Days 8 & 9 - Double Zero in Bilbao
Date: Saturday-Sunday June 22-23
Start: Bilbao, Biscay, Basque Country
End: Bilbao, Biscay, Basque Country
Daily Mileage: NA
Total Mileage: ~98mi (157.7km)
The first thing we did for our double zero in Bilbao? Left Bilbao.
On Saturday morning we joined a wine tour to the La Rioja region, only about an hour south of Bilbao. One of the most famous wine regions in Spain, it seemed like a worthwhile double-zero detour. Especially when someone else was doing the driving and all we needed to content ourselves with was drinking wine.
The day was a bit overcast, but one great thing about wine – it still tastes good when it’s raining. Luckily, though there was a bit of drizzle when we left Bilbao, the rain cleared as we drove southward and over the Sierra de Cantabria mountains into the La Rioja Valley.
The day included stops at two different wineries, as well as a visit to the medieval town of Laguardia for lunch. The first winery we visited made wines in both traditional and modern styles. The traditional style of wine making in this region follows the traditional techniques of French wine making – including the aging process, types/sizes of barrels, etc. There are specific standards that must be met for wines to meet various classifications, such as Reserva, Gran Reserva, etc.
One of the most typical vineyard/vine styles you see La Rioja are short, stubby vines grown close to the ground, as you see in this photo.
For modern wines, there are no standards or rules. Anything goes. The wine makers are free to experiment with all variables and techniques - percentages of grape varieties, aging vessel type (barrels, concrete tanks, etc.) and size, aging time, etc. The second winery that we visited made only modern wine, specializing in ‘single plot’ wines – to ‘tell the story of the grape’, as they said. Very poetic.
All of this sounds good - but in the end, the question is usually, do you like it? We enjoyed most of the wines we tried – both traditional and modern – and may have even picked up a bottle to enjoy later.
Tempranillo is the king of grapes in Spain, and this is certainly true of La Rioja, where it forms the base of most red wines. Most of the traditional wines have over 90% tempranillo. The remaining percentage is usually garnacha and sometimes mazuelo.
View of La Rioja valley from Laguardia
After our winery tours/tastings, we made a stop through Laguardia, where we had a lunch with several traditional dishes from the region, including a variety of meat, fish, vegetable, and potato dishes. And more wine.
Lunch in Laguardia
Walking through the streets of Laguardia after lunch, there seemed to be quite a bit of merriment spilling from the bars into the streets as several were out celebrating the Nativity of John the Baptist (Saint John, aka San Juan). Each town/village/city in Spain has a patron saint whom they celebrate at a specific time during the year. Typically celebrations will go on for a week, with many activities and events – and a lot of partying for the younger crowds.
Many towns throughout Spain will be celebrating San Juan this week, so we may see a bit more of the festivities as we travel along the coast. Pagan traditions for this holiday state that bonfires had to be lit to give more strength to the sun during the midsummer solstice. Happening upon a bonfire could be fun, particularly if we have the opportunity to introduce s’mores.
Merriment ahead.
Tasting wine is exhausting work and we took a traditional Spanish siesta in the van on the way back to Bilbao. Though the views for the day had been a bit dull with the overcast haze of the weather, it was still a nice field trip out from the city.
Bilbao City Hall
Sunday was a good day to be a set of rain boots. In fact, I wish I had a set of galoshes. We woke to more rain, which would continue throughout the day. But, we made the best of it. (Hard to complain when the area around my hometown is experiencing severe flooding issues).
After a lazy morning and a spot of breakfast, we strolled along the Nervión River, which winds it’s way through Bilbao, separating the Casco Viejo (old town) from the more modern area of the downtown.
Zubizuri pedestrian bridge
Given that it was cold, rainy, and windy – everyone pointing their umbrellas a bit more forward or to the side to deal with that pesky sideways-driving rain variety that still leaves quite a bit of you soaked – this was really less of a leisurely stroll and more of a hurried walk.
Guggenheim Museum Bilbao
At the bendy Zubizuri pedestrian bridge, we crossed over the river and made our way to the fabulous Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, the building for which is as much a piece of art as the collections within. While the Guggenheim in New York City was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, the one in Bilbo was designed by Frank Gehry – both of absolutely stunning design. Unfortunately, not that fun to admire and photograph in poor weather, but there were still plenty of people out doing so nonetheless.
Walking through The Matter of Time, Richard Serra
Inside, the museum was well-curated with just enough artists and intrigue to pull you through each exhibit and floor. We particularly liked The Matter of Time exhibit by Richard Serra – a room of enormous free-standing steel sculptures of waving, spiraling, and leaning designs.
Aerial view of The Matter of Time exhibit
Guests of the museum could wander through all of the steel sculptures – each of which gave you an odd sensation of warped space as you made your way through the various curves and waves – a bit hard to describe – something of Einstein’s dreams.
Split Second, Anthony McCall
Other really great interactive/immersive exhibits included the the light installation Split Second by Anthony McCall and the colorful light and mirror installation by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama.
Infinity Mirrored Room, Yayoi Kusama.
There was also plenty of other great, thought-provoking, and even depressing art – like this sad rendition of a scene from Pinocchio, set in the museum below a high balcony. All the feels.
Daddy, Daddy, Maurizio Cattelan
Countered by the slightly more cheerful Tulips by Jeff Koons.
Overall, after hearing that the museum itself (the building) was more fantastic than the actual exhibitions within, I thought that the majority of the current collection was pretty good. I won’t name any names, but somewhere – in nearly every art museum – there is always an artist or a piece or two (or many) that make me think that I did have certain childhood paintings set upon the refrigerator that could have made it to the big time... but alas, I chose a different path. This museum was no exception.
Museum with spider sculpture, Maman, by Louise Bourgeois
After our time inside, we took a short walk (still raining!) along the riverside to see a bit more of the building design and made a brief visit to the giant puppy constructed of flowers before heading down the street for lunch.
Puppy, Jeff Koons
We’d read that we MUST eat seafood while in Bilbao. And so we did. Not far from the museum, we popped into a well-rated seafood restaurant where we ordered dishes of white prawns, calamari, and Basque-style cod to share – all delicious.
Basque-style preparation of cod with pepper-tomato sauce.
Our table was near the kitchen area where the waitresses and manager seemed so hurried that we, ourselves, also started feeling the stress of timeliness – something that we’d never felt at a meal in Spain, which typically enshrines a long, slow Sunday lunch. Should we hurry? Are we eating fast enough? We were almost afraid to order dessert and coffee when the time came, but we persevered, not to be cowarded away by the stress of our proximity to the action. And so, we had a nice cheesecake with coffee to end the meal.
And then we hurried out.
Federico Moyúa Plaza
As the rain was still falling in gusto, it was not much of a strolling kind of day, which was unfortunate – but at least we weren’t hiking! We made our way back to the old quarter along the Gran Vía –a street of mostly international and luxury brand shops and large banks. Most of the stores were closed, which seemed strange, even for a Sunday, in a large touristy city.
Nervión River, near Casco Viejo (the old quarter).
We spent the rest of the afternoon holed up in our cozy hotel room. Shawn siesta’d and we drank the bottle of wine that we bought yesterday... which all seemed about as cultural as – or at least more enjoyable than – sightseeing in the rain.
Tomorrow we head on – back to the coast!