La Sagrada Familia
Barcelona is a city I have dreamed of visiting
for the better part of my adult life. The
first time I laid eyes upon its bustling streets and felt the warm breeze off
the Mediterranean I felt such content. I
made it to a place I had imagined being for so long. It has been 15 months since my first visit and
I have now been fortunate enough to make my way there 3 additional times. I never could have expected my life to bring
me here and I am so grateful for it each day.
Placa Reial (Royal Plaza)
This last trip was brought about because a friend
of ours from Vancouver, Ash, was in the neighbourhood (of Europe) and decided
to pop down to Spain for a quick visit before heading back to Canada. I was so excited to not only be going back to
a city I adore but to be spending a couple days with someone I adore from
home! There are not many who have made
the journey here to visit us these past 19 months so we appreciate those who
have immensely. It is great having
visitors from home it makes us feel less disconnected. We also got to ring up Heather (our friend
who moved from Valladolid to Barcelona) so this trip was a real reunion! Tons of drinks, laughs and great stories. I feel so lucky to have made such great friends in my life.
Ash and I enjoying drinks
Occasionally a great deal in airfare emerges and
we were lucky enough to find flights from Valladolid for 17 euros each. This made the trip even more exciting! The airport in Valladolid is the smallest I
have ever seen. I am sure there are
smaller in the world but for me this one is like a ghost town. We arrived 2 hours before the flight thanks
to a bus system that does not match up well with the flights and there was
literally nobody there other than us and a couple staff members. It is crazy to me that a city can have an
airport so underutilized. However it got
us where we wanted to go this time so thanks Ryanair for stopping in our small
town!
I could of course go on and on about Barcelona
and how amazing and beautiful the city is, the architecture, the cool
cafes/bars, the ambiance in the streets and the killer food selection but I
have talked about that all before.....
Barcelona Cathedral
Seriously though so much good food to eat! In the two days we were there we had Indian, Mexican,
Chinese, and Subway as well as Starbucks and Costa Coffee (who have the best
chai latte of life – sorry Starbucks but they have you beat in that department)
Every time I leave Valladolid I am just so happy to have all the food I want to
eat at my fingertips!
Mercat de la Boqueria
Barri Gotic (The Gothic quarter)
Interesting cafe in the Gothic quarter
The thing I was most excited about on this trip,
besides seeing Ash, was going to La Sagrada Familia (Gaudi’s Church). This church has become a symbol of Barcelona
and is estimated to draw over 2.5 million visitors a year. Each time we have been in the
city it has been something we have wanted to do but we just never made it. So this time I planned ahead and bought our
tickets online.
Never an outdoor shot without cranes and scaffolding
The late Antoni Gaudi (1852-1926) is the Catalan
architect who designed the Church. The
Basilica, which had already been under construction since 1882, was taken over
by Gaudi in 1883 and he basically completely redesigned the entire structure. His
vision was to create a building that connected Heaven and Earth. When Gaudi
died in 1926 it was only a quarter of the way completed. Whenever he was asked about the length of
time it would take to complete the church he always remarked that “His client
was not in a hurry”. After Gaudi passed
his close friend and collaborator began overseeing the construction. He claimed to adhere to Gaudis original
designs but unfortunately during the Spanish Civil War the Basilica was all but
burned down and all the original drawings were lost. There is a constant dialogue questioning
whether or not the church does indeed resemble the original designs.
This Basilica is like nothing I have ever seen
before. It was like a dream world where
anything was possible. I honestly do not
even understand how the architecture was possible. The dripping ceilings and stained glass
casting rainbows throughout the building made me feel like I was on drugs (In a
totally responsible and respectable way)
It didn’t feel like real life is what I am getting at. It was like being inside a Dali
painting. Gaudi was a creative genius. I would love to be able to crawl inside of his
brain and understand where his ideas came from.
We did wonder, as do many, what
he would think if he saw the building today.
Would he be saying “No no no this is not what I envisioned?! And where
did these elevators come from?”
In October of 2015 it was reported that the
church was 70 percent completed and was expected to be finished by 2030, give
or take. It is a truly magnificent structure
that I highly recommend you take a visit to if you ever find yourself in Barcelona.
Oh and a fun fact about the Basilica is that it is not a Cathedral as many people call it. A cathedral is only that when it is intended for a bishops seat. A Basilica is a church given special privileges by the Pope. This special privilege is attained because of antiquity, historical importance or because they are a significantly central place of worship.
The Sagrada Familia Magic Square - In squares of order 4 where the numbers run sequentially from 1-16 the magic constant (the sum of a single line, row or diagonal) is 34, but Subirachs' square does not contain the numbers 12 or 16 (see image, above). Instead, 10 and 14 are included twice, making a magic constant of 33, the age of Jesus Christ at the crucifixion
Now my only complaint with the church really
isn’t about the church at all but with the website. Because it is such a huge tourist attraction
when you book the tickets you must also book the time you would like to visit
and if you would like to go up the towers you must book those times as
well. I bought our tickets and decided
to pay the extra 5 euros each to go up a tower.
I later learned that the tickets are specific to each tower so
purchasing one means you cannot go up the other. This would not normally be a big deal however
what they failed to mention on the website was that for the date we planned to
attend the tower I booked and paid for was closed for some nativity scene they
were setting up. This would have been
helpful to mention online so that I would not book that particular tower but
the other one. Our money was refunded
but that isn’t really the point.
Seriously Spain when will you learn to utilize the internet effectively.
Anyhow we attempted to go up the other tower but
the security thwarted our advances to the elevator. We sadly walked out without going up which I am sure would have been just incredible. However we did get to enjoy this unbelievable
church so no regrets! There is also a
museum under the church where you can learn the complete history of its
construction. As well when you explore
the city there are elements of Gaudi everywhere. From buildings he designed to Guell Park and
all the touristy shops selling a little piece of Barcelonas pride.
I do not know if we will ever return to Barcelona,
with only 5 months left in Spain it is not looking like it, but I am so glad we
were able to make this trip. I do know
however that a little piece of Barcelona is coming here tomorrow when Heather
comes for a visit!
