Viva Italia

Venezia

The final stop on The Big Trip was in Italy. My friend Peter, in Milan, offered to be my guide for a week when my plans in Edinburgh fell through, so after a brief stopoever in London to catch the Olympics, I headed to Milan to start the week-long adventure.

Landing at Bergamo

Venice

After a night of rest and relaxation, we got up early to go to Venice. We took the train, a 2.5 hour ride, and landed in Venice shortly before lunch. I didn’t realise that Venice was an island, and so the only way to get there is by boat or via a long train bridge from the mainland. When you leave the train station, you are confronted almost immediately by the stunning architecture.

The first thing you see as you exit the train station

I know it goes without saying that Venice is the city of canals, but it’s something else to see it in person. The water in the Grand Canal is a bluish-green, but is a bit more brown in the smaller canals. Everywhere there are bridges, and there are very few wide streets – it’s a labyrinth of narrow alleys. Which is all kinda of awesome.

One of the myriad alleyways

We spent the first while just walking the streets, looking at shops and restaurants, until we ended up finding the place that Peter wanted to take me. It was a small restaurant nestled in the corer of an alley, and we sat down for what Peter called a “typical” Venetian meal. Lots of fish and seafood. It was stellar.

We continued our way through the city til we got to Piazza San Marco.

Me and Peter in Piazza San Marco

I always find it… surreal to visit places that I’ve seen in paintings, especially paintings that are hundreds of years old. There are many paintings of San Marco, but it’s quite something else to stand there in front of it, turning around to take in the square, and to get a feel for the place. It’s beautiful. There’s no other way to say it. And to know that these buildings have seen generations of people from al over the world, it really puts things into perspective.

Inside San Marco

It’s free to visit San Marco, and the basilica is, of course, stunning. The phot above is taken from the museum, where relics from the church, as well as pieces that were replaced during the restoration, are kept. Even though the line was very long, it moved pretty quickly, and we weren’t stuck in the sun too long. It was wortht he visit.

We unfortunately didn’t go to the Ducal palace, as our time was short, but it’s definitely on the list from when I come back.

The Caffe Florian, an historic tea house on Piazza San Marco – and very expensive.

Of course, when in Venice, one has to take a ride in the gondolas on the canals. Be warned – it ain’t cheap. We went to look at the gondolas, and the shortest ride – maybe 20 minutes around 3 canals – was 80€. Yeah, no way. But, as luck would have it, a couple of girls behind us who heard me balking at the price approached us and asked if we wanted to share a gondola and do the 45-minute long tour – for 120€.

Peter and me on the gondola

And so we did.

It was wonderful. Seeing the city from this angle, going under al of the bridges, past the doorways and balconies, it really gave you an idea what it was like to live there. I had to wonder what the residents of Venice though about all the tourists crawling around their city – because as I noticed, everywhere we went, there were tourists – no places for the locals to hide.

The Girls from Potsdam and our Gondolieri

The whole time I was on the gondola, the music from Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers ran through my head.

The Rialto from the Gondola

I love that there are traffic signs on the canals

The remainder of the day was dedicated to shopping, eating (we went the cafe route and I ate deep-fried cheese. Awesome) and just enjoying the city.

A day wasn’t nearly enough time to truly get to know Venice, but it was enough to make me want to return. Maybe I’ll stay here…

Canada everywhere!

Florence

Peter did a fantastic job of not telling me where we were going. It was also really nice to be able to sit back and let someone else be the tour planner. And the crazy driver.

As we left Milan for points unknown the next day, I really had no idea where we were headed. I did have a clue, however, as we made our way south that we were heading in the direction, at least, of Firenze.

I didn’t realise Firenze was Florence. Cause I’m smart like that.

Florence

With only 24 hours in Florence, we had a lot to see, and not much time to see it in. We stayed at a lovely boutique hotel that was walking distance to most of the main attractions. After arriving, we walked the city, coming upon Piazza della Signoria and the Palazzo Vecchio. It was beautiful to behold.

Palazzo Vecchio

The Palazzo, which now houses City Hall and the Museo di Palazzo Vecchio, was started in 1299. It was, for years, the seat of government for the Florentine Republic, and home to, among others, the Medici family.

One of the smaller rooms in Palazzo Vecchio

Room after room in the Palazzo is beautifully decorated with works by the Masters, and you can literally feel the history. The views from the Palazzo are spectacular, and you can tell that those that lived and worked here were truly Masters of their Domains.

View from the tower of the Palazzo

Part of the Museo di Palazzo Vecchio is the Torre San Nicolo, one of the oldest and tallest guard towers in Florence.

Torre San Niccolo

The Torre San Niccolo is part of what used to be a series of guard towers along the city wall, and was one of the main entry points into Florence. You can climb the tower (at certain times – check with the Museo first) to get awesome views of the city.

View from the Torre San Niccolo

A great find right across from San Niccolo was an outdoor pub, whose name escapes me. Happy hour in Italy is very different – there was tons of FREE food available, and we could sit there, eat and drink as the sun set over Florence. Plus, there was this cool sign:

Translation:
Top: Upright position: Millions of years to reach, do not ruin it with too much alcohol
Middle: (loosely translated) Shit on the ground: It’s not your dog’s fault, it’s yours.
Bottom: Marking your territory: Do it with education… (last line cut off)

One thing we did and would not recommend was visiting the Boboli Gardens. They’re, well, they’re gardens. The ticketing is a bit of a scam – they ahve two separate tickets that see two different sets of things, so you have to buy both to really get to see anything, and truthfully, I was very disappointed. Plus, it was hot and I was cranky.

We also did the walk over Ponte Vecchio, and along the riverside, which was beautiful. Again, we only had one day in Florence, and while it wasn’t nearly enough time, it certianly whet my appetite.

Siena

Our time in Siena was very, very short: literally two hours on the way south. But it was, by far, the place that most fit my idea of what classical Italy looked like.

Panorama of Piazza del Campo

Siena, like most of Italy, is friggin hilly, and so it was a bit of a climb from the carpark to the Piazza, but wow, was I not disappointed. The Piazza is kinda round, and it rakes into a central point in front of the Palazzo Pubblico. They apparently stage horse races in the Piazza twice a year, and you can see how the shape leads to that, a sort of hippodrome.

We were on the hunt for some headache medication for Peter, and in this quest, we got to wander the streets of Siena. The old part of the city is beautiful, and called to mind the old streets of le Vieux Port in Montreal or the Citadel in Quebec, except much older and more Italian. We had a quick dinner snack at a small pizzeria, and then made our way to Tuscany – the big surprise.

Monte Argentario

Monte Argentario is a small island attached to the Tuscan coast, but it’s a big mountain sticking out of the Mediterranean. On a clear day, you can see all the way out to Corsica, and Elba, the island where Napoleon was exiled, is reachable by ferry from Porto Ercole.

We stayed at an… interesting hotel. As we drove up to the Vecchia Maremma Hotel, I noticed the bucking bronco on the sign and the side of the hotel. Interesting. The place was very old-school, likely last redecorated in the 70s, and as we ascended to our room, I felt like I had walked back in time. The room was nice, bathroom was well-equipped, and the balcony was quite nice- when peter had to go to a meeting, I got in some great reading time out there.

The hotel was in Orbetello, although we never went into town. After a relaxing first night in, we spent much of the next day on Monte Argentario… quite awesome.

One of the many spectacular views from Monte Argentario

We started off in Porto Ercole, one of the two towns on the island, and did some driving around. It’s a quaint little sea-side town, somewhat touristy, but with fantastic restaurants. We had lunch and dinner there, before and after driving the mountain.

Porto Ercole

I need to insert here that Peter drove us around, and he drives an Alfa Romeo. It’s a sedan, but it can still go. And as awesome as it was tearing around the mountain roads in the car, I was a bit scared here and there. But the views were breathtaking.

Peter overlooking the Mediterranean

Yeah, I wanna live there. That *might* be Corsica in the background…

Stunning

Peter had said he wanted to find a place that would be relaxing, and this was certainly that. What a beautiful place.

Pisa

My bad attempt at the usual “holding up the leaning tower” pic

On the way back to Milan, we made a stop in Pisa, as one does. From what Peter tells me there’s not much to see in Pisa save for the Piazza dei Miracoli, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that comprises the Duomo, the Campanile (aka, the Leaning Tower of Pisa), the Baptistery, and the Camposanto.  So we went to see the Duomo…

The Duomo

… The Baptistery …

The Baptistery

… the Campanile …

… the Leaning Tower of Pisa …

… and the Camposanto (no photo). They were all pretty amazing, although I was monumented out and didn’t end up going into any of them. It was beautiful, and I was quite surpised that there were that many monuments in such a compact space. Convenient history!

Something else we saw in Pisa was quite a surprise. Peter’s friend Antonio sent us looking for a Keith Haring mural in Pisa. We found it.

Tuttomondo by Keith Haring

I’ve never paid much attention to Haring’s work, to be honest. I was a kid in the 80s, and I sort of remember Haring’s work being ubiquitous. It’s woven into the fabric of my memories of the 80s. But when I saw this piece, which is his last work and HUGE, I got a new perspective on him and his work, and his impact on the art community. It was great to see.

Final Thoughts

This was my 3rd trip to Italy, and like all my trips to Italy, it was a whirlwind. I’m glad I came back, and got to see so many amazing things, and now I have even more ideas for what to do when I return – and next time, take a bit more time and actually enjoy and experience the place.

Special Thanks

Mille Grazie, Peter. 😉

Photo Gallery

Click here to see my Picasa Photo Gallery of Italy.

ROTR: The Video

So I took (nearly) every photo I took this year, dumped it into iMovie, and made a video slideshow of my travels. Enjoy. Share.

Milano

The Duomo, Europe’s biggest Cathedral

I’m gonna admit it, my head’s really not in the game right now… As of the writing of this post, I leave for Toronto in four days, I’ve been checking apartment listings daily, and I just started checking my work email again. I was acclaimed as Branch President for my school’s teachers union, and my social schedule upon my return is happily starting to fill up.

Even today, my first full day in London in 5 years, I’ve spent more time doing stuff that is home-related (I went to four different stores looking for a set of tumblers that you can’t get in Canada) than touristy stuff, but in my defence, it’s raining out and I had laundry to do this afternoon.

As such, it occurs to me that, while i had a lovely time in Milan, I took very few pictures. I also didn’t, in retrospect, do a whole lot, even though I was there for 3 full days.

I blame the Pope.

As you can see in the photo above, Pope Benedict XVI was in Milan for World Family Day or something like that. More anti-gay, anti-women’s right’s, anti-contraception bullshit, I’m sure, but because of it, the city wa crawling with people.

Still, even with all the stuff, I did get out and about exploring, and what I did see was quite wonderful.

Stazione Centrale

Inside Stazione Centrale

I took the train from Genoa to Milan, and it was a lovely train ride. Getting into Milan was a treat, though, as you arrive in this stunning building. What I really enjoyed about it was how well-used it was. There are multiple levels, and there is space for food, for retail, as well as waiting areas. It’s very pretty. It’s also the main hub for transport, as trams, busses and the metro all converge here.

The hostel (guest house?) I stayed at was fairly close to Centrale, which was nice. I set off right away upon arrival to find out what there was to do in Milan, but I found the tourism office at Centrale to be disappointing – I felt like I was bothering the woman, and when I tried to ask for information, she tore off a map, put an x where we were, an x where the Doumo is, and shoved the map at me. I’m sure she was getting the same question over and over that day, but come on, try a little bit.

The Duomo

The Duomo is, apparently, the largest cathedral in Europe, and it is quite a beautiful building. The Duomo sits on a square, and it was usually full of people, especially seeing as the Pope was in town.

Once I entered into the cathedral, its immensity was stunning.

Inside the main nave of the Duomo

Being that it was also the World Meeting of (presumably Catholic) Families was in Milan at the same time, the square surrounding the Duomo, as well as the Duomo itself, was overrun with people most of the time I was there. I ended up going on my second-last day, and the crowd was lessened, so i was able to get around and see things, even though it was still very crowded.

Castello Sfozesco

Castelo Sforzesco

In the centre of the city is the Castello, a 14th century ducal palace that now houses 7 museums and galleries that are open to the public. The castle is quite large, and the various exhibition spaces are spread out in the various buildings on the grounds of the castle.

I visited first the Museum of Ancient Art, which was quite beautiful, and houses Michaelangelo’s Pietas, which is a beautiful rendition.

Michaelangelo’s Pietas

The art in the gallery was beautiful, and contained many wonderful artifacts.

The next section I visited was the Antique Furnishings and Arts, and then the Applied Arts and Musical instruments. Being able to see how much design has changed over the years, and yet how much has remained the same, was quite fascinating. There were many beautiful pieces, andit was cool to see them all assembled in one place.

There was also the Archaeological Museum, with both an Egyptian and Roman exhibits. Not overly impressive, but a nice little collection.

The great thing about visiting the Castelo is that you can buy a 3-day Combo ticket that gives admission to the Castelo, Museum of Natural History, Museo del Risorgimento and Archaeological Museum. And it’s only €7 for all of them.

Archaeological Museum

Sadly, I a) lost the original ticket, and b) only made it to two of the four museums. I blame laziness. I did make it to the Archaeological Museum, which was quite cool as it outlined the history of Milan, from its founding as the Roman city of Mediolanum to modern times, as well as good exhibitions about the Roman and Etruscan civilizations.

The Museum itself is housed in an old convent on the site of ruins, and there is a tower left over from the 3rd century that contains frescoes from the middle ages. It was a cool site, and a nice afternoon out.

La Scala

Okay, honesty time: the only reason I knew La Scala existed prior to arriving in Milan was because of the line in the song “It’s bad luck to say Good Luck on Opening Night” from The Producers:

At the famous La Scala in Milan

On opening night it’s a rule
“In bocca lupa” they say with elan
And just for luck they all shout…
“Bah fongool!”

So when I saw it for the first time, that was my connection.

La Scala is one of the most famous Opera houses in the world, and its history goes back to 1778. It has been home to some of opera’s greats, such as Verdi, Toscanini and Maria Callas – names even an operatic neanderthal like me knows.

You’re not able to tour the theatre, unfortunately, but you can visit the Museum, and if you’re a theatre nerd (like me), it’s actually quite fascinating. there is a variety of photos, programs, props and costumes on display, the most impressive of which was Verdi’s piano. There were also etchings and photographs fromCommedia dell’Arte, which is the original version of slapstick comedy.

Before you enter the museum, you are able to go into the theatre galleries, and take a look at the theatre from one of the booths. The Auditorium is quite beautiful, but not necessarily out of the ordinary. If you can imagine all of the great performances that have take place there, however, it does become a special place.

While I was looking at the theatre, I overheard a guide in the next booth say that there were €10 rush seats in the fourth balcony available every night there is a show. The process for getting one is a bit of a production – you need to go to La Scala, to the side entrance, at noon to sign up for the tickets, and you can only get one ticket per person. Then, at 4:30, you need to go back to the same place, where you are given a voucher (once you’ve produced ID proving you are who you say you are) which will allow you to buy the tickets.

The reason the tickets are so cheap is a) they’re in the 4th balcony and b) they’re INCREDIBLY obstructed views. The auditorium of La Scala is round, all the orchestra seats face forward, but the side seats, of course, face the audience opposite. But hey, for €10, it’s La Scala.

The show we got to see was Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten. It was written in 1945.

It sucked. Badly.

It didn’t help that I had to stand for most of the 1st act to see what was going on. But the music was kinda awful, the lyrics didn’t rhyme (sorry, that’s my bias, but lyrics in music should rhyme), and while it was well-sung and designed, I just didn’t care. I left after the first act. But, I can say I saw an opera at La Scala.

Getting Here, Getting Around

I took TrenItalia to get to Milan from Genoa, and it was a reasonable trip. It’s only 90 minutes or so between the two cities, but the view is beautiful. The ticket, I seem to recall, was pretty reasonably priced.

There is a Metro system in Milan, which I used sparingly. There are also busses and streetcars, and the system is fully integrated. They have a 24-hour pass for only 4€50, which I thought was kinda awesome.

Accommodation

I again used Hostelworld to book my accommodations in Milan, and ended up at the Central Station Hostel. It was… okay. I think I’d call it more of a guest house, maybe? It was behind the Central Station, fairly well situated on bus and streetcar routes, a bit of a hike (10 minutes?) from Centrale and 15 from other metro stops. I dunno. It was a bit odd… it’s on the main floor of an office building, and it’s right beside the tracks. It was okay…

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed Milan, much more than I did Genoa, but as I have been finding, it’s not the city but the people in it who make the difference.

I was very lucky that, my first night in Milan at the local Gay bar, I was recued by Gigi, a really nice (and cute) DJ who invited me out with him and his friends. We went clubbing, and afterwards, his friend, Peter, was very gracious in taking me out and showing me around. It was pretty fantastic.

Special Thanks

Obviously to Gigi for rescuing me at the bar, and to Peter who went waaaay over and above to show me around, even though he was working. Grazie, bellos

 

Genova

The Port of Genova from the hostel

Genova – Genoa to us Anglos – ended up on the itinerary because it was there. The ferry from Barcelona docked here, and at the time, it seemed as good a place as any to spend a couple of days.

Apparently my newly-adopted “wing-it” attitude towards travel planning has failed me.

Don’t get me wrong. Genoa is a very pretty city. Part of it – the Strade Nuove and the Palazzi dei Rolli – is UNESCO World Heritage listed (although, since being in Europe, I’m starting to wonder what doesn’t get World Heritage listed), and the historic centre is full of beautiful old buildings.

It’s probably just me. With two weeks remaining at the time til I went home, I think travel burn-out has set in.

At any rate, I did enjoy my time in Genoa, short as it was (I was only there two full days) mainly because of the hiking.

The Forts of Genoa

Being a port city, Genoa was in need of protection throughout its history. Its location, wedged between the sea and the mountains, allowed for good protection, but over the years, a number of walls, ever expanding outward from the historic centre, were built.

Fort Puin

The most impressive of these fortifications are along the ridges north of the new walls. There is a hiking trail that starts at the top of the Zecca Funicular at Righi. The path takes you along the ridge of the mountains, and if you do the full loop, it’s around 10km. I, of course, did this loop.

View of Genoa from the mountains

The hike itself isn’t what I would call difficult. There are certainly some inclines, but it was overall a great hike. The views Genoa and its suburbs are breathtaking, and I had to often remind myself to stop walking and just look.

The last fort on the hike is Forte Diamante, built in the 1800s.

Forte Diamante in the clouds

According to the guide pamphlet I bought, Forte Diamante sits around 640m above sea level. As you can see above, I did the hike on a (thankfully) cloudy day, and so the cool thing was getting to see the fort emerge from the clouds, and to watch the rest of the world disappear as you hike up into it. The fort itself is in partial ruins, which makes for some interesting exploring.

View out of the ruin of the fort… there are mountains beyond that gap

It was a fun first 3 hours of walking around and finding places. I ran into very few people (mostly mountain bikers and dog walkers) which also made for a pleasant hike.

View of the hiking trails from the top of Forte Diamente

The hike back, however, was less than awesome. I took the other route back, which was fine until I realised that I missed the path to take the fast way home. Instead, I ended up walking all the way into the city, and finally found a bus taht would take me back to the hostel. An extra two hours, but overall, I quite enjoyed the day.

Walking Tour

The Tourism Office on Via Garibaldi offers an audioguided walking tour of the historical centre. It was only 12E, and since guided tours only operate on the weekends, it was my only option.

One of the many Palaces in Genoa

The audioguide itself was a flimsy cardboard box with the audio mechanism inside – cheezy, and I think that the tourist office would be better off just offering the files for download.

At any rate, the guided tour lasts a little over two hours, and was very thorough. Like most ancient European cities, there are buildings dating back to the medieval period, and everything is on a grand scale. this tour follows a path that takes you by the main buildings in the city, and gives you a good introduction to all there is to see and do in the city.

San Lorenzo Cathedral

There is no shortage of history here – Christopher Columbus was born here, and the house where he lived as a child, just outside the city walls, is still standing today.

The old gates to the city

There are, of course, museums and galleries, and what seems to be  great aquarium and biosphere. I am, however, at that point where, unless there’s something I can’t see (or haven’t seen) anywhere else, I’m probably not going to go. And while I really did want to spend an afternoon looking at fish (no joke, I did), I wasn’t going to pay 20 euro to get in.

Piazza della Feste in the Porto Antico

I guess I was hoping for something really exciting in Genoa, and what I found was a pretty, sleepy little port city with not a whole lot going on.

Would I go back? Probably not – I don’t think there was enough here, even if I were in a more adventurous mood, to make me need to come back and explore.

Overall, I’d give Genova a miss.

Barca! Barca! Barca!

Barcelona and the Mediterranean from Park Guell

I’ve had a few friends, before getting to Barcelona, tell me how beautiful a city it was. and how much they loved it. I tend to take these things with a grain of salt, because as with everything in life, it’s a question of taste.

I should have believed them.

But again, as with evrything in life, you really have to experience things for yourself.

And what an experience.

Passion entrance, Sagreda Familia

I can say with some degree of certainty, even though I’m not done the trip yet, that Barcelona is my favourite city of the whole trip. Hands down. For two reasons.

The first is that, prior to Barcelona, my experience with Art Nouveau – and its Barcelonian iteration, Modernisme – was limited. But in Barcelona, it’s everywhere. And not just in the important buildings. I discovered, through the city’s Ruta del Modernisme guidebook (12E), how common and how many versions of Modernisme there was. The guide has a one-day route, but I think if you did that route you’d be dead on your feet at the end of it. I took 3 days to work my way through the book (which was very thorough and interested, and included non-Modernista sites as well as the important Modernista buildings) and I didn’t even get halfway through the over-100 sites in the book. My one complaint about this fantastic resource was that it would have been SO MUCH BETTER in some sort of app or audio guide. I felt very conspicuously touristy walking around with a huge guide book and map.

One of the many Modernista apartment blocks in Barcelona

I could spend days going on about the walks I took around Barcelona (I found it to be very walkable, but apparently walking 10k in an evening isn’t nortmal, so maybe I’m not the best judge of walkability) and of the houses and buildings I saw. I won’t (you’re welcome), but you can visit the photo gallery if you want to check out the copious photos I took; Barcelona is my single-most photographed city – I took over 340 pics.

What I will focus on is some of the more awesome places I visited. And I didn’t even get to see them all.

Barri Gotic Walking Tour

One of the ancient Aquaducts leading into the old city

In Roman times, Barcelona was called Barcino (hard-C), and over the years it has been occupied by a wide variety of people and cultures. The Barri Gotic tour (Gothic quarter) was a fun tour through history. Present-day Barcelona is built on the ruins of the old city, and on the tour, we get a chance to see ancient, old and newer parts. It’s truly a stunning part of the city, with gothic churches and buildings all over the place, palaces and courtyards, and narrow cobbled streets. The guide was very knowledgeable and friendly.

The Ducal chapel.

It’s especially interesting to visit a non-Commonwealth country with a royal family – being in Canada, Australia, the UK, I’m used to the same monarch and the same traditions. Learning about the Spanish monarchy and how it evolved over time was interesting. I was also very interested to hear about Catalunya’s history, and how it sort of weaves in and out of a common history with Spain.

The Royal Coat of Arms

The tour was a good introduction to the old city, and I really enjoyed it. I’m getting used to the fact that tours here are more expensive than in, say, Australia or the US, but it’s the price to pay for history, I guess.

MUHBA – Placa del Rei

In the middle of the Barri Gotic is Placa del Rei – the king’s square – and what is cool about this square isn’t so much what is in it, but what is underneath it. To the side of the square is the entrance to MUHBA – Museu d’Historia de Barcelona – which, after a quick jaunt on the main floor, takes you below the square and back to ancient Barcino.

The ruins of Barcino, under Placa del Rei

As you decdent the elevator, the numbers diplay not the floor, but the years we are travelling as we descend into the ruins of the ancient city. The free audioguide (yay free!) provides commentary on the things we can see in the ruins – an old bath, a laundry / dying facility, and an old winery, as well as pathways and doorways among the buildings. It’s very cool to see such a wide swath of the ancietn Roman city exposed.

Pillars next to the old access road.

The tour took about an hour, and I really enjoyed visiting. It was nice to have an insight into daily life in ancient Rome, right there in the heart of Barcelona.

A funerary bust of a Roman citizen

The winery at Barcino

Palau Guell

Barcelona is the city of Gaudi, the ost famous and important figure in the Modernista movement in Barcelona. And were it not for Eusebi Guell, an incredibly rich industrialist, Antoni Gaudi might never have gotten the chance to show off what he could do. The Palau Guell was the first commission Gaudi made for Guell, and it is certainly spectacular.

The main entrance to Palau Guell

As the audioguide repeats quite frequently, no expense was spared in the creation of this city palace for the Guell family, and it shows. Rich wood, ornate cast iron and beautiful stone work is visible at every corner, and Gaudi’s beautiful aesthetic is omnipresent.

Even the basement, where the horses were kept, was beautiful

As I wandered from floor to floor, two things struck me: 1) These people must have been richer than rich, because even by today’s standards, this is a beautiful place, and 2) Gaudi had a beautiful mind, for the level of detail and thought that went into the place is mind-boggling.

Gaudi used parabolic arches everywhere in his designs

One of the cool features of Gaudi’s Palau was the incredible level of detail everywhere in the building, including on top of it. The chimneys atop the building are works of art in themselves, as was the roof – no flat surfaces here.

The Gay Chimney

Park Guell

Another stunning example of Gaudi’s vision of Modernista design can be seen in its full glory at Park Guell, up in the mountains. Guell apparently had an idea for Gaudi to design an exclusive enclave community, and although work was begun, it was deemed a failure as houses did not sell. What was build was given to the city, including Gaudi’s own home, and it is now a public park. And wow.

Me in front of one of the many sculptural features at Park Guell

It’s architecture, design and nature at its best. The huge park, beautiful and green, has a long, wide viaduct winding its way sleepily down the mountainside from top to bottom.

Under the viaduct

There is a large pavillion held up by organic-looking pillars with ceramic ceiling designs.

Nature Square

Everywhere you look, there is thought and design and colour.

Entrance pavillion

Plus, the views of the city and the sea aren’t so bad (as you can see from the first photo in the post). Best of all? Free.

La Sagrada Familia

Detail of the Nativity Facade

When you hear about the construction of cathedrals and basilica around the world (such as the one at Rouen, for example), you get used to hearing that the construction took generations, and that’s an odd thing for modern people to get, as we can see incredibly large buildings, such as the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, going up in only 6 years. Rarely do we get the opportunity to see this scale of building in action, and yet that is exactly what we have in the Sagrada Familia.

Construction on the Segrada Familia began in 1866, and according to the interpretive panels in the museum, it won’t be done until sometime in the 2030s.

And yet, this masterpiece is an astonishing building. As I said on Twitter when I was in the church, I think that the Sagrada Familia is the most beautiful building I have ever set foot in.

The main nave and apse of the church

One of the reasons I think the place is so stunning is that it is so organic on the inside. It is well known the Gaudi (the church’s designer – big surprise) took all of his ideas from nature, and I do believe that this place, his final work, accomplished just that – a reflection of nature. The columns branch off, literally, to provide support to the ceiling and roof, and different stone is used for different purposes, all of them structural.

Another section of the church

Another thing Gaudi was careful about was the lighting – the whole place is flooded with natural light, and apparently when there isn’t enough natural light, fxitures have been installed to provide lighting.

And as you can see from the photos of the two facades I’ve already posted, the exterior is just as intricate as the interior. I think you could spend days looking at the facades and not see everything there is to see.

What is most amazing is what is yet to come. Only 8 of the 12 bell towers – one for each apostle – is complete. I took the elevator to the top, and it provided beautiful views of the city and the sea. The main tower, which will eventually rise above it all with a 4-pronged cross on top of it. The Glory facade – which will eventually become the main entrance – is nowhere near completion. And the houses to the north and south of the site will someday be clearned to provide squares.

There are not many places I’ve visited in my life where I can say I had a religious – or maybe spiritual? – experience, and all of those have been theatres and not churches. The Sagrada Familia has now been added to that list.

Other Stuff I Saw

An odd (distrubing?) statue at the head of Rambla Catalunya

One of the guard towers along the old city wall

me at the Arc de Triomf

Fossar de les Moreres, a memorial to the Catalunyans who died in the War of Spanish Succession in 1714

The Palau Nactional, the main building of the 1929 Universal Expo, now home to MNAC

One of the towers, and details of the roof, at CaixaForum, now an artspace, but formerly a Modernista-style textile factory owned by the Casaramona family

Dragon climbing set / slide (but closed) at the Parc de l”Espanya Industrial

The Building that started it all – this is the first building, erected in the Eixample district of Barcelona, that heralded the new civic layout and character. Now. most intersections in Eixample have diamond-shaped intersections (ather that the square ones we know in Canada)

Statue of Christopher Columbus

The Torre San Sebastian, one of the two anchor points for the Barcelona Teleferico. Yes, I went on it. Yay me.

Port Vell from the Teleferico. The bridge you can see (the wavy one, bottom left) has both a retractable deck acros the wider expoanse, and a swing deck across the shorter. Very cool engineering.

The 1992 Olympic Stadium, on Montjuic

Torre Calatrava, the communications tower build by Telefonica to transmit signal during the 1992 Olympics.

interior of Arenas de Barcelona, a former arena from the Universal Exposition turned into a shopping centre.

Accommodation

This was my first non-apartment, non-house I stayed in since I have been in Europe. I found the Diagonal Home on Hostelworld.com, and it turned out to be a nice little place. Diagonal is a major artery in Barcelona, and as the name suggests, it stretches diagonally across the city’s grid. The hostel is in a pretty upscale area, and is right next to a Hugo Boss.

My room was small, and while I had a window, it openened on to a small courtyard taht got no real light. The worst part was that, two floors below me, is a residence for seniors, and I am guessing they have mental health problems, because I was woken up every morning by someone wailing (yes, wailing) and I went to bed to someone hacking up a lung.

Overall, though, it was good enough for what I paid for it, and I’d probably go back if I was in the same financial situation when I go back to Barcelona.

Getting Around

Barcelona has a great transit system. It is based on a multi-lined Metro, and includes bus and tram service, as well as regional trains. The price was very reasonable –  bought a 10-ride pass for 9 euro.

I did find Barcelona very walkable, but as I mentioned earlier, walking 40 minutes to get to the beach is reasonable to me.

Leaving Barcelona

I flew into Barecelona from Paris, and the airport was fairly easy to get around.

I decided, however, to leave Barcelona ia different means.

Me leaving Barcelona

Yes, I decided to take a Ferry out of Barcelona. I found out that there was a ferry between Barcelona and Genoa (where I am now) a while back, and after the Aix-en-Provence plans fell through, I booked the ferry.

While it was certainly an uneventful trip, I was pretty disappointed. If you visit the Grandi Navi Velocci website for the Exelcior, the ship I sailed on, you;d think it was going to be a non-stop party. Alas, everything was closed, the cafeteria was expeisnive and the food was mediocre. I spent most of the evening reading or watching movies, as I did most of the morning. In the long run, I got here safely, but I think next time I’d just fly.

Final Thoughts

I can’t say enough about Barcelona. It is a beautiful city, and I think I only managed to scratch the surface of this city. I will be back here, sooner rather than later.

Special Thanks

I’d like to thank Marcos for showing me around and giving me some great tips for the visit. Your hospitality is appreciated.

I’m endebted, however, to Juan, who was so very kind to me, showed me around, and even took me to Sitges (which will be a quick separate post). You’re a sweetheart, thanks so much.

Photo Album

Again, here it is.