Day 2 in Barcelona was a treat. We started off at the Basilica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Familia, otherwise known as Sagrada Familia. Construction began on the church in 1882 and today it is the largest unfinished Catholic Church in the world. They say the church will be finished in 2026 (but I'm not so sure given there are many more pieces to be completed).
We arrived ahead of our scheduled meet time with our tour guide. Hands down, this is the best money we spent on the trip. Having our own private tour guide not only helped us skip the long lines to get in, they also knew more than the average guide because our guide studied under Jordi Bonet I Armengol, the church's architect from 1987-2012.
Antoni Gaudi is perhaps the most famous of architects of the Basilica, but he was not the original architect. In fact, we learned that the original architect, Francisco de Paula del Villar, designed quite a simple church. When Gaudi took over the project he designed what the church has become, far from simple.
I didn't take video during the visit, mostly because I was hanging on every word our guide shared with us about the rich history of the church. Information overload to say the least. Also, the amount of thought put into every element and what each element represents is beyond impressive. Plus, as our guide kept reminding us, this was during a time with no computers, no calculators, no AI, no 3-D printers, nothing but a piece of paper, pencil, abacus, and someone's mind.
I'll leave you with the images of that morning.
Look at the reflection on the floor from the windows. Stunning.
The inside of the church is beautiful. It makes the outside - and back - of the church appear to be a let down.
In all seriousness, visiting the site was a spritual experience and one that I will not soon forget.
In keeping with theme of the day, Rachel and I headed back over to where we were staying and decided to tour the inside of the Cathedral of Barcelona.
The Cathedral is not as grand at the Sagrada Familia, but beautiful nonetheless.
Mass is held each day at the church - even when individuals are paying to tour the church. We were there on a day where twins were being baptized. We were not allowed to join them in the chapel, but we could "watch" from the pews. What an amazing thing to witness.
We also had the opportunity to go to the top of the church and walk outside to experience the view of Barcelona.
Some additional views from the top.
Back down we went to see the remaining parts of the church, including the courtyard area that has swans. They were all grooming themselves at the time and I was fascinated by it. Man, you want to talk about shedding!
We wrapped up our tour and met Rachel's colleague David for lunch and more sightseeing. We made our way through the Gothic quarter, ending up on La Rambla.
I became enchanted with doors on this trip (wait, you'll see!).
And just in case you were wondering about the cost of eggs in other countries (yes, they do not refrigerate eggs in Spain), they are less expensive.
We had to make a stop at the grocery store to pick up items for our excursion the next day and to find a Diet Coke (they did not have any). We happen to meet an American who just moved to Barcelona while we were waiting in line.
We visited the rooftop of our hotel again for an afternoon glass of wine. This time. we were able to see the Sagrada Familia from our rooftop.
Before dinner, I wanted to visit La Boqueria which is the market in Barcelona. We learned later that not only one of the oldest markets in Europe, it is now the considered the best market in Europe.
We ended our evening by learning how to make Paella (and Sangria). What an experience. First, our chef trained in Michelin Star restaurants across the world and was a chef for Formula 1. I mean, it was meant to be. Next, we got to shop for all of ingredients. That meant going back to the market (we weren't complaining, we loved the market). We learned about what to look for in the seafood we were buying and even got to taste a local almond candy on our way out (because we were making a traditional almond cake for dessert).
The food we made was fantastic. It was a cool experience. One of many we had on this trip.
We wrapped up the evening by walking up the La Rambla and back to our hotel.
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