Bilbao

This isn't true, I do know where I am and I digress back to July22.

Here goes

I left Gernika via train.  OMG is this possible or allowable, yep I did it anyway knowing that I would not be going to Santi this time to get a compostella.  Off to Bilbao.  I am very glad I did this.  Bilbao is a lovely city, unfortunately very much under construction for some reason, but the Guggenheimm is here so there you go.  We leaqrned tht one must choose between 2 Albergues.  To get to both one must take the number 58 bus from the main square just below the train station.  The first Albergue you reach is a hotel sized building and it is a private albergue costing over 15 euros.  If you are in Bilbao before June 1 and after school opens you must stay here.  The second albergue is in a location above the first one, you are driving up a big hill, and it is great.  Try to find more info on line about this place so that you can be more specific if you go, I should have taken notes.  If I was to do it again I would find a reasonably priced hostel or Pension as stay in the city.

The issue with either place is that they are 30 minutes by bus outside the main city.  It is worth the trip back into the city once you get settled there is much to see there.

We left by train or bus (can't remember) the next afternoon after we spent the day looking around.  I have had too much experience walking through the suburbs and industrial sections of large cities of the Camino to know that I wanted to do it again.  So I became a bus pilgrim two days in a row.

The hospitaliaro in Portuglete, the next stop on the Camino was wise to us Bus Pilgrims.  When he opened the albergue he asked first to place those who walked.  Then he placed those of us who bussed our way here.  Smart guy!  Anyway Portugelete has a nice beach and great big rocks that one can have a picnic on which we did.  We met  family there who had a dog named Doggie which I thought was cute.  Spanish people giving the dog an english name of its species.  The next dog I get will be named Perreo( Spanish word for dog)