Las Ramblas is Barcelona’s most famous street in the heart of the shopping and entertainment district. The broad promenade of Las Ramblas is the city's lively district of shops, restaurants and clubs where people-watching is pastime. I was able to book our hotel right on the promenade and it was so nice not having to deal with transportation issues once we made it by taxi from the airport to the hotel. We walked outside Hotel Continental Barcelona and around the corner 1/2 block away to the Hard Rock Cafe. Just across the street from there at Placa Catalunya we were able to grab the City Bus tour.
Rick and I walked through the Gothic Quarter which was about a 10 minute walk from our hotel. These medieval buildings were lovely. We saw the Cathedral of St. Eulalia a magnificent Gothic cathedral built between 1298 and 1450, its twin towers are a characteristic trademark of Barcelona. As we toured the Gothic Quarter, we saw Placa Reial, a beautiful 19th-century arcaded square located and Placa Sant Jaume in the heart of the Gothic Quarter and sight of the Palau de la Generalitat and the Ajuntament.
The most interesting thing about Barcelona is its unique architecture and the profound impact that the famed the Catalan architect Antonio Gaudi had on the whole area. I'm sure you'll notice this as you look at the pictures. The photos included in the album entitled Barcelona Day 1 contain mainly just our first impressions of the city while on our walking and bus tour.
As has become our practice, we took the City Sightseeing Bus tour. We prefer to get our start in a new city in this way so that we can see a lot of things fast. After that, we can take our time and really explore those of particular interest to one or the other of us. There were many sights to see along the tour route and then we focused on four:
First, the Church of La Sagrada Familia or "Church of the Holy Family" is the unique and surreal unfinished cathedral designed by the famed the Catalan architect Antonio Gaudi. Its exterior is truly masterpiece with its flamboyant spires, unusual curves and sculpted figures. As you will see in the pictures, it is still a work in process. Cranes and scaffolding obstruct any picture that you might take on the exterior and the interior is piled high with raw materials. Gaudi himself said that God is never finished therefore La Sagrada Familia will never be finished. Although there are raw materials stacked inside, it doesn't appear that much work has taken place since Guadi's death in 1926. Of course, I'm certain those working there would heartily disagree with my opinion. It was actually a disappointment to see, especially after all of the beautiful cathedrals and basillicas we've seen throughout Europe. On interesting detail of the exterior facade is that one side depicts the birth of Christ and the opposite side depicts the death, burial, resurrection and ascention of Christ. Another thing that is interesting to note is that Guadi used nature as his model for his design...leaves, the lines they draw as they fall from the tree, water and the way it flows, etc.
Second, Palau Güell is a town mansion (translated literally a "palace") in Barcelona also designed by Gaudi for the industrial tycoon Eusebi Güell. The exterior looks like it is covered by the scales of a dragon and the interior is a surreal and made me think of some sort of castle where Neptune, the mythological Roman god of the sea might live. Rick and Hank declined the tour inside, but I took a quick 45 minute tour of the interior. It was awesome...please look at the pictures. I think there is no furniture inside because Mrs. Güell is still shopping for furniture that will fit into the weird shaped rooms with no corners! You'll see pictures of the exterior that Rick took as I took pictures of the interior, the private court yard, and the roof.
The home is centered on a main room for entertaining high society guests. Guests entered the home in horse drawn carriages through the front iron gates, which featured a parabolic arch and intricate patterns of forged iron-work resembling seaweed and in some parts a horsewhip. Animals could be taken down a ramp and kept in the livery stable in the basement where the servants resided, while the guests went up the stairs to the receiving room. The ornate walls and ceilings of the receiving room disguised small viewing windows high on the walls where the owners of the home could view their guests from the upper floor and get a 'sneak peak' before greeting them, in case they needed to adjust their attire accordingly. The main party room has a high ceiling with small holes near the top where lanterns were hung at night from the outside to give the appearance of a starlit sky.
Third, Park Güell is a garden complex with architectural elements situated on the hill of el Carmel in the Gràcia district of Barcelona. It was designed by the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí and built in the years 1900 to 1914.
The park was originally part of a commercially unsuccessful housing site, the idea of Count Eusebi Güell, whom the park was named after. The site was a rocky hill with little vegetation and few trees, called Montaña Pelada (Bare Mountain). The intention was to exploit the fresh air (well away from smoky factories) and beautiful views from the sight.
It has since been converted into a municipal garden. Gaudí's mosaic work is found on the main terrace and although it sounds unlikely, the place is skillfully designed and composed to bring the peace and calm that one would expect from a park. The buildings flanking the entrance, though very original and remarkable with fantastically shaped roofs with unusual pinnacles, fit in well with the use of the park as pleasure gardens and seem relatively inconspicuous in the landscape when one considers the flamboyance of other buildings designed by Gaudí.
The focal point of the park is the main terrace, surrounded by a long bench in the form of a sea serpent. To design the curvature of the bench surface Gaudí used the shape of buttocks left by a naked workman sitting in wet clay. The curves of the serpent bench form a number of enclaves, creating a more social atmosphere. Gaudí incorporated many motifs of Catalan nationalism, and elements from religious mysticism and ancient poetry, into the Park. The visitor was originally greeted by two life-size mechanical gazelles (a major euphemistic symbol of 'the young beloved' in the Hebrew strand of the medieval love poetry of the region), but these have since been lost during the turbulence of war.
The large cross at the Park's high-point offers the most complete view of Barcelona and the bay. It is possible to view the main city in panorama, with the Sagrada Família and the Montjuïc area visible at a distance. There were lots of things that I thought would make great desktop backgrounds and backgrounds for slide presentations, so bear with me here.
The final highlight was a tram ride to the summit of Tibidabo, a mountain overlooking Barcelona. At 512 meters it is the tallest mountain in the Serra de Collserola. Rising sharply to the northwest, it affords spectacular views over the city and the surrounding coastline. There is an amusement park, a telecommunications tower, and a Catholic church, the Temple de Sagrat Cor, at the top, all of which are visible from most of the city. Designed by Enric Sagnier, the church took 60 years to construct and is topped by a sculpture of the Sacred Heart by Josep Miret Llopart. Of course, Rick had to go to the top. I went as far as the elevator took us and Rick walked on up to the top where Jesus was. I stayed down below and took pictures of the statues of the disciples.
Other lesser sights that are pictured in our album are:
- Placa Catalunya is the Catalonia Square that is locate at the top of Las Ramblas and was 1/2 block from our hotel.
- The Columbus Monument is located at the foot of Las Ramblas and at theentrance to Barcelona Harbor.
- Olympic Stadium was the home of the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1992 Olympic Summer Games.
- Palau de la Generalitat is an elegant 15th-century palace and home of the autonomous Catalan pride and nationalism.
- La Pedreda - Gaudi's unique modernistic residential/commercial building. His La Pedrera (quarry) is, perhaps, the most unique block of apartments and offices in the world, built with an organic-looking, wavy stone façade. La Pedreda - Gaudi's unique modernistic residential/commercial building. His La Pedrera (quarry) is, perhaps, the most unique block of apartments and offices in the world, built with an organic-looking, wavy stone façade.
Click on the title of this post above for additional information of Barcelona if you're interested.
My souveniers from Barcelona were a tea cup and saucer in the style of Gaudi and a patch with La Sagrada Familia.
Here are some links, in case you're interested:
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