Having walked, climbed and inspected the "building site" that is to become a truly magnificent modern church we entered the "basement" to gain an insight into the construction of the Sagrada Familia and a glimpse into the mind of Gaudi.

Work started on the temple in 1882 and the following year Gaudi was appointed as Project Director and he continued in this role until he died in 1926. I guess he’d never heard of Prince 2 as a means to aid project management because ninety years later the project is still ongoing!

The museum is accessed through the Atonement Temple underneath the main construction and there’s plenty of information to read and digest about the life of the Temple. Perhaps too much information and after a time I contented myself with a bit of "rapid reading" just to get the gist of what the exhibit was about,

I guess the most fascinating has to be the hanging used teabags (well that’s what they looked like from a distance). This hanging model was based upon the "theory of the reversion of the centenary" (not sure I was much wiser!) which is something to do with the tension of the wires caused by the gravitational pull on the weights hanging on the chain (Gaudi used sachets with lead shot) giving the perfect shape for an arch. Personally I would need a lot more imagination to get this one, but still I found it an interesting piece of sculpture.

There was a range of scale models of the temple ranging from the table-top version which has provided successors of Gaudi with the template for the continuation of his work. A larger version highlights the scale of the project and these together with Gaudi’s original drawings help put some context around the ongoing work of the Temple. There are numerous scale models of the external sculptures and plenty of signs that work is continuing on reproducing Gaudi’s original quest.

There are examples of Gaudi’s church furniture just waiting for a permanent home in the body of the church and an illuminating description of how work on the Temple has progressed over the years. Ten years fater gaudi’s death the temple was desecrated during the Spanish Civil War and much of Gaudi’s work damaged. The fragments have been painfully re-assembled and the restoration work continues to ensure that the design is as close to Gaudi (taking account of the passage of time) as is possible.

The temple was initially conceived back in 1874 by "the devotees of Saint Joseph" and a century and three decades later it’s still not finished. Although I'm sure that Joseph Maria Bocabella and his association (formed in 1866) would have been real pleased with the numbers of visitors to the Temple i just can't help but wonder what they would have thought about the progress made on their original vision. But that, like the Temple itself may be something that I'll never see resolved!

The Temple Expiatori De La Sagrada Familia (In English, The Holy Family) is a Roman Catholic basilica situated in Barcelona and still under construction. Antoni Gaudi worked on the project for over 40 years, devoting the last 15 years of his life entirely to the endeavour. On the subject of the extremely long construction periods, Gaudi is said to have joked, "my client is not in a hurry." After Gaudi's death in 1926, work continued under direction of Domenech Sugranyes until interrupted by the Spanish Civil War in 1935.

Part of the unfinished building and Gaudi's models and workshop were destroyed during the war by Catalan anarchists. The design, as now being constructed, is based both on reconstructed version of the lost plans and on modern adaptions. Since the 1940s, the architects Francesc Quintana, Isidre Puig Boada, Lluis Bonet i Gari, and Francesc Cardoner have carried on the work. The current director and son of Lluis Bonet, Jordi Bonet i Armengol, has been introducing computers into the design and construction process since the 1980s.

On our last day in Barcelona, we walked to La Sagrada Familia (Holy Family). This church (it is not a cathedral) has been under construction for over 100 years. Originally designed by Antonin Gaudi, it has been added onto and expanded by other architects after his death, funded by admission of more than 1.5 million guests per year.

Admission was 8€ and worth every penny. The entrance is the Nativity Facade, and if you look waaay up high, mosaics spell out "Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus." You will get a better view of these if you climb the inside towers. There is a great deal of symbolism in these facades, such as numbers adding up to 33, the number of portal sections (3 - the holy trinity), towers (12 - apostles), etc. I highly recommend bring a good tour book (we swear by Rick Steves) or renting the 3€ audioguide.

We then headed to the stairs for the tower. We could have taken a lift for 2€, but where is the fun in that? Instead, we spent the better part of an hour slooowly climbing the spiral staircase and joking around. To reward us for our long wait, we had fantastic views of the spires and construction, as well as the city of Barcelona.

From the interior of the church, you get a first hand look at the massive ongoing construction. Stained-glass windows are still being put in, as were columns and floors. The interior is as beautiful as the exterior, with a canopy of trees standing in for structural pillars.

To say that you must see this is an understatement. Over one million people stream through here each year because it is the most fascinating site in Barcelona.

Although this is not to be missed on a visit to Barcelona, I have to say that it was a slight disappointment, especially after the visit to 'La Pedrera'. I think this, however, may largely be due to tourist hype rather than anything else!

The outside is very impressive from both sides, but once inside it is much more of a building site than one would perhaps expect when the timescale of building has been taken into account, and unfortunately this means that once inside there is very little to do other than either climbing up the towers or getting the lift (for which the queues can be unbearable). The views are far stretching and on a clear and sunny day very pleasant although you can get much the same from the top of 'La Pedrera'.

If you don't visit La Sagrada Familia while in Barcelona, you can't say you've been to Barcelona (or at least that's what every other gift shop will make you believe). Your initial reaction to it will be "what the . . . ?" If you've been to several cathedrals, you will know this is very different from any other traditional building. But then again, it makes its mastermind, Gaudi, all the more intriguing.

If you decide to visit the interior, please be aware that there's not much to see inside. But we enjoyed the panoramic view of the city from the top of one of the towers. You have to pay extra to go on the lift, but it’s a lot better than climbing all those stairs. The wait, however, is very long. The museum will give you a better perspective of how Gaudi designed the building, as well as a little history on his works and achievements. As you leave the place, you will wonder whether it will ever be completed? Maybe, but not for at least another 100 years . . .