I Know Why Most People Come to Bilbao, But My Mission Was Different

Safety Officer, Captain, Local Harbor Pilot, and Staff Captain on starboard bridge wing, but only the captain gets to drive

We were honored with two simultaneous dinners with officers

Suburban Bilbao was kind of lovely 

Downtown Bilbao was OK 

No contemporary architecture other than on the riverfront in downtown Bilbao 

Perhaps Frank Gehry's greatest design

Can't say what kind of drip is being depicted

Contemporary art is in the eyes of the artist, at least

The wonderful Vizkaia Transporter (hanging) Bridge

Pretty view of the Nervion Estuary as we sailed out of Bilbao

Not everyone on the ship wants to enjoy the view. Perhaps they were tweeting their excitement

Sunday - 11 May 2014 - Bilbao, Spain

In very Northeastern Spain, Bilbao is the cultural and commercial capital of the Basque country. We arrived in fog and drizzle as Captain Luigi glided Whisper into the scenic berthage at the mouth of the Nervion River. The itinerary of Silver Whisper dictated that the visit here be shortened by a 3 pm departure. This left Barbara and me as independent explorers with a very tight schedule to see what we had come for. Tonight would be the last formal night on board, and I guess we were so important that we had been invited to two different officer's tables for the same dinner. (This was resolved quickly as the Cruise Director acknowledged that, "One Hotel Director beats a Cruise Director plus a Staff Captain". We had a winning hand, he said". The Captain was not available as he was retiring early for tomorrow's very early transit of the Garonne River to Bordeaux).

The ship having been made clearer or something by those authorities who seemed to beat us to each port, we headed out on the first shuttle bus to downtown Bilbao. The foggy suburban street scenes were very lovely, giving us some hope that Bilbao would be an architectural gem. Well, Bilbao was ok, not fantastic for its street scenes. I did my best to get a couple of nice "framing shots."

We had to make the obligatory visit to the stunning Frank Gehry designed Guggenheim Museum. The museum was inaugurated on 18 October 1997 by King Juan Carlos I and has not only become a "must see" tourist destination but according to the guide book has transformed somewhat bland Bilbao to a wonder of contemporary civic design. That means weird street art, a large dog adorned with flowers but enshrouded in scaffolding during our visit, for example, and of course a brand new cable stay bridge, among other distractions.

The UNESCO designated World Heritage Site (!), Bilbao Guggenheim, like its counterparts in other cities around the world houses permanent and rotating contemporary art exhibitions. You never know what you'll see with contemporary art, but you can be sure that they will be the subject of snide comments. Make your own conclusions from the handful of pictures attached to this entry.

Oddly enough we enjoyed the Guggenheim--it's really very well done--and unlike its sister in New York City it integrates the exhibits with the very quirky architecture of the building. We stayed a lot longer than we had expected and hit the next return shuttle bus to the ship quickly to enjoy the view from our suite's shelf as the weather was clearing up. (That means in the Bay of Biscay that the rain has kind of let up and the fog isn't too dense.)

Now I could accomplish my primary mission for booking this cruise. I really wanted to see the Vizkaia Transporter Bridge. This "puente colgante" was the very first of these wonders of late 19th Century/early 20th Century engineering when all problems seemed to be solvable by iron. A cross between a suspension bridge and a ferry, this 1893 innovation was the first of its kind and now one of the only three still operational. (The others are in Middlesbrough, England and Newport, Wales). The Bilbao one is the only transporter bridge in daily operation and runs every 8 minutes throughout the day. You can just make out the 80 foot long bus-like structure hanging just over the water line that is essentially a suspended ferry deck. It's hanging just a few feet above the water, mid-river on its journey across the Nervion.

We sailed out promptly at 15:00 as Barbara and I enjoyed the view the bridge framed by the lovely bay and some of our fellow guests decided that keeping in touch was more important.