I leave Miranda de Ebro on the way to Santander and make the first stop in Llodio, a town that despite being large hardly has to see the main square.

I continue to Bilbao and leave the car in Parque Europa, near the Bolueta neighborhood. There I head towards the historic quarter, finding a multitude of important buildings around the Bilbao estuary. To start the visit, I will cross the San Anton bridge and see the church of San Anton. On one side there is a mural by a painter Manuel Losada. You can also see the tram that crosses Bilbao. In this street you can see some old buildings such as the building of Ferrocarriles Vascongados.



I will go up a little by the side street to the Bilbao estuary, of the Nervión river and I will enter the historic quarter. Here there are a multitude of shops, tapas bars, or pintxos as they say there, and very important restaurants in which the quality of the raw materials and the fame of many chefs have catapulted them to stardom and the prices also prove it.

In the heart of the old town is the Cathedral of Santiago de Bilbao. This temple is from the beginning of the 16th century except for its façade and tower, which are from the 19th century. It is the most important church in the province and has been built on a Romanesque temple that suffered a fire at the end of the 14th century. There was a main altarpiece in the Gothic style but it was lost as well as other works in different events. The worst a flood in the middle of the 20th century for which the entire interior has been restored and looks modern. I did not go inside since the price for this temple seems excessive considering that it does not house anything of value, rather it looks like a modern church with the dimensions of a cathedral.

After visiting the cathedral I would go to the Arenal where many of the central buildings of the city are located. Continuing with the religious plane, we have the church of San Nicolas from the end of the 18th century in a baroque style both outside and inside.

Opposite is the Arriga theater, a neo-baroque building from the late 19th century with capacity for 1,500 people. In that street several neoclassical buildings from the 19th and 20th centuries.



And in the background the Bilbao town hall near an old bridge. It is a late 19th century building inspired by French buildings of the time. The style is a mix between classical and baroque, called eclectic.
Inside it has several highly decorated rooms and the Arab room, inspired by the style of the Alhambra or the royal palaces of Seville, stands out.




Very close to the church of San Nicolas is the Plaza Nueva in a neoclassical style that would be completed at the end of the 19th century.
After leaving this I will leave for modern Bilbao and the Calatrava bridge as well as the Guggenheim museum. The most modern buildings of which I will expose some images are:


• Torres Isozaki y puente de Calatrava
• Museo Guggenheim
• Azkuna Centro (almacen de vinos)
• Sede de Sanidad de Bizkaia
• Edificio Fronton de Bizkaia
• Biblioteca Foral de Bizkaia
• Biblioteca Crai Deusto
• Torre Iberdrola

The Guggenheim Museum was designed by the firm of architects of Frank Gehry, it was opened to the public in 1997 and houses art exhibitions of works of contemporary style. The deconstructivist-style museum design and construction follow the style and methods of Frank Gehry. Like many of his earlier works the main structure is radically sculpted following almost organic contours. The museum claims not to contain a single flat surface in its entire structure. Part of the building is crossed by an elevated bridge and the exterior is covered by titanium plates and by a limestone that was very difficult to find (in the end it was found in Huéscar, Granada) of a similar color to the one used for build the University of Deusto.

Seen from the river, the building appears to have the shape of a ship, paying homage to the port city in which it is part. Its glossy panels resemble the scales of a fish, reminding us of the organic shape influences present in much of Gehry's work. Seen from above, however, the building has the shape of a flower. Gehry's team extensively used computer simulations of the structures needed to support the building for its design, achieving shapes that would have been impossible a few decades earlier.


In that area you can see the entire estuary, with the port cranes and the maritime museum. I will leave for the most modern Bilbao, from the last century, the Doña Casilda park and San Mames, the Athletic stadium. The English-style Dona Casilda Park was until not long ago the only park in the center of Bilbao. In it is the Museum of Fine Arts. Inside you can visit the Don Pato pond, the statue of Doña Casilda or the Pergola, a set of decorative neoclassical walls with two large fountains.



Once seen, I will retrace my steps visiting different historical buildings in the city such as Federico Moyua Square, which is surrounded by such important buildings as the Chavarri Palace, the Carlton Hotel, and other hotels and local entities.



Nearby is the palace of the deputation, the Sagrado Corazon church of modernist style, very similar to the church of Raval in Bacerlona inspired by works by Gaudí. And I will continue until I reach the car in Bolueta.




Before arriving in Santander, I will stop at Castro Urdiales already in Cantabria, a summer town known for having a large anchovy industry, a typical Cantabrian fish that is generally sold canned. In addition to its beaches, it has the charm of its castle and the church of Santa María de la Asunción on the seashore. This church is from the 13th century in the Gothic style and is known as the Cathedral of Santa María. To say that it has much more history and is more of a cathedral than the one in Bilbao seen previously. With this we will leave the game ready for Santander.

Day 6, from Santander to Palencia (CLICK para continuar)

10th august of 2021