Spain
Playa Areeta

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    • Day 10

      Jour 10 - Portugalete

      September 1 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

      J'arrive presque à l'embouchure du fleuve (Bilbao est vraiment dans les terres). Portugalete dispose d',un pont transbordeur qui fonctionne toujours. On peut traverser sur une barge suspendue à des câbles, au ras de l'eau. A noter que Marseille avait un tel pont sur le Vieux Port au début du 20e siècle.Read more

    • Day 8

      Portugalete

      June 17 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

      Rest day today. I wandered around the Guggenheim art museum and Bilbao, then metroed it 10km to avoid walking through Bilbao industrial outskirts.
      This albergue is in a sports centre! I met Annet the Dutch nurse again here, and we had a Pilgrim Menu with a German girl called Fiona.
      Portugalete has a suspension ferry and moving pavements!
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    • Day 32

      Museumswetter in Bilbao

      April 23 in Spain ⋅ 🌧 11 °C

      Wie gut, dass in Bilbao auf der absoluten To Do Liste das Guggenheim Museum steht. Denn heute ist absolutes Museumswetter, es regnet fast den ganzen Tag. Samu hält ganze 3 Stunden mit mir dort aus. Danach gibt's ne fette Portion Nudeln beim Italiener. Was für ein Glück, dass wir im Hotel eine Badewanne haben. Wir kommen nämlich recht durchnässt dorthin zurück und Samu taucht erstmal eine Stunde ab. Am Abend ist es wieder trocken und wir drehen noch eine Runde durch den Kiez und fahren mit der Schwebefähre auf die andere Seite der Stadt. Morgen geht's zurück nach Burgos. Ich bin schon ziemlich nervös und hoffe soooooo sehr, dass wir unseren Camper wieder repariert zurück bekommen und endlich die lange Heimreise antreten können. Schließlich sind wir gefühlt schon 40 Jahre unterwegs, wie Samu heute morgen nach dem Aufwachen meinte:-)Read more

    • Day 18

      Larrabetzu to Bilbao

      May 28, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 61 °F

      This actually was a pretty easy day. There were some hills, but they were mostly in shade and it wasn't anywhere near as hot as yesterday. I walked most of the day with Kasha from Poland who I met a few days ago. It only took me a few hours to walk the short distance to Bilbao, so this was mostly a tourist day. When I did this route back in 2018 I didn't stay in Bilbao and only stopped long enough to have breakfast and take some pictures at the Guggenheim museum.

      After checking in to my hotel, showering and washing my clothes I received a message from Edna and Janice, two sisters from British Columbia who I had met in Markina. They came over to the old town area where I was staying and together we walked around the city, including walking all the way around the Guggenheim. We found a large plaza with pintxo restaurants all around and chose one that offered 10 pintxos and a bottle of wine for 30€. We ended up supplementing that with a few more pintxos for a total of five each. Each one is several bites, so it was plenty of food.

      Then we had to have a dessert that's a specialty of Bilbao called a Carolina, which is a small custard tart topped with meringue which looks like a soft serve ice cream cone. It was delicious!

      Sadly, many of the people that I've met so far are either ending their Camino this year in Bilbao (many people, especially Europeans do a section of a Camino every year), or they are spending two nights in Bilbao, so I'll no longer be in the same schedule.
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    • Day 17

      Gernika to Larrabetzu

      May 27, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 70 °F

      I thought that this was going to be a pretty easy day, since it wasn't a very long distance - about 16.5 km, or a little over 10 miles. In fact I planned to start a little later than usual because I had planned to try to get a bed at the municipal albergue, and it didn't open until 3 pm.

      So I slept in a bit (until 8) and then had some breakfast with the Canadians. It was already starting to feel warm, so I started to wonder if a late start was such a good idea. Then I decided that maybe I should reserve a room somewhere since the municipal albergue only had 11 beds (or 20 depending on which guide I was reading). There was nothing available on booking.com, so I decided to send WhatsApp messages to the nearby Casa Rurales - there were no pensions or hotels in the area.

      Before I could even send the second message the first place replied that yes, there was a room available. So I set out for what I thought would be about a 4 hour walk. I immediately encountered some steep climbs, and the temperature was also rising. Just the day before I had been thinking about sending my umbrella to Santiago since there's a lot more shade on the Camino del Norte than on the mostly treeless stretches on the Camino Francés. I was so happy that I had it with me to protect me from the sun! By the end of my walking day the temperature had soared to 90°F. 🥵

      Adding to my exhaustion was that there were no little towns or other places to stop and take a rest. Though at one house I passed a woman had slices of watermelon and other fruit for sale. She invited me to sit while I ate my watermelon, but I was afraid that I wouldn't want to stand up again if I did!

      The casa rural where I had booked was very lovely, and the owner was really nice. But of course it was at the top of a steep hill! The owner provided dinner so at least I didn't have to walk down and then back up to eat.

      A couple of my Camino forum friends, Laurie and Clare are together on another Camino route, and they called me on a WhatsApp video call. It was great to see their faces and chat a bit, and Laurie confirmed that I had made the right choice by not staying at the public albergue since the dorm is in an attic type space with poor ventilation, which would have been horrible on such a hot day.
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    • Day 11

      Portugalete,Spain

      September 7, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 91 °F

      It was all urban. Very hot. This is a normal Cafe/cafeteria for them. Everything from coffee/latte and food to a drink and food.
      Guggenheim museum in the morning and off along the river.
      Some breezes off the river. We stopped at 13km to take shoes off ( daily bliss) and one pair of socks- no blisters yet! Then on to Potugalete
      Two of us missed turn for a bridge/ferry more like a gondola that takes cars, bikes and pedestrians across the river. And walked on 2.9km to Getxo. Absolutely beautiful and worth the mistake! Photos don’t do it justice. The beach was huge and gorgeous! The building architecture stunning!
      Ok clothes are hanging to dry. Time to have a glass of wine and water then find food.
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    • Day 31

      Castro Urdiales und Bilbao

      April 22 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

      Aufstehen mit dem Sonnenaufgang. Wow, ein letztes Mal diesen tollen Blick aufs Meer genießen. Nach dem Frühstück geht's gen Bilbao. Immer entlang der Küste durch atemberaubende Berglandschaften. In Castro Urdiales machen wir einen Zwischenstopp, dann geht's weiter in unser Hotel, welches direkt an der alten Schwebebrücke liegt, die zum Unesco-Weltkulturerbe gehört. Die Fähre ist heute noch in Betrieb. Mit der Metro geht's in die Innenstadt von Bilbao und dann zu Fuß durch die alten Viertel.Read more

    • Day 11

      Ballungsraum von Bilbao

      September 10, 2019 in Spain ⋅ 🌧 15 °C

      Heute musste ich mich etwas zur nächsten Herberge schleppen. Die Füße müssen sich nun wieder an ebenes Terrain gewöhnen. Kein krasses Auf und Ab mehr!
      ("nur" 11km durch ein Industriegebiet gelaufen)

    • Day 11

      Castro-Urdiales,Spain

      September 7, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 88 °F

      27km today. Started in an Alburgue with 8 other people. Some people we have seen on the Way.
      Like Lethia( US CITIZEN-Mexican/Spanish parents ). She was a roommate one night. We have run into her often. She has helped in ways we didn’t absorb at first. Apps. That have kept us from taking a wrong turn ( possible 5km mistakes X return) and more…. To tired to recall. 🤪
      As we Portugalete we walked beside freeways then along ( literally beside) highways was not perfect but the vistas were amazing! The walk was correctly described as mostly rolling hills was an accurate description! Actually railroad grade this time! There were 200 stairs, a few steep inclines and downhill ventures. But a breeze compared to the first week. Also, some confusing signage.
      We did find a hidden away place to eat lunch with an astounding view. ( not always something we get-often it’s a quick caffe/coffee and onward. For me a banana and sparkling water)
      Wait! Let’s go back to Portugalete-last evening. Of my two travelers- one hadn’t slept a wink due to finding bed bugs at 2am and sleeping in the reception area couch. The other
      was also exhausted. I for some strange reason had to go get something to ea at 5:30pm😃. I ( who can’t fund my way out of a paper bag). Decided to return to where we had had a glass of wine so I could order Pintxo ( small sandwiches ) in order to take it apart as I can’t eat the bread or cheese. Everything was closed until 7pm. Most 8pm. I looked up other restaurants, etc. as I was very hungry.. S I have up a few drops of rain fell. And then the rain came flooding down. The locals were under over hangs out in doorways. I sheltered also. After a few minutes I thought I sound just head back as ( amazing I could tell) the Alburgue was 3 blocks away. And it was 93 degrees. I hugged buildings. Actually thought twice before crossing the final street as It looked like it could possibly take my footing. As I hit the door which needs a door code -more time in drenching rain, etc . Tammy was peaking out door wondering if I was alone and scared under a bridge somewhere out of the rain. 😄
      Back to today- I added a few more km on to my trip as I volunteered to find a laundromat for our really sweaty clothes.
      The lavandaria all directed me to is closed. 😩. So sweaty clothes will be traveling tomorrow. Not on us. 🤣
      We are in Castro for the evening then on to Laredo.
      Castro is a small coastal town that is so clean, welcoming and beautiful with wonderful people! It should be on a bucket list!!
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    • Day 17

      Getxo /Bilbao

      September 9, 2023 in Spain ⋅ 🌩️ 30 °C

      Viele Campingplätze voll.
      Schöne Fahrradtour nach Getxo, mit der Brücke und der Schwebefähre. Am Ufer längs, Auslaufen eines NCL Kreuzfahrtschiffs, alter Hafen und ein fast aus der Zeit gefallenes Örtchen am Hang entdeckt. Fest mit Livemusik am Flussufer.Read more

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