May 25, 2012 - The rain in Spain

The rain in Spain stays wherever we go, as far as we can tell. And it is cold and miserable. San Sebastian curves around two lovely crescent shaped bays with two high peaks on each horn of the crescent. The two beaches look excellent, the main one a gentle swimming beach and the other a surf beach. On the first day we told ourselves that the next day we'd walk around them on the sweeping promenades above, opposite which you get a curve of mainly 19th century buildings. But that night a dirty great booming thunderstorm came crashing into...

May 21, 2012 - Bilbao

We are now in Bilbao an hour's bus trip west of San Sebastian and the political capital of the semi-autonomous Basque provinces of Spain. The trip here was straight forward apart from the minor hiccough of taxis being unable to come into the city centre at San Sebastian and transport us with goods and chattels to bus station at some distance away through the pouring rain. This was due to a marathon being run through the city. Amalia saved the day and arranged a cab to collect us a couple of blocks away and then made sure we got there by...

May 20, 2012 - Are the French conservative by nature?

John: A recent radio program had a BBC journo visiting the neighbourhood in Paris where he lived for a few years, back in the nineties. The same lady still ran the fromagerie, the same butcher and fruiterer were also still there. He asked them if anything had changed since he'd been there and they all gave answers similar to the butcher - 'No, everything is still very good'. The French have a vague reputation as being a bit radical, but I always think it's deeply conservative when I'm here. Literally, in the way landscapes, buildings and...

Nov 10, 2011 - Bilbao

Arrival in Bilbao is like arriving in a completely different temperature zone. Sunny days, short sleeves and very mild nights with no need for the heavy jackets we have been using of late. It was a very nice change. Our accomodation in Bilbao is an apartment which will also be a nice change. We will be able to have our own schedule and do what we like- it is very hard getting to breakfast by 1030 each day, now we will be able to sleep til noon and start the day like the Spanish do. I am not sure how we are going to go back to work.... but...

Oct 16, 2011 - Arriving in Bilbao

October 16, 9:14pm After a delayed flight from Boston, we arrived in Paris and made our way by foot and bus across massive Charles de Gaulle Aiport to catch our connecting flights to Bilbao. Tired but in good spirits, we split up onto two different flights. The first group got to the Guggenheim midday, and the second group arrived later in the afternoon. The Guggenheim is hard to describe. It’s kind of like the Emerald City in The Wizard of Oz but made out of titanium, glass, and limestone. Truly spectacular! It was a beautiful sunny day,...

Oct 15, 2011 - Delayed But Happy

Saturday, October 15, 6:03pm At the airport. Flight delayed. Originally scheduled to depart at 5:30. Now scheduled for 7:30, which means we will miss our connection in Paris to Bilbao. When we arrive in Paris, the group will split on two flights to Bilbao, one departs at 10:15am and the other at 12:55pm. No worries. We're here at the airport relaxing and having a good time getting to know each other. When you're at the start of an adventure like this, it's very exciting!

Sep 24, 2011 - Bilbao

Oh what a day we have had! After a hearty breakfast here we went to the Guggenheim. Unai, our guide is absolutely fabulous. Besides knowing the history of the building he explained how Gehry designed it to make it a real part of the city; both architecturally and historically. Then when we got to the exhibits he would tell us about the artist as well as the techniques behind the production of the artwork. I'm not a lover of modern art, but I sure learned a lot. Next we went to the old section of Bilbao. Lots of narrow streets, lots of shops...

Sep 23, 2011 - Bilbao

We had a long trip over here, but now are relaxing in our hotel for a few hours before we go on a guided walk around Bilbao.  Our hotel is very  centrally located . When we went on our walk we found out that 2 1/2 days is not nearly enough time for this town. They have done an amazing amount of very interesting renovations, especially in the architectural field. Great dinner at a local cafe. Both Mel and I had fabulous Basque sausage. Love to you all. M&H...

Sep 17, 2011 - North Spain - Bilbao

17 Sept: We set off mid-morning, still in low cloud. The wind direction wasn’t great so we had to motor for some of the time and at others had 20 knots of wind to help us along with a pretty choppy sea. Passed very close (a bit too close..) to the only gas production rig off the north coast of Spain and made it to Bilbao in the early evening (51 nautical miles in just over 9 hours). 18 Sept: Despite the torrential rain, we decided to sightsee in Bilbao today so we got the metro into the old town. We visited the cathedral which is small and...

May 7, 2011 - Bilbao, Spain

Our main reason for stopping in Bilbao was to visit the Guggenheim Museum. The building is famous for its innovative architecture and we found the exhibits extremely interesting. It was a great day at the museum - not overwhelming or too long. The audio guide was easy to use and well done. The day we arrived (May 6th) we walked around the Casco Viejo and had a great lunch that included spaghetti in black squid ink as a starter, grilled fish and stewed veal with rice as main dishes, flan and frutos de bosque for dessert. Lunch is the big...

Nov 2, 2010 - Bilbao

@@@@@@@ Background Bilbao was a mess of heavy industry and commerce until the municipality came up with the bright idea of inviting an architect to design an art gallery that might turn the tide and put the city on the world map in a positive light. A Canadian-born architect, Frank Gehry was chosen to build his brainchild on the banks of the Rio de Bilbao, on land that was once the warehouse district, not far from the Casco Viejo (old quarter). Gehry was inspired by the city’s historical industries, shipbuilding and fishing and...

Jul 15, 2010 - Bilbao, Spain

The only reasons I came to Bilbao were that it wasn't too far from San Sebastian and the Guggenheim was there and I had read that it was the subject of a lot of controversy since it was supposed to be a very modern structure. The Museum was great. Much better than I had expected and all the exhibits were great. the Building itself was amazing! Other than that not much else to see in Bilbao.