I learned that Wednesday was a demonstration day. Many businesses were closed, as was the metro and most buses to fight against cuts the government is making in health care, education, and the list goes on. There were going to be people demonstrating throughout the day. There were places open but whenever the protestors got close the businesses closed their doors. A lot also had security guards. Later we noticed that anyone who stayed open for business was given a hard time and in some cases were vandalized. Although I didn't see anything major. One bus had stickers plastered all over its windsheild and the poor driver was standing there picking them off. A couple of ATM machines had black spray paint across the key pad and the screen. And there were some other little things like red paint on the mouth of an alligator logo.
After my tour yesterday I had learned about a famous Barcelonian architect named Gaudi who has a very different style. I thought I would go on the free Gaudi walking tour to find out more. This time Ann Marie was my guide and she was an art/history major from Ireland. This also where I met Donna, who I recognized from my hostel. She was in Spain after doing the El Camino trail. She is from South Africa. On the Gaudi tour we started with Palau Guell, a beautiful building with very colorful chimneys. We moved along to Case Batllo, the house with the masks. It is stunning! We saw Casa "les Punxes" which originally was designed to be grander than Casa Batllo but lacked the colour which made it beautiful. Along the way we heard about Gaudi's life. He was a very religious man who went to church services twice everyday and other than that he worked. He died in 1926 when he was run over by a tram. He lived for several days but wasn't recognized until the second day. He is the best known artist in Barcelona. Our last stop, Sagrada Familia. A stunning church which is not complete even after 110 years. It is still under construction, with 10 towers still to be built. It is estimated to be finished in 2026.
After our tour, Donna and I walked back along to La Rambla and down to the beach. I love the beach, there is something about the ocean that is so soothing! We walked along the boardwalk until we found the sand. We walked in the sand and Donna dipped her feet in the ocean. There were surfers out and even people going in their underwear...I guess they didn't plan ahead! Haha. As we were leaving the sand and taking pictures a man and his wife were telling us something in Spanish. He was pointing to the beach and making a camera with his hands. We tried to follow what he was saying but had no idea. Initially I thought he wanted to take our picture but when he tried to show us something around the front of a bar truck I realized there must be something funny. Sure enough, walking along was a man, completely naked. He wasn't even carrying clothes. And he was picking up sea shells.....hahaha...we had a good laugh before hearing back the way we came. Along the path were musicians and then a man spinning IN a large circular hula hoop. We stayed awhile to watch. On the way home we stopped at the grocery store for some dinner and I stocked up on Vitamin c by buying a pineapple and some kiwis. Yum.
As we walked up the road we saw that the big square of Catalunya was full of people. The roads were empty of cars and people were walking everywhere. The closer we got to the hostel the more people filled the streets. We weren't scared but just a little nervous of all the people and their frame of mind. We squeezed our way through the crowds and made it safely to our hostel. I have to say, it was a neat experience to feel the passion and unity of the people.
We agreed to meet early in the morning to get a start on our day. I didn't sleep well as I kept waking up and coughing but I was up and ready and eating breakfast at 8 so we could get an early start. We began at Park Guell, which was designed by....Gaudi! It was a steep climb up a hill before we found with some relief escalators! We wandered around the park finding stone structures, benches, ceilings, fountains and houses designed by the artist. We also saw a house he lived in for awhile. Originally Park Guell was going to be a housing development for the wealthy. It was quite far out of town though so only 3 houses were commissioned before they decided to turn it into a park. We walked along to see another house by Gaudi called Casa Vicens. It wasn't his usual style and we were slightly disappointed by what we found. Aw well, it's good to see anyways. Catching the metro we went to buy bus tickets, from Valencia to Seville this time. We headed to the hostel for lunch and a break before heading over to Casa Batllo and the 20€ admission. It was worth it, the house was amazing! A staircase that looks like the spine of a dragon, a whirlpool ceiling, a courtyard designed to brighten no matter how low the floor, and an amazing mosaic roof and chimneys. It took over an hour to go through and when were done we were both in awe. His design was beautiful, imaginitive, whimsical, and practical....he put in air vents and windows for light in ways that no one else had done yet.
We headed down the road to Placa de Catalunya and down towards the beach. Donna wanted to see the Picasso museum so while she went there, I went to explore the area and have dinner. In Place St. Jaume there were people gathering and I knew from the day before that something was happening. So I continued wandering but stayed around the outside of the crowd. Sure enough a demonstration started, thankfully it was peaceful. Donna and I met back up and did some shopping (her not me) before heading back to the hostel. Sadly, Donna was leaving in the morning. We said goodbye and I spent another night coughing.
I decided to wake up and take my time. I had breakfast, caught up on my email and then made a list of what I still wanted to see. I started with Sagrada Familia. The inside is like no other church I have ever seen. With Gaudi's touch, the inside of the cathedral is soft and whimsical and yet full of religious elements. Even though most of what is there today has not been done by Gaudi, they have stayed true to his design. During the civil war, rioters against Christianity broke into the church and destroyed Gaudi's workshop. As he was already dead, it was all they had tof his design for the building of the church. They rebuilt and used pictures to recreate his models. I would love to go back and see it finished in 14 years....I then headed to Palau de la Music a Catalana. It is supposed to be beautiful. But with a large price for admission, I decided to skip it. I continued on to Museum d'Historia, which is where they have the Roman remains of the city. I wandered through the basement and found a fish factory, a wine making factory, a laundry facility, and artifacts galore. It was fascinating. Although, since most of it was in Spanish with no translation, a little frustrating! I spent some time on La Rambla people watching before heading back to the hostel. But not before discovering a food market. They had fresh fruit and veggies, nuts, candy, smoothies, meat, cheeses.....and on and on. The meat counters were terrifying.,,,whole rabbits, fur and all, hanging from their tails. And then a bit further on, no fur but eyes...and then there were various sized heads with eyes, tongues, brains.....I quickly got away and avoided all the meat counters! Although I did buy a yummy fresh fruit smoothie and some fresh mango! Yum!
I took a break at the hostel and talked to grams, gramps and dad before heading out to meet, who I had met in Tours. We made plans to go to the Font Magica, my whole reason for staying Friday night! We walked up the stairs of the metro to find a street lined with fountains and at the end of the street a huge fountain with music and different coloured lights. All up the hill behind it were more fountains and water falls.....it was so beautiful! I could have stayed for hours but my feet were pretty sore. I played tour guide through Barri Gotic before we stopped for some tea. After saying our goodbyes I headed back to the hostel and to bed. I had a much better sleep and am feeling so much better today.
I got up this morning and had an early breakfast before catching my bus to Valencia. It was a beautiful drive with parts of it beside the ocean and the rest surrounded by orange trees. I arrived, after some backtracking and friendly locals using their GPS, at my hostel. I have been upgraded from 14 beds to an 8 bed dorm, although so far I am all alone in there. :( I got busy right away and explored the older part of the city near where I am staying. I then walked along the Alameda. It is a park which used to be a river. After flooding and destroying the town several times they built a dam to re route the water. It is now filled with a park and walking paths, plants, flowers, playgrounds, 'football' fields, bikes for rent, ponds and so much more. I walked along and found an event going on for a marathon. I turned around and walked back up, discovering the other side. It is beautiful. After three hours of walking I am ready for some dinner. Now that I am caught up on my blog I am going to do just that! Beunos Noches!
After my tour yesterday I had learned about a famous Barcelonian architect named Gaudi who has a very different style. I thought I would go on the free Gaudi walking tour to find out more. This time Ann Marie was my guide and she was an art/history major from Ireland. This also where I met Donna, who I recognized from my hostel. She was in Spain after doing the El Camino trail. She is from South Africa. On the Gaudi tour we started with Palau Guell, a beautiful building with very colorful chimneys. We moved along to Case Batllo, the house with the masks. It is stunning! We saw Casa "les Punxes" which originally was designed to be grander than Casa Batllo but lacked the colour which made it beautiful. Along the way we heard about Gaudi's life. He was a very religious man who went to church services twice everyday and other than that he worked. He died in 1926 when he was run over by a tram. He lived for several days but wasn't recognized until the second day. He is the best known artist in Barcelona. Our last stop, Sagrada Familia. A stunning church which is not complete even after 110 years. It is still under construction, with 10 towers still to be built. It is estimated to be finished in 2026.
After our tour, Donna and I walked back along to La Rambla and down to the beach. I love the beach, there is something about the ocean that is so soothing! We walked along the boardwalk until we found the sand. We walked in the sand and Donna dipped her feet in the ocean. There were surfers out and even people going in their underwear...I guess they didn't plan ahead! Haha. As we were leaving the sand and taking pictures a man and his wife were telling us something in Spanish. He was pointing to the beach and making a camera with his hands. We tried to follow what he was saying but had no idea. Initially I thought he wanted to take our picture but when he tried to show us something around the front of a bar truck I realized there must be something funny. Sure enough, walking along was a man, completely naked. He wasn't even carrying clothes. And he was picking up sea shells.....hahaha...we had a good laugh before hearing back the way we came. Along the path were musicians and then a man spinning IN a large circular hula hoop. We stayed awhile to watch. On the way home we stopped at the grocery store for some dinner and I stocked up on Vitamin c by buying a pineapple and some kiwis. Yum.
As we walked up the road we saw that the big square of Catalunya was full of people. The roads were empty of cars and people were walking everywhere. The closer we got to the hostel the more people filled the streets. We weren't scared but just a little nervous of all the people and their frame of mind. We squeezed our way through the crowds and made it safely to our hostel. I have to say, it was a neat experience to feel the passion and unity of the people.
We agreed to meet early in the morning to get a start on our day. I didn't sleep well as I kept waking up and coughing but I was up and ready and eating breakfast at 8 so we could get an early start. We began at Park Guell, which was designed by....Gaudi! It was a steep climb up a hill before we found with some relief escalators! We wandered around the park finding stone structures, benches, ceilings, fountains and houses designed by the artist. We also saw a house he lived in for awhile. Originally Park Guell was going to be a housing development for the wealthy. It was quite far out of town though so only 3 houses were commissioned before they decided to turn it into a park. We walked along to see another house by Gaudi called Casa Vicens. It wasn't his usual style and we were slightly disappointed by what we found. Aw well, it's good to see anyways. Catching the metro we went to buy bus tickets, from Valencia to Seville this time. We headed to the hostel for lunch and a break before heading over to Casa Batllo and the 20€ admission. It was worth it, the house was amazing! A staircase that looks like the spine of a dragon, a whirlpool ceiling, a courtyard designed to brighten no matter how low the floor, and an amazing mosaic roof and chimneys. It took over an hour to go through and when were done we were both in awe. His design was beautiful, imaginitive, whimsical, and practical....he put in air vents and windows for light in ways that no one else had done yet.
We headed down the road to Placa de Catalunya and down towards the beach. Donna wanted to see the Picasso museum so while she went there, I went to explore the area and have dinner. In Place St. Jaume there were people gathering and I knew from the day before that something was happening. So I continued wandering but stayed around the outside of the crowd. Sure enough a demonstration started, thankfully it was peaceful. Donna and I met back up and did some shopping (her not me) before heading back to the hostel. Sadly, Donna was leaving in the morning. We said goodbye and I spent another night coughing.
I decided to wake up and take my time. I had breakfast, caught up on my email and then made a list of what I still wanted to see. I started with Sagrada Familia. The inside is like no other church I have ever seen. With Gaudi's touch, the inside of the cathedral is soft and whimsical and yet full of religious elements. Even though most of what is there today has not been done by Gaudi, they have stayed true to his design. During the civil war, rioters against Christianity broke into the church and destroyed Gaudi's workshop. As he was already dead, it was all they had tof his design for the building of the church. They rebuilt and used pictures to recreate his models. I would love to go back and see it finished in 14 years....I then headed to Palau de la Music a Catalana. It is supposed to be beautiful. But with a large price for admission, I decided to skip it. I continued on to Museum d'Historia, which is where they have the Roman remains of the city. I wandered through the basement and found a fish factory, a wine making factory, a laundry facility, and artifacts galore. It was fascinating. Although, since most of it was in Spanish with no translation, a little frustrating! I spent some time on La Rambla people watching before heading back to the hostel. But not before discovering a food market. They had fresh fruit and veggies, nuts, candy, smoothies, meat, cheeses.....and on and on. The meat counters were terrifying.,,,whole rabbits, fur and all, hanging from their tails. And then a bit further on, no fur but eyes...and then there were various sized heads with eyes, tongues, brains.....I quickly got away and avoided all the meat counters! Although I did buy a yummy fresh fruit smoothie and some fresh mango! Yum!
I took a break at the hostel and talked to grams, gramps and dad before heading out to meet, who I had met in Tours. We made plans to go to the Font Magica, my whole reason for staying Friday night! We walked up the stairs of the metro to find a street lined with fountains and at the end of the street a huge fountain with music and different coloured lights. All up the hill behind it were more fountains and water falls.....it was so beautiful! I could have stayed for hours but my feet were pretty sore. I played tour guide through Barri Gotic before we stopped for some tea. After saying our goodbyes I headed back to the hostel and to bed. I had a much better sleep and am feeling so much better today.
I got up this morning and had an early breakfast before catching my bus to Valencia. It was a beautiful drive with parts of it beside the ocean and the rest surrounded by orange trees. I arrived, after some backtracking and friendly locals using their GPS, at my hostel. I have been upgraded from 14 beds to an 8 bed dorm, although so far I am all alone in there. :( I got busy right away and explored the older part of the city near where I am staying. I then walked along the Alameda. It is a park which used to be a river. After flooding and destroying the town several times they built a dam to re route the water. It is now filled with a park and walking paths, plants, flowers, playgrounds, 'football' fields, bikes for rent, ponds and so much more. I walked along and found an event going on for a marathon. I turned around and walked back up, discovering the other side. It is beautiful. After three hours of walking I am ready for some dinner. Now that I am caught up on my blog I am going to do just that! Beunos Noches!
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