I am extremely disappointed. The permanent collection is not on display during renovation and…read morethat's why I came to this city and decided on it over other cities in Spain. THERE IS NO INFORMATION ONLINE THAT THE PERMANENT COLLECTION IS CLOSED. The staff confirmed this and they receive this complaint everyday. THIS IS EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTING. The new building is scheduled to reopen in October. For a major museum, this lack of communication is very bad.

I was a bit disappointed with this museum. I thought it would be similar to El Prado in Madrid,…read morewith lots and lots of master paintings but it was actually a combination of traditional Renaissance and Medieval paintings and modern art. The amount of paintings by masters of the Renaissance was very small. The museum itself was not very big either...just two floors and about 4 wings. Overall not a bad place to spend a few hours, but not a place that I would recommend to someone that liked their time at The Prado in Madrid.

This is the late 20th century opus of American architect Frank Gehry…read more As an architect, i am always amazed at what some architects can get build. Thus, this always perplexed me. However in situ, it makes total sense. At a human scale its underpinnings line up with the surrounding buildings and the river it sits upon. The curvilinear forms are symbolic of the ships once built on this ground in the early 20th century. As an icon and symbol of basque pride. Interestingly, it also plays homage to Frank Lloyd Wright's opus the original Guggenheim in NYC. The Art? The building is the art. I will let others comment on its success as a gallery. However, it is perhaps the one of the greatest pieces of architecture of our time. Post Modern deconstructionist Master Work

This museum was the main reason why I chose to visit Bilbao during my recent trip to Spain. It had…read morebeen on my bucket list for years! I've visited the Guggenheim museums in NYC and Venice and I have to say that this building had the most unique architecture of them all so far. Designed by Frank Gehry, the museum is a deconstructionist building with over 33,000 titanium plates. Located along the Nervion River, the industrial backdrop of Bilbao blends in with the metallic look of the museum. The interior seems a bit jumbled, which is a contrast to the sleekness of the exterior. Stairwells jut here and there, it didn't seem like there was a real flow. In terms of the collection, while I was here there was an exhibition of Jasper Johns, and while I'm not a huge fan but know his work, it was interesting. I found that the exhibits were on the niche side, albeit very comprehensive with retrospectives of their work. I really liked viewing the installation piece by Richard Serra, The Matter of Time. Also being a fan of Jeff Koons, the live Puppy outdoor sculpture is amazing to view. Honestly, I was more impressed with the architecture rather than the art here.

Photos etc coming soon…read more Very interesting small museum Next door to the Archeology Museum Free on Thursday

Sweet little museum of the archaeological finds in the Basque region of Spain and France. They had…read morea virtual tour of the cave paintings from the area. I really liked it and is well worth the stop to check it out.

A stunning modern bridge right next to the Guggenheim. We walked on it a few times and took a ton…read moreof pictures. The views from here are spectacular. We took a boat ride that went under the bridge and again gave us a chance to marvel at the architecture.

Adjacent to the magnificent Guggenheim Bilbao is the La Salve bridge that sweeps by the museum to…read morethe center of town. After seeing the museum proper we made the trek up to the red arch. Taking the elevator up almost the top a guy in the elevator reminded me by saying Arriba! Great views of the river, the old town,the new construction and the sweep of Bilbao proper

Amazing experience watching an Athletic match last night…read more I'm in town for a conference and being a big football fan, found a few others who wanted to go for the home game Friday evening. We took the tram to San Mames stadium and got there an hour early for pintxos and beer at a bodega outside. Getting in was a breeze. Our seats were high up towards the rabid fan end of the pitch, which meant we had a great view and were immersed in the home crowd, which is as passionate as they come in Spain. Athletic Bilbao has a tradition of only allowing Basque players on the team, and is one of only three La Liga teams that's never been relegated (with powerhouses Real Madrid and Barcelona being the other two). The game was fantastic. Athletic beat Celta Vigo 4-3 on a last minute penalty kick, and both teams played well. We got to see a corner penalty goal scored right below where we sat, and a penalty kick by the opponents was blocked, both of which sent the stadium into uproar! After the game, we mingled with home fans at a bar nearby, having more beer and partying late into the night. Thank you, Athletic Bilbao and Estadio de San Mamés, for a memorable experience.

It's impossible to describe the feeling you experiment when entering there, you just must live it…read more The old stadium was so warm and packed with one of the world's best supporters. They're respectful and very supportive towards Athletic Club. Not only do they say it, everyone knows they're at the top of the world's statistics. Every year they have the best percentage of attendance of La Liga, and the atmosphere hours before the match is magnificent in the adjacent streets. With a astonishing new stadium just finished surely the show will be much better Aupa Athletic!!

This is the sort of contemporary art that always makes me think. I probably don't think much about…read morethe art itself, but rather, "People pay for this?" There were two exhibits in particular that had me scratching my head. The first was called "Breadlines" and consists of a long line of loaves of bread in different primary colors. You can see the picture I took. What? The other was a formal dining table with the meals representing various countries. England, France, the United States, Japan. And at each place setting, a glass covered platter of food. And the food? Completely molded over and disgusting. Uh, what is going on here? It's called "Food Situation for a Patriotic Banquet" and I'm puzzled. I wasn't here more than an hour.