh, okay. Well, that's that book I've been staring at for four years. But then when, on the other hand, a moment for me that was so huge was when, one of my older friends, she gave it to her mom.
00:50:33:08 - 00:50:50:22
Marti
So talking about, like an 80 year old woman, and she said her mom took out, like, a pencil and like a notepad, and she was going to, like, go through the whole book, and she was going to, like, write down anything that she, like, would change or didn't think was like, right. And she said she didn't write anything down.
00:50:51:00 - 00:51:10:09
Marti
And like hearing that for me was just like the biggest compliment that I could ever receive. That like the literally somebody from here literally with 80 years under her belt of cooking and living like, thought that my book was like, correct or, you know, dare I say, like, you know, perfect. So that was just like, that will stick with me forever, you know?
00:51:10:11 - 00:51:36:00
Jordan
Yeah. That's incredible. I, I guess, like thinking about how you made that happen. Like where you I know you mentioned you had spent years that you developed, knowledge base, but, I mean, at some point, you had to be making all these things, right? And, like, what was that process like.
00:51:36:02 - 00:51:59:14
Marti
making the cookbook? it was really tough. I mean, it was really it was a lot of work. because at artisan, my publisher, there's a big emphasis on user friendly books and books that, you know, people can take home and cook from and so that was a big priority for us was and for me, you know, because it's not like I'm talking about, you know, recipes with flour and sugar and like, that's it.
00:51:59:20 - 00:52:25:14
Marti
These are recipes that like, if people really get it in their head to make them like the flour, we make wheat, for example, that's in the picture. chapter, if you are going to buy a loaf of foi in the States, you might spend like $100. And the idea of somebody like going to the trouble of sourcing, paying that much money and then getting home and cooking from my book and having it not work was like literally the worst thing that I could think of ever.
00:52:25:16 - 00:52:51:17
Marti
And so my main goal, you know, with the recipe testing, was just to make sure that, like, every recipe was as foolproof as it could be. And so of course, that means just a lot of testing and nights. You know, I've always held down, almost always held down a full time job. I've been here in addition to writing and so it just meant, like, nights in the kitchen night after night, you know, a lot of the recipes I tested more than once.
00:52:51:17 - 00:53:14:00
Marti
Some of them I tested multiple times. and just. Yeah, like, really cooking a lot, you know, and washing a lot of dishes. It was really tough. And it's always the hardest part of the process for me is just the recipe testing, because it feels so daunting when you have this list of 100 recipes in front of you and you just you're like, where do I start?
00:53:14:01 - 00:53:29:01
Marti
And so, and definitely like, my poor daughter definitely got like, sick of eating bacalao and like, fish and all this stuff that I made her eat for dinner so that we wouldn't waste the ingredients.
00:53:29:03 - 00:53:34:10
Jordan
Yeah. It's amazing.
00:53:34:12 - 00:53:38:21
Jordan
What is it? You. What is your other job?
00:53:38:23 - 00:54:00:11
Marti
so I've worked pretty continuously. well, my first job, transitioning from the English thing was, actually baking. I it might be the bakery that you're talking about. The loaf that, is on the, beach that I was. I opened it, my friends opened it, and I was like, their baker, like, for sweets and baked goods when they first opened.
00:54:00:11 - 00:54:19:00
Marti
So I worked there for a year, and then I transitioned into marketing, which is, sector that I like, had experience in before and, was working, was working several years at a company that did like food tourism and, cooking schools and stuff in the marketing. And now I'm doing marketing in a different sector. But yeah.
00:54:19:02 - 00:54:25:16
Jordan
Cool. So you're you're like a Spaniard now.
00:54:25:18 - 00:54:30:16
Marti
Yeah. No, no, I don't know. I still feel I still feel very American.
00:54:30:17 - 00:55:15:19
Jordan
Well, I'm curious to as as your life unfolded, like, post the release, like, it seems like. But like, I don't know the metrics or anything, but it seems like the cookbook was not only like a success, like with the hearts and minds of the Basque folk but also like, this was a successful cookbook and like, like you're like, I don't know, like I, I would, I would assume that you have established like, a role that's like somewhat of an authority on, like, like in the town, like, it's why I like, read out about like, oh, like what's, what's a good rest of it?
00:55:15:19 - 00:55:33:04
Jordan
I mean, you, you probably have, like, grown into, like, a new, a new space where you're like, you're kind of like, living your excitement. Like the excitement that you came with. Like, you're just, like, able to live it every single day.
00:55:33:06 - 00:55:52:08
Marti
Yeah, yeah, yeah, no, I do, I do feel I do feel what you're saying I feel, Yes. I feel like I can relax a little bit in a certain way. but at the same time, like, not that much has changed, really. Like, in the way that people perceive me here. Like, people are like, like, you know, very humble.
00:55:52:08 - 00:56:12:22
Marti
Like nobody's like, wow. Like, look at you. You're an author and you're just like, whatever. So. So my life here, like, doesn't change, but I'd almost rather be that way, you know, for sure. Just like continuing to kind of go a little bit under the radar. but yeah, it does feel like I have I have a ton of ideas, you know, at least three for future books.
00:56:12:22 - 00:56:30:19
Marti
I already know what I want my next one to be. So I definitely know, like, what needs to be explored a little more and, have several ideas about how I want to do that. And yeah, it looks like I will be able to continue exploring, which is like more than I could ever have thought to ask for back in the day.
00:56:30:21 - 00:56:32:09
Jordan
That's so cool.
00:56:32:10 - 00:56:33:08
Marti
00:56:33:10 - 00:57:04:09
Jordan
One thing, just going going back to like, more of the cultural aspect, like one thing that it was actually when we were in Mañaria and I think I saw some post you had about like the, kind of like the spiritual aspect of the Basque like religious practices with like specifically mentioning, like Mari and like the, the especially the spirituality around the mountains.
00:57:04:11 - 00:57:26:14
Jordan
and it was very serendipitous, like literally like, just before, like I was having a discussion with my wife, like all the, like, abortion stuff was happening here and like, just like, you know, crazy like religion, right? Like, this has come in and poisoned so much. And I was like, I'm just looking at this. I'm biking under this mountain.
00:57:26:14 - 00:57:54:14
Jordan
Look at that mountain. Like, that could be like your religion, right? Like what happened to just that? You know, like, why do we. Why did it have to be all this other stuff? And then I went on a little rabbit hole of like, oh, there's this cool. Like, earthy spirituality here. And just like it only seems right that that like, of course, these people have like another cool aspect of their life.
00:57:54:14 - 00:58:10:11
Jordan
And that's in the spiritual realm. And I guess I'm curious, like, what? Like if there's anything you can talk about with relative to like that part of Basque culture that's not just like food and it's not just family.
00:58:10:13 - 00:58:42:04
Marti
Yeah, yeah. Definitely Basque. Yeah. The Basque people, you know, as they have been around way before, you modern, you know, society, they do have these incredibly deep roots, and they're mostly tied to the land around them for them, even today, like, the land is the most important, you know, the land and the home. Their tradition is to pass the home, to the oldest child.
00:58:42:06 - 00:59:20:07
Marti
They don't divide it between the children because the main goal is to keep the home whole. and that just kind of I tell that, like, little anecdote because I feel like it speaks to how much they appreciate the sense of place and how much they appreciate, like a soul, the soul of a place as well. And so when we were living in the little village that I was talking about earlier, that was actually the birthplace of José Miguel de Barandiarán, who is one of the great kind of, ethnographers of the Basque culture, and he was the first person to really capture all of the Basque mythology and put it down on
00:59:20:07 - 00:59:49:16
Marti
paper. And the Basque mythology, I mean, it's all about the forest and it's all about the mountains and it's all about the sun. And it really speaks to like, you know, the cycles of the moon and the seasons of the year. Like it's very, very linked inextricably to the land, just like the Basque people. I mean, a lot of even a lot of the Basque names are, you know, reference mountains, reference like your location in relation to a, natural landmark.
00:59:49:18 - 01:00:12:12
Marti
I mean, all their last names are like top of the hill, left of the water, like, you know, they're just these funny names. And so. Yeah. And they have, you know, the goddess Mari who is kind of like the highest female deity. And she would jump from mountain to mountain, and has, you know, like her main mountain where I was hiking in Bizkaia recently.
01:00:12:14 - 01:00:34:14
Marti
and they have Lamia, which are like these Little Mermaid women that sit in the stream and, like, call out to people, they have Tartalo that comes down from the mountain. He's the cyclops kind of character, and he comes down and like, kind of, like, frightens people. And, they have, like, mischievous characters. They. Yeah, they have an explanation for everything.
01:00:34:14 - 01:00:59:12
Marti
And Sorgina, the witch, has a huge place in Basque culture as well. And there's still, this connective connectivity to it. And there's still even, like, modern day people that kind of fit into these kind of characteristics, you know, like, there's very much still the feeling of like this kind of, magical, like Basque woman. I mean, I'm not romanticizing it all when I say that.
01:00:59:12 - 01:01:05:07
Marti
Like, it just still feels like an important part of who they are in their culture.
01:01:05:09 - 01:01:33:23
Jordan
It's more than immersion now, like it's more than like the study abroad, you know, like you've you've like, you're cultivating like, like a Basque family here. And it's like at least the experience of it. And how would you describe that experience of just seeing like, these very like significant like for a place that really like, honors family and really like honors that connectivity, like, what is that been like for you as a mother.
01:01:34:01 - 01:01:50:04
Marti
Yeah. You know, so like from the beginning, I just thought we were going to be here for a year. And then it turned into another year, and then it turned to another year. And so my two and a half year old, you know, slowly grew into what she is now, which is a 14 year old. And I have a second daughter who is almost three.
01:01:50:06 - 01:02:06:08
Marti
And, you know, on one hand, like just from a parent, parental point of view, the weight that's lifted off your shoulders when you know that everybody has health care and that there are no guns around and no, no, those are like hot button topics. But like, those were the first two things to kind of just like go away.
01:02:06:08 - 01:02:28:13
Marti
Like worries that I had in the back of my head all the time. They just went away. And and Spaniards, especially even within Europe, are known as being people who incorporate their children into their daily life. And so you can go to any bar here, and there's kids running around, you can go, you know, look out on the street at like 1230 at night and somebody is coming home with their stroller.
01:02:28:15 - 01:03:03:21
Marti
That was never me. I'm not quite that Spanish, but that's like a thing. And, And I really love it. I think what it does is it keeps like the sense of family togetherness, because you're not necessarily just leaving kids with a babysitter to go do fun stuff. You're taking the whole family. And and I think it also, you know, teaches kids like how to behave and fosters kind of like a healthy relationship with adulthood and with, you know, having a glass of wine and not having it be like some kind of big deal or like, you know, San, depending on where you're from, whatever.
01:03:03:22 - 01:03:24:19
Marti
and so, yeah, I think it's, just really healthy, like the sense that family is really a priority, for the people here and, you know, raising two daughters. And that is such a gift. You know, we're far from my parents and their grandparents, and that stinks. But, like, having them be able to grow up around here is, like, one of the best things about living here, for sure.
01:03:24:21 - 01:03:33:07
Jordan
I'm sure. Like Thanksgiving is often looked forward to from all the parents and grandparents who visit here as well.
01:03:33:07 - 01:03:48:19
Marti
We do. We do for Thanksgiving. We do like, thing with, American people here, and I love it. It's better I eat better than I've ever eaten at Thanksgiving at my house. But then for Christmas and summer, like 4th of July time, we usually head home. And yeah, it's awesome.
01:03:48:21 - 01:04:05:10
Jordan
Maybe. In conclusion and and and yeah, I'm like committing again like a lot of stuff that we've just been saying here. But like something I would like to include is, like, how would like, what is a perfect day in San Sebastian for you?
01:04:05:12 - 01:04:30:03
Marti
I love this question. I love, you know, the idea of my perfect day in San Sebastian. definitely would start earlier than I usually wake up. So, like, you know, 730 or 7, and I love, like, getting out on the streets before everyone starts stirring because, it's usually not very many people on the streets before eight or even on the weekends, like nine.
01:04:30:05 - 01:04:54:19
Marti
And so I love to go and like, the streets are still being cleaned and go sit and have a coffee at one of the like one. The air's still fresh and cool and, go sit out on the boulevard and just like, enjoy that time and have, cafe con leche and a croissant or something. and then I would probably say that I would take a walk either along the beach or even, like up the mountain.
01:04:54:21 - 01:05:14:12
Marti
because here in San Sebastian on Magnolia, there's like an amazing hike that within ten minutes you're outside. It looks like Jurassic Park. It's incredible. So I would definitely go out in the mountain and kind of commune a little bit with nature. And then having worked up an appetite, I would probably go meet some friends for, a pinto for a drink.
01:05:14:14 - 01:05:35:12
Marti
a couple pictures, kind of get that like midday weekend feeling good, you know, seeing people out on the street, like sitting in the sun, having, gin tonic to digest everything. maybe take a nap. and then, you know, to the beach. The beach in summer when it's sunny is, you know, the a place that I love to go.
01:05:35:12 - 01:05:53:12
Marti
We have it just like a couple blocks from the apartment. and, you know, just passing time until you can eat again and then head back out to a restaurant for a meal on the terrace somewhere. maybe, Rekondo is one of my favorite places, and they have, one of the best wine lists in Europe.
01:05:53:12 - 01:06:10:17
Marti
And there's a beautiful terrace with, like, leaves hanging over it. And the food is amazing. So, yeah, I'd probably go up there and just sit and have like a 1964 Rioja and under the stars. Yeah. That's it.
01:06:10:19 - 01:06:12:04
Jordan
So cool.
01:06:12:06 - 01:06:15:20
Marti
So.
01:06:15:21 - 01:06:17:15
Jordan
Really a great day.
01:06:17:17 - 01:06:20:06
Marti
Yeah.
01:06:20:08 - 01:06:26:19
Jordan
Well think this this is great. I feel like we have we have what we need here and,
01:06:26:21 - 01:06:27:08
Marti
Awesome.
01:06:27:13 - 01:06:31:20
Jordan
I appreciate you taking the time.
01:06:31:22 - 01:06:51:18
Jordan
Thanks for listening, everyone. For links and resources about everything discussed today, please visit the show notes in the episode. And if you want to support the podcast, the most effective way to do so is to hit the subscribe button on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any other platform that you're listening in from. Sharing the show with your friends and social media is always appreciated.
01:06:51:20 - 01:07:24:03
Jordan
Shout out to Sean Myers for creating the awesome original music graphic elements made by Jason Cryer. The show is produced by Homecourt Pictures. You can always reach out to me at Jordan H-A-R-0 on Instagram and Twitter. You can follow the show at pre it's @prixfixefod on Instagram. Sorry my French is terrible. I just call it prix fixe pod or email us via prixfixepodcast@gmail.com.
01:07:24:05 - 01:07:28:21
Jordan
I appreciate every second of your attention and support and look forward to seeing you on the next one.