Day 11 – Rubadisella to Bilbao

June 29, 2019 – We got up this morning and our host had prepared a wonderful big breakfast for us of breads, jams, fruit, hot milk, fresh squeezed juice, ham and cheeses and coffee.  We checked out and headed east along the coast on our way to Bilbao.  It is such a beautiful area with green hills and flowers everywhere.  On our travel days, we have decided to avoid the tollways and highways in favor of little roads through the countryside and stopping at little medieval villages along the way to really experience the local culture. It often doubles the travel time, but we view that as a good thing. It’s so beautiful and we get to see so many sights of everyday living along the way, not to mention the occasional rest stop at a charming cafe for a leisurely morning coffee or small afternoon beer before continuing on our way.

We visited a cave known as Cuevon de Cuevas del Agua.  This is a very large cave that you can drive through that is 300 meters long.  It is partially lit inside and there are many stalagmites and stalactites inside.  You can walk or drive though, but they ask that you wear fluorescent vests to be safe.  We drove though. We also got out and hiked a bit here.  We ended up down by a slow-moving river and there were some guys fly-fishing there. Wayne had to stop and watch, of course, and quietly offer tips on their form under his breath.

We also went back to the beautiful park at Infeirno that we picnicked at the night before and wanted to hike along the towering green cliffs to see some different coastal views and rocky shores. It was such a great day for hiking and taking pics. Wayne likes to stop a lot to take pics of bugs and plants. We spent a lot of time here. It was so nice to just sit on the cliff and watch the birds fly overhead and the waves crash on the rocks.

We also stopped at a place called Guadamia. This was another pretty spot on the coast where we hiked a little and climbed around on the cliffs.  The geologic rock formations here were unusual and beautiful with deep crevasses that went down to the water and some forming little caves and pools. The rocks were sharp and sort of a white gray color and the grass around was so green, which made a beautiful color contrast.

All along the areas that we visited here in Asturias were these interesting houses that we kept seeing.  They were raised up on a platform with a rock on top of the pier.  Later we researched it and learned that they were called horrcos. They were used to store grain to keep the rodents away.

Also along the way, we stopped at the small town of Comillas in the autonomous region of Cantabria region in northern Spain. Its Modernista architecture includes the famous 19th-century “El Capricho” home, a Gaudí-designed chalet built in 1883-1885 for the summer use of a wealthy client, Máximo Díaz de Quijano. We quickly toured this home as the town was crowded and we were illegally parked. It was beautiful.

We also saw the elaborate, Neo-Gothic Sobrellano Palace. It was commissioned by the Marquis of Comillas and completed in 1888. It was the first building in Spain to have electric lighting. It is within a beautiful park and we enjoyed walking through the trees up to the palace. Currently, it is a museum, but we were here during siesta time and it was not open.

There are just so many beautiful sites, beaches, coastlines and caves in this area. Too many for us to see in the short time we were visiting here, but we are so thankful that we got to take a peek at some of it.  Maybe someday we can return to see more…

Bilbao is an industrial port city in the Northern part of Spain in the Basque country.  It is a large city famed for The Guggenheim Museum, which is the main reason we came here. The Guggenheim Museum is a museum of modern and contemporary art designed by Frank Geary, remember him from the Bodego Marques de Riscal winery we visited on Day 8? Same guy, but now a project of a much bigger scale. The building is one of the most admired works of contemporary architecture worldwide. Fun Fact: Wayne says, “I didn’t know his name until we started planning this trip but I mentioned it to our artist friend, Mark Chavis (Grace’s husband) and he proceeded to school me all about his great architectural work including The Bilbao Guggenheim. He was right. It’s quite an amazing building inside and out. Now I know!”

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation selected Frank Geary as the architect, and its director, Thomas Krens, encouraged him to design something daring and innovative. The curves on the exterior of the building were intended to appear random; the architect said that “the randomness of the curves are designed to catch the light”. The interior is designed around a large, light-filled atrium with views of Bilbao’s estuary and the surrounding hills of the Basque country. The atrium, which Gehry nicknamed The Flower because of its shape, serves as the organizing center of the museum.

When we arrived to Bilbao we parked in an underground parking lot and hoofed it about half a mile to our apartment in the old town area, walked up 5 flights of stairs and checked in.  It was a clean, neat but modest place.  And super fun to climb all those stairs with our backpacks.  We are doing so much walking. With all of this walking and stair-climbing, why do I not yet have buns of steel???

After checking in we decided to go out and hit the town.  We were recommended 2 bars, right on the plaza next to our apartment, to go to try more pinxtos.  The plaza was hopping with people out and about with dads and little kids kicking a soccer ball together.  We hit both bars and tried several pinxtos at each location and had wine. We tried two different cod fish, spider crab, cow cheek, squid ink and Wayne had to get the ones with anchovies… of course.  So gross.

After dinner, we walked all around Casco Viejo or the medieval part of the city.  Wayne had picked up some small Cuban cigars and enjoyed one while we walked.  It was fun to watch families and friends out and about enjoying themselves, talking, as well as, young and old folks literally dancing in the streets.  No one has their faces buried in cell phones here which was very nice to see and experience!

It was another great night.

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