Gone with the wind

The week before A Coruña I was in Zaragoza, another Spanish city, known by how fast the wind blows. And how cold it is regardless the time of the year. Apparently this is because the city is in a valley and before arriving there the wind comes from the mountains, bringing the cold breeze. At least that’s what my taxi driver told me when I got in his cap, mad about the weather and about the fact the wind almost blown me way, back to Madrid. 

This was my 3^rd time in Zaragoza (the first was years ago, at the end of the road trip I did with some friends to the Basque country, and the second in 2008 during the Expo) and that piece of information the taxi driver gave me is pretty much all I know officially about the city. But this is what I know unofficially:

Zaragoza has a beautiful cathedral, called La Pilarica, that always reminds me of the cathedral from Vienna because of its colorful rooftop made from green, yellow, blue and white tiles. 

The square where the cathedral is is beautiful and sunny but probably the windiest spot in the entire city because it is wide open. 

(This statue looked so beautiful. But my personal Guinness Record of the city with the most beautiful and interesting statues per m² goes to Oviedo, where I was the week before I went to Zaragoza and about which I’ll tell you more in the next post. Stay tuned because it is really worth it!) 

This time around I noticed the Zaragoza’s authorities set up this wall almost in front of the cathedral, for all the citizens that wanted to participate and to contribute with their little grain of creativity to join forces and create something great, such as this graffiti that says: “Porque sueño, no estoy loco” (Because I’m able to dream, I know that I’m not crazy). Is a beautiful message and an iniciative to applaude. When people join forces does the result always look this great… or is just something that only I feel ?!

(Do you see that guy there, at the distance, painted in the wall?! That’s Goya, probably the greatest Spanish painter of all times, and this “title” is actually something important, because over the centuries in Spain there were many great painters, such as Velázquez, El Greco, Zurbarán, Dali, Picasso, Miró and many other… but Goya was the greatest and the city of Zaragoza was paying him a tribute with an exhibition on the MICAZ. The entrance is always for free but this exhibition is already over, nevertheless, next time any of you go to Zaragoza you may consider to pay them a visit because apparently they own several “Goyas”, in an effort to show to the world the importance the city had in the artist life and art). 

(This building remind me a bit of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milán or the Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert in Brussels… Yes, yes, I know, with less glamour and sun light, but with a touch!)

In Zaragoza is one of my favorite “pinxos” restaurant in Spain (let me do a parenthesis in here: what the entire world call “tapa” is actually a “pinxo”, something on a piece of bread; a “tapa” isn’t a porcion neither, that is a “ración” which in Spanish means exactly “a porcion”; a “tapa” is a little bit of something on a little plate which in the past was put over the glass to avoid the flyes from landing inside the beer or the wine). So, as I was saying… In Zaragoza is one of my favorite “pinxos” restaurant. It is called El Cierzo (the name of the already mentioned cold wind that always blows in Zaragoza) and it is great. As I said this was my 3^rd time in town and it was also my 3^rd time in this restaurant that never never never disappoints me. What’s also great, but unheard of until now (despite the fact it is more than one hundred-years-old), is a little pasteries’ shop called Flor de Almibar. It is in the same street from El Cierzo and as you can see by the following pictures everything looks great. 

(Those little marzipan fruits captivate me, since in Portugal we have very similar little cakes… So I decided to go in and buy only two, just to try them…) 

(They were tasteful but not better than the Portuguese marzipan fruits and three times their price. Bottom line, a beautiful shop to see and to take pictures – there were some Japanese tourists doing the same, and I don’t mean trying the pastries, I mean taking pictures – but consider going somewhere else to have your dessert).

(I left the morning after to Barcelona and had a blast in the train taking pictures from the beautiful landscape around Zaragoza, full of windmills – of course -, and with the dawn “painting” everything with orange... although the pictures with my beloved LOMO fish eye lens don’t make justice to the magic of the moment – sniff!!!)

And now, I kindly ask my friend Eva (the same from this weekend in here) to shed some light on this post and add more information about the city of Zaragoza, her city, by using the comments box bellow. 

Escape to Bilbao

Only a couple of days after I landed in Madrid coming from New York I had to go back to Barajas Airport... This time around to come to Bilbao. I've been here for the last couple of days and, despite the fact I came to work, I had the chance to see and do a lot and to make the best out of this quick trip. That, of course, was only possible because I had the best guides! And as a sign of my appreciation I dedicate this post to both of you: Shane & Eva. Thanks guys! See you soon... Meanwhile, we always have the pictures of this long sunny weekend in Bilbao.

Before you go any further I have to apologize for the quality of this post's pictures. There's a reason for such poverty... I forgot the battery of my camera charging in Madrid. But because I wanted so badly to show you some images from this beautiful city I took the chance to use my LOMO lens with my HTC mobile and... it worked! Nevertheless, the quality is what you see... Anyway, hope that it's enough to allow you to enjoy this ride!

In Bilbao the plates with the names of the streets are in a colour that was created especially for the city: the Azul Bilbao. 

The fabulous Gehry building that contains part of the Guggenheim collection. Only a week after visiting the New York Museum, here I am, visiting the Bilbao one. How many people in the world can say they had the same privilege?! Not much, I guess!

 Fabulous both outside and inside...

 And here is Puppy, welcoming you and allowing you to guess the kind of work you can find inside. Although it was raining the Museum was full. Mainly because the entrance was for free. Coincidentally the day I chose for my visit was also the 15th birthday of the Museum. In this picture, far at the distance you can see the Iberdrola Tour, the one and only skyscraper of Bilbao. 

 Inside the Museum... As said, fully packed!

In the entrails of Richard Serra work, that fills a great part of the Museum's ground floor. 

The colorful Tulips from Jeff Koons. Love them!!! 

Part of the Koons work and, at the distance, some Kapoor masterpiece.  

The Ría de Bilbao, seen from the inside of the Guggenheim.  

 Almost night and time to see the last few instalations of the Museum, at the outside. And I'm not only referring to the Kapoor's work, also to some fire and smoke instalations that are part of the Museum spoil as well. 

The typical season's mushrooms at the Bilbao main market, aparently one of the biggest in Europe with a Guiness record.  

One of the Bilbao's tube stations. The Bilbao tube is very modern... 

 If you don't believe just take a look at one of it's exits!

Getxo is a balneary just half an hour way from Bilbao, towards north, and the village where wealthy families have their houses and spend Summer.  

 It is also known by it's bridge. The Vizcaya Bridge, projected by a disciple of Eiffel and an UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

Getxo totally deserves a visit! That and the top of the Bilbao hill (after a quick trip on the Funicular de Artxanda), where you have magnificent views and where I couldn't take any pictures because my mobile (aka. my camera during this past few days) have died by the time I arrived there. But mind what I tell you, once in Bilbao, don't hesitate going there!

 And to close this post about my quick escape to Bilbao, this joyful image of the Getxo little harbor in a sunny and warm October day!