bilbao 2011 (part 2)...
So sorry for the delay, here's the second part of my Bilbao photos!
First of all, I have some pictures of the Puente Colgante in Las Arenas/Portugalete - not as many as last time (see here), but still some very nice ones. I really love that bridge, and even though I'm a bit afraid of heights, I didn't feel uncomfortable up there! :D
A nice building in Portugalete, a town in the suburbs of Bilbao.
See the bridge?
The Puente Colgante ("Bizkaiko Zubia" in Basque) is a transporter bridge that links the towns of Portugalete and Las Arenas, crossing the mouth of the Nervión river. It's the world's oldest transporter bridge and was built in 1893, designed by one of Gustave Eiffel's disciples. On the 13th of July 2006 it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
The gondola has room for six cars (if I remember correctly) and several people, but if you're not afraid of heights you can also use the panoramic gangway up in the sky. :D
They're now painting the bridge red so that it doesn't overheat and transform with all the sunshine.
The view from the panoramic gangway, towards the airport and Lezama and Bilbao (though you can't see the city itself from here).
The mouth of the river.
Some interesting information about the bridge.
xurda87's sister had generously offered to drive us to certain places outside Bilbao that were interesting to see, and naturally blue_eyed_miss and I were happy to accept, so on the Saturday we all got into the car and went on a little trip. It was very windy and foggy and rainy, not the ideal weather for visiting castles and islands and beaches at all, but I still had loads of fun on that trip because the country is just gorgeous and the company was brilliant. :D
This is the Castillo de Butrón, which originally dates from the Middle Ages and was inspired by Bavarian castle models, which is probably why it looks like it was taken out of a fairy tale!
I find the palm tree in front of the castle especially intriguing. You usually don't link castles with palm trees, after all! :D
After having walked around the castle, we got back into the car to drive to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, a tiny island on the coast of Biscay, belonging to Bermeo. On the island, there is a hermitage dedicated to San Juan from the 9th or 10th century.
Usually, San Juan de Gaztelugatxe looks like this:
You can reach the island by a footpath:
However, on the day we visited the place, it looked like this:
As it would have been a bit too risky to walk the footpath, especially since the ground was slippery from the rain, we decided not to go all the way to the island but instead have some pintxos in one of the nearby restaurants, which is apparently one of the best places for pintxos in the region.
Having seen their pintxos and tried some, I must say that the reputation of the restaurant is absolutely deserved. The pintxo with pork and roquefort that I had was utterly delicious, as was the one with scrambled eggs, mushrooms and a slice of fried serrano ham. Too bad I wasn't really hungry, otherwise I would probably have eaten a lot more than 2 pintxos. :D
And since we're speaking of food already, of course I had to have a pintxo estrella as well, but I had that one in Bilbao, in one of the bars around the Plaza Nueva.
xurda87's sister then drove us along the coast to some of the best beaches. I definitely must come back there in summer and try them out! :)
Up that hill, with a good view on the open sea, there are some very posh houses. If I understood xurda87 and her sister correctly, Fran Yeste used to live in one of them while he played for Athletic. ;)
Somehow I found that incredibly adorable.
*happy sigh*
This is the marina of Getxo.
We had a good laugh when we spotted this "Bavaria" flag. XD
Hope you enjoyed this little trip, and stay tuned for pictures related to Athletic Club (Palacio Ibaigane, San Mamés, Lezama, etc.)! :)
First of all, I have some pictures of the Puente Colgante in Las Arenas/Portugalete - not as many as last time (see here), but still some very nice ones. I really love that bridge, and even though I'm a bit afraid of heights, I didn't feel uncomfortable up there! :D
A nice building in Portugalete, a town in the suburbs of Bilbao.
See the bridge?
The Puente Colgante ("Bizkaiko Zubia" in Basque) is a transporter bridge that links the towns of Portugalete and Las Arenas, crossing the mouth of the Nervión river. It's the world's oldest transporter bridge and was built in 1893, designed by one of Gustave Eiffel's disciples. On the 13th of July 2006 it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
The gondola has room for six cars (if I remember correctly) and several people, but if you're not afraid of heights you can also use the panoramic gangway up in the sky. :D
They're now painting the bridge red so that it doesn't overheat and transform with all the sunshine.
The view from the panoramic gangway, towards the airport and Lezama and Bilbao (though you can't see the city itself from here).
The mouth of the river.
Some interesting information about the bridge.
xurda87's sister had generously offered to drive us to certain places outside Bilbao that were interesting to see, and naturally blue_eyed_miss and I were happy to accept, so on the Saturday we all got into the car and went on a little trip. It was very windy and foggy and rainy, not the ideal weather for visiting castles and islands and beaches at all, but I still had loads of fun on that trip because the country is just gorgeous and the company was brilliant. :D
This is the Castillo de Butrón, which originally dates from the Middle Ages and was inspired by Bavarian castle models, which is probably why it looks like it was taken out of a fairy tale!
I find the palm tree in front of the castle especially intriguing. You usually don't link castles with palm trees, after all! :D
After having walked around the castle, we got back into the car to drive to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, a tiny island on the coast of Biscay, belonging to Bermeo. On the island, there is a hermitage dedicated to San Juan from the 9th or 10th century.
Usually, San Juan de Gaztelugatxe looks like this:
You can reach the island by a footpath:
However, on the day we visited the place, it looked like this:
As it would have been a bit too risky to walk the footpath, especially since the ground was slippery from the rain, we decided not to go all the way to the island but instead have some pintxos in one of the nearby restaurants, which is apparently one of the best places for pintxos in the region.
Having seen their pintxos and tried some, I must say that the reputation of the restaurant is absolutely deserved. The pintxo with pork and roquefort that I had was utterly delicious, as was the one with scrambled eggs, mushrooms and a slice of fried serrano ham. Too bad I wasn't really hungry, otherwise I would probably have eaten a lot more than 2 pintxos. :D
And since we're speaking of food already, of course I had to have a pintxo estrella as well, but I had that one in Bilbao, in one of the bars around the Plaza Nueva.
xurda87's sister then drove us along the coast to some of the best beaches. I definitely must come back there in summer and try them out! :)
Up that hill, with a good view on the open sea, there are some very posh houses. If I understood xurda87 and her sister correctly, Fran Yeste used to live in one of them while he played for Athletic. ;)
Somehow I found that incredibly adorable.
*happy sigh*
This is the marina of Getxo.
We had a good laugh when we spotted this "Bavaria" flag. XD
Hope you enjoyed this little trip, and stay tuned for pictures related to Athletic Club (Palacio Ibaigane, San Mamés, Lezama, etc.)! :)