Sagrada Familia (3/5: Barcelona, Spain)

Today, there is only one thing on the agenda: The Sagrada Familia.

For the full back story, go here. The short version goes something like this: 1866, the Sagrada Familia is dreamt up. 1884, Gaudi takes over as architect. 1914, church runs out of money, Gaudi continues work with a skeleton crew of 30. 1926, Gaudi is hit by a trolley while crossing the street, and dies (not kidding). Construction still continues to this day, and is scheduled for completion in 2026 – the 100^th anniversary of Gaudi’s death.

The church is breath taking. So far, 8 of the eventual 12 bell towers (one for each disciple) have been built, and the remaining 4 are to be even taller than the 8 existing ones. Inside, the church space is dominated by scaffolding and work space. In fact, other than a 5 foot wide walk way around the outer edge of half of the church, the whole thing is closed off. So, Christie and I walk around, taking in all the stuff that is done: the stained glass, the ceilings, and the three facades (each representing a stage in the life of Christ: the nativity, the glory, and the passion). Then, we take the elevator up to the top of one of the towers, walk around up there, and then climb the stairs back down.

A picture is worth a thousand words. So, like the other Gaudi stuff I’ve seen, go look at the pictures. In this case, I also have to say that actually seeing it is worth far more than a thousand pictures. If any of you plan on going to Barcelona, lots of people will tell you “if you do one thing in Barcelona, see the Sagrada Familia.” They are right. I’ve seen six of the 14 modern and ancient wonders of the world, and that this isn’t on the list is mind boggling.

From the church, Christie and I headed back to El Borne one last time for… wait for it… more tapas. This time we ended up at a place that the first time we came through here had been super packed, so assume that it must be pretty good. I’m not sure if I was just tapas’d out at this point, or if the food wasn’t that good, but either way I’m under whelmed. From here we head back to the hotel, get Christie’s stuff, and I walk her to the Placa de Catalunya where she catches a bus to the airport to head back to London. I walk back to the Hotel to take a nap.

After napping, I finally give in and head to McDonalds. Honestly, I don’t think I can even think about another tapas restaurant, and I just want something I can bring back to the room, and eat while watching TV and/or reading my book.

Around 10, I head down to the lobby, thinking I’d continue reading my book in the lobby bar, instead of my room. I get down there, and suddenly I’m surrounded by some of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen. I’m astounded, shocked, and confused. I ask one the hotel employees what’s going on, and he tells me that L’Oreal is having a conference in the hotel. So, I plant myself in the lobby bar, pretend to read my book while taking in the view, and start practicing pick up lines in my head. Eventually I realize that 1) I don’t have any pick up lines (that work, anyway), and 2) even if I did, I don’t speak Spanish or Catalan, and that’s all anyone around me speaking. So, around midnight, I finish Moneyball, and head back up to my room since I have to be on a train at 8:45am.