Day 43 – Bilbao (1 of 3)

I arranged a multi step transition from Santiago to Bilbao starting with a taxi ride to the Santiago airport from my albergue at 7:30am which the alburgue host generously arranged for me.   The ride took about 20 minutes and cost 21€.  
  

Vueling Airlines is similar to most American domestic airlines with modern Airbus jets.  We left on time with no drama at check-in, a very short line at security and smooth boarding at the gate.  The connection in Barcelona went off without a hitch. When I arrived at Bilbao, I had already researched the Bizkaibus transport and went directly to the ticket booth and paid 1.80€ for the 15 minute ride into town.  The bus dropped me 3 blocks from the Poshtel Hostel, my home for the next 3 days. 

Poshtel is not an alburgue.  It doesn’t aim to provide refuge to weary pilgrims.   Its mission is to provide a seriously economic alternative to high priced hotels for budget conscious tourists while maintaining some of the style and location.  It’s walking distance to the Guggenheim museum and central to shopping etc. in the newer part of the city.  

As a Hostel it offers rooms with 4-6 bunk beds but not the large and cramped dormitories of the alburgue. Guests share bathroom and laundry facilities and a small kitchen.  All this for about 20€/ day. 
The Hostel also sports a restaurant/ bar that the budget conscious tourist  likely cannot afford but in this neighborhood  there are plenty of well heeled customers I think. 

I haven’t seen much of Bilbao yet but my first impression is that style and culture are of paramount importance here.  It isn’t history and not religion though these are not far under the surface.  But esthetics is the defining  characteristic around which all other factors seem to revolve.

Tomorrow I visit the Guggenheim museum.
Buen Camino,
– jgp