Barcelona

Our Great European Tour seemed to organize itself into separate themes for each place we visited.  If Amsterdam was about paintings, Copenhagen about castles, and Switzerland about natural beauty, then Barcelona was about architecture.  We knew virtually nothing about Antoni Gaudi before coming to Barcelona, but left with a huge appreciation for his genius as well as his eccentricity.  There are many Gaudi buildings in Barcelona, but far and away his magnum opus is the Sagrada Familia basilica.  

Work on it started in 1882.  When Gaudi died in 1926, only a fraction of it was complete, and there were no known techniques for finishing it.  Work continued as ways were found to implement Gaudi's original design.  When we were at the site, there was major activity: cranes in action, workmen swarming over the building, construction noises, scaffolding..  

All of the tiniest details passed through Gaudi's examination.

One of Gaudi's innovations, that he repeated in many projects, was the use of parabolic arches instead of semicircular ones.

Gaudi also worked on the designs of interior treatments and even furniture.

While his designs are structurally efficient and living spaces ergonomic, he seemed to enjoy adding whimsical elements to usually ignored parts, such as here with the tower and chimneys on the roof of the Palau Guell.

Barcelona has a long tradition of dramatic architecture.  We spent a day at the palatial Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya.  By the way, if you think that name is badly spelled Spanish, think again--most landmarks, place-names, streets, etc. are in the Catalan language, not Spanish.  The Museu is fronted by the huge and impressive Font Magica de Montjuic.

The museum is gorgeous inside also.

Nearby is the National Theater, another fine work of architecture.

To close on a note completely different than architecture, we are happy to report that the tapas in Barcelona were excellent, and we enjoyed many fine meals there.