Hey all!  Happy FRIDAY!  It’s been a great week that has absolutely flown by, just like today has!  I was going to write this post at 10 a.m. this morning, but alas, it is almost 7:30 pm.

Better late than never.  Or not.  You don’t care either way.

So!  Last weekend I met my parents for a quick little trip to Northern Spain, specifically the towns of Bilbao and San Sebastian.  

I visited both cities last year, but with my friend Annie (see the post HERE).  Going with parents is totally different than going with friends and I’m so happy by parents are here!!  They arrived last Monday (I took the day off to greet them at the airport and then they slept all afternoon ….), spent a couple days in Madrid, and then they were off on a Northern Spain Extravaganza road trip (or…train trip)!!!

We had a long weekend last weekend because #Spain (they love random holidays) so I took an early train Saturday morning to meet them in Bilbao.  My parents actually spent the day in La Rioja and thought they would be back much earlier than they were, so I unfortunately spent much of the day alone.  But hey, it happens.  

We had incredible weather all four days we were in the North, which is so lucky because the north isn’t exactly famous for sunny, blue skies this time of year.  While my mom was planning her trip, I repeatedly warned her that it very well may be super rainy and cold while they are here, but fortunately, I was wrong!  Sunny, blue skies the whole time!  My mom regretted not bringing shorts haha.

Bilbao Day 1

• Walked from the Old Town all the way to the bus station (about 2.5 miles) to purchase bus tickets to San Sebastian.

• Walked through a beautiful park, full of trees and people picnicking! 

• Walked back along the river, taking note of the bright red leaves on the trees lining the water.  Also, this white steel bridge is famous.

• The rest of the day, I went shopping (and din’t buy anything!) and then sat in a cafe and read a book.

•  Then went to the hotel and lied in bed with Netflix until my parents came back.  They didn’t bring me any wine, in case you’re wondering. (Bad parents)
• Once they were back, we headed out for some pintxos!

Bilbao Day 2

• We had breakfast in Plaza Nueva (built in 1821!).  Trozos de tortilla y cafe con leche (x2)
• My dad bought this hat.  He looks great, no?!

• After a leisurely breakfast, we walked along the water and headed to the Guggenheim for a morning of cultural enlightenment.  (Did you know there are 3 Guggenheim museums in the world?  Venice, Bilbao, and New York)

• Before heading into the museum, we stopped to watch some sort of race that was happening outside.  Made me miss my cross country days SO MUCH.

• We spent about 3 hours in the museum.  I don’t have any photos because it’s not allowed and I am a rule follower.  The architecture of the building itself is pretty incredible, but I didn’t love love the art.  Very modern, very “what do you think the meaning of this stripe on a blank canvas is?”.  
• I was starving in the museum, so we had a biiiig lunch afterwords.  Gotta love that Menu Del Dia.  But not the fact that the price doubles on the weekend.  Womp.

That night, we didn’t do much besides walk around.  It was a cold and foggy night, so it was a good night to relax.  Check out these awesome Halloween costumes (from the Halloween store that was closed the night before Halloween….)

I’m so glad I had the chance to head back to Bilbao!  If you read my post last year, you may remember that I said that I didn’t like it.  Well, it’s because we didn’t go to the Old Town!  The charming part of the town.  The part that brings all the tourists.  I don’t know how we missed it, but it is definitely not something to be missed.

OK, I’ll share Part II (San Sebastian) in the next post!