Setting our sights on Barcelona

Music truly comes alive in this beautiful music hall, the Palau de la Música Catalana. A short 5 minute walk from Placa Catalunya, we visited this palace of music on an English tour (available on the hour). The Moderniste-style music hall was designed by Lluis Domenech i Montaner in 1908, and is throbbing with color and design details.

Although they sadly do not allow you to take pictures inside, we captured a few of the outside details. The music hall features a large and three dimensional stained glass sun in the center of the ceiling which is breathtaking. Stained glass scenes take up much of the large vaulting walls, and the entire interior is covered in sculpted flowers, and in particular roses, the flower of Catalonia.

Along the back wall of the apse-shaped* stage, nine muses surround the stage, literally coming halfway out of the wall to inspire the musicians. The building was originally designed for the Orfeó Català, a Catalan choir. This choir still performs here today, and in fact is currently auditioning new members. Concerts of all types are held here throughout the year, from symphonies to choral productions. We were unable to get tickets for any concert during our stay, and would recommend that if you are interested, you book before you come online.

Tickets were $8 Euros a person, and you should arrive early as they sell out quickly. Tours are offered in Catlan, Spanish and English. More information and some incredible pictures of the interior can be found at: www.palaumusica.org

*Apse: a projecting part of a building (such as a church) that is usually semicircular in plan and vaulted (Thank you Webster!)

We have a fondness for aquariums that defies explanation. We rarely go to a city with an aquarium and opt not to visit. Because there is so much to do in Barcelona, the aquarium was low on our list, but we made it there on our last day in town. Located near the port and directly on the water, the L’Aquàrium de Barcelona entry price was steep: $14.5 Euros for adults and $9.5 Euros for children and adults over 60. Most of the exhibits have English descriptions; however, we were disappointed that the fish described at the top of the exhibits were rarely visible within the tanks. 

Despite that annoyance, we enjoyed the aquarium, spending about 2 hours there. We entered and descended along a ramp to the main exhibits, winding our way through the darkness and jockeying with other visitors to see the fish. By far the coolest part of the exhibit was the moving walkway through an enormous tank filled with sharks, eels, and other kinds of fish and kelp. We stood on the walkway, and it moved us through the tank; it felt as if the fish were all around us. It was somewhat unnerving to watch the teeth of the sharks as they swam 3 feet above our heads, but it was pretty fun too. We actually slipped back to the beginning of the exhibit, just so we could ride the walkways again for another quick tour.

This would be a great activity for children, though adults might be frustrated by the lack of information available. Everyone exits up an escalator to the Exploratorium, where children have a chance for hands-on touching of the fish and adults can stop for a delightful and expensive café con leche. Although this would not be high on my list if time was limited in Barcelona, this may or may not be a good stop for you.
Aquarium website

"Come on," my husband said, "they're still open," as he ushered me toward La Pedrera, or Casa Mila, one of Gaudi's finest architectural achievements. After a long day walking throughout the parks and streets of Barcelona, I was exhausted, but as soon as I saw the building, I was immediately hooked.

"Wow," I murmured as we approached the sinuous facade quite unlike anything else on the boulevard. La Pedrera, or the Stone Quarry, occupies the corner of the block. The first thing I noticed was the oddly shaped chimneys at the top of the building. Evidently these chimneys were so unnerving to Barcelona citizens when they were constructed they were nicknamed “espantabruxes” or witch scarers. The building was not widely accepted by Barcelonians when it first opened in 1910. In fact, the nickname, La Pedrera, was intended to convey the belief the building was simply a pile of rocks.

Another incredible aspect to the front façade were the fantastic balconies, shaped a bit like caves with black wrought-iron railings so intricate, they look like seaweed. We paid 7 Euros to enter the building, which is largely an apartment building but we were able to visit an example of the apartments called the Pis de la Pedrera. This apartment was filled with 20th century furniture. One feature of this building is the paucity of right angles in the rooms and when combined with the vaulted ceilings, this tends to produce a very spacious feel.

We next went up to the Espai Gaudi (Gaudi’s space) in the attic where we admired the incredible arches and curves lining the top of the building and serving as an insulating cushion for the bottom floors. This area has some terrific displays and models describing Gaudi’s work from across Spain, as well as an upside down model of the Sagrada Familia building. (More on that in the Sagrada Familia entry.)

From the attic we went on up to the roof, and as night had descended on the city, the roof had come alive. The spooky chimneys were illuminated with strong beams of lights, and we wandered around the roof for about 45 minutes, enjoying the atmosphere. We had the space largely to ourselves as it was late in the day. The place was more awesome than spooky, more spiritual than creepy, and we were both struck by the quiet beauty of the lines and columns.

Visiting La Pedrera was easily the best activity of our time in Barcelona, and although we did not plan to be there at nighttime, it turned out to be the perfect time to go.

One of our first stops in Barcelona was this amazing park designed by Gaudi. Parc Güell is a fun place to spend a morning or afternoon. This park was commissioned by Count Güell, one of Gaudi’s primary patrons. This was intended to be a garden community with several grand homes scattered throughout the grounds and including an open-air theater that would cover a marketplace. Unfortunately, the wealthier citizens of Barcelona preferred living closer to the downtown area of Barcelona and only 2 of the lots were ever sold.

Despite its failure as a garden community, the park has thrived as a public park, after the Güell family turned the area over to the city. We caught bus 24 at Placa Catalunya and rode it for about 10-15 minutes up to the entrance of the park. We immediately began wandering through the lush paths. We first were drawn to an upper gatehouse area, where musicians were playing to a small crowd. From there we wandered over to the winding open-air theater, comprised of many small alcoves with benches. These were later covered in a breathtaking mosaic by Josep Maria Jujol which snakes around the entire outside of the courtyard. Vendors sell trinkets in spots near the stairways, and several musicians belt out melodies in hopes you will donate a few euros or buy a cd. You can also look out over the entire city from this vantage, and get a glimpse of Sagrada Familia, another of Gaudi’s creations.

We headed down the stairs to find a large cavern underneath the enormous open-air courtyard, recalling this was intended to be the garden market. In several spots on the ceiling, beautiful mosaic pictures had been carefully installed. This area is called Sala Hipòstila (Hypostile Hall) and 86 pillars support the roof above.

We stopped by the visitors' center, a gatehouse at the front of the park. And of course, we stopped by the famous mosaic lizard or dragon, and along with dozens of others, jostled for our chance to snap a picture in front of this beautiful fountain. Although there is perhaps not one singular building or area that is the draw to this park, the combination of the architectural details and open areas creates an inviting and playful ambience that we thoroughly enjoyed. We only regretted we hadn’t brought along a picnic lunch!

Why visit an unfinished building, you might ask? Because it is one of the most stunning architectural designs ever put into action.

Despite the scaffolding, we were extremely impressed with this cathedral. Under construction for more than 100 years, this mammoth undertaking has been delayed by a war, the architect's death, lack of funding at times, and by a fire which consumed many of the original plans. Work on the temple began in 1882, and when Gaudi took over the project 2 years later, he drastically revamped the plans, and subsequently spent most of the rest of his life working to complete the project. Estimated date of completion? 2020. (Yeah right, laugh the pessimists.)

We paid our 8 Euros and entered the grounds, craning our necks along with others to take in the fantastical designs covering the outside fronts of the cathedral. Towering more than 310 feet high, the finished temple will seat nearly 13,000 people. There are 18 towers in total, four on each front represent the Apostles, and five others represent the Virgin Mary and four Evangelists. The grand central tower represents Christ.

We entered the main sanctuary and skirted along the outside of the massive construction site occupying the center. Only one of the stained glass windows has been completed, but its captivating beauty suggests how magnificent this room will be when finished. We entered through the Passion Façade and began climbing up the towers. Although we were quite comfortable in the narrow spiral staircase during our trip in the fall, I can imagine this would be hot and grueling in the summer months. From time to time, we stopped for a reprieve from the stairs on small balconies looking out over the city in the various towers. We crossed over open bridges and gaped unabashedly at the incredible sculptures lining the tops of the towers. Far below we could see the workers on the scaffolding, while it felt like we were truly flying over the city.

Down we climbed and I admit my legs were quivering a bit by the time we reached the bottom. We went to the bottom floor of the cathedral for the Museu Gaudi. We saw many of the original drawings prior to Gaudi’s arrival as well as what appeared to be Gaudi’s crypt. In addition, the curators have included a large hanging model of the entire cathedral inverted. Gaudi used this model to demonstrate the Theory of the Reversion of the Catenary to prove to doubters that the enormous arches could adequately support the weight of the towers above them. Fascinating and innovative designs abound here. One of Gaudi’s key contributions was his insistence that architecture include more elements of nature in its design, and the interior of this cathedral looks as much like a forest as it does a place of worship.

If you have only time enough to visit one sight in Barcelona, La Sagrada Familia should be the one.