Barcelona

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Of course I had heard of Barcelona and I even knew it was in Spain but I had no idea what was in Barcelona other than Spaniards. It is a lovely city and I am glad we got the opportunity to visit. We actually visited the city three times: the first time was just as we arrived in Spain before we started our Workaway volunteer “job”; the second time was during one of our weekends off; and the third time was after we left the Workaway.

During our first visit we stayed with Carola and Quico who are friends of a friend we met in China. When we arrived at their apartment, Quico was not yet home but Carola greeted us like good friends with kisses on each cheek. After relaxing for a bit, she gave us a guided tour around her neighborhood. It is called Gracia and is known for all its small squares or plazas. It was a warm, sunny, Sunday afternoon so the squares were alive with people sipping coffee in sidewalk café’s, boys playing soccer and families out for an afternoon stroll. When I mentioned I was hungry, Carola led us to a bodega (a bar that also makes wine) where we each had two glasses of a delicious house wine and five different tapas. Since Carola knew what to order it was wonderful.

We headed back to the apartment and there we met Carola’s husband Quico. Again I was greeted with double cheek kisses (no kisses for John but he did get a handshake). The guided tour continued as we headed to the city center, Plaza Catalunya. There was a subway we could have taken but it was such a nice night and there were many interesting things to see so we joined the crowds of Spaniards out enjoying the evening. We saw street performers including two opera singers and several “living statues.” There were flower sellers catering to the tourists and a beautifully lit 700 year old Gothic Cathedral. We stopped for drinks and it took a tea to warm me up and a coke for the caffeine but I succeeded in overcoming my jetlag. After following the remains of a Roman wall through several side streets, it was 9pm and the start of the dinner hour.

Carola and Quico took us to a restaurant which serves very good Catalan food. We had two types of appetizers, a half kilo of ox roast and a nice bottle of wine. For dessert we had nuts and a purro of wine. A purro is a pitcher which you pour directly into your mouth without touching your mouth or lips (it takes practice). All this great food went along with wonderful conversation and we had a lovely evening.

After this lovely day we spent one more day in Barcelona doing chores (boring but necessary) then headed to our Workaway. Two weeks later we came back to Barcelona. We decided to start this visit with the walking tour recommended by our guidebook. It started at Plaza Catalunya then headed down La Rambla, a several kilometers long pedestrian mall. Carola and Quico had brought us here the evening we walked around Barcelona with them but we did not know its name at that time. It was again filled with people out for a stroll, flower stalls and street performers acting as human statues. Besides watching people we also saw a Roman cemetery that had been excavated. The town had risen so much that what used to be street level in Roman times is now 12 feet below.

Our walking tour took us past the Cathedral and since we had seen only the outside of the Cathedral our previous visit, this time we went inside. It is a classical Roman Catholic cathedral like many others we have seen across Europe, pretty but routine. The interesting sight was outside the cathedral in the plaza; there was a 15 piece band playing music for about 100 locals doing a traditional circle dance. They were in circles of between 6 and 25 people all holding hands doing the same dance steps with different circles performing different dances. That was fun to watch.

Continuing to follow the walking tour we went to the Church of St Mary of the Sea (Esglesia de Santa Maria del Mar). It had been pillaged by anarchists in the early 20th century so was just the stone building without the ornate decorations and I found its soaring heights even more spectacular as a result.

We then headed back to our Workaway home but two weeks later we came back after we were finished. Our first stop was Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Familia. This catholic cathedral was designed by Antoni Gaudi. Before I describe the cathedral, let me explain about Gaudi. He was a Barcelona architect who lived and worked in Barcelona in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His buildings were always fanciful with very few straight lines and many colorful, naturalistic decorations. He was a leader of a movement called Moderisme and he designed at least a dozen buildings around Barcelona.

Going back to Sagrada Familia, I think this is my favorite cathedral in Europe. It was started in 1882 and Gaudi was soon hired as the architect. There is no doubt this is his masterpiece. After 120 years it is 50% done but they expect to finish in about 30 years. Can you imagine a 150 year building project? In fact, the roof was finished only last fall and so the Pope came to town to dedicate the building as a Basilica.

The church is laid out in the traditional cross pattern. Three of the naves have entrances and two of these have completed facades. The oldest is the Nativity façade which was done by Gaudi himself and is very ornate. It shows scenes from the conception, birth and life of Christ. It has lots of animals and plants and is like a 3-d “Where’s Waldo?” game where you search for the cow or the sea turtle. The second façade is the Passion façade. It was designed in the 1960’s and 70’s and completed in the 90’s. It is much more modern and minimalist and tells the story of the arrest, trial and crucifixion ending with the ascension. Interestingly it skips the resurrection. The third façade is the Glory façade. Gaudi left directions for it but it has not yet been designed. He intended one façade to be built in each century. Each façade is topped with four bell towers that, when completed, will be able to play sophisticated music.

When you walk inside, it looks like a normal cathedral at first but then you start to notice the details. The columns twist like trees and, at the capital, break into branches that go up to “leaves” on the ceiling. There are four types of columns each made from a different type and color of stone. The type of stone was chosen based on the weight the column needed to bear.

The stained glass windows are abstract by design but the colors have significance and they are beautiful. About 30% of the stained glass is complete. There is a choir loft running the entire way around the sanctuary and will seat 1000 singers when completed. The ceiling above the alter is a spiral dome covered in opaque white glass. When you look at it, a triangle representing the trinity is visible. All of the staircases are also spirals. We spent almost three hours gaping in amazement. It was so petty that after the tour we went back inside just to look at it again.

Come dinnertime (9pm) John was not hungry so I headed out by myself to find food. After talking with our hostess at the hotel, I decided to go to a tapas bar she recommended. It was only two blocks away and once there I was able to order by pointing. I got meatballs and goat cheese and tomato salad and, of course, wine. I picked a table in front of the window and started eating and reading my book. I did notice they turned on the TV to watch the soccer game but failed to notice the building crowd. When I finally looked up from my book, I was surrounded by people watching the game and realized I had been taking up prime game-watching real estate. I sheepishly paid and left.

The next day we walked down Las Ramblas to the food market. The guidebook says it is one of the best markets in Europe and I believe it. It has fresh meat, preserved meat, seafood, vegetables, fruit from all over the world, bread, nuts, candy, canned goods and even a couple of restaurants. We wandered for awhile looking then bought fixings for lunch.

Next we rode the bus to Park Gűell. Gűell was a wealthy patron of Gaudi and Park Gűell was an attempt by Gaudi to design a park-like residential area. It was a commercial failure and never finished but it was fun to see and imagine what it would have been like. It was on a hillside so has many curvy roads. There are bridges that look like they are made from worn rock supported by columns set at angles. From the top of the hill we had a nice view of the city including Sagrada Familia and the unusual building called Torre Agbar.

We explored the park for several hours then sat on a park bench surrounded by pigeons eating our picnic lunch of sausage, cheese, bread, pistachios and apples.

There is much more to see in Barcelona but in our short time there we could not see everything worth season. Maybe some day we will be back.

Next up: The Pyrenees Mountains.

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Photos

Fruit Stand
I love the colors!!!

Purro
Beth's first time. No spills!

Dancing in the Streets
In front of the Barcelona Cathedral.

Sagrada Familia
The Nativity Facade.

Inside Sagrada Familia
Doesn't it look like a forest?

Altar of Sagrada Familia
Note the triangle in the dome representing the Trinity.

A real meat market
Note the entire hind legs hanging from the rafter.

Park Guell
The first two houses completed in Park Guell by Gaudi. Can you imagine an entire neighborhood like this?

Holy Family
Detail from the nativity facade.

Barcelona Skyline
Taken from Park Guell. The city has excellent public transportation.

Comments

[Ling Li]

Sagrada Familia
I also think that Sagrada Familia is my favorite cathedral in Europe! It is absolutely amazing!! I plan to go back when it's finished!