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Published: August 24th 2019
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Friday I left my cousin Sean and had an uneventful drive to Bilbao - except when I had to stop at tolls I had to get out of the car to pay as Sue wasn’t with me and I was of course on the wrong side of the car!
The Airbnb I had booked was 25 minute walk downhill to the centre of Bilbao, which of course meant it was the same going uphill. At least I would be getting some exercise!
First night I went down and met Ian (Sue’s brother) and his wife Joli in the old town and Ian took us on a tour of the best bars with pinchos, the Basque form of tapas but smaller, on bread and skewered with a cocktail stick - very nice.
Next morning we arranged to meet near the Guggenheim so I went early to get some breakfast and they overslept! Apparently with blackout blinds it doesn’t get light - who knew?
As you might surmise the Guggenheim is well worth a visit and the exhibits by Jenny Holzer, Richard Serra and Anselm Kruger were very good and often thought provoking.
As usual we did the
free walking tour of the old town - always an education. What we didn’t know was that Bilbao was a town built on industry that suffered in the 70’s and 80’s as industries declined and following a great flood which decimated the city. As they looked to rejuvenate the city they had the idea of building the Guggenheim as it’s centrepiece and it sparked a massive change in how the city was viewed & the tourist industry developed. Today it’s a lively and interesting place to be.
It also holds one of the biggest festivals in Spain in August - unfortunately 3 days after we were leaving.
We found a tiny Irish Bar - the Wicklow Arms to watch the Utd Chelsea game on one screen while most folk watched the Gaelic football semi final in the other, a great atmosphere.
After a few days Ian and Joli continued on their holiday and I headed west to Cudillero. It had been great to see them for a few days.
I chose to go to Cudillero at the last minute as I was looking at ‘the best places to go in northern Spain’. It is a beautiful
fishing village which is not on the way to anywhere else but definitely well worth visiting.
After checking in and walking down to the harbour and around the quay I stopped for a meal. It was then that I suddenly realised I was actually on my own.
While Sue had been back home for over a week I had been looking after dogs, staying with my cousin, meeting friends in La Rochelle and Ian and Joli in Bilbao. So for most of that time I wasn’t really alone. Now I was and after almost 14 months of travelling and being with Sue everyday I was missing her particularly in the evenings.
Next day I needed to get out and about and after visiting the tourist office and picking up a local map for walks within the town I set out on a loop walk from the town through some beautiful countryside and along cliff tops using the following online walking guide - http://www.topwalks.net/en/asturias_west_coast
About halfway round I stopped at La Quinta de Selgas Gardens and house and decided to to go in. It has three types of gardens, French, Italian and an extensive English garden. The
founders of this palace and its gardens were the brothers Ezequiel de Selgas and Fortunato and it was finished in 1895. The palace has a French Neoclassical design and it has an outstanding ballroom in the French style along with other interesting furnishing and original paintings.
After spending a couple of hours there I had lunch nearby then continued on the walk eventually reaching Cudillero again from the cliff side. A lovely walk particularly when you add in the visit to Selgas.
Off again the next day to A Curona.... or so I thought. I had started looking for accommodation in A Coruña and as I continued to turn down the expensive places I found one that looked ok. And to be fair it was if you don’t count the fact it was in the wrong town! I had booked a place in Ferrol! An old port town which is one of the starting points for the English route of the Camino but otherwise not that interesting but at least I found a bar showing the Super Cup.
And now off to Santiago de Compostela - the end of the Camino.
And a beautiful place it
is too. When I got there I walked into the city centre and into the main square where the pilgrims/walkers finish. It was great to just be in the square outside the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela and look around at peoples faces as they finish.
In 1985, the city's Old Town was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Late afternoon I went on another walking tour and met 2 folk who had finished the Camino- one doing 750k and the other 450k. Both got a lot out of it but I won’t emulate the 19yr old who walked the longer route in 34 days, camping for most of it and managing on 3 euros a day - bread, water and an apple a day - great achievement but a lonely way to do it.
One day I might be back having walked at least part of the Camino and this time with Sue.
Then off to Vigo. I visited the Castro fortress with a great view across Vigo’s estuary, harbour, historic quarter, mountainscapes and the Cíes Islands.
The fortress is situated in the middle of the Parque del Monte Castro where you can also
see the anchors that were placed on Monte Castro to commemorate the Battle of Rande, in 1702 between the Anglo-Dutch and Franco-Spanish ships, during which several treasure-laden galleons went missing.
It also had a nice old town where I ate that evening as well as seeing the Real Madrid team arrive as they were playing Celta Vigo the following night - again I would be gone before they play.
And now Portugal where I will be meeting up with Sue once more - can’t wait.
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