Wednesday, December 20, 2017

Bilbao and the coast road.

Well, thats another myth blown clean out of the water! The rain in Spain definitely does not stay mainly on the plain. The vast majority of it tipped over Helga last night when we were (trying to) sleeping.
We left Leceirio for the short drive to Bilbao and en route we happened to see a tyre repair place. On inspection the guy told me the tyre was perished on the side walls, and this could have been where the air was escaping, and it could potentially blow out. With such a lot of driving to do the management decided it would be prudent to change sooner rather than later. 
He couldn’t get a tyre or rather tyres, because I decided to change both, in case. As they were the same age etc.
We drove on into Bilbao, where we met a lot more drivers with uncertainty regarding one of their parents!
Miles later we came across the place we seemed only to find they close for lunch from 1 - 3. We waited and got seen to immediately the doors opened.
Tyres would be delivered tomorrow, if we could wait. 
Not much choice, the effort required to locate somewhere in a Spanish city is more than it’s worth.
So, after a night of sight seeing in a very restricted way, we slept up where the Funicular station is, under a leafless tree. This was the cause of the drumming competition during the night, we delivered Helga to the new found tyre hospital. 
The Guggenheim Bilbao is a  world famous gallery, attracting many of the worlds top artists to exhibit, temporary or permanent. 
We visited this to try to improve our knowing of art but this failed miserably. They use language that to me is waffle, but the works that impressed most were Richard Serra, “The matter of time”. Anselm Kiefer, “The renowned orders of the Night”. I loved this because my wife and friends wouldn’t come out and lie on a blow up bed late at night, under a duvet, to watch the amazing night sky. I mention Margaret, Patsy Reavy, and Lawrence Reavy in particular!
Jenny Holzer and “Installation for Bilbao” is not to be missed, nor is the VW Beetle, situated on another floor. Wow!
To finish our four hour investigation we had a really marvellous lunch in the Bistro. We would go again just to eat!

So off we went to collect the invalided Helga, now much better thanks, and divest ourselves of €418 for the pleasure.
Never mind, even with all the scary hairpins and agents and descents of the fabulous coast road, we can now make up for a lost day on the autovias.


Next stop Leon, 214  miles away, south west.

I've been so remiss in not being organised enough to fill in the blog, I'll try harder, maybe.

Right now we're in the hills amid a forest, about eighty clicks from Albufeira. 
A gorgeous alternative to the coast, although definitely not as much bird song. 

So, more of that and more, in your next thrilling instalment.

Hiyo silver, away.....

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