Sagrada Familia, Parc Joan Miró & Montjuic

How can each day be even better than the last?  Nothing broken and no locals injured!  I dare say we are starting to acclimate to the heat.  It helps that I snuck out early to go see the famous Basilica Sagrada Familia by myself, getting there just after 9 am.  It was already pretty warm waiting in the sun.  Started in the 1880s and expected to finally be complete about 20 years from now, Sagrada Familia is perhaps the masterpiece of Barcelona. 

Largely a work of the most famous local architect, Antoni Gaudi, it is overwhelming in its size, beauty and cool factor.  Built in the neo-gothic style, elements of nature were heavily borrowed in designing the structure.  The columns, for example, broke from tradition by branching like trees as they rise.  Colors and other symbolic elements were extremely important in the design.

To date, only one of the four planned organs has been installed.

To me, one of the wildest parts was the unorthodox, suspended & crucified Jesus to form the altar area.  Absolutely beautiful.  Somehow reminds me of a pinball game.  The gold triangle near the top also represents the holy trinity.  The columns are massive and made from several types of stone.  The red one in the foreground on the left, for example was made from a red stone (whose name I can't remember but was something like "porphyre") to represent the blood of Christ.  After two and a half glorious hours to myself to look around and listen to the audioguide in peace, I headed out to meet Erica and the kids at the lovely Parc Joan Miró. 

Erica says:  The kids and I walked to Parc Joan Miró, home to many palm trees, blooming bougainvillea and oleander, a giant Miró sculpture and some excellent playgrounds.  It really feels like the tropics.  The park covers 4 city blocks that used to be home to a slaughterhouse.  Miró was a painter and a sculptor, was born and studied here, and moved to Paris in 1920.

We first noticed the crazed chirping, then finally began to see these green parrot-like birds, about the size of pigeons.  They had big nests in the palm trees and seemed to be very happy in Parc Joan Miró.

We found yet another "vine swing"/ zip line attraction at this playground.  Here Madeleine gives Sully an extra push.  Nik met us here for our typical picnic lunch, and we had to drag the kids away after 2.5 hours.

One of Joan Miró's last sculptures, entitled Dona i Ocell (Woman and Bird) - 70 feet tall!

Next to the park we spied Las Arenas (above), so we headed there next to check it out, as our guide book said it was an old bull fighting ring being converted to commercial space.  We saw people walking around the top level and decided we wanted to check out the view too.  Turns out this is a fully completed mall, with movie theater, fitness center and Spain-style food court.  We enjoyed the 360 degree view, then cooled off inside with some "Smudy" smoothies and bread.  From here we headed up to Parc Montjuic, via funicular, which is an extension of the Metro.  We were expecting an above-ground funicular, as we rode in Paris up to Montmarte, but in fact this one was mostly underground.

Nik says:  Henry especially enjoyed exploring the gardens, looking for fountains, sculptures and statues.  He was not disappointed.  M & S were most interested in climbing trees.

Up on this hill is also the main Olympic pavilion from the summer games in 1992.  We walked through the stadium and through the swimming arena (where we may go back to swim).  The entire area is also quite modern in its gardens and art within.  Here Henry is pictured with the Torre de Calatrava, which was very controversial when it was first built as a piece of communication equipment.

Nearby, the finale for the evening was the much-anticipated Font Magica (Magic Fountain), which plays from 9-11:30 pm every Thurs-Sun evenings.  The fountain sprays, set to music, in the setting of a large plaza just below the Catalunya National Art Museum, attracts a very large crowd in the summers.  We dined on Sangria (yes, there is a theme here), pizza and panini, none of which was very fancy but was just what we needed.  Walked home with a tired crew but before 10.  Baths to remove sweat, dirt and sunscreen again, despite moaning and groaning.

Though at first Barcelona felt very foreign to me, even when compared to London or Paris, I'm starting to get a feel for it.  Everyone appreciates the whimsical, fun atmosphere and design.  We'll keep working on our Spanish.  Only plan for tomorrow so far is to sleep in.  Maybe a pool??

-N