Bilbao evening

 

Last night was our first taste of Bilbao in the evening. After our wine tour we rested until 7 pm and then strolled out. Our hotel is steps away from the Guggenheim museum and I was able to get some good photos with the sunset in the background. The Nervion River runs through Bilbao, with several interesting bridges. One was designed by Calatrava, and according to Jon, the design caused the architect to be banned from Bilbao. Apparently white bridges are a bad idea in this climate as they show ugly mold. Further, the glass planks on the bridge got very slippery in the rain, which is common here, and 50 people sued the City for falls in the first month. The City put rubber matting over the glass (photo above) and Calatrava sued the City. The City paid to settle Calatrava’s suit, and according to Jon, because of this and functional issues with other Calatrava designs, the City banned Calatrava from any more work in the City. We walked down to the Old Town, a pedestrian friendly area with lots of busy shops and cafes. We passed the striking Bilbao City Hall and lots of street art and fountains.

We could not find an outdoor seat so started back for the hotel. We finally found an open table outside a small cafe, ordered some Pintxos and brought our food and drinks outside. Soon a man came out of the cafe next door and shooed us away - we were sitting at his restaurant’s table. We took our food back inside the first place and ate at a tall counter. The food was delicious. We crossed the Calatrava bridge on our way back to the hotel for a nightcap and early evening. Today we have a tour of the Guggenheim in the morning and a Pintxos tour in the evening.