Barcelona: Passeig de Gracia, Gothic Quarter y La Sagrada Familia

Bievenidos as Barcelona!

Passeig de Gracia
We arrived in the afternoon and checked into a nice little place right above a bakery - chachiiing.  It's well situated on the Passeig de Gracia and close to the Sagrada  :).

On the hunt for the city's best sangria and dinner, we walked the beautiful Passeig de Gracia and through the Gothic Quarter to the amazing Cathedral. Went up to the top for a view and then back to wander the streets. My god - this entire city is like walking through a gallery of amazing architecture.  You can't get tired of it - it's fascinating.  I LOVE this city.  Absolutely love it.

Gaudi on the Passeig de Gracia

Some more great Passeig architecture.  It seems it became a bit of a competition 

for subsequent buildings on the Passeig to one-up the architectural artistry of Gaudi.

Near Jaume metro station (near Gothic Quarter)

Gothic Quarter Cathedral.

We went onto the roof of the Cathedral.  Here are some of the amazing views.

Sagrada Familia in the distance...

And now, finally...Sangriaaaaahhh

The Beach and the Sagrada Familia
We're taking it easy today - spending time at the beach, and then touring the amazing Sagrada Familia Basilica :)

Crazy day at the beach...

....then off to the Sagrada 

We were excited to see the progress on the Sagrada since the last time we came.  Supposedly, they are supposed to finish the construction by 2020 (and we fully intend to see that!), but there have been some delays, so it's not clear when it will be completed.  For a tiny inkling of what completing it will entail:  this is a model of what it will look like....notice how they still have to build the entire tower at the center....and so much more. (the four towers you see in the above picture, are the four towers on the right side of the model)

(p.s.  we learned today that the "smaller" towers represent the Apostles 

and the big one in the middle represents Jesus)

But no matter how far from being finished it may be, it is jaw-dropping stunning!

A small part of the Passion Facade, depicting the crucifixion of Jesus.  Jesus is standing on the left, with a pensive Pontius Pilate on his right.  His wife has her back turned to Pilate, because she thinks he should have more courage and not go through with this thing...or something like that.  

The inside is incomprehensible in its complexity, lighting and beauty:

The columns are designed to look like trees, with the roof like a canopy.  Different stone was used for different columns, depending on the weight they had to bear. And the stained glass windows caught the afternoon sun:

We have about a million pictures of all this, and have had a hard time just picking a few.

And finally, the "Nativity Facade," depicting the birth of Jesus. This is the section of the church that was the most completed by the time Gaudi died, so he did most of this facade.  Unlike the Passion facade, which is all about being stark and minimalist, Gaudi wanted the Nativity facade to be "full," exploding with joy.  And you can see that it is.  All those bumps in the wall that you can't quite discern?  Those are birds coming out of the stone.  The whole facade is filled with plants and animals and angels and trumpeters and and and.  Cool.

After several hours at the Sagrada, and with tired feet in tow, we found our way to more sangria.  Had a hard time transitioning from tourist to having a nice dinner....

We're off to Italy!  Adios Barcelona--nos Encanta!