Gira a Barcelona: Days 3 & 4

The first half of our first full day in Barcelona could rightly be called "Gaudí's Barcelona."*(see note at bottom) We started out by visiting La Sagrada Familia, a cathedral that was started in 1882 and they're still working on it today.

I'd have to say that my first impression from the outside was, "wow, that's pretty ugly for a cathedral." Once inside though, the view improves. Inside it's all smooth white columns with a spiky ceiling.

I think I read once that the inside is supposed to resemble a bat cave. I'm not sure that's the vibe I received, but it's still pretty cool. The only question I had while inside was, "why didn't I think to build something that I can charge admission for while I'm still building it?"

Granted, Guadí, the guy who designed it, is now dead, but I bet his family's still benefitting. Thankfully though, they have blueprints up so you know what it's *supposed* be eventually.

The parts that I liked the most about the cathedral were the stained glass (there needs to be more) that shines prettily on the columns,

and the front doors.

These doors were covered with different Catalán names and frases from the Bible. Also, he stuck this nifty square of numbers on one of the doors that when combined in different patterns, the numbers add up to Jesus' age at the time of his death.

In the basement of the cathedral they have a museum of the construction of the cathedral along with various furniture pieces (like lecturns and confessionals) that have been finished for future use (assuming that they finish it before Jesus returns, which I highly doubt) and explications for different parts of the cathedral (like the number square thing). They also let you look into Gaudí's old workshop where artisans and engineers and architects still work today.

After the cathedral, we went to the Park Güell,

a park that Gaudí designed to surround houses of the "rich and affluent." There we saw Gaudí's own house

and a bunch of cool mosaic-type benches

and towers and even a lizard/salamandar/thing.

The park was huge and beautiful and I'd love to see it sometime in spring, when I'm sure it's really blooming.

After the park, they took us to Las Ramblas, which is basically like the main shopping trip of Barcelona. In the middle of the street is a pedestrian strip where you can find vendors selling everything from the normal touristy stuff to flowers to small pets. It was in one of these flower shops that I saw cotton bolls on sale for the first time. Wish I had taken a picture, sorry. Along this strip, you have Spain's largest food market (that reeked of meat), the opera, and other random stores. It was here that Kimmy, Erin, and I had an unsatisfactory lunch (well, they didn't like theirs, mine was fine) and so we went in search of some gelato to make ourselves feel better. Lady Luck was with us and we entered a gelatería where the guy working the counter was cute, the gelato amazing, and we each got 6 or 7 samples before finally making our choice. Everytime after giving us a sample, the guy wouldn't wait for us to ask if we could have another sample but would just hold us three more sample spoons and wait expectantly for our next choice. Both the service and the gelato were amazing. Afterwards, we wandered around the streets with no particular destination in mind. Except for me of course. I had done an internet search before leaving Sagunto and had in hand several addresses for yarn stores in Barcelona. Unfortunately, the only store I found was closed at the time for siesta. Bahhh!

The next item on the agenda was meeting back at the hotel so that we could all walk together to the Picasso Museum in Old Town.

I have to admit that I didn't anticipate liking the museum since I'm not a fan of Picasso's abstract art. However, the little known fact about Picasso is that before he went wacko with his paintings, he did some really cool, realistic paintings. He was a genius and painting crazily well when still in his teens. Of the abstract ones, the only painting that I really liked was an adaptation of Velazquez's "Las Meninas" (which I just realized from my internet image search, is unfinished).

And it is here that I state that I am soooo glad that I took an art history class before coming to Europe because it has enabled me to recognize and appreciate better the famous paintings in the various museums I've visited. For example, when I saw this painting and its title, I could see in my mind the original. Thanks Schroeder!

After Picasso (we could leave when we wanted: I was there for about 2 1/2 hours and I heard later that some people actually stayed there 5 hours), we had free time but some of the group, including myself, chose to stay with Luis Amoros, the teacher in charge of the trip, for a nighttime tour/walk of Barcelona. We went through the old part, down to the wharf,

and back up Las Ramblas. It was a great time to hang out and I got a better perspective of Amoros as a professor in the more relaxed setting. By the time we got to the start of Las Ramblas, it was late and freezing so I hurried my way back to the hotel with some friends.

The next day, we started out early and headed to the town hall of Barcelona

and the Capitol (as it were) of Cataluña (both in the same plaza opposite each other).

Then we went to the "castle" where Colombus presented his New World treasures to Isabel and Ferdinand.

After that was the cathedral of Barcelona (covered up in the midst of a restoration project, just like the rest of Europe)

with a sign that seemed to come directly from an Adventist academy

and then more free time until we boarded the bus to return to Sagunto. During this free time, I went off on my own so that I could be sure to make it to my yarn stores. Luckily this time I was able to find two stores, both open. One I found for the first time, and the other was the one that had been closed during siesta the previous day. I was really happy to find them open because the other shop that I had found the very first day had been closed every time I went past EXCEPT for when we were walking as a group to the Picasso Museum and I couldn't stop. Just a little irritating. But in the end I was able to buy myself Spanish yarn, and all's well that ends well.

On our way out of town, we stopped for few minutes at Olympic Village where the summer Olympics were held in 1992.

Yay for getting to be in Olympic Stadium. How cool is that? I just wish someday I could be in one for the summer olympics as a sand volleyball athlete. *sigh*

Then it was back in the bus for 4/5 hours as we drove back to Sagunto. But luckily I had my books and knitting to keep me occupied.

* Jacque, this is probably the day that you'll recognize pictures from Barcelona.