Saturday, October 13: Excursion to Bilbao

Before I start describing the trip, I have to make one little comment. The boys are now referring to each other as "git" and "prat" as if I'm going to overlook the fact that this is still name calling and just as annoying. Okay, on to Spain.

Jamie and I were a little worried the actual travel would make the weekend hardly worth it, but quite the contrary. We took the DLR to the Central Line. Our train to bank was waiting at the station and the sprint wasn't a breathless on t all. Our train in Liverpool St. station was just pulling in and the Stanstead Airport Express train was sitting there waiting for us. We figure that stroke of luck saved us about thirty minutes. Figuring out how to check in for our flight with Ryanair took a bit of doing, but security was a breeze. Except that someone had to do some kind of analysis test on my liquids, which consisted of a tiny bottle of eye drops for contact lens wearers, Mary Kay cover up and Clinique lip stick. I'm not sure which substance appeared alarming. We now had at least two hours to kill so we had a bite to eat and did a bit of duty free shopping. When flying Ryanair I highly recommend paying the extra couple of quid for priority boarding. We boarded first and sat up front. The flight was smooth and I would have slept the whole way but for a seven year old with a window seat constantly jabbing me in the ribs, "Mom! Is that a boat?" or "Mom! Is that a farm?" and "Mom! They really have farms in France?" Agh!

Passport control into Spain at Vitoria airport was a breeze and we could see Fernando and his mother waiting to greet us on the other side. For those familiar with the Melbourne airport, our terminal building is absolutely huge, luxurious and packed with accommodations by comparison. The drive to Bilbao was spectacular. We had gorgeous sunny weather (both Jamie and I forgot our sunglasses because we hadn't needed them for so long in London) and the countryside is beautiful. Alexandra and Fernando dropped us off at our hotel to check in before we began our sight-seeing.

We walked down the main shopping thoroughfare, down through a beautiful park to the river and then over to the Guggenheim museum. We did not go inside but instead let the children play in a playground right next to the museum and then took pictures in front of the puppy. We next took an above ground train into the old quarter of the city. The boys found that amusing because you could walk right across the streetcar tracks that are difficult to spot because they are almost covered in grass. Oh, the architecture is simply breathtaking. We were even able to get a brief peek inside the opera house. We also saw the university Fernando would like to attend in two years. Below is a picture of Fernando and his mom in front of it.

Fernando and his mother treated the boys to an ice cream because they fast learned the meaning of the word "helado." They stayed outside with Alejandra while Fernando took Jamie and I through a magnificent cathedral where mass was just starting. After that brief side trip we went to a plaza to sit down for drinks and tapas. On Sundays this is a market where all sorts of goods, including animals are exchanged. The boys had the opportunity to run wild through the center with other children playing jump rope, chasing footballs and just running madly in circles. The food was excellent of course and I was delighted I was able to try the local delicacy of river eels so vividly described in the book, The Basque History of the World which I highly recommend. The sun went down while we relaxed in the plaza and before we knew it it was time to go to Alejandra's parents flat. We took the Metro this time. We were all startled by how clean and new their subway system is. No graffiti.

We were extremely honored to have been invited to Fernando's grandparents home. They invited an old friend of theirs who is from Cheshire and has lived in Spain for over forty years. She and her Spanish husband were delightful. It was also helpful having a more fluent translator. We were worried about the boys behavior, but perhaps the Spaniards have it right starting dinner around 9 PM and ending after midnight. The boys were probably simply too tired to get into it. Dr. and Mrs. Sanz, Fernando's grandparents, seemed tickled the boys tried everything and were enthusiastic about all the food. Colin wasn't too taken with the chorizo and cerrano ham, but went nuts over the cheeses. Our traditional Spanish meal was completed with a trifle and a pavlova made by Jillian, the British lady. I'm not quite sure how, but my glass of champagne never seemed to empty. Jamie thinks it was Jillian's husband who was the champagne fairy.

Dr. Sanz is a retired pediatrician and Fernando showed the boys his old surgery. They enjoyed playing with those thingys that test your knee reflexes. Sorry, don't know the technical term. They also had a blast playing with Fernando's dog, Nara, once the doctor had gone off to bed. Nara doesn't come in to the living room until the doctor is away. Dinner was around a table in the living room while we all made ourselves comfortable on sofas and puffy chairs. Very relaxing, gastronomically exquisite and an all around wonderful adventure. Oh how I wish my Spanish was eons better. I think I caught about every sixth or seventh word. Thank goodness Fernando and his mother know more English than we know Spanish.

We went back to the hotel after midnight and it turned out to be a short walk from the flat. We had two rooms with the boys in one and Jamie and I in the other. We gave the boys a quick bath and put them in their pajamas. When Liam first went into the bathroom we heard, "How handy! They have two toilets in here.....oh...wait...one's a sink." It took awhile for Jamie and I to stop laughing before we could explain the concept of a bidet. At any rate, the boys were tucked into bed and Jamie and I retired to the other room to pass out as well. Whew! Long day!!!!

I realize I am still two days behind on this blog, but it shouldn't take too much to catch up. As it is now 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday and all three of us are still in our pajamas and we got a late start yesterday my reports of Monday and Tuesday aren't likely to be nearly as long. I will catch up a little bit later. Now I need to get these restless animals out of their cage even if it is raining.