Well aside from our wonderful time traveling, we had some time in and around Bilbao. We spent some time exploring this beautiful city, but we also made our way to a couple of the smaller towns too.
We had a beautiful day for our day trip to San Sebastian. The bus takes about an hour and it's absolutely worth it. We had some of the best pintxos on the planet, followed by a pretty incredible walk around town. While walking around the old town, we saw a couple impressive churches, dozens of little bars (where the pintxos seem endless), and a group of Basque men playing music, marching down the street, and occasionally stopping to dance.
As much charm as the old town holds, it doesn't really compare to S S's main attraction: The Beach. This little city has an amazing crescent-shaped beach. It is protected by a mountain at either end, and a little turtle-shaped island between them. The wind surfers and sailboats were out in force and the waves attracted a good number of surfers and body-boarders too. We walked down the promenade, by some impressive real estate, and made our way to the funicular. This little contraption pulls a rail car up the side of the mountain. The one in San Sebastian happens to be the oldest in Spain.
Once at the top, we were treated to some gorgeous views and a surprisingly large variety of rides (pony rides too). It would seem that the top of this mountain was quite the tourist attraction. I insisted we take the log ride. It was a little anticlimactic, but an entertaining experience none the less. We got a good look out into the bay of Biscay, and down along the coast. After that, it was pretty much time to head back to the bus, so that's what we did.
Not too long after our trip to San Sebastian, I made my way out to the university to meet Kathlene for lunch. We took the afternoon to go explore Getxo and Potugalete. These towns are right across the river from each other and function as the gate between river and sea. Portugalete was old, but aside from the unique way to get there, didn't hold much character. There was however a very large marina, in which we saw a beautiful little house boat. The crazy thing about this house boat is that it's a duck-house boat. The uniqueness I mentioned has to do with crossing the river. The bridge between Getxo and Portugalete is kind of an anomaly. It's designed not to obstruct river traffic. This produced a bridge which acts as a crane, suspending a car, which is moved back and forth across the river. The picture might make it a little more clear.
Getxo is a beautiful town, with some amazing houses. The beach is quite nice, but my favorite element is the elevator. Since the land rises so quickly away from the water, it can be very tasking to get up to the town. The people of Getxo have built an elevator in the middle of nowhere, to facilitate that trip. It's seriously just on the side of a hill.
After a metro ride home, Ibai prepared a traditional Basque meal. An interesting take on an omelette, with a side of cheese-stuffed sausage and delicious bread. We ate it up and were happy to do so. It was delicious. The dessert may have been the best part. It was a blend of lemon ice cream and champagne. Possibly my new favorite.
With all of that done, I had only one more day in Europe. I did some packing and spent as much time with Kathlene as I could. I left the next morning (up at 4:30) and traveled for what seemed like an eternity. Now I can't wait to go again. If you get the chance, I suggest you go too.
Hasta la proxíma vez,
Stu
No comments:
Post a Comment