Vitoria - Capital of Basque Region & Hemingway

Tuesday 1 October - Vitoria
Having travelled by bus to the last couple of destinations, we fancied a day out by train and visiting nearby Vitoria, the capital of the Basque region.

We boarded a Renfe regional train (for medium distances) and passed through some lovely scenery: fields, tiny Basque villages dotted with Alpine-style chalets and surrounded by the majestic Pyrenees.  The public transport is really good in Spain - reasonably priced, clean and reliable.

An hour later we arrived in Vitoria and our first impression is that it was quite sedate.  A good selection of shops, cafes and pintxos bars - ticking all the usual boxes for a capital city.  Also, a nice town square - the Plaza de la Virgen Blanca - off of which ran various newish streets and several older, narrow streets.

We walked to the top of the City via the Iglesia de San Miguel to the Casco Viejo (old town) to the for a birdseye view but that was about all from atop of the city.  So, the old part was limited to a few streets off of the Plaza which, in comparison with Pamplona, was a bit disappointing.

However, the Cathedral de Maria Inmaculada was fabulous.  It looks old but, in fact, was built in the 1970s.  To our novice eyes, though, it looked old and was impressive, featuring some lovely stained glass and really high naves (lots of Romanesque and Gothic style architecture here) plus an annexed Musuem of Sacred Art (to include an El Greco portrait), Basque crosses and stoneware plus Ceremonial Silverware - really breathtaking (photos not allowed).

Cathedral de Maria Inmaculada

We had planned to visit the Museo de Bellas Artes (Museum of Beautiful Art) and the Museo de Armeria (Armoury Museum) which were listed as a free entry but, on arrival, were fee paying.  Whilst we're not skint, the various entry fees and fares soon add up and make a daytrip quite expensive and, to be fair - if its an entry fee -v- coffees & pintxos there's only one winner!

So, not surprisingly, we headed straight for Usokari - recommended in our trusty Lonely Planet guide as one of the best in town and we savoured a huge piece of one of their mouthwatering tortillas (omelettes) - really thick and cooked to perfection; chillis/anchovies/olives on sticks; prawn and mozzarella vol-au-vents and a couple of beers.  In fact, the entire range of pintxos was mouthwatering - we could've eaten our way through the bar but you can only eat so much!  Highly recommended if you find yourself in Vitoria.

We feel though that Vitoria, as nice as it was, is a poor relation to Pamplona.  Strange that it is the capital city whereas Pamplona is a town.  It seems as though the town planners have attempted to mix old with new and not quite pulled it off - and in the process lost some of the city's character.

Overall, it was a nice day out but - put it this way - we got an earlier train back to Pamplona than the one we booked!  But that's all part of travelling - you never quite know what you're gonna find until you get there.

The day wasn't completely lost though: we went out for a couple of drinks to El Rincon Hemingway (Hemingway Corner) - a lovely bar adjoining Cafe Iruna in Pamplona's Plaza del Castillo.

Having a good time at El Rincon Hemingway

Our next daytrip is to nearby San Sebastian - known for its stunning city beaches, gastronomic superiority and pintxos to die for.  Needless to say we can't wait so tune in soon for the next update.