We arrived into Vigo about 8am to a cold and drizzly day. It was raining and the visibility was very poor. We were booked on a ship’s tour that left at 9.45am to Bayona La Real, an old historical fishing village. We set off pretty much on time to a high hill which gave a good view over the city and harbour… it would have been a lot better on a sunny day as it was a very misty outlook. Our guide did not stop talking from the minute we got on the bus until we got off the bus at 1.30pm. I must say he was very informative and a bit of a comedian at the same time… very entertaining with a dry sense of humour. After roaming around snapping this and snapping that from every possible angle we set off across the city to the motorway to head for Bayona La Real which was about a 30 minute drive away. We first went to a 16th century fortress, Castillo de Monte Real, that is now a very upmarket hotel and function centre… perfect for weddings. The views across the harbour were great although misty and after checking out the canons we were treated to a very nice morning tea which included wine in the main function hall which was quite elaborate and adorned with lots of tapestries and art. Just as we were getting ready to leave the skies opened for a brief but heavy shower. This was quite unexpected as we had had no rain to that point. By the time we all got out our umbrellas the rain had stopped and we did not have any more rain for the rest of the day. We then walked back to the Old Quarter which is on the waterfront and consists of narrow cobbled laneways and magnificent old building which consist mainly of seafood cafes. We had about 45 minutes free time here where we just walked around the laneways. Very quaint indeed. We then headed back to the main part of Vigo to wander around the streets. We had to be back on board by 4.30 so we had about 3 hours to take in the local scene. Vigo is noted for its very good seafood so we headed to the Oyster market where we had a dozen oysters and some white wine while we warded off the hawkers trying to sell us fake watches and perfume. It was exceptionally cold sitting in the market with the temperature sitting at around 12 degrees. Unfortunately most of the shops were closed as they close for lunch from 1.30ish to 4.30ish but from what we saw the clothes and shoes looked to be quite good and very cheap. We arrived back at the ship about 5 minutes before the cut off time so we did make the most of our day in Vigo.
As this was Anzac Day there was a service on board the ship which about 50 people attended but we forgot about the service and basically rested when we got back as Peter still has his cold and cough and I felt like I may be getting it. To be honest I could have crawled into bed and forgotten about dinner but we didn’t want to let our dinner companions down.
Some facts:
- The harbour is 32km long by 5km wide
- Known for its granite buildings
- Currency is Euro
- Part of Spain
- Fishing is one of the biggest industries
Tomorrow is our last sea day which means it will be a packing day and getting last minute photos etc
xo
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