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| Church of St. Nicholas, Bilbao |
Waking up I was greeted by a beautiful morning sky and I
equally left the hotel for a café con leche and a pastry in the Cathedral
Square. The city was coming to life
under the sunny sky and I was happy to be a part of it. I had nothing on the agenda before catching
my train to Bilbao. Well, almost
nothing. Certainly I wanted to return to
St. Isidore’s for Mass. They had been
very welcoming. But I also had to take
care of my pilgrim’s beard. It was just
so much easier not to shave so I stopped trying to do so about the second week.
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| Bilbao River (actually a tidal estuary) flanked by river walks. |
This being my first beard in my almost 46 years, I was told
that I couldn’t take it off myself without special equitement etc. On the way out of Leon the last time I
remember seeing a men’s haircutting place on the Camino Path. So I returned. As I looked in the window Julien was waiting
for me like a patient grandfather. He
lead me to the chair and in the mix of languages (and the assistance of another
barber), it took him a moment or two to realize what exactly I wanted.
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| Night view of the river. |
I told him that I had just finished the Camino after 33 days
of walking and three weeks of not shaving and that this was my first barbershop
shave. Julien showed me the packaged
Gillette razor blades before he began as if that was to reassure me. It was wonderful to get my face back! Not only did I get my face back but I did so
for a celebrity barber. With my
apprehension of entering the barbershop I failed to see all the pictures,
letters and citations Julien has received.
He is/was a barber for two presidents (or was that prime ministers) of
Spain. He showed me pictures of famous
people (he said) and citations from the government. It was interesting to say the least.
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| Plaza Mayor, Bilbao |
The train to Bilbao was late, long (5 ¾ hours), hot and
loud. The only consolation was that this
time I wasn’t crossing the mountains on foot in the snow. Bilbao is a genuine city and I could feel my
excitement building as we began to pass its suburbs. At the station the pace and mix of people
announced to me I was home. Well, kind
of. I checked in the hotel and got a
quick look around before the sun set and then of course dinner: Chinese food at 10PM!
Then to bed as a tourist again.
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| Plaza Nueva, Bilbao |
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