Day 12 Pinky promises and the Green Puppy!

I think this must be another time zone (still haven't checked!) as I wake late after loads of sleep and only get moving by 10am local time! 

Eventual I get to my ordered breakfast where I'm pleased that So Jung joins me!! , this then became my longest breakfast ever about 3 hours(poor hostel staff!) where we sat chatting about the East and the west, politics, history our own philosophies and beliefs and generally having a great laugh!! 

Yes So Jung speaks great English(she would argue that!) thank goodness! I wonder what the locals made of us! Older man and younger lady.... Yeah that made us chuckle to! Great times and I promise I'll keep the pinky promise! 

we both have to get moving luckily in the same direction as far as the Guggenheim museum, getting in a last good laugh about a living sculpture there of a giant puppy.... Which we renamed the Green Puppy (it's a name thing 😉)

we say our goodbyes a quick hug and she's off back to her home in Paris then tomorrow off to South Korea to see her parents! 

Good luck with your Andy! (Not me) Don't forget my invite if it works out! 

I love meeting people like this but equally when you connect you don't want to move on even though you have to! 

For me this was into the Guggenheim.....

and what a structure!!!! The building is as much a piece of art as the exhibits!!! 

A new experience for me taking time with modern art not something I'd go out of my to see, perhaps the Andy who comes out the other side of this adventure will be more in tune, for now I surprised myself! And lost the rest of the day here!!!

Exploring steel sheet installations that twist your time and speed when you walk through them which I found out at the end was exactly their intention!

i had to laugh at one installation it was the sculpted dismembered and tattooed body parts of Justin Bieber!!! Poetic/artistic justice? 

on to the second floor dedicated to Hilma AF Klimt, So Jung had recommended this floor as her favourite, Klimt was an early feminist and artist inspired by her dealings with spiritualism and performing seances during which she would paint under the guidance of spirits, to be honest it looks inspired by LSD 

Perhaps it was, but I did like this one , showing in my interpretation humanity and it's deities as one being .... I'm probably wrong. but that's art for you to appreciate as you see it! 

And I'm pretty sure Yayoi Kusama didn't interpret this mirror installation as trippy minions! But of course I did!! 

from here the twisting organic gantries of the Guggenheim led me to an installation called the soft shuttle cock.....

or to me the flying kinder egg! 

They shouldn't let me in places like this perhaps! 

Down the steps to the exit (solidad!) and quick walk to see a spider statue.

with thoughts of Shelob from the lord of the rings I realise I've not eaten since late breakfast! 

So passing fountains both in the museum grounds and the town centre I go in search of food, braving another supermarket I manage a little Spanish with the soon to be regular lo lamento 'im sorry' apologise for murdering a second language in a few weeks! 

They have freshly squeezed orange juice for sale here!

that you bottle yourself! 

And tho less appealing bottled cucumber and celery juice...... Which I'll try once, I now have my second food stuff I won't consume!

Back to the hostel with my booty and time to write today's and yesterday's blog! 

day 11 across the border- country 2

Awake early and just myself and Ralph the English guy are up and both moving on today, quick farewells and I'm off deliberately missing my breakfast in the push to walk across the city to The flixbus stop at The Gare du Jean, made in plenty of time I rue missing my breakfast! 

Still in carrying snacks and drink so not an issue, the bus is prompt so we get away on time and it's a sad farewell to Bordeaux and soon France! 

The flat lands of France soon after Bayonne give way to the southern foothills of the Pyreneese, in this area it strongly resembles Wales! 

ie wet!! 

crossing the border at the river between French Hendaye and Basque/Spanish Irun I'm into country number 2....I wonder how high the country number will get before/If I head back to Blighty!

The next town the bus goes through is Denostia san-sebatian nice looking place with river that appears to have a good tidal bore, at least that was my assumption with the guys surfing on the river!

into Bilbao sooner than expected.... Actually an hour before the timetable had said! Possible that the timezone has changed again? 

Well I can't say that I'm not feeling uneasy with the change of country and language, I'm going from mostly incapable to utterly incapable of speaking the language! Par for the course this year, but it's something to get accustomed to!

Instantly I can feel the difference between French and Basque folk people are a little more wary here!.

Walking into town I realise that neither I nor my hostel are close to the old town, so architecture isn't as much to my taste yet! 

Although having my hostel next to the Guggenheim museum is very handy! 

I guess I can get used to modern 🙂

At the hostel the book in is with an automated machine just in Spanish! 

That took some doing! Between me and Google I managed! 

The dorms pretty quiet just me to start with then in walks (as I quickly found out) So Jung (spelling probably wrong! Hopefully she'll correct me in comments!) A lady from South Korea, we were soon having a laugh I forget why but at one point we were looking in the mirror comparing noses sizes!!!

Crazy times! 

but very good 🙂

Once settled in I wander the rainy streets of Bilbao amidst the hustle and bustle of a vibrant cafe culture, way to early for me to attempt conversation here I load up on supermarket food and head back to the hostel for an early night.