A beautiful beach, culture shocks and fantastic reads // Easter 2022 (#2)

Hi Everyone!

Welcome to another holiday post! Honestly, there was so much I was hoping to do with the blog this month and I was a little overhwhelmed by schoolwork, and for the first time in my life, felt a little unmotivated to blog. But I'm back and I've dedicated this whole morning to writing and answering comments and just catching up on here. 

It's been a whole month to the day since I came back from my holiday so it's about time to finish writing my posts about it. If you haven't read the first installment, where I talk about what I read when on the ferry, then I recommend you do so to hear about what else I read!

All photos in this post were taken by me or my family on holiday.

Monday 11th April

I'm reading Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne and I'm really enjoying it so far! We got off the ferry in Santander and drove through the Spanish countryside, then through Bilbao and along up winding roads to where we are staying for a few days. I've only been to Spain once before, and that was only for a day! 

We are staying in a holiday apartment, which is beautiful and has stunning views over a small town called Mundaka, famous for it's surfing and being the "longest left in Europe", for anyone interested in surfing! 

Tuesday 12th April

Today we drove to Leketio. Looking back on it now, this was probably my favourite day of the whole holiday and I just don't think anything I write will do what it was like justice! All the red roofs are just so beautiful and the water was so clear! We walked around and had some tapas. We don't speak much Spanish at all so this was a bit of an adventure! We had some very funny experiences and it was such an enjoyable day. 

I remember we went down several alleyways with washing hanging out people's windows and potted plants on balconies and window sills. It was such a sweet town, but I'm glad I saw it at Easter, without the summer tourists! It was so different to England and I love learning about different ways of life, cultures and ideas. It really inspired me to do some research about Spanish history, and reminded me of a book, The Fountains Of Silence by Ruta Sepetys, which is set after the war in Spain. It's given it context and made me want to reread it!

We also went on the beach which was just amazing, and I finished Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne! I really loved it, but you can read my review here. In fact, I loved it so much that it became my YA Book Of The Month for May! I will always remember that I finished this book on the beach in Spain! 

Wednesday 13th April

Today we went to the Guggenheim in Bilbao! We went my train and I don't want to say too much about the museum but it was another really good day. 

I started reading an ARC on the train and although I like it, I'm not really into it yet. It is How To Live Without You by Sarah Everett, which you can read my review of here! I'm not that immersed in the characters yet, but I am hopeful that I will like it. 

(spoiler: I did!) 

Thursday 14th April

We left the apartment this morning, which was so sad! I've really loved my time in Spain, it's been so interesting, and as I said the other day, I really want to learn more about it's history and the context to why it is a certain way. The eating hours are so different to the UK and all the apartments are a bit overwhelming. People live such a different life out there and I can't wait to learn more about their culture. 

We had a walk around a neighbouring town and had some more tapas. 

For those of you who don't know, I am bilingual and half French. We drove to France and had a week in a mobile home there. 

Once we arrived, it was a shock to be able to speak the language! We went in the pool in the campsite and I read a bit more of How To Live Without You, but my thoughts haven't changed since yesterday!

Saturday 16th April

Today we cycled into St Jean De Luz, which is one of my favourite towns. We had a morning there and then had a more leisurely afternoon. 

I'm still reading How To Live Without You, but enjoying it much more, I'm getting more into it and gripped on the storyline. I want to know what happens now! It's very funny though because the name of the sister of the main character in both Am I Normal Yet? and How To Live Without You is Rose! I got to 52% which is good and I'm looking forward to finishing it soon. 

There will be one final installment of these posts, where I will share reading the end of How To Live Without You and what I read next, along with the last week of adventures. Thank you so much for following me this far, and I hope to be more active on here again soon!  

Happy reading! 

Have you read any of these books? Do you want to? Have you ever been to Spain? 

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on my reviews by clicking here! Your support is very much appreciated :)

p.s. casual magic of the day:

(If you are new here and have no idea what I'm on about, click here to find out more)

When I came home from school, it was absolutely tipping it down with rain, and just a few hours later there was a cloudless sky and a beautiful evening! What's your casual magic today?