El Bocho

Today it was over to Bilbao to take a look a the Guggenheim Museum designed by Frank Gehry who took architecture to a level it has never been before - Having a guest role in The Simpsons. Like most people, I was probably more interested in the building rather than the content itself. The building is not like any other I have seen, it is a swirling creation of titanium that catches light from all angles and is a sight to behold.



We also had a bit of luck today, in celebration of the 9th birthday of the museum, we were give free entry! The exhibits swung in and out between impressive and stupid. While I acknowledge I am not as good at appreciating art as some other things in life, some of the things I saw lead me to the comment of "Are they taking the piss or what??" The feature exhibition was on African artists which was actually quite interesting, they have developed their own style of modern art which ranged from very political works to some very humerous pieces.

El Bocho? That is the former nickname to Bilbao which translates to "The Hole". Prior to the Guggenheim, Bilbao was considered an industrial wasteland. Today it is an area on the move, while not as pretty as San Sebastian, it does have the impression of a city wanting to surge forward.