The journey home

We got up early and Pietro took us to catch the airport bus at the Plaza Moyua.  Given that this is Spain it was rather a surprise to find snow but we got to the airport and time and I flight was on time getting us back to Heathrow in time for both us of to go back to work for the afternoon.

The Martime museum and the museum of fine arts, and a concert

We started today with Breakfast in Gary and Pietro's flat and then got the tram to the old port area to see the Museo Maritimo Ria de de Bilbao as it was raining.  The museum was interesting and showed lots of Bilbao's maritime history,  We had a coffee there when finished and walked across a lovely park to the Museum de Bellas Artes del Bilbao.  There was some really spectacular art there dating back to the 13th Century and all the say to the late 20th Century.  It was good to see lots of work by Spanish Artists too.

We got the metro back into the old town and had coffee and cake before coming back to the hotel for a rest, ready to go to a concert in the evening.

The concert was at the Arriaga Theatre and included Variations on a Haydn Theme (The St. Antony Chorale) and Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, performed by Bilbao Choral Society and singers with orchestra from Musikene, the Basque conservatoire in San Sebastian.  It was very enjoyable and we went and had more beer and pintxos afterwards but had quite an early night as Monday held an early start for the trip back to Oxford.

The Guggenheim, lunch out and quiet evening

We started today with breakfast in a little local café and then got the tram to the Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao.  It's a really spectacular place with the building itself being as much of an exhibit as the things within it.

We were lucky that the weather was good so we were able to have a walk around the outside of the building and get some good views of it before going inside to see the fascinating structure and the modern art.

After the museum we went and had lunch in a local restaurant with a very good menu del día.  We had a restful afternoon then Gordon and I went for a wander to the Basque Museum which was unfortunately shut so we visited a couple of bars for coffee, beer and more pintxos.

We spend a quiet evening in with Gary and Pietro eating delicious local cheeses and meats,

A trip to Bilbao to visit Gary & Pietro

We left home early this morning to get the 0730 bus to Heathrow from where we flew with Vueling to Bilbao.  It was a straightforward journey and we met Gary in central Bilbao around 3pm.

Our first visit was the Alhondiga where we had a bit of lunch and looked at the amazing buildings on pillars within the building.  We checked into our hotel  Pension Mendez, which is just one floor below Gary and Pietro's flat in the same building so very convenient.

In the early evening we had a wander around town, including climbing some steps to get a good view, with Gary and Pietro and then went out and ate stew at a place called Rio Oja and then toured a few bars drinking small beers and eating little snacks called pintxos, a Basque speciality.

We stayed out far too late but it was the first day of the holiday!