Barcelona

The day after Nathan flew back home, the kids & I boarded a Ryanair flight to Barcelona. Micah was scheduled to take the ACT there on Sept. 12, so we decided to spend a few extra days and see the city.

Thank goodness for cheap airfare!  Ryanair is bare-bones, but it got us across Spain for less than half the cost of train tickets.

Our AirBNB apartment was on the 6th floor of a building in the middle of a Barcelona neighborhood.  It was interesting to see what is on the other side of all those tall buildings that line the streets.  (Basically a lot of laundry hanging out to dry.  And cats.)

The girls loved sitting at our window and watching the cats play down below.  Better than tv!

They also loved our rickety old elevator.

The highlight of the trip was seeing Antoni Gaudí's jaw-dropping cathedral Sagrada Familia.  It has been under construction since 1883, and they are still working on it.  The goal is to have it completed by 2026, the centennial of Gaudí's death.  I can't wait to return to see it fully finished!

The detail work of the exterior is beyond description.  I could have spent hours looking at all of the statues and carvings.  (But that's not really possible when you are traveling with 4 kids.)  I am always on the lookout for the rare images of Christ as a child.  I fell in love with this statue of a young Jesus sitting on the lap of Joseph.    

The adoration of the Three Kings.  The statues on this side (the Nativity Facade) of the cathedral were so realistic and tender. 

The interior of the cathedral was strikingly different from the ornate exterior.  It was aglow in softly diffused light from thousands of brilliant stained glass windows.  

The pillars inside were designed to resemble towering trees.
I've looked at all my pictures, but none of them can even come close to capturing the magnitude and reverence in this cathedral.

On the other side of the cathedral is the Passion Facade.  This was my favorite!  The sculptures on this side were stark and edgy.  But they still portrayed so much emotion.

Pontius Pilate - just part of one of the many stories told on the side of this magnificent cathedral.

Barcelona is all about the details.  There are random surprises all over the city, like this cool dragon just hanging out on the side of a building.

We walked La Rambla.  Torah is lucky to have such a great big brother.

Red Bull ice cream?  No thanks.

I was trying to get a cute picture of my kids in front of the Cathedral of Barcelona, but this creepy squeaky white apparition wouldn't leave us alone.  Panhandlers in Spain are creative, but still obnoxious.

I was so excited to finally get to witness the locals dancing the Sardana - the traditional Catalonian circle dance.  The steps are slow and methodical, and it was fascinating to watch the circle slowly grow as more people added their bags to the pile in the center, then join in without missing a beat.

The girls enjoyed an afternoon swimming in the Med.  Torah loves the big waves that crash right over her and drag her to shore.

We caught a late metro out to see the Magic Fountain at Montjuïc.  The lights and water were set to a backdrop of Disney music.  The little girls were enthralled!

Barcelona is clearly the city of Gaudí.  Walking up the Passeig de Gràcia, we passed 2 of his most famous residential buildings.  This is Casa Milà.  Supposedly, George Lucas visited this site and modeled the helmets of his storm troopers after the chimneys on top.

Casa Batlló - another Gaudí.

La Boqueria is Barcelona's version of Pike Street market.  :)

The sights & smells of the market were tempting, but mostly overpriced.

We did get some fresh-squeezed juice for 1 euro.

My little iPhone camera just can't capture the colors!

Our last stop was Park Güell - yet another Gaudí extravaganza.  We weren't able to get tickets to go in, but we enjoyed walking around the park outside.  The walkway was lined with these stone-age looking planters, interspersed with stone benches to rest on.

And the view from Park Güell was stunning!