At times it seemed as if Spain would become my second home. I love this country and I have been to all sorts of corners of the country.

Only the Basque country I had excluded so far – too many rainy days and too much narrow-minded nationalism. And yet it was always a place of longing.

Bilbao and the Guggenheim, the sophisticated San Sebastian on the rough Atlantic coast, the desert of Navarre and the wonderful Pinxos – now I have experienced all this with all my senses. Fabulous!