Bilbao

We took a train north yesterday to Bilbao, in Basque country. The landscape changed from the dry, sunbaked clay hills of the south to the steep, green mountains of the north. The weather changed from hot and sunny to cool and rainy.

The main attraction in Bilbao is the Guggenheim modern art museum here. The building itself is the main attraction. It was designed by American architect Frank Gehry, inspired by the two main traditional industries of the region. So it´s supposed to look like a fish and a boat, basically.

Unfortunately the weather has been gloomy, so we didn´t get to see the full effect of the titanium "fish scales" in the sun, but the building is still pretty amazing. Oddly, I haven´t been able to determine why it was built here. Bilbao is a lovely town, but the musuem is essentially the only tourist attraction.

Oh, and check out the 30-foot-tall spider statue in the foreground. It´s called "Maman," because it´s a tribute to the artist´s mother...



I´ve been looking forward to coming here because of my fascination with Basque culture. Here´s a sign in Spanish, English and Euskera, the Basque language:



Tomorrow we head to coastal city of San Sebastian, which is famous, so we´re told, for having one of the most beautiful urban beaches in the world and the best tapas in Spain.