Today we had another bright and early morning. We had breakfast at the hotel. Little did I know then that I had forgotten my camera battery in the charger in the room. I only realized this once we had started our walk to the metro station about 3 blocks away. So, here I was, in my favorite Spanish city, on my way to Antonio Goudi’s unfinished masterpiece Sagrada Familia, with a nice camera and no battery. I was BEYOND upset. God love our guide, Hugo, he tried to stop at every place he could to find me one but no luck. I had my back up camera and my iPhone 6+ but my intention of buying the camera the month before was to use it here in Barcelona. *heavy sigh*.
So, we moved on and made it to the metro line we needed and headed that way. Despite my hiccup I was excited. It has been 6 years since I saw the church. I was once again mesmerized at the site of it. The students had that same “ahhhh” moment as well. It looms so tall and sprawling into the area with it’s towers (and construction scaffolds) it just amazes you to speechlessness. Hugo gave us a few minutes to enter the gift shop and then left us at the entryway (the opposite one I entered in 2009) and went to sort out our group tickets. He left me in charge (so to speak) of the group lining up in the group area. He knew how much I was looking forward to revisiting this place and i think he felt bad because he couldn’t find me a camera battery. He put me at the head of the line and had the students line up behind me and the teachers/parents behind them. I had a front row “seat” at the base of the (back facing) steps for group entry. My immediate view straight up and in front of me stood this awesome structure. Religious or not, Catholic or not, this is something you have to see in person to grasp the weight (and importance) of this place in the Spanish and religious world. It’s almost unimaginable to think as big as this cathedral is, it is not the largest one in Spain or the world.
It took Hugo quite a long while to get us set up. Apparently. as I had thought just by observing where we were entry wise, things had changed since he was last here. I did not really notice the time honestly. It was a gorgeous, sunny day and I was standing in front of a artistic masterpiece in the works. I was in Spain, not working and enjoying my luckiness.
Finally, Hugo returned and we got set up with headphones and our tickets. The journey began. I tried to initially listen to the audio but my eyes were on fire with the details up close. Once we made it inside, I found out that Madison couldn’t hear her audio so I gave her mine to listen to. I was busy snapping photos on my phone.
The changes inside was amazing. I had looked up pictures before leaving America but seeing those changes from 2009 to 2015 was entirely different. The inside is almost completely finished except for a few small details and scaffolds in some areas. In 2009 the entire middle was roped off and workers were there and we walked around the outside of the area under scaffolds and fences to view the ceiling and windows. Today the floor is finished, there are some temporary folding chairs and the altar and some permanent benches are completed.
I snapped a lot of photos with my camera and phone. Eventually I had to follow the flow and leave the interior. We went out the front doors (as these doors where where I entered in 2009 and I exited where I entered today) They are now actively working on this section including the towers (I still wasn’t able to go up the towers) We hung around for a while, walked through the mini museum underneath/next to the main church. We wandered around the church grounds and while headed to our cafe, a man and his family stopped me because they saw my Columbus Crew t-shirt on. They were from Columbus. We did the whole OH-IO and agreed we were Reds fans too. That was a nice meeting right there. Always can find Buckeyes in the world. So, moving on we ended up at our cafe called Ardevol for our churros y chocolate. It was a quaint place and a welcomed rest. After our break we took the metro to the Parc Guell area. We still had quite a walk to tackle (the back way rom which mom and I had done in 2009). We were running late because of the late start we had at the group entryway of Sagrada Famiia. The steep streets did have some escalators and a dirt path at some points but the view from the top of the “mountain” out to the city was spectacular! We got started on our tour of Parc Guell. I had been here in 2009 but i did not get to see the natural seating area on top of the main building. This community also was a creation of Antonio Goudi like Sagrada Familia. The buildings look like gingerbread houses with colorful ceramic tiles and a lizard fountain at the base or beginning of the park. We wandered around the top for a while and then down to the marketplace area and then out to the front where the gift shop was. There was a line for that and I had already been in it once in 2009 so i just took pictures. Once we had all finished we met at the front gate and waited for Hugo then started down the hill to walk back to the metro stop. We walked along the Passeig de Gracia and gazed upon another of Goudi’s works, Casa Mila. After this we stopped for lunch/free time. Hugo led myself, mom and two of the students up to FC Barcelona’s Camp Nou Stadium. We took a metro up, about 7 stops and then walked down the lane to the stadium. Mom stayed with Hugo while me and the guys took the tour.
WOW. I actually have been in the Camp Nou. I’ve watched many a matches and here I was in the stands, in the lockeroom and on the field. I had my picture taken and ended up buying it. $55 and a commemorative book. Once in a lifetime feeling right there. I loved it. After looking around in the team shop I met up with the guys and we went looking for my mom and Hugo and they grabbed a bite to eat. It was getting late so we booked it (we did stop a few times on the way back to the metro stop for mom (it was up hill going back) and headed back to meet the students, parents and teachers.
We made it back to our hotel and changed for dinner. After dinner headed back out to Palacio del Flamenco. I have seen two other flamenco shows and this was the second best one I have seen (the other was in Sevilla in 2013). This was like a sophisticated lounge and very nicely done. The adults sipped sangria and enjoyed a spectacular show! I love watching the movement and concentration of these talented people! LOVE LOVE LOVE!!
This was our last dance in Spain for this trip. We walked back to our hotel and had a good time stopping along the way to look at shops. I am sad it’s ending yet at the sometime I miss home, my dad and my dog. Before we turned in Madison and I took some pictures together and then i let her borrow the memory card to keep some pics. Tomorrow we pack up and head out for home.
Until we meet again Spain. Amor! ❤
Ann Dawson's - Travel Blog 