Spilling the beans

Believe it or not, the four years have passed quickly since the day I was made a member of Gaztelubide. On 14th of December 2018, as every year, after a good dinner, we proceeded to the prize-giving ceremony of the mus  championship (a card game) and the presentation of badges to the new members. As I said to Joserra Mendizabal, President of the Society, I felt touched & blessed by the finger of God.

All societies are based on two important principles. Trust is the first one (all members have the key of the society) and generosity (new members also become co-owners).

In these four years things have not been easy because of Covid-19, but we have had extraordinary occasions to enjoy a rich coexistence.

Daily, weekly life and routine are the characteristics that most “enrich” social life. To enjoy it, you have to come to the Society frequently and have all the other members as friends. In addition to the friends and relatives we have outside, these are also our friends.

I have often organised lunches or dinners for friends or family, but I have also often taken part in activities organised by the Society. The latter are essential to form bonds with people.

The “cuadrillas”, group of friends, in the Society each have different habits. Goyo’s “cuadrilla” meets every Tuesday for lunch. Goyo prepares the food and they eat in a really special ambience. On Fridays, Joserra Mendizabal’s cuadrilla has dinner. In my case, I take part in the Saturday brunches. José Antonio Calvo does the shopping, Fernando San Martín prepares the “hamarretako”, brunch, and the rest of us (Ángel Soroa, Julián Serrano, Sergio Dean and myself) eat to our heart’s content, accompanied by several bottles of cider. Vicente Odriozola, Javier Arbizu, “El Purri”, and Mariano Torres also join us from time to time to enjoy the brunch. Although what we eat is important, what is more important is what we share in the gathering.

When we cook, we are all apprentices and we are all masters. We support each other and come up with ideas to make the food we are preparing better and more delicious.

Every year the Society organises lunches and dinners for its members, often with the joyful participation of the “Orfeón de la castaña”(our Choir). Many members of the choir are also part of Gaztelubide and spread its good name wherever they go. On 21 December 2023 the Orfeón de la Castaña celebrates its first centenary. We will have to prepare something special for then.

     On the eve of San Sebastian (most important holiday in San Sebastián), our tamborrada (special march) opens the festivities in the Constitution Square. A dinner at Carnival  in which the members of our fanfarre will be the entertainers and then stroll through the Old Town; on the eve of Saint John, a dinner to taste the ciders we have in the society; the dinner on the eve of the Virgin of August, in which the Orfeón de la Castaña sings the “Festara”; the txistorra and the read beans on the day of Saint Thomas. As you can see, the members of Gaztelubide make the most of every opportunity the year offers to have fun. Gora Gaztelubide!!!!