Tag Archives: gaudi

Barcelona

Ciao Tutti,

A week or so ago, my ISC (Italian Student Companion), Silvio, had about ten of his friends over for dinner.  I am happy to report that I was actually able to carry a conversation with them and understand the general ideas of what they were talking to each other about.  We even played the Italian version of the game, Mafia.  This was quite a challenge, but a great and fun experience!

Changing topics completely, last weekend I went to Barcelona.  I arrived late on a Thursday night and took a train from the airport into the city center.  By the time I got into the city center, the metro had stopped running (after midnight) so I had to take a taxi to my hostel.  My hostel had a 91% review on HostelWorld.com, but I was immensely disappointed.  I did not realize that the hostel only had a common bathroom in the hallway of every floor.  I am so used to staying in hostels that have a bathroom in each room that this took a bit of getting used to.

On Friday, I took a free walking tour to see the architecture of one of Barcelona’s most famous architects – Gaudi.  His buildings made me feel like I was in Whoville and a world of Dr. Seuss, but they were really cool from the outside.  It cost upwards of 18 euros to go in, so I decided that the views from the outside were good enough for me.  We also saw a church that he designed over around 85 years ago that is still being built.  It is a very complex church and they say it will not be done for at least another 25-30 years!  That one complex building!

Barcelona 034.JPG

One of the houses Gaudi desgined

Barcelona 048.JPG

Another one of the houses Gaudi desgined

Barcelona 067.JPG

One of the three facades of Gaudi’s church – the Sagrada Famiglia.  Only two are finished.  This is the Nativity Facade.

Barcelona 072.JPG

The Passion Facade.  The Glory Facade just started construction.

After my walking tour, I took a hop on-hop off bus tour to see all of Barcelona.  Barcelona is such a spread out city that the bus company had two different lines.  It took me 6 hours to complete both lines, but I was happy I did it.

On Saturday, it poured the whole day.  By this point, I had become a pro on navigating Barcelona’s metro and decided to go to the Picasso Museum.  The Picasso Museum was a homage to Picasso’s older, lesser known works.  All I knew about Picasso before this was that he painted “Scream,” but was very intrigued by his life story.  He moved around a lot and changed his artistic style about once or twice a year. 

After the Picasso Museum, I decided to go to a restaurant to have typical Catalonian food – tapas.  They are basically a bunch of small samples, so you order two or three and try a bit of everything.  I had ham & cheese croquets and something very similar to sesame chicken.  It was really, really good.

Then, even though it was raining, I embarked on my voyage to find Barceloneta Beach.  By this point my map was useless because it was raining so hard, so I decided to follow the signs to the beach – big mistake.  I wound up 3 kilometers out of my way and had to backtrack to see it.  I was happy when I finally got there, though.  It looked like a scene out of 2012, the waves were about four feet high (pretty high for the Mediterranean Sea and I saw the cliché surfboarder walking away from the sea.  It was a beautiful beach, though. 

Barcelona 225.JPG

 

The Beach

After this, I decided to walk and catch a metro back to my hostel.  After an hour rest, I went to the only bar in Barcelona that was showing the Penn State v. Michigan State game for the Big Ten Semifinals.  I think I managed to find the only empty bar in Barcelona, but a combination of a Penn State win and some nostalgic food like quesadillas and chicken tenders was enough to make my day.

 

Sunday was an absolutely gorgeous day.  I loved it!  I woke up early in the morning to walk the “La Rambla”, a very famous tourist promenade where artists and cafes line the streets.  I decided to grab a seat and order “Churros and Chocolate” and people watch.  They were so good.

 


Barcelona 002.JPG

La Rambla

Barcelona 238.JPG

Chocolate & Churros

After that, I took another walking tour of Barcelona.  This one was a tour of Barcelona’s historical center.  It was beautiful and reminded me a lot of Rome.  I gained some insight into the history of Barcelona that was absolutely fascinating like the fact that Barcelona used to be occupied by the Romans when it was a walled city (hence why it reminded me of historical Rome).  Also, I learned that the people of Barcelona actually consider themselves to be Catalonian, not Spanish.  They speak Catalonian and Spanish and are constantly protesting the Spanish government for their independence.  I also got to see where the King of Catalonia greeted Christopher Columbus after discovering the New World.  The final piece of trivia I learned was that Barcelona could have built the Eifel Tower instead of Paris, but the government thought it was too weird looking and built an arch instead – big mistake!

Barcelona 254.JPG

Barcelona 300.JPG

The steps that Christopher Columbus was welcomed back on

After the walking tour, I took the metro to Park Gϋell – another one of Gaudi’s projects.  It was declared a World Heritage Site a few years ago, so I figured a trip to Barcelona would not be complete without seeing it.  Getting there was a difficult task.  After taking the metro, it was a kilometer walk to a series of eight escalators to take you to the top of a mountain.  At the top of this mountain, you had to walk down hill about a half of a kilometer to get to the park.  By this point, I was exhausted.  It was so worth it, though.  I saw the longest bench I have ever seen and a bunch of other cool looking houses, sculptures, and architecture! 

Barcelona 307.JPG

View from the Park

Barcelona 312.JPG

I think Dr. Seuss used to live here…..

Barcelona 318.JPG

An overhang at the park.

Barcelona 322.JPG

The other park entrance.

On my way back to the hostel to grab my bag, I found a Dunkin Coffee (they don’t call them Dunkin Donuts over there) and splurged on the biggest ice coffee I have ever had.  In Italy, I can only get an espresso – they really do not have American coffee.  It was probably the best cup of coffee I’ve ever had (probably because I haven’t had one in so long).  I topped it off with a ham & cheese panini and a chocolate frosted donut with sprinkles – the icing on the cake.

Barcelona 326.JPG

Barcelona 333.JPG

After grabbing my bag at my hostel, I went to the airport and came back to Rome.  In my next blog post (very soon, probably later today), I’ll bring you up to date with everything I did this week and weekend, post a few pictures from the past month, and post the bucket list I made of things I need to do while I’m in Rome.

Ciao,

Mike


Location: Barcelona, Spain

Living in Gaudi’s World

Continuing my travels through Western Europe, 5 friends and I traveled to Barcelona for some fun in the sun last weekend. Escaping cold and dreary Milan, we left Thursday night and spent 3 nights and 2 days in this warm, beautiful Spanish city.

Barca + Milano 270.JPGOther than the warm and beautiful weather, the first thing you notice upon arriving in Barcelona is its unique blending of cultures, architecture, and languages. Located on the Iberian Peninsula and having been under control of the Moors, the Spanish Monarchy, and the authoritarian regime of General Franco, this city has noticeable Arab, European, and totalitarian influences. Divided into districts, with the most famous and picturesque one being the Gothic District, Barcelona visually displays its eventful and storied past to each visitor.

The second thing that is immediately evident is the vast influence that Antoni Gaudi had on the layout, design, and architecture of the city. Known for his very different and interesting building designs, his influence on Barcelona is so profound that entire tours devoted solely to his works in the city are available. Obsessed with angles, curves, and unique geometrical shapes such as hyperboloids and paraboloids, his works in the city include the famous Sangrada Famila, Park Guell, Casa Mila, and Casa Calvet.

On Friday, our first day in the city, we awoke to a bright and sunny 60 degree day. I have to say that I was a bit jealous of the IES: Barcelona students since I was able to wear nothing but a t-shirt all day. We started our day by walking down Las Ramblas, the street in Barcelona famous for its shops and markets. We took this street down to the harbor and walked around on the beach before eating lunch. After lunch, we walked to the northern part of the city to the famous Sangrada Familia.

Barca + Milano 090.JPGHaving seen a multitude of pictures and drawings of this iconic cathedral, I had a good understanding of its general design, but just like the Duomo in Milan, you can’t truly appreciate neither the beauty nor the intricacy of its design without seeing it in person. Although I was a bit disappointed that it was currently under construction, it was still an awesome sight.  Even though the architecture and unique design of the outside of this church would be enough to make it a must-see monument in Barcelona and all of Europe, its interior design was even more breathtaking. Containing endless series of columns, hundreds of stained glass windows, and brilliantly designed holes in the ceiling that light the entire structure, this cathedral was incredible. After visiting this site, the high regard that the entire city has for Gaudi was quite understandable

Barca + Milano 120.JPGOn Saturday, I awoke early in the morning so that I could see as much of the city as possible before nightfall. During the morning I walked around the Gothic district and visited the Cathedral, the Basilica de Santa Maria de la Mar, and numerous small shops in the area. After lunch, my friends and I visited another Gaudi creation, Park Guell. While this beautiful park at first looks like it was designed by Dr. Seuss, due to the weird shape of every staircase, bench, and plaza, as well as buildings that appear to have frosted roofs, as you walk through this place you begin to understand the brilliance of its creation. Without straight edge or corner in sight, Gaudi created a unique haven overlooking the city that causes each visitor to question their view of the world. This park is also located on a giant hill that provides an incredible overlook of Barcelona.

Barca + Milano 242.JPGAfter Park Guell, we decided to visit the western part of the city and make our way up to Montjuic, an impressive plateau with an ancient castle that provides another beautiful view of the city. On our way to this site, we passed the beautiful building of the National Museum of Catalan Art, an old retired bullfighting ring, the Olympic Stadium from the 1992 Summer Games, and several cool parks. 20 minutes on the metro, 30 minutes walking, and a 12 euro gondola later, we finally reached Montjuic. While the view was not as impressive as the one at Park Guell, it was still very interesting to see this historic fortress and the skyline of Barcelona once again.

Overall, I had a great time in Barcelona. It is a great choice for anyone looking to spend a short or extended weekend in a warm place and see some history. The unique past of Barcelona and its division into districts makes it a great place to experience traditional Spain as well as the more modern aspects the country. I would recommend this city to anyone traveling to or in Europe.

Interesting Notes:

1.) Most people in Barcelona speak English, but the actual native language is not Spanish, but a dialect called Catalan. While it is similar in structure to Spanish, the accent is different and some words are changed (i.e. road = Carre and not Calle)

2.) Restaurants don’t open until 9 P.M. at the earliest.

3.) Tapas, Spanish appetizers offered at nearly every restaurant, are entirely overrated and not nearly as good as the Italian “aperitivo.”

Travel Tips:

1.) Stay at Hostel 1 Barcelona. The staff is incredibly helpful, the atmosphere is fun, it is very clean, and it includes a full kitchen and hot showers.

2.) Be sure to visit the Gothic District. It is a really cool area with authentic Spanish crafts, shops, and cafes.
 
3.) There is almost no need to pay for a taxi or use the metro (except for getting to Park Guell or Montjuic) since almost the entire historical portion of town is located near the water.


Location: Barcelona, Spain