Earlier this month my family and I had the opportunity to stop briefly in the hometown of couper DeQuincey. Sorry to say, we were with our gracious Spanish hosts with five small children (three of ours and two of theirs) in tow, so there was no opportunity to contact DQ in advance to arrange a meetup. But, we did have a chance to see the city, and it is fantastic.
The number one attraction there, of course, is the Guggenheim Museum, designed by Frank Gehry. It is a stroke of genius. Even better, the exhibits inside contained some very accessible and fun art that even a six year old can enjoy. There is a a huge permanent display of works by Richard Serra. Giant curving metal forms, made of steel plate perhaps two inches thick. The pieces are 15- 20 feet tall, some spirals, some waves, etc. You can walk through them, touch them, yell and test their acoustic properties. The curves were pounded out on giant hydraulic presses in I believe a shipyard. They had a great movie showing how it is all done. This is a permanent exhibition.
There was a terrific temporary exhibtion of David Hockney paintings. Very colorful and impressionistic. Many done in 2011. Also, his videos from the seat of a moving car, which inspired the paintings themselves. Not from the seat of an e9, though.
Next door to the museum was one of the best playgrounds our kids had ever seen. We finished the evening with tapas in the old city (Casco Viejo). Anchovies cured in white vinegar were my favorite. The old quarter is very picturesque and charming.
Spain in general is a great place to drive. The fastest roads, the autopista, are very lightly travelled because of the high tolls. It works out to about ten dollars an hour for tolls, plus diesel is seven dollars a gallon. French cars outnumber Japanese cars probably 3 to 1. Lots of interesting newer Peugeots and Citroens that we don't see here. The only vintage car we saw was an Alpine a110 on the streets of Jaca, Spain, our home base. We rented a stick shift Audi A4 wagon which was superb at 150kmh and in the Pyrenees.
If you are in Spain, Bilbao is a must.
Scott
The number one attraction there, of course, is the Guggenheim Museum, designed by Frank Gehry. It is a stroke of genius. Even better, the exhibits inside contained some very accessible and fun art that even a six year old can enjoy. There is a a huge permanent display of works by Richard Serra. Giant curving metal forms, made of steel plate perhaps two inches thick. The pieces are 15- 20 feet tall, some spirals, some waves, etc. You can walk through them, touch them, yell and test their acoustic properties. The curves were pounded out on giant hydraulic presses in I believe a shipyard. They had a great movie showing how it is all done. This is a permanent exhibition.
There was a terrific temporary exhibtion of David Hockney paintings. Very colorful and impressionistic. Many done in 2011. Also, his videos from the seat of a moving car, which inspired the paintings themselves. Not from the seat of an e9, though.
Next door to the museum was one of the best playgrounds our kids had ever seen. We finished the evening with tapas in the old city (Casco Viejo). Anchovies cured in white vinegar were my favorite. The old quarter is very picturesque and charming.
Spain in general is a great place to drive. The fastest roads, the autopista, are very lightly travelled because of the high tolls. It works out to about ten dollars an hour for tolls, plus diesel is seven dollars a gallon. French cars outnumber Japanese cars probably 3 to 1. Lots of interesting newer Peugeots and Citroens that we don't see here. The only vintage car we saw was an Alpine a110 on the streets of Jaca, Spain, our home base. We rented a stick shift Audi A4 wagon which was superb at 150kmh and in the Pyrenees.
If you are in Spain, Bilbao is a must.
Scott
