Barcelona la Bonita (Part 1 of 2)

A little upset that my Pamplona trip didn't include a "run," my late night bus glided into Barcelona after a 5 1/2 hour trip.  My welcome to Catalonia's capital was to get dropped off about five blocks from my hotel by a cab driver who wanted nothing to do with some gringo not capable of communicating in Spanish.  Needing a fresh bandage for my busted foot, I began hobbling and found my bed after a couple requests for directions.

The next morning, I was off to the races to see the host of the 1988 Olympics (which, sadly I remember...some 23 years ago).  Beginning around 0900, I spent the next seven hours walking around the city, trying to hit most of my "must see" sites.  Three of them topped the list: La Rambla Boulevard, the Maritime Museum and La Sagrada Familia.  Two were worth every penny; the other one maybe just a few pennies.

I started at La Rambla.  Connected to the city's hub at La Plaza Catalonia on one end and the port on the other, this strip is the city's tourist center.  A middle lane for pedestrians, kiosks and performers was flanked by traffic on both sides.  Left-handed cigarette smoke wafted through the air in the south; flowers to the north; in between, street performers posed and men took money in shell games.  All the while, idiots blared "screaming baby" noise makers on every corner, all but demanding my two hands to clamp around their necks in a vice grip.  Along the way, the city's main theater fit cozily in a row of buildings.  This strip was all that it was billed to be.

La Rambla, teaming with tourists on a sun-soaked morning.

The facade of the Liceu Theater, home of the city's most famous stage.

At La Rambla's southwestern end, Barcelona's Maritime Museum wasn't. Small and under construction, there wasn't much to get excited about if you're not a maritime buff.  Only requiring 30 minutes, the museum was split into four parts, as the main section was undergoing remodeling.  The first, A Labyrinth of Perspectives photograph display; seemed just a little out of place but was interesting nonetheless.  The second part was only a small timeline (in Spanish only) that catalogued the museum's creation in 1936 to its finishing in 1939.  The main museum was the final portion actually at the site.  At the port, sat the final piece, the restored Santa Eulalia cargo ship.

The Maritime Museum, set in a Gothic castle.

The lobby display focused on Barcelona's port, present...

...and past.

Spain's maritime travels have spanned the globe for centuries.

The Labryrinth focused on conflicts, immigration and various causes of the Latin community on both sides of the Atlantic.

One of the opening looks at the faces of Latin immigration.

One of the exhibit's looks at conflict in Latin countries.

The Museum began with the question, "Why do we have such need to travel?"  Given my penchant for it, I felt this was a pretty good question.  The museum's path followed the basics of nautical navigation, from prepping the crew, studying seafaring and the various duties between being a cabin boy and the Captain.  "U571" played to display some of the tenants of "the sea at war" display.  The most interesting part to me was at the end, where a guide to the international system of symbols and legends was displayed.

A Catalan atlas from 1375.

A map of international maritime symbols and legends.

At the port, the tiny Santa Eulalia was anchored.  Built in 1918 by Pascual Flores, the ship changed hands many times and, with each change, it seems like it also changed duties.  Beginning as a transporter of goods like cereals, wood, salt and minerals, it next was used for smuggling and years later, as an auxillery vessel for underwater work.  In 1997, the museum acquired it, and the ship's been crawling with tourists since.

The last part of the museum, the Santa Eulalia left me wondering how it made multiple trans-Atlantic trips given its small size.

Next, I stopped by the Museum of Contemporary Art.  But, not being a big enough art fan to pay the admission, my feet beat pavement to the exit as quickly as they to the entrance.

About the most modern building in the area and easy to find from La Rambla.

A walk back down La Rambla showed me Plaza de Cataluyna, the city's hub and main artery.  Large and adorned with several fountains, statues and open-air restaurants, one could just sit here for hours.  Not me though, I was off to see a few more impressive sites!

The main square at the northern end of La Rambla.

The first building I came across reminded me of a glossy fish standing on its tail.  This was the Casa Battlo, one of the city's most visited structures.  Oddly enough, it sat next to another, the Casa Amattler, which I didn't even bother to take a picture of because it paled in comparison.

Casa Battlo shimmered in the late-morning sun, its exterior reminding me of fish scales.

Basically across the street was La Pedrera Art and Gaudi Museum.  Another impressive, wavy structure, this was designed by Antoni Gaudi, the man responsible for La Sagrada Familia as well as most of the city's architecture for some 40 years.  This, according to the books, was his most grand non-secular work.

La Pedrera museum.

The last major stop for the day was the one everyone says you need to see in Barcelona: La Sagrada Familia.    Everyone is right; the most impressive building to date on this trip (London, Pamplona, Barcelona), I could've spent twice as long as the two hours I was here and still not scratch the surface of understanding all of its symbolism.

The Cathedral's western columns reach above the city's skyline.

The entrance line was long but moved fast.  Entry and lift up to the towers cost 15 Euros, but I splurged four more for the audio tour (recommended).  Started in the late 19th century, Gaudi worked on this thing for 43 years, the last 12 exclusively here.  The primary exterior features included the sites awesome facades: the Nnativity, Passion and Glory.

Consecrated as basilica in November 2010, this cathedral is dubbed a meeting point of the past, present and future, as it's been in the works for over 120 years.  Everything, the guide continued, was planned and has an existential purpose.  For instance, it's location was planned for symmetry, as it sits the same distance between the sea and the mountains on one of the city's few flat plains.

The tour was split into 13 helpful stops, so I'll organize my trip that way.  The first three were outdoors and did little more than offer a history and orientation.  The last part of the introduction focused on the Passion facade that sat at the cathedral's entrance.

The Passion facade faces to the west for a reason.  Representing the cold end of the Lord, it is oriented toward the sunset.  Hard and bare, as if made of bones, this collage was finished shortly after Gaudi's death.  The four towers represent above the facade represent the apostles James, Bartholomew, Thomas and Phillip.

The Passion facade, barren and hard as bone.

The second site was the Atrium.  With a floor made of red Porthyry, a simple illustration represented Jesus' arrival to Jeruselem.

Porphyry in the Atrium with an illustration depicting Jesus' journey to Jerusalem.

The first stop inside the cathedral focused on the aspects of light and the stained glass windows that control how much of it enters the cathedral.  Gaudi believed that balance was needed between the amount of light allowed to enter the cathedral and the servitude that the place of prayer deserved.  As a result, he planned just enough light to enter to inspire reflection and prayer.  It was a little dark, but not too much so.

The width of the Cathedral, spilling in light through various shades of stain glass.

The next stop on the tour covered the columns and floor plan.  The length and width measure 90m x 45m, and the cross above the Apse measures 60m x 30m, creating a 2/3 ratio between the two. The columns are of various lengths, diameters, forms and materials: Sandstone (grey), Granite (bluish), Basalt (brown) and Porphyry (red) "sprout" to the ceiling in a sliding scale of color.

Note the columns' different shapes, sizes and colors.

The top of the columns sprout to the ceiling, like Saint George's cathedral at Windsor Castle.

Back outside, "The Glory," the second - and least completed facade, was next.  Located at the future cathedral entrance, this facade begs the questions, "Who are we?" and "What are we meant for?" according to the audio guide.  At the foot of the entrance is the Lord's prayer, written in over 50 languages (of which, Arabic was even represented with one word, "Our Father").

The Lord's Prayer in 50 languages...

...even in Arabic (Our Father)

Returning to the cathedral's interior, an introduction to the vaults and gallery followed the creed.  Covering details of the columns' treelike endings at the cathedral ceiling as well as the choir balcony, the audio guide also highlighted the cathedral's acoustics for the first time.  The gallery is a two meter deep balcony that wraps around the naive about one story above the ground level.  Able to fit up to 1,000 choir members, this gallery was meant to take advantage of the cathedral's impeccably designed acoustics and complement its four organs (of which only one has been installed).

The choir galley, similar to La Pedrera's exterior.

The Abse and Ambulatory was the next stop.  Both sit at the nexus of the cathedral, and the ambulatory holds the crypt of the architect, Gaudi and is surrounded by seven giant chapels meant for reflective prayer.  After these, the guide recommended a brief tour of Gaudi's relationship with nature.  Meant to provide background to the architect's muses, I skipped this part of the tour.

Following the brief interlude, the next stop was the Nativity Facade and was easily the most impressively intricate and overwhelming site.  This was the one facade that the architect almost saw finished; facing east, it was polar opposites to the Passion Facade.  Warm, flowering and celebratory, it welcomed the coming of a new dawn with the birth of Christ.  Containing three ports representing faith, hope and charity (also embodying Mary, Joseph and Jesus) under four more towers dedicated to Barnobus, Simon, Jude and Matthew, this huge mural had too much to recall.

The Nativity Facade

Detailed beyond explanation, the facade was Gaudi's passion as he ended his life's work.

The next site focused on the towers and pinnacles.  Each tower, as alluded to earlier, was dedicated to an Apostle; adorned with pinnacles that represent the bishops tasked to carry on their tasks, every tower measures over 100 meters; most were still under construction.

Each tower represents an Apostle.

The last part of the cathedral tour concentrated on the cloisters at each corner.  Designed to help block out noise, they were dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, Our Lady of Montserrat, Our Lady of Mercy and Our Lady of the Sorrows.

Cloisters bulwark at each corner.

Our Lady of the Rosary dedication.

The final stops along the audiotour paused at the underground museum and outdoor tribute to Gaudi's other works.  The man certianly was busy, having a hand in dozens of projects all over the world, most however it seemed  were in Spain.

Gaudi, an innovator and Catalan's master architect.

Overall, the first day in Barcelona met expectations and by the end of my six-mile walk, I barely noticed my throbbing foot!