San Juan de Gaztelugatxe

While in Salamanca, I met a Chinese American girl who lives in Bilbao. When I asked what's to see in her province, she recommended San Juan de Gaztelugatxe which is known to be the Dragonstone in the HBO series Game of Thrones. Now, I have only watched until around episode 2 of Season 2 (what a loser!!! But I am already in Book 4...) so I don't really know much about the series settings and such. I cannot call myself a fan although I am really awed at how GRRM weaves the different strands of stories into a grand narrative. Like, wow! It can beat Chinese classics for its number of interesting characters! Or even Eiichiro Oda's One Piece!

So as soon as I arrived in Bilbao, still sleepy from the night bus, I went straight to my hostel, left my backpack there, and headed to Plaza Moyua to wait for the bus that will take me to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe. It was a Saturday and the Bilbao-Bermeo route is out of the question even though this was what the hostel staff suggested to me. No choice but to do the Bilbao-Bakio route which requires hiking of more than 2 km to get to the foot of the famed ermita of San Juan.

It rained intermittently that morning. When we finally arrived in Bakio, there were only five of us doing the hike. The four were two couples. (Life throws me a lot of cruel jokes!) So not really sure if I can do it alone, I invited one couple to hike with me. Of course I had to observe first because I didn't want to be with sissies. Turned out the couple was recently married. They are from Belarus and so I learned a lot about Eastern Europe from the lady who talked to me about the politics, the economy, the difficult life in their country, relationship problems, etc.

I had fun with the two. They told me they were lucky to have been with me because they have been traveling around with no photos together. I offered to take their photos, and in exchange they also did mine. It was a win-win situation. So finally when we reached the island, the sun was shining bright and so I was dead tired hiking back to the bus stop because of the heat. Still it wasn't that bad. I liked the trees and the sea breeze. This is one of my most memorable things in Spain. Perfect environment, nice weather, and good company. 

Me ringing the bell thrice for a wish.  

The view of what you hiked when you finally get near the chapel.

Gernika

Art enthusiasts know Pablo Picasso's masterpiece, the Guernica, which speaks against the bombing of Gernika town by the Nazis as ordered by Franco. I saw the original painting in the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia in Madrid and, like all other visitors in that gallery, stood in  pensive reflection of how wars bring damage and destruction to civilians. So when I was in Bilbao for my last backpacking trip, I made sure to drop by Gernika town on a Sunday, just in time when some museums grant free entry.

Upon arrival, one can see many stands with information about the sites. In this particular site, I held back tears after reading the story of a girl who was crying because she was so scared to go back to her house and save her two brothers, with one being just a baby.

Surprised to find people queueing outside of this building which turned out to be the town's public library. ON A SUNDAY!

The ceiling of the Assembly House shows a stained glass painting of the oak tree It was made by hand by Vidrieras de Arte S.A. and was completed in 1985. It should be known that the Assembly House and the Tree of Gernika are the living symbols of the Basque People. As a seat of the historical parliament of Bizkaia, this building and the tree became a meeting point of all the territories of Euskal Herria (a.k.a. Basque Country), bringing together cultural and ethnographic traditions.

This is the remains of the old oak tree which was planted in 1700 and which is now protected by structure. A younger oak tree, planted in 1860, can be found not far from this old one. That tree witnessed the 1937 bombing.

A replica of Picasso's famous painting is installed outdoors for public viewing. Across it, one finds a bench on which one can sit to contemplate about peace and conflict resolution.

Gernika is a small town where tourists can do daytrips. Aside from few museums and a church, there is also a park with two big sculptural works installed on the grounds. I visited two museums here, one is free on Sundays and the other you have to pay (Museo Euskal Herria). I like the free one better because of the simulations of the bombing of Gernika in one of the rooms. In the upper floors, one cannot help but think about how shallow people have become for waging war against fellow humans over the pettiest of things. The museum also invites visitors to think about peace and how we can confront those who disrupt peace because of differences. My mind instantly connected the learnings to how to keep healthy relationships. Peacemaking is not just between nations and states. It should also go down to the most basic level, how we deal with the people around us. I thought about how people should learn to respect differences (something I have always believed in since highschool) and to meet halfway when resolving issues. Needless to say, I left with a heavy heart. So from hereon to San Sebastian to Barcelona, while I did try my best to enjoy my adventures, I felt like a huge part of me is missing. I felt hollow inside.

And in Barcelona I thought it might be because I was finally coming to terms with the things that happened to me the past three years. 

First Night in Madrid

I still remember the first time I set foot in Europe. My first stop was Madrid. A day before, I was with A who stayed with me until I checked in in the wee hours of the morning. I don't know why he had to do something like that. I didn't want to assume anything anymore because I've been countless times and I just got tired of guessing what I was to him. Still, I must admit that I was happy when he accompanied me. He gave me three things initially--- a jacket, a journal with leather covers, and a Parker pen with my nickname engraved on it. As I was about to leave, he handed me an 8GB flash drive which looks like a PVC card. It was my first time to see something like that. Looking back, those things really came in handy. I used the jacket for sleeping since my other two jackets are not comfortable for such. The flash drive came in handy whenever I needed to print important stuffs here and also good for exchanging files with people who became my friends here.

I didn't book any hotel on my first night in Madrid, thinking of staying the night at the airport to save money. But in the airport I met two Filipinos and I decided to go with them as I was in dire need of sleeping comfortably on a bed after 20 hours of travel. One of them happened to book AirBNB so we just contacted the landlady to request for two additional beds.

AirBNB room shared with two other Filipinos

The two Filipinos checked out very early the next morning, leaving me alone. I realized that sunrise is at around 9:00 AM! So I decided to make the most of WIFI and searched how to get to my hostel where I would stay for three nights.

my first meal in Madrid: a can of Century tuna and Rebisco crackers for breakfast

The electrical outlet is not compatible with my chargers but good thing I had my power bank.

When the sun was already up, I left the AirBNB. God, did I had a hard time getting all my stuff downstairs because there was no lift! Our bedroom was on the third floor. Ugh! It was just the start of my battles as I would learn later on because the metro near my hostel DOES NOT have a lift and so poor me had to drag all my stuffs up the stairs slowly. And then I got lost trying to look for my hostel in Lavapies' labyrinthine streets. An old lady to whom I asked directions offered to help me with my stuffs but I refused because there I was, half her age and huffing and puffing! It was embarrassing to say the least. I kind of regretted bringing a lot of canned goods and other foodstuff!

Madrid's pebbled streets in Lavapies

 So imagine my joy when I finally got inside my hostel where I rested for a few hours before going out to see what Madrid has to offer. Of course I also took advantage of the WIFI to check out nearby places of interest since I wanted to rest early.

La Santa Iglesia Catedral Metropolitana de Santa María la Real de la Almudena (aka Almudena Church)
This church is the seat of the Archdiocese of Madrid

Inside the Almudena Church's crypt which reminded me of the arches of Cordoba's mezquita.

Palacio Real de Madrid where the King of Spain used to live before transferring to Palacio de Zarzeula.

When I arrived back at the hostel, I quickly became friends with a fellow hostelmate, a traveler from Malaysia. I shared to her a pack of Indomie and we talked about many things. Her family lives in Sabah and she knows the Tausug group saying that some of her distant relatives live in Zamboanga. Later on, a new hostelmate arrived, a girl from Mexico. We hit it off instantly and this Mexican girl and I shared a very special bond especially after she massaged me one night because of my sore muscles probably because of dragging my luggage. I think fondly of her because she took care of washing and drying our clothes. That's my kind of girl, one who is open and not selfish. No wonder we found ourselves roaming the streets of Madrid for the next few days until she sent me off when I decided to go to the south.

To be continued....