BARCELONA: Arc de Triomf; La Sagrada Familia; Mount Tibidabo; Palau de la Musica Catalana for Flamenco Opera !

Hola everyone! Although bright and sunny, it was a chilly 6 degrees when we left our apartment this morning around 8:30 a.m. One thing you have to know - if you come to Barcelona in March, be sure to bring warm clothes, as it can get quite chilly! We started out today by seeing the famous Arc de Triomph monument which presides over a wide promenade called Passeig de Lluis Companys. It is a red brick arch which was built as the main access gate for the 1888 Barcelona World Fair. It portrays the message "Barcelona Rep Les Nacions" or "Barcelona Welcomes the Nations".

After viewing this monument, we carried on to La Sagrada Familia - a large and very famous Roman Catholic Church, designed by architect Antoni Gaudi. There is lots of information on this gifted man, who was an architect and came from a long line of coppersmiths. He is what is called a "naturalistic architect" and you certainly see this when you study the facade, and then go inside the church. There is a large area downstairs which you can walk through and see where the plans for the ongoing progress of the cathedral continue. As well, you can look through a window and see the grave stone of Antoni Gaudi. It would take all day and beyond to do any justice in writing about the incredible beauty and majesty of La Sagrada.

It not like any cathedral that I have ever seen. There are columns, copied from nature, that look like tree trunks, and stained glass that is so strategic, light bursts through at certain times and shines on the the Crucified Christ, who is on a cross, under an umbrella like structure.

It is possible to spend many hours in this cathedral, there is so much to see and learn. When inside you can only stand and marvel at the talent of someone so gifted - someone who absorbed the beauty of nature all his life, and who was able to transer that beauty into every aspect of the Sagrada. Everywhere you look, you see how nature inspired the design of leaves, vines, beetles, bumble bees, turtles, geese, lettuce leaves, spider webs, sunflowers, minerals, fruits, plantain trees, oleander and countless other things which are incorporated into the design.

Although I have wanted to see La Sagrada Familia for many years, I did not expect it to capture me as it did. There is a sense of awe and majesty here - even with so many people meandering about. Beautiful organ music could be heard the entire time that we walked around. In the words of Antoni Gaudi, "It is a monument to humanity for humanity".

As if a visit to La Sagrada Familia wasn't enough, we also planned a visit to Mount Tibidabo which is the highest mountain in the Serra de Coliserola range. It took a bit of effort to get there (metro, bus, and funicular) but it was so worth it! It can be reached by the Tibadabo funicular. When you arrive at the summit, you see the Sagrat Cor church. The church is topped by a bronze sculpture of the 'Sacred Heart' (Jesus) by Josep Miret Llopart. We walked through the church, and took an elevator to a viewing terrace above the main sanctuary. We continued further up a narrow, winding stairway, and found ourselves at the highest point just below the 'Sacred Heart' statue! It is a stunning view, not only to look up and see this statue with the outstretched arms of Christ over the city of Barcelona, but also to view the panorama of the city and the sea.

After a few minutes we went down the narrow, winding staircase, took the elevator down, then caught the funicular which took us into the Tibidabo neighborhood, and found a little cafe called 'BuenasMigas Focacceria' and had a delicious snack.

After this, we started back to the apartment to take a break. We still had one more event planned for the evening and that was to see "Opera i Flamenc - Historia d'un Amor" at the famous Palau de la Musica. The building is a Unesco World Heritage site and is an elaborate concert hall which opened in 1908. Our tickets were for 9:30 pm, and fortunately it's a two minute walk from our apartment to the Palau de la Musica - which we were happy about since we did lots of walking today. We arrived at the concert hall and found our seats. This was a special night for us, since we have been celebrating our 38th wedding anniversary all day!

Here are some pictures of the interior of the Palau:

The performance was an amazing combination of Flamenco, opera singing, violin and guitar. This show was about a turbulent love story and was interpreted by the dancers, as well as the tenor and the soprano. It was presented as a "unique and unforgettable gift from the heart of Spain". Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take any pictures of the performance

This ends our week in Barcelona. We loved it here and were certainly swept off our feet by the beauty and culture of this city and the people. Tomorrow we will be on a train to Marseille. We are looking forward to seeing Marseille which we have heard so much about! As well, we are hoping to return to some of our favorite areas in Provence. Since our train ride to Marseille is fairly lengthy, there may not be much to write about for a blog tomorrow - we'll see! In the meantime... Adios from Barcelona, Karen