Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Guernica issmall (about 17,000inhabitants) andcompact, focused onits largemarket hall
(Monday market 9:00-14:00).
Tourist Information:
The TI is in the town center (daily 10:00-14:00 &
16:00-18:00, longer hours in summer, Artekalea 8, tel. 946-255-892,
www.gernika-
lumo.net
). Pick up the free, good town map. If you'll be visiting both the Peace Museum
and the Basque Country Museum, buy the €6 combo-ticket here.
Arrival in Guernica:
Drivers will find a handy parking lot near the train tracks at
the end of town. Buses drop off passengers along the main road skirting the town center.
Nomatterwhereyouenter,theTIiswell-signed(lookforyellow
i
signs)—headtherefirst
to get your bearings.
I've arranged Guernica's sights in the order of a handy sightseeing loop from the TI.
•ExittheTItotheleft,crossthestreet,andwalkuptheleftsideofthesquare,whereyou'll
find the...
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Gernika Peace Museum
Because of the brutality of the Guernica bombing, and the powerful Picasso painting that
documentedtheatrocitiesofwar,thename“Guernica”hasbecomesynonymouswithpaci-
fism. This thoughtfully presented exhibit has taken a great tragedy of 20th-century history
and turned it into a compelling cry for peace in our time. Borrow the English translations
at the entry, request an English showing of the movie upstairs, and head up through the
two-floorexhibit.Thefirstfloorbeginsbyconsideringdifferentwaysofdefining“peace.”
You'llthenenteranapartmentandhearalocalwoman,Begoña,describehertypicalGuer-
nica life in the 1930s...until the bombs dropped (a mirror effect shows you the devastating
aftermath). You'll exit through the rubble into an exhibit about the town's history, with a
special emphasis on the bombing. Finally, a 10-minute movie shows grainy footage of the
destruction, and ends with a collage of peaceful reconciliations in recent history—in Ire-
land, South Africa, Guatemala, Australia, and Berlin. On the second floor, Picasso's fam-
ouspaintingissuperimposedonthreetransparentpanelstohighlightdifferentthemes.The
exhibit concludes with a survey of the recent history of conflicts in the Basque Country.
Cost and Hours:
€5;Tue-Sat10:00-19:00,Sun10:00-14:00,closedMon;ForuPlaza
1, tel. 946-270-213,
www.peacemuseumguernica.org
.
