Look for a grand, turreted mansion with red-and-cream stonework, perched elegantly on the chamfered corner of Plaza Moyúa-its unique roofline and fanciful masonry give it away right on the plaza.
Ah, the Chávarri Palace-doesn’t it look like something a chocolate magnate from Belgium wished for as a child? This splendid building was dreamed up in 1888 for brothers Víctor and Benigno Chávarri, designed by Atanasio de Anduiza and based on plans from Belgian architect Paul Hankar. The architects didn’t hold back; they gave it multicolored stone walls, twisting wrought iron decorations, and windows galore, as if they couldn’t decide between circles or rectangles-so they picked both. At first, this mansion was just a swanky family home. Imagine powdery mustaches, canvas shoes squeaking, as early Bilbao’s high society whisked in for elegant parties, staring in awe at the painter José Echenagusia Errazquin’s lavish interior artwork.
But stop! The party didn’t last forever. In 1943, as the city’s destiny shifted, giant trucks rumbled up, and new officials started marching inside. The palace became the official seat of the Civil Government of Vizcaya, and builders set about with hammers and saws, reshaping it to fit its new, powerful role. Still today, it serves as the home for the Subdelegation of the Government, watching over the city through its grand array of balconies, dormer windows peeking like curious old relatives from above. Quite a leap from a cozy home to Bilbao’s official nerve center-no wonder it has so many eyes (and windows)!
