Day 7: The Principal's Welcome and The Museum of Fine Arts in Bilbao

by Ashley Smalley and Genna Goodman

The first thing we did today was arrive at the high school. The headmaster of the school told us how high schools work in Spain and what type of classes they offer. Then he told us about the man the school is named after, Julio Caro Baroja. It was very interesting and I was happy that I understood most of what he was saying since he told us in Spanish. The headmaster also showed us the difference between Spanish and Basque. I learned that Basque has no known origin and that Spanish is Latin based. Then we went to our students second class. I went to economy class. My student takes all of her classes in Basque, so I didn't understand what was being said, but it was cool to hear Basque being spoken. 

            After class we left our students at school and took the Metro to the Fine Arts Museum of Bilbao. We saw traditional Basque paintings and other famous paintings by el Greco, Renoir and Monet. It was cool to see an el Greco painting in person since we learned about his work in Spanish class. I also love art and loved seeing the paintings by Monet. We had a great tour guide who was explained the painting to us in more depth. Then we had our lunches in a park in Bilbao. 

           Once we finished our lunches, we had an hour and a half to shop. There were many clothing stores where we were. It was fun to shop there because most of the stores are not located in America. I got a few cute things. The stores here are really nice because the prices are often lower than they are in America. I had a great time today shopping with my friends. 

          Tonight we went walking on a nice path in Bilbao and there was a beautiful view. I took lots of pictures. Then we went to a cafe for crepes. I got a chocolate crepe, it was delicious. We sat and talked at the cafe for a long time having fun. Then we walked back home and had dinner with our families.