A - Z Challenge: PICASSO

SPAIN

Pablo Picasso is one of the most famous artists of all time, and he's definitely the best-known cubist.  He was born in Málaga, a city in Andalucía, in 1881, though he spent much of his life in France (like Dalí, he makes an appearance in one of my favorite movies, Midnight in Paris).

His most famous work is probably Guernica, inspired by the 1937 bombing of the town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War.  The bombs, however, were from German planes.  Hitler, a supporter of Franco, had received permission to test new weapons in the area--Basque country, a Republican stronghold in the North.

This painting was Picasso's response:

What do you think?  Does it capture the chaos of a bombing, the emotions, or does the cubism distance the viewer?

Now for writing:  Do you know of any works that were a response to a highly specific event, such as Guernica?

Travel Days = No Fun

I'm sorry, but this "Writing Blog" is now a "Writing/Travel Blog."  Theoretically I could have a separate blog for my travels in Sevilla and beyond, but considering I barely update this one, I figured it's better this way.

After over 24 hours of travel (I lost count of the actual number.  It's something like 32) I am finally in Sevilla, Spain.  Arrived last night :)

So, what was travel like?  Well, I started in Philadelphia and flew to New York.  Yup, a 25 minute flight.  (But for some reason, it saved me $1500, so I guess I can't complain).  Then I sat in JFK for five hours and took off at 7:50.  Flying, flying, flying, until we landed in Madrid at 8:10 local time (2:10 in the States).  Great!  I had four hours before my next flight.  Plenty of time to get my luggage, shuttle on over to another terminal, check in and recheck the luggage, and find my gate.  I also managed to meet up with some friends.

But alas, I knew everything was going too smoothly.  For some reason, I was given a "Standby" boarding pass.  And just my luck, there was no room on the plane.

As Customer Service quickly figured out, I was supposed to be on that plane.  They put me on the next flight and gave me 250 euros.  Woot!  I had to wait in Madrid for 6 more hours, but while waiting, I made met some students who, turns out, are in my study abroad program.  Hooray new friends!

That's all for now.  I'll update more once I have photos!