Our first night, we enjoyed a walk down the famous Las Ramblas and our first taste of Spanish tapas! The next day we visited one of Barcelona's highlights, Antoni Gaudi's Sagrada Familia- an astonishing church that is still being constructed after 200 years. The truly unique architecture is the reason for the long building process and was unlike anything I had ever seen. Gaudi is hailed as an icon of the Catalan culture and is rightfully so for his revolutionary geometric and nature-based designs. Every part of the church is symbolic from the sculptured facade depicting the life of Christ to the repeated Cryptogram with 310 numerical combinations that all add up to the age of Christ at death. I would have loved to stay in the church or the park across the street all day but it was off to see more of the city!
On our third day, we took a tour to learn a little more about the history of Barcelona where we got to see many of the Roman remains and hear of the many artists that sought inspiration in Barcelona. The rich artistic and cultural heritage is highly evident with interesting statues, sculptures, architecture and sights on every square and street. A local architecture school dons the largest public work from Picasso, Gaudi's first work is a pair of light posts displayed in a courtyard, and palm trees on lease from Hawaii since the 1992 Olympics still adorn the city center. After the tour, we made a trip to a huge market in the middle of the city- La Boqueria. We wound our way through rows of fresh fruits and veggies as well as local specialties. That night we had a great time dancing at Jamboree- a jazz club recommended by our hostel.
I think we saved the best parts of Barcelona for last and on our last day we made a trip up to Park Guell- a fantasy like park designed by the artist. Every feature of the lush yet functional green space was artistically infused with Gaudi's naturistic and colorful flair. After enjoying the park's sights for hours, we headed to relax on the crowded beach for some sun! The sand, imported from Egypt, and the sparkling blue water was gorgeous! That night, we had signed up for a Spanish cooking class which was so much fun! Our class mostly consisted of college students and started out with making our own tapas and Sangria followed by the famous Spanish dish, seafood paella- a rice concoction with an assortment of sea creatures, spices and veggies.
Then it was back for my last few days in Chambery with lots of packing and cleaning!
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