Impulsive Christmas Trip

[craven morehead]

My wife has requested that you please stop posting photos as all you are doing is making her want to go back even more!

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

 

[amaroo]

Time to leave San Sebastián and drive up the road to Bilbao..... a short but scenic drive.





Our hotel in Bilbao - Gran Hotel Domine

Deluxe suite

 

[amaroo]

The kids room - premier twin







Views from both rooms

 

[amaroo]

The hotel is located opposite the Guggenheim Museum - it’s a piece of art in its own right.

Breakfast is served on the terrace and would have to be one of the best views in town..... the breakfast offer was excellent and a great way to start the day! We really liked this hotel.

 

[LadyC]

Now that's my kind of breakfast (the fried eggs one)!

 

[amaroo]

View from the glass lift as you go up...



At the top .... wonder what the artist was thinking when he thought this was a good centre piece


Art hanging in the room (toilet), not sure what the kids made of it...

 

[RooFlyer]

Jeff Koon's Puppy was exhibited in Sydney some years ago.

I loathed the interior of the Guggenheim. Just trying too hard. Exterior precincts much more interesting.

 

[amaroo]

Jeff Koon's Puppy was exhibited in Sydney some years ago.

I loathed the interior of the Guggenheim. Just trying too hard. Exterior precincts much more interesting.

Given the whole concept was a risky venture for a distressed local government - costing something like €100m +++ 20 odd years ago ..... it’s done its job. For a run down industrial city it’s been a lifeline, bringing in an estimated €400m a year.

The bloke down your way (ex gambler/ bookie, (alleged) tax dodger, come art lover) has some pretty confronting wacky ideas .... but there’s not much doubt his ideas / investments have been a winner for Tassie.

Art is art - some you like, some you don’t.

 

[amaroo]

After completing the checkin obligations we headed off for lunch. Yes, another tasting menu. The kids were well pleased...

Mina - 1* Michelin





We went with the 14 course tasting ... you might have heard the kids groaning from over there





Really lovely setting right on the river .... I believe @OZDUCK stayed in an apartment very near to this restaurant.



House freebie



# 1 Oyster



#2 Mussels



#3 Weakfish



#4 Black Cheese

 

[amaroo]

#5 Spider Crab .... the kids weren’t that keen on this one



#6 Aubergine



#7 Begihaundi



#8 Tuna Belly



#9 Bone Marrow



#10 Foi Gras



#11 Roasted Monk Fish



#12 Fried Suckling Pig



#13 Tamarind



#14 Farmhouse Milk



Very nice meal - even the kids liked most of it. The place was full and I can see why .... would happily eat here again.

Got chatting with the manager .... it’s a small world - he managed two hotels we stayed at last Xmas in Tulum, Mexico.

 

[amaroo]

Some photos of Bilbao before and after lunch. Strange place, didn’t have the charm of other places we visited .... sorted had a mood about it. Never felt unsafe but the concierge did make a point of avoiding the area behind the restaurant. No issues along the river just up and over the back ... RHS looking at the photo below.

I guess without that Guggenheim Museum - we’d never had stopped here.









The kids needed some reward for enduring those tasting menus

 

[amaroo]

Guggenheim Museum. The building is certainly unique. I liked it - the light, space and shapes the architect managed to incorporate is impressive.





Model of one of the pieces





The piece - The matter of time

 

[amaroo]

Well worth paying a visit ... I enjoyed it.

 

[OZDUCK]

Really lovely setting right on the river .... I believe @OZDUCK stayed in an apartment very near to this restaurant.

Strange place, didn’t have the charm of other places we visited .... sorted had a mood about it. Never felt unsafe but the concierge did make a point of avoiding the area behind the restaurant. No issues along the river just up and over the back

More great photos - and weather. I actually took a couple of photos of the outside of your hotel as you could get some interesting reflections of the Guggenheim in the angled glass panels on the facade. It seemed to be a deliberate choice by the architect.

We stayed about 200 metres downriver from the Mina Restaurant.

I made the mistake of walking in the area behind that restaurant late in the afternoon. I had to push away a beggar/addict who was very much invading my space and brushing me down. I generally felt slightly unsafe as I passed through it. There was a police patrol just starting out - a group of 5 or 6 they were certainly not travelling singly. I made a point of avoiding that district afterwards. It is certainly a grittier place than the other cities we visited in Spain.

 

[I love to travel]

I am putting on 5kg just looking at these devine food photos. Very jealous

 

[LadyC]

Some excellent photos you have there.

 

[Jacques Vert]

Some photos of Bilbao before and after lunch. Strange place, didn’t have the charm of other places we visited .... sorted had a mood about it. Never felt unsafe but the concierge did make a point of avoiding the area behind the restaurant. No issues along the river just up and over the back ... RHS looking at the photo below.

I guess without that Guggenheim Museum - we’d never had stopped here.

We visited Bilbao in 2010 and came away with similar impression: grimy, disappointing and dull. And that museum is a waste of space IMHO.

OTOH, San Sebastion is noice.

 

[JohnM]

I enjoyed a day trip to Bilbao from San Sebastian to see the Guggenheim - but only from the outside as it was closed that day.

 

[amaroo]

More great photos - and weather. I actually took a couple of photos of the outside of your hotel as you could get some interesting reflections of the Guggenheim in the angled glass panels on the facade. It seemed to be a deliberate choice by the architect.

We stayed about 200 metres downriver from the Mina Restaurant.

I made the mistake of walking in the area behind that restaurant late in the afternoon. I had to push away a beggar/addict who was very much invading my space and brushing me down. I generally felt slightly unsafe as I passed through it. There was a police patrol just starting out - a group of 5 or 6 they were certainly not travelling singly. I made a point of avoiding that district afterwards. It is certainly a grittier place than the other cities we visited in Spain.

The fellow was quite forward telling me is was a dodgy area ... I didn’t ask any question along those lines, I just asked the best way to walk to Mina. It’s important to note that we all felt completely safe - Bilbao is not an area to avoid on safety grounds. It’s just a little more raw and edgy than its neighbours.

The area around the hotel / Museum is completely different, more of a San Sebastián feel about it .... although that could have been down to plentiful amounts of Pintxos and Tintos.... as you will soon see

 

[amaroo]

I am putting on 5kg just looking at these devine food photos. Very jealous

LOL, some cracking meals still to come - it’s a big part of our holiday passion. The balance is moving, we mostly walk everywhere .... this trip the only public transport we rode was airlines and a Tuk Tuk in Lisbon.

Some excellent photos you have there.

Really pleased with my new iPhone .... sure it can’t capture everything in stunning glory, but the convenience is glorious.

We visited Bilbao in 2010 and came away with similar impression: grimy, disappointing and dull. And that museum is a waste of space IMHO.

OTOH, San Sebastion is noice.

Art! The Basque people were very cunning building that Museum .... can you imagine what the place would be like without it.