Adios Barcelona, Spain

I had great plans to make a post to the blog each evening - but somehow there just weren't enough hours in the day. I had class from 9am until 7pm and then went running out to try and get in some sightseeing before the sun set.

Barcelona must be one of the most beautiful cities on earth! I absolutely loved the city - all the incredible architecture - Gothic and Modernista.

Dawn and I toured the Batilló House which is an incredible apartment building by Gaudi. The house is made to resemble a dragon - the dragon killed by St. George (Sant Jordi being the patron saint of Catalan). Inside, the stairwell is made of wood and resembles the spine of the dragon. The window to the living room looks like the mouth of the dragon. The roof has tiles which look like the scales of the dragon. It's hard to describe - it's one of those "must see to believe" kind of places. I'll have a Piggy Pic posted on the other site sometime this week.

We also went to the Sagrada Familia (Holy Family) and toured the inside. The cathedral is still being built and I heard they are hoping to have it finished by 2050. (that's not a typo - 2050!) Gaudi specified that he wanted all the funds for the church to come from the people - no government money is to be used in the building.

Then we visited Park Guell which is a park designed by Gaudi. It was apparently originally supposed to be a housing subdivision but only two houses were built. The park is gorgeous and has the dragon fountain that is on so many post cards! We saw two brides and grooms while walking around the park and it was obvious why they wanted their wedding photos taken at the park - the setting was beautiful and there were views out over the city and you could see all the way to the sea.

Dawn and I had quite the experience that day. I was down to only 14 Euros and had planned to buy my ticket to the bus tour and Sagrada Familia using my Visa. Neither would take credit cards! I've realized my addiction to credit cards - something that I suppose I need to over-come before the trip to Ukraine! Anyway - I used every Euro that I had and Dawn covered me and used her last Euros.

We did a lot of walking around Barcelona. The Gothic quarter (Barri Gótic) is incredible. It's literally like being transported back in time. The walls of the buildings are from Roman times! I really want to take Mike to Barcelona as I cannot image a more romantic city. I know Paris carries that title but I wonder if it could hold a stick to Barcelona. Each street in the Gothic quarter had a street performer - whether it was a hearing a talented guitarist or a watching a flamenco dancer.

The last night was the opening night of a grand celebration of the end of summer - the Festes de la Merce - which celebrates the day of the city's patron saint, the Virgin de la Merce. We got to the city square by the city hall where a huge crowd of people had gathered. At first I thought they were letting in groups of people to view the dragons which we had seen on display a few nights prior. We stood in the "line" and waited. Then all of a sudden it was like Moses parting the Red Sea - the crowd split and the dragons and various marching bands came pouring out of the city hall. Somehow we ended up with front row viewing! I got some incredible pictures of the dragons. The dragons were about 15 feet tall and were carried by one person who was inside the dragon. It was amazing - the dragons had fireworks connected to their mouths and looked like they were breathing fire. It was a sight and experience I'll never forget!

Dawn and I also discovered Sangria! OK - I've had sangria in the US but it tasted nothing like what we had in Spain! I've scoured the web looking for recipes and I think Dawn and I will be testing them this weekend while viewing each other's photos....! I may even try my hand at some paella!

Barcelona - I hope to return to see more of your incredible city!