This article was translated by John R. Bopp
Our always admired newspaper, The Guardian, has published an article penned by Jonathan Lorie in their travel section about the bombing Guernica suffered, and how the city has since transformed itself into an international symbol of peace, and also about how that bombing has deeply influenced the residents of the town, who have turned it into a place where sensitivity to the disasters of war is high.
We only wish this article were also in the politics section, rather than travel. Jonathan Lorie, in addition to visiting Guernica, also traveled around the area a bit, showing off to his readers such beautiful Basque Coast towns as Mundaka, Bermeo, Elantxobe, and Lekeitio.
It’s an original article that very effectively combines two aspects that on the surface seem hard to reconcile: the memory of such a terrible disaster as was the destruction of Guernica, and the tourism on that part of the Basque coast.
The Guardian – 5/4/2017 – Gran Bretaña
Guernica: the town that became a symbol for peace
Past the handgun factory that has become an arts centre, behind the rebuilt station with its shiny statue of the first Basque president, there’s a long blackened tunnel with a padlocked door. Begoña unlocks it and we step inside. It smells of weeds. Eighty years ago this month it would have smelt of fear, as crowds of townsfolk sheltered from one of the most infamous air raids in history.
(Sigue) (Automatic Translation)
Last Updated on Dec 20, 2020 by About Basque Country
