The park itself was interesting to walk around (sculptures, mosaics, good views), but there were far too many people there, so finding a quiet spot to sit and relax was out of the question. The famous lizard sculpture that adorned so many postcards and guides to Barcelona proved elusive - we walked around the park twice without seeing it. Again, on returning home, we concluded that it was by the entrance at the bottom of the hill, but was obscured by the hoards of visitors, so we missed it.

Having had our fill of Gaudi for one day, we decided to return to the hotel on the bus. The bus routes aren't as clear as they could be, and while we did get back eventually, we had certainly gone via the "scenic route," which included the bus reversing on a very narrow pathway overlooking a ravine.

Parc Guell was originally designed by Gaudi to be a small area of residence in Barcelona. The project never succeeded, though, and the city made it into a park some years ago.

From the bottom side of Parc Guell, there are two options to get up. One is the easy, relatively painless escalator. Unfortunately, on the day we visited, the escalator was not functioning. The second way is to climb several hundred stairs, which is far more painful, but we had no choice.

The park is easily worth the climb. There are fantastic views of the city, amazing sculptures within, and a lot of shade. The scupltures are awash in color, and many of them are lizards.

The neatest thing about the park is easily the cave area. There are columns carved into the natural stone, and you can walk into the caves. From there, you get the best view of Barcelona and a ton of shade. I never knew there were cactuses in Barcelona until I sat in the caves!

Admission is free, but there is always the overpriced concession stand.

From afar, one would think they were looking upon an amusement park, but once you get close enough, you'll find that the level of detail that was put into Park Guell is astounding. Each multi-colored mosaic was carefully crafted and shows the obsessive nature of Anton Gaudi. You can even take a tour of his home for a small entrance fee, though many seem to opt for the gift shop instead. Even if you don't go inside, there is plenty to admire, and it is a nice place for a stroll or a picnic. It's definitely worth the trip if you have time and want to get away from busy Las Ramblas.