Antonio Gaudí - Parque Güell / Sagrada Familia

I finally went to see Antonio Gaudí's most famous creations in Barcelona: Park Güell and the Sagrada Familia ("Expiatory Church of the Holy Family").

The Sagrada Familia church is a huge tourist attraction. It had over 2.6 million visitors in 2004. Since my apartment is a block away from it, Dan and I joke that we will probably be in hundreds of tourists' photos because we have to walk by while they are taking pictures. We would never make it to the subway if we waited for everyone to take their pictures before passing!


I cannot stress how huge the Sagrada Familia is. Barcelona does not have many skyscrapers, so when you look at the city from the surrounding mountains, you can really appreciate how ginormous it is!


The details are breathtaking and the interior columns dwarf the heavy duty construction equipment being used inside the temple. I took the elevator to the top of one of the towers then took the stairs all the way back down. Along the way down the snail-like stairways (which have no inside railing so it feels made me feel a little woozy), there are several photo opportunities where you can stand on little stone patios and snap some shots of the views while you are still high above the city.


I liked the front side (old side) of the Sagrada Familia the best. It is the most intricate part of the whole building. It looks really dirty but I guess the grime gives it some more character.

Park Guell:To get to Park Guell, we had to walk 20 minutes uphill from the metro station. Apparently, there is another way you can get there if you take a bus that is easier and drops you off on the side with outdoor escalators, but of course, I was "blessed" to be able to take in the whole experience while hiking up a mountain in long pants on a beautiful, sunny 80 degree day. :)
Like the Sagrada Familia, Park Guell is also a popular area for tourists. Although it was difficult to get past all the people to get some pictures of the key attractions, I found the site to be quite interesting and enjoyable once we got past the entrance to the park. There were several musicians playing various instruments for tips who were quite good! (There are musicians spread throughout the subway tunnels who play for tips as well who are also pretty good).



At the top of the mountain, there is a platform with a cross on it where you can stand and see the entire city of Barcelona. I took the city picture (showing the Sagrada Familia) in this blog post from that mountain.