Bilbao
Past and present in balance
An Alsa bus from San Sebastián dropped us off at San Mames Station in just one hour and twenty minutes.
We arrived with expectations, but without being aware of how much we were going to be surprised by the extraordinary Bilbao.
The bus ends the tour at the Bilbao Intermodal. Just on the way back, the innovative Ilunion San Mamés hotel was chosen to spend those nights. An inclusive and modern accommodation that offers comfortable and spacious rooms and a generous breakfast buffet.
Without further delay we took the metro to Getxo, to get to know the area near the city's beaches. We walked to the very beautiful Bizkaiko Zubia, the first ferry bridge in the world. In addition to its beautiful iron structure, it is striking that it is still in operation linking it to Portugalete.
We walked to Areetako Hondartza, Las Arenas beach, where many bathers took advantage of the calm sea to cool off from the heat that dominated the afternoon.
Once we were able to make a short tour of the area of summer residences, we returned -also in the fantastic subway- to the center, to tour the historic center of Bilbao.
We started the tour at the Church of San Nicolas de Bari, from there a quick visit to the BBVA Foundation and its art exhibition. On the way out, we headed towards the neoclassical Plaza Nueva, with its colonnade and nooks and crannies where bars and restaurants abound, with the legendary Basque pintxos (tapas). On the way, we also passed the Arriaga Theater, another icon of the city.
In the square, the Café Bar Bilbao (very retro) is very characteristic, but we opted for a snack at the Iturriza tavern. There we had a tasting of pintxos with beers. Delicious.
Then we got lost in the streets of the historic district until we reached the Cathedral (Bilboko Donejakue Katedrala), heading to the municipal market, the Erribera Merkatua. The city streetcar took us from there to the hotel district, where after a well-deserved rest we decided to go for more pintxos, but we didn't want to move too much. Mr. @tripticity_, after a quick research on Google Maps, decided that Bar Las Torres was the one. What an intuition! When we arrived and saw the display window with options of tortillas, sandwiches and pintxos we understood that this was the place we were looking for. The manager, Berna, graciously invited us to sit at the bar and was ready to serve us.
That tapas bar was memorable, to the point that we would end all our nights in the city at the now forever beloved Bar Las Torres.
The next morning, we left for Santander for the day.
And for the third day, it was pure art. We took the streetcar that passed through Casilda Iturrizar Parkea and got off at the Guggenheim station, heading first to the Bilbao Fine Arts Museum (Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa), admiring the modern buildings of the city on the way.
The museum presents an easy tour, with outstanding pieces by Spanish and international artists, combining classical and contemporary works of art, some of which are somewhat controversial.
As we left, we skirted the Plaza Euskadi as it was time to enter the incomparable Guggenheim Bilbao Museum.
Its exterior is simply huge, with pieces of titanium and glass that make up a whimsical figure, very striking, the work of the genius of Frank Gehry. Inside, it houses a memorable collection of 20th century art.
On the entrance esplanade, the installation of the little dog (West Highland Terrier), covered in flowers, by the extravagant Jeff Koons, watching over the museum, looks amusing.
The temporary exhibition we were lucky enough to see was none other than that of Yayoi Kusama. The Japanese artist, celebrated for her polka dots, a favorite of @tripticity_; even the infinity mirror room A Wish for Human Happiness Calling from Beyond the Universe was available. It is an installation of mirrors that generates a depth effect. The day of the visit there were few people so we asked the guard to enter alone, and it was truly magical.
After enjoying Yayoi's exhibition, even though we were convinced that that was the end of it all, we went to the other floor of the impressive building to be surprised by the colossal permanent collection of the museum: Rothko's untitled works, Jeff Koons' tulips, Jenny Holzer's installation, Andy Warhol's works and what to say about the immersive experience proposed by Richard Serra's metal plates, "A matter of time".
As we left, we continued to discover the art on display outside, Louise Bourgeois Bourgeois's maman spider by Louise Bourgeois or the red arches by Daniel Buren.
Another stroke of genius was the tour that followed along Paseo de la Doctora Gomezaren Ibiltokia, next to Bilbao's Nervión River. We passed by Las Sirgueras, the sculpture of the women who drag towboats, a work by Dora Salazar, which vindicates the work of those who towed boats on the river.
Further on, the Zubizuri, the controversial curved pedestrian bridge by Santiago Calatrava.
From there, another streetcar took us to the commercial area of the city. We walked along the Gran Vía de Don Diego López de Haro, taking the opportunity to do some shopping in the excellent Spanish stores, and then we reached the beautiful Federico Moyúa square. Then we headed to the Alhóndiga Bilbao, in front of the Arriquibar square. It is a multi-space complex designed by Philippe Starck in collaboration with Thibaut Mathieu, which has cinemas, auditorium, bookstore and restaurants. In addition, the rooftop terrace offers a beautiful view of the square and Bilbao's architecture.
It was time to rejoice again with pintxos, so we went to the area of Poza Lizentziatuaren Kalea, but we continued to El Huevo Frito, the bar near the Athletic de Bilbao stadium, famous for its egg sandwiches. We had a first snack and then headed to Bar Las Torres to meet again with Berna and his offer of delicacies.
Just like the day before, when we came back from Santander and visited the San Mames stadium and then went straight to the pintxos.
By then we were feeling confident, so we chatted with the patrons who came into the bar for their tapas before heading home. It felt like experiencing the authenticity of a place without tourists, with the routine of the locals.
And that last night we reviewed everything we had experienced in the extraordinary Bilbao, its art, its architecture and its excellent gastronomy, and we transmitted all these praises to our dear Berna, almost as if we were looking for a reference of the people of Bilbao.
