The ship followed a north easterly course along the Spanish coast during the
night. At 0615 we began our approach to the Barcelona port, embarking the local
pilot at 0625. At 0643 we entered the breakwater and shortly after by 0751 we
were secured alongside our berth.
Wind: NE3, Sky: 6/8 cloud cover. Temperature 64.4 degrees in the morning. It
became warmer throughout the day.
We all met for breakfast at 8:45 at the elevators by the buffet, then made
our way to the Theater meeting spot by 9:30. We boarded the bus as our group
number was called and we were off to explore Barcelona. Along the way to our
first stop, the guide explained that the official language of Spain was Spanish,
and that Catalan was also used and displayed on signs. The city was very clean,
had a variety of architecture, which I'll show. I liked the street lamps.
Guell Park:
Our first stop was Antoni Gaudi's Guell Park. His idea for revolutionizing
town planning was to constuct 60 homes around a garden district and to decorate
the area with mosaics and sculptures. Death interrupted his work and a fraction
of the project was completed. The park is in the hillside, with winding paths
and patio spaces that overlook Barcelona. I thought that it was a very
interesting park and a great place to take a relaxing walk but also a good place
to take a challenging walk, as some of the paths went up/down the hillside.
Since the park had no entrance fee, it was very crowded with groups.
La Sagrada Familia
We continued through the city to Gaudi's towering church, La Sagrada
Familia. Gaudi began construction on this very unique church in 1883 and
completed a great part of it before he was killed by a tram in 1926. Work has
resumed in spite of the fact that he left no plans or notes behind to help his
successors. The guide told us that work continues when money from the faithful
is received. There is so much to look at when you stand outside the building.
There are different styles on each side of the church. The interior is high and
roomy. Mom helped direct the photo shoot and I think that we were able to
capture some of the best views. I recommend seeing this church, even as it is
still going through construction. I don't know of any comparable
architecture.
The pictures are posted in the order of the discussion above.
Fancy apartment building (by Gaudi)
Guell Park
La Sagrada Familia
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| Apartment building - no straight lines. |
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| Guell Park - park bench |
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| Guell Park |
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| La Sagrada Familia |
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| Interior |
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| Interior |
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| Statues on one side of the building |
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