Arriving in Bilbao

We were able to get a direct 9 hour flight to Paris. The connecting flight to Bilbao would be 3 hours later. I had time to use my debit card to get euros from the ATM and bought a slice of quiche lorraine at the cafe in the terminal.

When we arrived in Bilbao it was dry and sunny. All but one piece of luggage arrived - the one piece lost had our gifts for the various families we will be visiting while we are here. Hopefully, it will be found and delivered to Olarain.

Olarain is housing, primarily for college students, but is available to the public. The universities in Basque Country (BC) are geared for students who commute, so they are not like American college dorms where students live. Olarain has college (uncomfortable) mattresses, a laundry room, internet and a cafeteria for breakfast.

 We rented a car and drove to San Sebastian, which is an hour or so away. We made sure we went to the Movistar Telephonica to get our european disposable phones charged. The phone I had needed a new chip and new minutes. Bill and Sauna each bought new phones. The phones are essential to stay in contact with families and students who want to meet with us during the week. It is also useful to stay in contact with one another as we split up to visit people and schools during the week.

It the pictures below you will see Simone and Christina, who are the parents of Danni, who stayed with Sauna in Portland. We are in a bar called Pepe's off Av de Tolosa. The food was great and satisfying after a long trip.

When we ate the time in BC was 8pm, 5am our time, so we were pretty tired.  For San Sebastian, 8 or 9 pm is the usual dinner hour for most families. Evening time is considered 9PM until early morning. We will have to experience the night life an other day. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

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