And the sun came out for a few hours...

Sometime in the 3rd week, the sun came out for the afternoon and I was finally able to snap some good pictures of the city and this really big hill across the bay. The name of this hill is Peña Cabarga and it is frequently included in La Vuelta de España. Needless to say I decided that I would at least have to attempt to climb it someday before I leave.

While walking to class that day I also spotted this strange snake on the sidewalk. I showed it to my professors but they had never seen anything like it. Maria, my host mom, thought it was an eel of some kind. Maybe a bird dropped it on the side walk? It was alive and flicking its tongue in and out when I saw it but appeared to be injured. Everyone assured me that there are no venomous snakes in Spain... at least not in this part.

Taking advantage of the sun, I went with some other students for a little hike to the "faro" or lighthouse on Cabo Mayor. The scenery was so beautiful and after having lived in non-stop dreary, grayness for over two weeks, we really appreciated being able to get outside and even see the sky!

          

Bilbao

So... I had great difficulty trying to post this one in the past. It takes no less than 4 minutes to upload a photo and after my computer froze up and then the internet connection crashed on the second attempt, I gave up in absolute disgust and haven't touched this blog since. The internet at my house and the school are source of constant frustration. This all happened about 2.5 weeks ago but is just getting posted now. By the way, today I had to try another 3 separate times to post this because once again the internet kept failing and my computer kept freezing...

Today, the entire group from MSU piled onto a bus and drove to visit Bilbao, a larg city in the neighboring príncipe, El País Vasco (the Basque country). The trip there was gorgeous despite the gray skies. We drove through green hills and mountains, sometimes along the ocean. Frequently, sheep and cows grazed on the steep hillsides and picturesque villages and towns were nestled in every valley.

Bilbao used to be a center of industry but in the last 50 years, the factories closed and were left vacant. The river and most of the city center was at one time polluted and derelict. They have put a lot of money and effort into revitalizing the city, making new plans, and putting up beautiful public buildings. Bilbao is now an amazing mixture of new and old with parks and green areas everywhere you look.

One of the first places we visited was the cathedral. This cathedral is actually one of the stops on the northern pilgrimage route, El Camino de Santiago de Compostela.


After visiting the cathedral we stopped to get a bite to eat. Of course there was a lot to choose from. We passed many bakeries (panaderías) and butcher shops (carnecerías) and ended up at a cafe for some pinchos (in euskera that is pintxos) for a some delicious finger food and cafe con leche.

 In this picture you can see one of the foods Spain is known for, jamón. Yes those are cured pig legs hanging from the ceiling.

This was the cafetería/bar we stopped at. Those are "pinchos;" little half-sandwiches and hors d'oeuvres things that are called tapas in the south of Spain. They were super tasty and pretty interesting to look at. The only problem is, whenever I order them I am not ever entirely sure what is in them.

As we wandered around there were a lot of street musicians and also this lady embroidering tapestries on the street. Her sign said that none of them were for sale and they were simply there for everyone to enjoy.

Later, we went to the Guggenheim in Bilbao. I think my favorite part was actually just looking at the building and of course the flower statue of the "poopy." (Our tour guide, speaking only in Spanish, was actually saying "puppy" as they use the English word for sculpture, but of course all the other MSU students were having a pretty difficult time keeping a straight face.)