Barcelona

As a Christmas present, my sister and brother-in-law very nicely got me plane tickets for Barcelona. Spain is a country I often thought about visiting, but never had the chance previously. So this week, I brushed off my long-forgotten high school Spanish, and went for a short visit. Hm. Wait, the official language of Barcelona isn't Spanish?? 

Barcelona is located within the Catalonia region of Spain, thus the language most commonly spoken there is Catalan. As a matter of fact, the people of Barcelona really consider themselves Catalonians rather than Spanish, and there is a fierce pride in their heritage. So I googled a few Catalan phrases, and off I went!

I stayed in a small room in Barcelona city center, near their Arc de Triomf. Public transportation was extremely convenient, and a fanatastic deal with their 10-trip card costing less than 10 euro. 

Barcelona's Arc de Triomf. With its brown-red color, it looks more festive than the
one in Paris! I think it's quite smaller in size though.

A beautiful fountain inside Parc de Ciutadella, located just across the street from the Arc. This fountain was
designed by Antonio Gaudí.

Italian and French art and architecture may be world renowned, but their Spanish counterparts aren't any slouches either. The most famous in Barcelona has got to be Antoni Gaudí. Many of his distinctive buildings are dotted throughout the city, culminating in the stunning Sagrada Familia. I ended up spending a lot of my time viewing his work.

The Sagrada Familia. It is still an unfinished work! 

A zoomed out view of the Sagrada Familia. The sheer size is breathtaking, and is
unfortunately not something that can be captured in pictures.

The back (front?) of the Sagrada Familia.

I enjoyed seeing Gaudí's work, mostly because a lot of it seemed so organic in nature, with its wavy lines. His ironwork and use of stained glass was also beautiful, reminding me of undersea lairs.

Casa Milà, or more commonly known as La Pedrera.

Casa Batló. This definitely looks like an evil seawitch castle, no? 

I ended up taking a tour of one of homes that Gaudí designed: Palau Güell (seriously, all the accents and diaeresis are making this entry tough to write!). Located in the Gothic Quarter, this lavish home was rather subdued from the outside. Large parabolic gates signaled the entrance, so armed with an audio guide, I stepped into wonderland.

Palau Güell looks pretty normal from the outside, none of the flowing lines and
dramatic ironwork like the other buildings pictured above.

A view of the parabolic iron gates from the inside. A unique feature of this gate is that
the twists in the center make it possible to see outside, but when you're outside, you
can't see in! Quite the marvel for its time.

The basement. This was originally used as the stables of the house. Although it was a
basement, the space was quite airy, made possible by the arched ceilings.

The main room in Palau Güell. This was used as the main entertainment area, for both
religious and secular activities. The acoustics in the place was phenomenal; one of this
room's main purpose was as a music hall.

A view of the amazing ceiling. It is domed, and consists of hexagonal tiles that gradually
diminish in size. The various cutouts brought in light, day or night. There were also
many windows that opened out into the center room from above, all for different reasons.
The most interesting one I found was that the choir for music performances were housed
in one of these upper rooms. When the windows were open and they sang, the acoustics
made it seem like their voices were floating around the room from all directions.

One more picture of the main room. Beyond, you can see from the window, other
rooms in the house.

I don't know if I had magnificent, or terrible timing... I decided to visit Palau Güell on an overcast, drizzly day. I was warm inside out of the rain, but the terrace area on the roof was closed due to weather. It's supposed to be quite beautiful up there, so I was a little disappointed.

Luckily, I had nice weather for some of my visit, and I spent many of these hours roaming around what turned out to be my favorite area in the city. The Gothic Quarter is one of the older neighborhoods, and it is composed of tiny streets that wind back and forth in a veritable maze. In rain or shine, it seemed like a place out of time, especially when street musicians' songs would waft by. 

The Cathedral of Barcelona. With its Gothic architecture, this beautiful building fits in perfectly with the neighborhood.

Small pedestrian streets lined this neighborhood, which was understandably filled
with tourists. Even then, there was an unmistakable charm to the place.

A unique circular courtyard.

Another impossible tiny street.

The interior of the Basilica de Santa Maria del Mar. 

I found Barcelona a lovely place to visit. Unlike many cities I've been to, its streets are very wide and welcoming (outside of its older pedestrian neighborhoods), almost beckoning visitors to stroll on foot. An abundance of benches everywhere also offered relief when one got tired. A unique feature of its streets is that often there would be a wide, tree-lined 'island' in the middle of the road, and cars would traverse on both sides of it. The center would be left for bicyclists and walkers. 

A compelling mix of the old and new, Barcelona offers much for both its residents and visitors!