North Spain / France Day 2: San Sebastian – Biarritz – Bilbao

North Spain / France Day 2: San Sebastian – Biarritz – Bilbao

Day 2 of our trip started with a few showers and a walk along the Bay of Biscay and the La Concha. It was amazing to see the waves crashing against the peculiarly shaped rocks along the coast. We then walked through a flower market, a vegetable market and visited a bakery where the sizes and shapes of the breads amazed me. Among the main attractions was the Santa Maria Basilica, with a huge statue of Jesus with several arrows pierced into his body (see pic). Another feature which I saw in various places in Spain was that streets in hilly areas sometimes ended in a flight of stairs (see pic)! The entrance to the Santa Monica was spectacular, with several sculptures of babies, and faces of children and a statue of Mary (see pic).

Directly opposite to the Basilica, several streets away into the newer part of the city was the San Sebastian Cathedral. From the distance, it looked as if the church was under restoration. Upon approaching it, I realized that the architecture was peculiar – the spire of the church was made of a mesh (see pic).

We then left for Biarritz, a small French coastal town near Bayonne, east of San Sebastian. We took a smaller highway to avoid the toll, and we saw on one side the beautiful coast of the Bay of Biscay and on the other side, the Pyrenees, which forms a natural border between the two countries. The road winded up and down the slopes of the Pyrenees and the town Biarritz, which would probably exhibit a very lively atmosphere in summer wore a deserted look.

We then drove to our next destination further west of San Sebastian – Bilbao. This town was similar to San Sebastian in many ways. However, the main reason for our visit was to see the Gugenheim Museum, famous for its modern architectural beauty. The streets of the old city of Bilbao were filled with people eating, drinking and making merry, watching the football match with enthusiasm… well, enthusiasm is a gross understatement. The town seemed completely alive and ‘kicking’ well after midnight!