Today was our second-to-last full day in Bilbao, and it started bright and early with a company visit. We went to Tekniker, an engineering firm located in the mountains. We began with a brief presentation about the company. It is a private, non-profit organization with around 100 collaborations and projects with businesses and hospitals. They focus on advanced manufacturing technologies and have made many advancements in medical devices and robotics. We then toured the facility and were able to see a variety of labs with different specialties, the main office, and even spaces like a gym and climbing wall.

After Tekniker, we got back on the bus and headed to the Oma Painted Forest. We hiked all the way up to the top of the hill and stopped for lunch. After eating, we followed maps along the trail to find the painted trees, which form different images depending on your perspective. We then made our way back down the hill. Overall, it was really cool to see the artwork, although it was very muddy, and most of our shoes ended up pretty ruined.

After the forest, we got back on the bus once again and headed to Guernica. It was such a cute town with a lot of history. It was especially interesting to learn about the bombing and how it impacted the town. We were able to go into one of the bomb shelters and watch a short video. As we walked through the town, we saw historical sites, including houses that were not destroyed during the bombing. We also saw a representation of Guernica and learned more about its background.

We finally made it back to the hotel after a long day and grabbed a quick dinner before heading up to our rooms. I can’t believe we’re leaving so soon, but this has been such an amazing trip!