DUBLIN BELLYBUSTERS

Day 8: Monday, July 27th, 2009
Our 4pm flight to Bordeaux was delayed, putting us under serious pressure at the other end. The last train from Bordeaux to Irun (the town on the French/Spanish border) left at 6.55pm local time and we weren't entirely sure how long it would take for us to get from the airport to the train station. The plane left Dublin just after 5pm and landed at 5.40pm local time (we gained an hour with the time difference). Hopping in a taxi, we headed straight to the station. It was rush-hour in Bordeaux but we still made it onto the train by 6.45pm! Time for some 3-Handed cash game PLO!

With €25 in chips each and the blinds fixed at 25c/50c, Patrick insta-donked off a buy-in to Nick. I chopped away, winning several small and medium pots from both of them. Patrick donked another buy-in to me and insisted that he would quit after 4 buy-ins. His third didn't last long as he donated again to Nick. I then sucked out in a €120 pot to Nick as I got all-in with top-pair and a gutshot to his bottom set. I put him on 'AAxx' and thought he would fold to my re-re-raise on a 258 board. He might have except for the fact that the 'xx' in his hand was '22'. I turned a 6 to make my straight and the river didn't pair the board. Raking in the pot, I made my heart-felt apologies to Nick who re-bought for another €25. Three hands later, I felted Patrick and the game was over. We had successfully killed two of the three hours on the train and I had successfully killed Patrick's spirits.

Reaching the fishing port town of Saint-Jean-de-Luz, the view out the train window became far more interesting. We had reached the Basque coast and the lads were given their first taste of the beauty that was to come - gorgeous architecture, sandy beaches and of course, the Atlantic Ocean. At 10pm, we got off the train in Irun and decided to grab a bit of dinner, figuring that there might be nowhere open by the time we got to San Sebastian (another 40 minutes by a connecting commuter train). It turned out to be a good decision as San Sebastian had gone to sleep by the time we arrived at 11.30pm. With the help of Nick's I-Phone GPS, we walked from the train station to the hotel. I could tell the lads were well pissed off with the idea of walking until 10 minutes into the stroll, we reached the beach. San Sebastian is stunningly beautiful city but the 'piece de resistance' is, without doubt, the crescent beach around La Concha Bay. Our hotel was at the other end of the beach but time flew by as the lads took photos and enjoyed the warm breeze coming in off the Atlantic.

Leaving our bag in the hotel, we immediately headed back into town, keen to find a nightclub or late-bar of some description. The best we could do was a cocktail bar where the cocktails were a scandalous €16 each! "No matter", we thought, "We're on holidays!", so we sat back, sipped our over-priced margaritas and made plans the next few days.