A Bye-bye to Bilbao

Tuesday, June 26th
My last full day in Bilbao and feelings of both exhaustion, homesickness, and satisfaction fill my mind and body. I said my farewells to both the wonderful people at USAC as well as my companions throughout my stay (all of which will be staying in Europe for either second session or additional traveling). I will use this final blog post to share some pictures of the places I visited daily throughout my study abroad as well as of the people I have mentioned but yet to show.

View of the University of the Basque Country

Outside our classroom in the basement floor of the university

Resident Director Ibon and Assistants Maria, Arantxa, and Mane

View of my homestay from outside

My host family: Pablo, Pedro, Carlota, and Florian

With my study abroad experience now behind me, my blog is almost finished. In retrospect, my decision to study in Spain (and more specifically the Basque Country) was well worth the cost and time. The class I took in renewable energy was insightful, challenging, and presented in a manner that highlighted the context of Bilbao culture. The people here are genuinely kind, despite their calm, almost somber, facial expressions, and the natural attractions of the area were highlighted in my experiences hiking up mountains, kayaking in the river, and walking the many city's many beaches. The food played a major (and delicious) role in my adoption of the Basque culture. It is this culture that has defined this memorable past month and one that I am grateful to have been able to share. With that said, "Vale, Venga, and Agur!" (OK, Come on, Goodbye!)

Nearing the End

 Monday, June 25th
With only two days remaining of my study abroad, I thought I'd use today to do some activities in Bilbao that I either found comforting or that drew my curiosity. Every morning on the metro ride to school, I would glance out the window, and when passing through the Aiboa train stop, I would notice giant letters engraved into the greenery of the hill across the way that read "Artea." I had recently found out that this was a major shopping mall in Bilbao. Considering I needed to purchase a few more gifts for people (including myself, especially given my weakness for European brands such as H&M), I thought it would be a great day to see what the locals buy and wear. The journey to the mall was not an easy or even predictable one. The mall is situated at the top of a small mountain, surrounded by a highway, and easily accessible only to cars and avid hikers. After climbing my way up (which in itself offered some great views of Bilbao), I eventually found the entrance to the Artea Mall.

View of the Artea shopping center from Aiboa

View of Bilbao on the hike to Artea

No mall is complete without a McDonalds

After purchasing 90 euros worth of clothes from the "ever young" Spanish company called Pull & Bear (which I can now say is my new favorite brand name, though with no store locations in the U.S) and a miniature Spain-EuroCup football from Forum Sport, I returned to my homestay to take a siesta before going out with friends. Skipping a few hours to around 6:30pm, Kaitlin and I wanted to show Nick and Morgan to the fancy pintxos at La Vina. Luckily for me, I would take this opportunity to try the dishes that I didn't get to order the first time around with Tim. I ended up ordering "Tapa Carrillera" (a sort of braised beef and potato stew) and "Tapa Mozzarella" (a fresh salad served with a tangy vinaigrette and a fresh mozzarella cheese blob). Although less unique than the ones I got before, they were still pretty delicious. I decided to return home early for dinner so that I could spend what little time I had left with my host family.

Savory beef and potato stew

Fresh mozzarella and pine nut salad

Rio-oja Round 3

Sunday, June 24th
After an exhausting six-hour bus ride back to Bilbao, the rest of today's afternoon was reserved for simple relaxation. Of course, this meant another round at Rio-oja to sample typical Basque cuisine one last time.

My last time at Rio-oja

This time around, I wanted to try two very traditional dishes that were recommended to me by the USAC admins: bacalao and caracoles. The former is a sort of dried salted cod that has been rehydrated and served in one of a variety of sauces. The part that was served came from some portion of the fish (possibly the collar) between the body and the head. Although tender, it contained a burdensome amount of bones that detracted from the overall flavor and texture. However, if I am ever given the opportunity to try it again, I would not hesitate to order it as the USAC admins assured me that the bones I encountered must have been an anomaly. On a positive note, the "al pil-pil sauce" was tasty (through oddly gelatinous) and the roasted garlic pieces added another flavor dimension to the dish.

Bacalao al pil-pil, fish jello gone wrong

As for caracoles, I felt almost guilty eating them, and by them, I mean roughly 30 sea snails. Like some other dishes I've had here, they were served in a boiling sauce. This time, it was a spicy, rustic tomato/pepper sauce that served to cut the natural bitterness of the snails. Although I've had "escargot" multiple times before back in the States, they were always served already out of the shell and in either a rich butter or mushroom-based sauce. Thus, this presentation of snails was a novel experience given the relatively low savoriness of the sauce and the fact that all the snails were cooked and served in the shell.

A family gathering

Shucking snails from their shells

Given only a small tin of toothpicks, drawing the snail carcases from their warm abode required a trial-and-error technique.  After struggling for through the first bites (in which I would simply create a sizable hole in the shell), I soon became able to pick out these delicate morsels using a two-toothpick stabbing technique similar to, well, knitting. As for the flavor, it was very earthy and I could only chew the snails so long before their bitterness overtook the sauce. However, seen in the following picture, I thoroughly enjoyed every last bit.

The last one bites the dust...

A Gathering in Gijon

Saturday, June 23rd
Today, a group of USAC students and I decided to explore an area of Spain outside the Basque Country with which we have become relatively comfortable. So making reservations ahead of time, we hopped on a bus to the coastal city of Gijon, about four hours West of Bilbao.

The Termibus Station in San Mames

After getting off the bus, we decided to stop at a local diner for brunch. My lunch: fried food + fried food + cured meat. Honestly, I'm not purposely concocting a theme here. Anyways, my dish was titled "empanadillas, croquetas y jamon serrano," the latter of which is similar to jamon iberico but cheaper. Empanadillas (fried dough similar to phyllo filled with some sort of anchovies and vegetable sauce) and croquetas (fried mashed potato-meat blob) are popular throughout Spain as an appetizer or bar food.

Probably not that healthy but still delicious

After getting lost multiple times, we eventually found our hostel that Morgan had booked for the night. The building itself was supposedly built in the 18th Century and consisted of two floors of rooms for travelers. Nick and I got a room to ourselves, accompanied with a unique fortress-like door over the window (which would make for an absolutely pitch-black sleeping environment). It may be interesting to note here that in Spain, people have very effective shutters for their windows, most likely because of Siesta time or because it doesn't get very dark in Spain until very late. As we walked out of our hostel, we noticed a giant structure made of wood, which we later found out was for a celebration Spain-wide. These giant wooden structures would be lit at midnight, accompanied with fire works and public gatherings, to celebrate the coming of summer. Essentially, today was a Spanish version of Fourth of July, just with a different motivation.

View of the Metropolitan Gijon area

A city that continues to grow

View of the residential Gijon area

Our hostel adorned with maximum security windows

Hostel-side wood structure, pre-bonfire

The rest of the day was filled with a plethora of various activities. First off was a visit to the local aquarium, which focused more on sea life than the aquarium I had visited earlier in San Sebastian. Noteworthy sights included a rambunctious pair of otters, a showdown between to massive crawfish, and a penguin habitat.

Entrance to the beach

Apartments shaped like ships

Beachside aquarium

Nature-esque aquarium walkthrough

The highly energetic otter (the best of 100+ photos I'd taken)

Crawfish showdown

Penguin poses

Afterwards, we decided to have a snack at a beachside bar, where we were able to grab a table right before rush hour. Luckily for us, this afternoon was the scheduled time of the Spain vs. France EuroCup game. The bar (as well as almost every other bar we would pass later) became packed with loyal football fans. Since Spain is the defending EuroCup champion, many of the locals were animated throughout the entire game, sighing at missed scoring opportunities and celebrating at a successful goal. The feeling was infectious as many of us started joining in in the "Ohhhh!, Uuuweee~, and Yaaa's". Although I'm not much of a soccer fan, the game was much more engaging when everyone is watching. (Spain would later go on to become the EuroCup champions for a second year in a row).

View of the beach and the large wooden pyramid

View of the bars/apartments that line the beach

Constitution Street adorned with tree-like lamp posts

 As midnight drew closer, the streets began to flood with locals excited to celebrate the coming of summer. Groups of teens, families, and couples would fill the beach, bringing their own beverages and starting their own miniature bonfires. The night ended on an exciting note, with a praiseworthy beachside firework show, live musicians, and several massive bonfires spread throughout all of Spain.

Hey live band!

People just jamming to the music...

Cause baby you're a firework~

I set fire... to the rain~

Hey I just met you, and this is crazy!

Let's get some wood...

and light it maybe?

The Savors of Spain

Friday, June 22nd
Following the final exam, our instructor Tim offered to take Carrie, Katinlin, and I to a bar called "La Vina" for fancy pintxos. It may be interesting to note that the bars in the Basque Country don't have any stools or trash cans. Rather, you stand up next to the bar, order and eat your food, and throw any paper trash on the floor beneath you. The servers keep a tab on what you order and you pay when you're finished. Anyways, back to the story. It was Tim's third time eating at La Vina and he gave us a thorough review on what was good (considering he had tried almost everything at least once). Trusting the advice of a fellow foodie, I ordered everything Tim did.

Celebrating the end of a successful session with a first-class lunch

First up: Entry-Level Appetizers
To start off my lunch, I ordered bruschetta-like dish, consisting of a long piece of toasted bread, topped with a tomato/pepper cream sauce and paper thin slices of Iberian ham. Iberian ham, or "Jamon Iberico," is a delicacy specific to Spain (and Portugal) that comes from specially bred and raised pigs. Similar to the Wagyu/Kobe beef of Japan, Iberian Ham is desired for its rich and fatty taste. It's easily found throughout Spain and can purchased either already shaven or in bulk (in the form of a giant pork leg with the black-colored foot still attached as a sign of verification). A few locations in the United States sell this cured meat at about $52 per pound. Although I've had Iberian Ham a few times already while in Spain, the one serve in La Vina was undoubtedly the best. The price of this single dish was roughly $2.40. (The pickled olive, pepper, and anchovies skewer also seen in the picture was tasty, but sadly sits in the shadow of the richer pig).

Soft blankets of ham on a bed of bread, the ultimate comfort

Second up: Tapa Huevo y Foie y Hongos (Egg, Duck Liver, Mushroom Tapa)
Second today (and second overall on this trip's best food list) was this amazing mixture of rich miniature egg yolk, a slice of fatty duck liver, and a few savory mushrooms all tied together in a tasty cream sauce. I'm sweating just writing about how utterly rich this dish was. There's not much to describe about the taste exactly, but the blend of these items together simply sent my taste buds to euphoria. The softness of the items would eventually result in a soup-like mixture, and the bread would be the only source of texture, lightness, and relief. Such an experience was well worth the price of about $4.50.

So mouth-watering you'll use the bread as a bib

Last up: Tapa Txipi Encebollado ("Txipi" refers to "Chipirones")
I've discussed my previous encounter with chipirones, or baby squid, in an earlier post. However, Tim assured me that this one would be vastly different from the one I had, which were served in its own boiling ink. Instead, these chipirones were lightly fried and served in another sauce for which I cannot provide a worthy enough description. All my tongue could pick out was possibly some egg yolk and a sort of sweet/tangy jelly. All in all, the dish was one of the few light dishes I've had in my entire Spanish stay and was a nice, refreshing present for my recently overworked taste buds.

A presentation for the eyes but a present for the tongue

Over lunch, I  foodie-to-foodie, and I asked him his overall favorite dish during his entire stay. Without hesitation, he responded, "Precebes." As I learned from a previous conversation with him about them, precebes refers to goose barnacles, another delicacy specific to Spain. Although trying to supress his understandable desire not to share, Tim showed how much of a nice guy he is by inviting us over for dinner to taste some of the precebes he had reserved for tonight. Instead, Kaitlin and I counter-proposed and said we'd buy our own and bring them over. To the fish-market!

Can't tell if barnacles... or the arms of a tyrannosaurus

After purchasing our barnacles (mine were about $27 for 280 grams), we all went our separate ways for the afternoon. Precebes both in hand and on my mind, I tried to pass the time till dinner by seeing some of the major sights in Bilbao. I returned to the Alhondiga, which was a sort of civic center that I had visited during my USAC orientation. To recall, it comprises of a building next to a building inside of a building (build-ception), and hosts a public library, gym, restaurants, business offices, a few shops, and a swimming pool. It's very modern and the architecture is astounding. The first floor is relatively bare, with the exceptions of the differently designed pillars that support the floors where the other accommodations can be found. Other buildings I visited were the old Bilbao Athletico Stadium (the now-defunct stadium where the Bilbao soccer team used to play) and the Euskalduna Conference Center and concert Hall (which was closed at the time).

The Alhondiga library, gym, restaurant, community center, spaceship, etc.

The old soccer stadium of the Bilbao Athletic Club

Euskalduna Conference Center and Concert Hall

A bit disappointed from my inability to go inside either building, I sat along the river that cuts through Bilbao and unwrapped the lunch my host mother packed for me. Expecting the same old sandwich as usual, I was pleasantly surprised she packed a sandwich filled with the traditional Spanish tortilla. Tortillas in Spain are nothing like the corn/flour ones usually referred to back home. Rather, they are "tortilla de patatas," and are thick egg omelets filled with potato and fried in olive oil. Overjoyed at this little unexpected present, I ate my lunch in content while watching the passerby. After walking to Amorino again to get the best pistachio gelato I've ever had, it was almost time to meet up with Tim and Kaitlin.

Tortilla de patatas, more beautiful than a bed of flowers

Fast forwarding to Tim's apartment at around 9:30pm, we all chit-chatted about Tim's pretty awesome life as he cooked the precebes. If I haven't mentioned it before, Tim got his graduate degree in engineering from Berkeley, got married in Italy, and snowboards in Tahoe about every other weekend. Anyways, we cooked and ate our collective 900 grams of barnacles in five rounds to make the experience last. The means of preparation were almost too easy for the rewards: one liter of water, handfuls of salt, boiled for four minutes, and served with a piece of buttered bread. As for the barnacles themselves, they were a new experience with a familiar flavor.

Engineer by day, barnacle chef by night

Smells like a boiling ocean

The barnacle has about two major parts: the body (where the meat is covered by a leathery sheath) and the nail, which works nicely as a meat holder. The taste is very much like fresh, high-quality muscles and the texture was similar to that of a clam. Probably coming in number three on my top food list this trip, the experience is what really made the dish unique. Imagine peeling a banana made of leather plus dodging the squirt that comes with eating a grapefruit. For a veteran, Tim didn't do too well with later, having gotten squirt in the eye with boiling salt water twice that night. As you can imagine, Tim's walls were dripping with precebes juice by the end of the night.

Ever here of the story of the ugly barnacle?...

....He was delicious. The End.