Monday, Oct 13, 2025 Garoa Cafeteria 8:30am Sunny

Aqui estoy!  I am here in Bilbao - at long last.  Arriving on a sunny Sunday in the late afternoon made it extra special.  Getting the Bizkai Bus A3247 from the airport was easy except for the scanning machine to scan the ticket I bought for 4.5euro.  The driver was frustrated with my sad attempts to scan it not exactly sure how to scan it on this machine that could slice and dice too - too many functions for this one machine.  He flagged me on.  The first stop was about 15 minutes away, over the river, not far at all from the Guggenheim museum.  I had to walk back and admire the beauty of the design reflecting the brilliant sun making it look like fluid metal.  There is an impressive river walk on each side.  

My hotel is on the river by the Zubizuri Zubia pedestrian bridge.  After a much needed shower, I was refreshed and recharged ready to walk to the old part of town.  I didn't quite make it to the old-old part of town but enjoyed the alleys, the plazas, people watching, eyeing pintxo bars guessing which ones where favored by locals vs tourists, and settling on one that was non-descript where older locals gathered.  I pointed and received two pieces of food and a red wine.  Living the life.  As dusk fell, I headed to Saint James church and spied a marker for the Camino.  Buen.  Returning another way across another bridge gave me the excuse to get a gelato, a small one - something del leche.  Yum.  My last stop was at Kubrick bar.  Lots of people on the street outside this funky place with that unusual name of Kubrick.  As I passed a window of the bar, there was a group inside listening to two scruffy hippy looking men playing music and singing.  The intimate crowd was into them.  A was drawn in like a moth to a light.  The place looked like someone's garage sale with tattered furniture, bizarre wall hangings, a bird cage filled with old fashion alarm clocks, trimmed with fairy lights in a dim setting.  An empty seat was all I needed to stay and listen for a bit.  The harmonica player in a yellow shirt ended up near me and we have a broken exchange.  This is a monthly event like an open mic night.  A girl was in the queue with her guitar and she was a favorite.  I reasoned she was American.  Looking like a tattooed, what is her name - Shane???  A perfect moment in time.  Slept like a rock.  Due to poor planning or being cheap, I do not have the right adapter to recharge my electronics.  This is forcing me to learn how to say Donde puedo comprar un plug?  Good thing I have the wrong type of plug to show them.  Heard there is a Chinese store, Lucky Store, around the corner.  They open at 10am.  I have an hour to kill.  My destination is going up the funicular de Artxanda a few blocks away to see the view.